Improvements:
Barn
The barn is a one story structure, 28' x 32', with a roofed 9' x 28' addition. It has a metal roof. It is approximately 15 years old, and appears to be in excellent condition. a portion of it has a 6" concrete floor, and a portion has a 4" concrete floor. There is one horse stall.
Workshop:
This building is a one story frame structure, 16' x 16' with a metal roof. It has electricity and a circuit box, and also a woodstove which was installed by Landscape II.
Additional Information:
This country residence
is situated in a peaceful rural setting. The approximate travel time to State College is 30 minutes.
This country residence is an ideal property for those who wish to live in the country, have some elbow room, and enjoy nature and wildlife with walks through the numerous trails throughout the woodland. Many of these trails can also be traveled with a motor vehicle. The trails are outlined on the aerial photograph on the photograph page. The majority of the woodland lays extremely nicely for a tract of this size. A forester has estimated that presently there is $20,000 worth of red oak which could be harvested.
Very few properties show the heart and soul of the owners. This one does. Many improvements were done by the present owners. Evidence of their love and care of the property show though how they did the work, and how they maintained the rustic character of the exterior of the property. Below is information which they provided for us:
In the owner's words:
"Eileen and I feel we were "stewards" during our ownership of this property. And we honestly felt that that is what we were, caretakers for something much bigger than ourselves, a property with a history, perhaps neglected for a bit, and, with our opportunity, brought back to it's peak, to show it's luster to all who had the chance to come and visit."
When we moved here in 1992 there was one Hydrangea bush – next to the outhouse/garden shed. Here is a list of some features we added to this property, along with some brief descriptions:
Main House
Flooring A ¾ inch Hickory floor was installed in 2001, complete with factory finish for durability. We added hickory floor vents, too. A walnut frame borders the fieldstone underneath the renovated Diligent wood stove.
Kitchen The cupboards (hewn from pine off this property) were refinished in the late 1990s. In 2001 we added the 8-foot patio door and the large opening to the “tavern room”. Engineered headers were installed to honor the weight bearing loads for these walls. The new garden window provides a wonderful place for plants and starts for your gardens. New lighting and a ceiling fan were also added. Living on the north face of Brush Mountain brings natural frost drainage and air flows that offer comfortable breezes during what are, for ‘flat landers’, hot, steamy days.
Bathrooms The first floor bath has new flooring, commode and sink. The washer and dryer were moved to the basement and the tub was installed. The second floor bath was upgraded with new fixtures, sink, commode, tub, lighting and ventilation.
Windows New double hung windows were added in 2001, and stained to match the original trim color. They tilt for easy cleaning and have vinyl exteriors to reduce maintenance worries.
Basement A new furnace and hot water heater were added in 2001. Shelving was added and the laundry room was installed, too. Two water filters in series were added as well as a backflow exterior faucet. Some beams were “sistered” and reinforced during the flooring project, and the crawl space under the kitchen was insulated and a vapor barrier was installed.
Attic Additional lighting, installation and ventilation were added.
Hallway Carpeting was removed and the wood floors improved and amended.
Roof We finished the roof in 2001 and installed new gutters, downspouts and snow birds in 2005.
Electric A new service panel was added last year.
Audio Four satellite and speaker jacks are on the first floor – in the kitchen (2), tavern room, and living room. Each accommodates television and drives internal and external speakers. Two more TV jacks are upstairs. All first floor installations are hardwired – installed when we replaced the flooring, so that no speaker wire is visible.
Spa The 5-person Coleman tub can remain with the property. Floodlights (on a dimmer switch) offer lighting, and the stars are simply spectacular – we witnessed countless shooting stars and other celestial wonders.
Water A mountain spring meanders under the newly installed cedar tabletop, easily removed for access. A new pump and bladder were installed in the basement in the late 1990s. A new septic system with pump was installed in 2000 and the drainage field is located above the outhouse.
Grounds and Gardens
Fencing We installed a locust post fence for it’s rustic appeal, resistance to rot, and its regional availability. Adding wire fencing behind it and placing welded wire fencing around the barn and adjoining woods, we were able to offer several acres of secured area for our pets to enjoy. Three gates allow for easy access to several miles of old logging roads.
Deck We constructed the deck using 11 tons of pea gravel which supports pressure treated 6 X 6 horizontal posts, which in turn support a series of 2 X 12 joists that lay beneath the cedar planks. We used treated screws vs. nails to allow for easy access to the support infrastructure and the ability to easily replace any boards needing attention.
Gardens There are thousands of perennials on this property offering many ‘three-season’ gardens for your enjoyment. Pear and plum trees cascade down towards the deck and have provided abundant fruit as well. Flower gardens include a variety of crocus, daffodils – yellow, white, cream, and pink-tinged, tulips – red, purple, white and purple, curled, pink, and giant pink, lilies – day, Easter, and Asiatic, asters, hollyhocks, Virginia bluebells, hydrangea – white, blue, and pink, bleeding hearts – seasonal and summer long, foxglove, black-eyed susan, many hosta varieties, strawberries, lamb’s ear, buddleia – white and purple, Rosa regussa, climbing rose, snow drop, hyacinths, a large bed of re-seeding cilantro, dill, thyme, lemon thyme, clematis, sedum.
The field behind the barn was an apple orchard for years. It was eliminated by the previous owner to put horses out to pasture. There are the remnants of an electric fence around some of the perimeter.
The garden nearest the shed was our vegetable garden, and boasts a nice asparagus patch. It produced lots of food when we used to actively grow a vegetable garden. The one near the house, off the deck, that is now a flower garden, used to be prolific, and got incredible sun, especially late in the season. It seemed like we have some sort of micro climate there, or at least that's what we've been told by some master gardeners. Frost drainage late in the season allowed us to grow, among other things, habanero and other hot peppers that need at least 100 days to mature. We also had flowers on our stone walls during one Thanksgiving.
Stonewalls Over 80 tons of stone were used to build the series of dry stonewalls behind the house. This created three flat terraces, allowed us to install French drainage behind the house, and offered opportunities to plant several “three season” gardens on each level. Exterior floodlights provide an amazing view from the kitchen via the large garden window.
Hiking trails The series of old logging roads offer several miles of forested hiking trails that remain free of brush and other obstructions throughout the seasons. The upper trails offer panoramic valley views from mid-fall through late spring, while the lower ones provide shorter hiking opportunities for morning dog walks and other abbreviated adventures.
Workshop The shed’s original metal exterior was removed and replaced with T-111. Insulation, paneling and power were installed. The wood stove was installed by Landscape II. Two barn beams serve as workstations.
Barn The barn, complete with electric lighting and an outlet, received a new sliding door and batten for improved weatherization. A six-inch concrete floor was installed to accommodate vehicle and RV storage, and a four-inch floor was installed on the side where there is one horse stall. Ridge vents, gutters and downspouts were added.
Garden Shed This original bathroom (outhouse) is still legal and usable to this day, though it has served primarily as a garden shed.
