Seasons & episodes

The greenhouse frame ie erected and the window glazing process is demonstrated. Later, quilted shades are installed over the windows to provide insulation at night.

The homeowners learn how to install plumbing for the greenhouse heating system and how to wire the new addition for electricity.

The homeowners get a lesson in carpentry as redwood benches and and shelves for the greenhouse are constructed.

Our host introduces the next project of the season: a kitchen remodeling. Our host and the homeowners discuss how to update the kitchen facilities and layout while maintaining the traditional late-Victorian look of the home.

Demolition begins on the kitchen remodeling project when a dumpster is secured. Richard Trethewey gives the homeowners some unsettling news about the jumble of pipes in the basement.

Our host tours the Brosco window manufacturing plant in North Andover, Massachusetts, before installing a bay window in the kitchen. The kitchen walls are insulated and new plumbing is inspected in the basement.

The homeowners pick up new kitchen appliances with the help of a professional kitchen designer. Custom-made oak cabinets are installed.

The new kitchen receives a sink and garage disposal system, and tiling techniques are reviewed.

Finishing touches are applied in the remodeled kitchen. The beech flooring is completed, a wood stove is installed, and the kitchen is outfitted with cooking accessories.

Our host introduces the final project of the season: a disaster of an apartment beginning for redecoration. Working with designer Ben Lloyd of Mertopolitan Home magazine, tenants Margie and Eric begin to think about use of color, furnishing and accessories.

Experts at the New England Design Center advise our host and the apartment dwellers on choosing fabrics, furnishings and carpeting. Back in the apartment, Ben Lloyd presents final plans for the redecoration and design.

Lighting expert Richard Mecher discusses portable lighting fixtures for the apartment. Our host reviews progress in the kithcen and oversees restoration of the cork floor in the guest room and office.

Final details are completed in the apartment, including the installation of state-of-the-art telephone and a personal computer. Designer Ben Lloyd, tenants Margie and Eric and our host take a final tour of the newly decorated apartment.

Our host meets with homeowners Linda and Bill to plan the first project: a two-story addition to an 1860s Victorian in Newton, Massachusetts. The new free-standing structure - connected to the original building via skywalk - is slated to consist of a one-car garage and storage area with an interior staircase leading to a second-floor family room and home office. A member of the Boston-based Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities (SPNEA) will be on hand to point out the historically significant features of the original house.

Final plans for the addition are reviewed with the architects. Then we make an encore visit to the United Wrecking Company to see what gems can be culled from the Connecticut salvage yard.

A hole is dug for the foundation of the new addition, and the slab is poured. Our master carpenter demonstrates the carpentry skills necessary for framing.

As our host gets into the nuts and bolts of roof installation, the Victorian's homeowners learn the art of shingling. Meanwhile, our master carpenter tackles the finish work by trimming the addition's windows.

Construction continues with the installation of the staircase. Homeowners insulate the structure and our master carpenter discusses and demonstrates the framing and installation of windows. Our host takes a side trip to Diamond Head, Hawaii, to tour the construction.

The garage door is installed, while work on the water and heating systems for the new bathroom proceeds with rough plumbing and gas fitting. Homeowners the get a lesson in rough electrical wiring.

Tile is installed in the new addition. On an excursion to Seattle, Washington, our host looks at a renovated hotel and visits elegant houseboats.

Inside, final electrical work is performed in the new addition and carpet is installed, while outside homeowners nail shingles and apply stain. Completion of the project is marked by a recap of the budget, and cost-saving measures are discussed. Our host learns the art of making white cedar shingles at a mill in Quebec.

The second project of the season begins: doubling the living space of a ranch house by raising the roof to create a second floor. Our host discusses the homeowners' needs and reviews remodeling plans with them, a banker explains various ways to finance home improvement, and another ranch home where similar remodeling has been completed is visited.

The project gets underway with demolition of the existing roof and opening of the house. Carpenters race to frame and close in the new second floor to protect the structure from weather.

Construction of the ranch house's new roof is completed, and shingling begins. Our host and the crew visit Hancock Lumber in Casco, Maine, to watch as timber is milled into dimension lumber.