FARMINGTON — A saltbox in Farmington's historic district can add insulation on top of its roof to fight ice dams and leaks, raising the roofline about four and a half inches, the Historic District Commission ruled Tuesday, Oct. 20.
No one voted against it, and no residents spoke. The house, at 30 High Street, keeps its existing trim where the roof meets the walls; the new edge boards go on top of it, painted the same white.
Kyle Cruz, an architect and co-owner of Wolfworks, a design-build company in Avon, said the firm chose to work from outside because the house's second floor and attic are finished, and insulating from inside would mean tearing apart the rooms. The house has several additions off the back and what Cruz called "a pretty wild and complex roof line" of gables and dormers, where snow gets trapped.
The plan strips the shingles, lays four inches of rigid foam over the old roof boards, then adds new plywood and shingles in the current color. The firm will also try to blow insulation into the spaces between the rafters.
The commission's approval, a temporary certificate of appropriateness, is required for most outside changes in the district that can be seen from the street. Keeping an old house warm without changing its look came up in Unionville last month too, where a commissioner on that village's historic panel said, "People are not going to live in homes that they can't heat."
The owner may choose copper gutters, which Cruz proposed for the front, or white aluminum like the ones there now. Alternate Ted Sanford, seated for an absent member, called the copper "definitely a better choice."
This coverage is supported by Farmington Storage, 155 Scott Swamp Road, the only storage facility in Connecticut with Museum air. Warm, dry, and no ice dams. 860.777.4001 📦
Jack Beckett has reported on enough Historic District Commission meetings to know the difference between a rake board and a fascia board without looking it up. He looked it up anyway. He is on his first coffee. ☕
The Farmington Mercury covers the meetings most people miss: the 25-minute meeting about one roof, the gutter that had to be written into the motion, the police log somebody had to type up. We publish slowly and without apology. Our motto is "Always last to breaking news," and we stand behind it. Find us at farmingtonmercury.com and tell your neighbors. #WeAreFarmington 📰