This Old House

Los Angeles; Secrets of Silver Lake (32x20)

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Master carpenter Norm Abram arrives to find site supervisor Angel Leon wrestling with the latest challenge of the project: replicating the arch details from the front living room in various openings in the house. Outside, stucco specialist Alfonso Garcia shows Norm how the stucco system starts on the new addition with the scratch coat, and then the brown coat. The top two layers will be placed once the base is dry. On the other side of the lake, host Kevin O'Connor meets resident director Sarah Lorenzen to see architect Richard Neutra's VDL Studio and learn why the house and the architect are so important to the neighborhood and to California modern architecture. Back at the house, insulation contractor Pat McKinley shows Norm the batt insulation he's using in the basement—it's a dusty-colored fiberglass batt made with 30% post-consumer recycled bottle glass and formaldehyde-free binders. Project designer Shelby Roberts takes Kevin to a South Pasadena tile showroom to meet tile specialist Tisa Adamson and see the reproduction tile that's being selected for the project. To cut down on costs, they choose a combination of hand-made and factory-made tile. Back at the house, wallboard goes up around the main arch leading from the kitchen to the new family room.