The WORST episodes of This Old House

#1 - Westford: A Historical Gem Once Again

Season 46 - Episode 26 - Aired 5/29/2025

It's wrap week at the Westford House. The team arrives in a classic Model T and is greeted by Charlie Silva and the homeowners. Inside, Kevin O'Connor tours the updated spaces with Emily, Dianne, and Ethan. Outside, Charlie and Jenn Nawada review the restored portico and siding. Tom Silva and Kevin visit the new widow's walk, and Richard Trethewey shows Charles the air-to-water system.

#2 - The Newton Cottage - 5

Season 7 - Episode 5 - Aired 11/7/1985

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.

#3 - The Melrose House - 4

Season 7 - Episode 21 - Aired 2/27/1986

The nearly-completed attic renovation is ready to be insulated. Our host sets off for the Lexington Hotel in Chicago, once headquarters for Al Capone and now being renovated by Sunbow, a foundation that trains women in carpentry and other construction skills.

#4 - The Westwood House - 12

Season 9 - Episode 12 - Aired 12/17/1987

Our host and master painter Sam Perry discuss the progress of Weratherbee Farm's exterior paint work. The new addition is blueboarded, and plaster Calvin Mills demonstrates his art. Security systems specialist Edmund F. Baker shows us the hard-wired security system recommended for the house. Our master carpenter instructs homeowner Bill in replacing window sash cords.

#5 - The New Orleans House - 4

Season 12 - Episode 22 - Aired 2/22/1991

#6 - The New Orleans House - 5

Season 12 - Episode 23 - Aired 3/1/1991

#7 - Newton GenNEXT | All Decked Out

Season 39 - Episode 5 - Aired 11/2/2017

The apprentices learn the basics of framing a deck, while around the corner the chimney is demo-ed. The homeowners work with their interior designer to create a custom pattern for the tile floor. The flue for the wood-burning stove is installed.

#8 - Newton GenNEXT | Time for Trim

Season 39 - Episode 10 - Aired 1/11/2018

Granite goes down for wood stove. Nathan installs the porch ceiling. Kevin visits a home in Rhode Island where the exterior trim is pine. Richard reviews the placement of components at mechanical wall. Mauro shows how to repair holes in old plaster.

#9 - Newton GenNEXT | Homeowners Pitch In

Season 39 - Episode 11 - Aired 1/18/2018

Tommy trims the rough interior columns. Liz makes a stained glass window. Kevin tours a flooring factory in Pennsylvania. Richard visits a voc-tech school plumbing class. Norm shows Kevin a few new tricks he's learned for installing stair treads.

#10 - The Charleston Houses: Brick and Mortar

Season 39 - Episode 19 - Aired 4/12/2018

An old fireplace will house a new stove. Tommy discusses using interior casework with exposed brick. The kitchen house brick needs repointing. Roger tours hidden gardens. Across town, demo continues while Tommy and Judith look at flooring options.

#11 - Jamestown: The Net Zero Bungalow

Season 40 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/6/2018

This Old House is headed to a century-old New England cottage in Jamestown, Rhode Island, to restore the home's charm while also making it energy efficient. Homeowners Dana and Donald have a net-zero energy goal for the new home for their family of four, with state-of-the-art energy efficiency and environmental sensitivity at top of mind. For the first half of our 40th season, Sweenor Builders will be renovating the current structure as well as creating an addition that will double the size of the home. The biggest challenge? Making the two halves behave as a single, uniformly efficient and healthy whole.

#12 - Brookline Mid-Century Modern House: What's the Miter With the corner

Season 40 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/11/2019

Rebuilding a century-old puddingstone wall; revisiting the 2005 Cambridge modern project; installing trimless LED recessed lights; installing large tanks under the driveway to curtail rainwater runoff.

#13 - Nashville: Grounded

Season 46 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/10/2024

The episode opens with the house still in the backyard. While planning the prefabricated foundation walls to be set, an issue comes to light. Structural engineer, Michael Vines is onsite to solve the problem. Kevin O'Connor and Tom Silva try Nashville's famous hot chicken to celebrate. Later, house mover expert Don Toothman safely moves the house back over the new foundation.

#14 - Nashville: Sustainable Siding

Season 46 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/24/2024

Charlie Silva and Mark McCullough make a guest appearance. Charlie meets with factory manager Chandler Delinks to learn about the process of making siding from rice hulls. Meanwhile Kevin O'Connor discusses an indoor panel upgrade with electrician Ricardo Hernandez. Later, Charlie and Kevin help homeowners Rachel and Adam put up siding. Mark begins brick repair for the home office.

#15 - Nashville: Shelter From the Storm

Season 46 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/7/2024

Pressure is on at the Nashville house to finish on time. Zack Dettmore flies in to help builder Javier Gutierrez install a composite deck. Jenn Nawada meets homeowner Rachel and landscape designer Max Finkbeiner to discuss plans for the front yard. Kevin O'Connor meets with TEMA director Patrick Sheehan for tornado safety tips. Homeowner Adam and builder Lyn Bowman go over safe room plans.

#16 - Nashville: Southern Hospitality

Season 46 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/14/2024

It's moving day in Nashville, as the renovation of the 1920s brick cottage wraps up. Homeowner Adam gives Kevin O'Connor a tour of the first floor. Meanwhile, homeowner Rachel gives Tom Silva a tour upstairs. Richard Trethewey is in the basement looking at arguably the biggest upgrade of this build.. Jenn Nawada and Rachel plant a new tree with landscape designer Max Finkbeiner.

#17 - Ridgewood: Colonial Revival Revived

Season 46 - Episode 11 - Aired 1/16/2025

Kevin O'Connor joins architectural historian Maggie O'Neill to explore colonial revivals. Later, he and Zack Dettmore work on framing the upstairs addition. In the attic, Richard Trethewey explains that one mini-duct high velocity system is enough. In the basement, he and Lev Minsky install tubing on the main trunk line. Zack installs special hardware in the kitchen to prevent wall wracking.

#18 - Ridgewood: Ridgewood Revival

Season 46 - Episode 9 - Aired 1/2/2025

Zack is back! The team arrives in New Jersey for a project with builder Zack Dettmore, homeowners Peter and Kay, and their 1930s colonial. Kevin O'Connor and Peter tour the first floor to plan an expansion. Kay and Tom Silva discuss upgrades for the second floor. Richard Trethewey reviews plumbing upgrades in the basement while Jenn Nawada and the homeowners discuss patio plans.

#19 - Westford: A Family Affair

Season 46 - Episode 24 - Aired 5/15/2025

Kevin O'Connor checks out the restored wainscoting, head casings, and bay windows. Upstairs, Mauro Henrique teaches the homeowners how to paint a room evenly. Kevin meets tile setter Mike O'Neil, who restores fireplace tiles and repairs a damaged face piece. At Williamson Trade School, he meets the grads. Then Kevin helps finish the media room bay window with Tom Silva and Kevin Rafferty.

#20 - Westford: Gutted & Rewired

Season 46 - Episode 23 - Aired 5/8/2025

Kevin O'Connor meets Charlie Silva upstairs, who explains his phased approach to insulation: attic first, then the rest of the house. They review the bathroom plans. Kevin checks on solar prep with Dan McCarthy and gutter work with Tom Silva. Meanwhile, Heath Eastman travels to NH to help rewire an antique chandelier. Back at the house, Kevin and Charlie finish the portico railings.

#21 - Westford: Side Hustle

Season 46 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/1/2025

Kevin O'Connor meets Charlie Silva, who's installing maintenance-free composite siding. Inside, Kevin talks with homeowner Emily and kitchen designer Kaytlyn Constantinou about bringing her kitchen vision to life. Out back, Mark McCullough uses repurposed stone to veneer the new addition. Later, Kevin meets Tobias in Switzerland to discuss vocational carpentry training.

#22 - Westford: Septic, Stairs and Subs

Season 46 - Episode 21 - Aired 4/24/2025

Kevin O'Connor checks in with Mauro Henrique about the new siding, which is ready for installation, but the trim needs final color approval. Inside, Heath Eastman is preparing to start wiring the kitchen. Richard Trethewey explains the septic system needs to be replaced. Charlie and Tom Silva rebuild the staircase and install the widow's walk railing, sealing posts to prevent leaks.

#23 - Westford: Abating the Old, Seeding the New

Season 46 - Episode 20 - Aired 4/17/2025

Kevin O'Connor meets environmental abatement specialist Ron Peik, overseeing lead paint removal from the staircase. In the basement, waterproofing specialist Hugo Provetti discusses sealing the foundation from the inside. Later, Kevin and Jenn Nawada head to an apple orchard where Jenn gets a gift for the homeowners. Tom Silva, Charlie Silva_and Kevin install the new roof hatch.

#24 - Westford: Heavy Metal

Season 46 - Episode 19 - Aired 4/10/2025

Kevin O'Connor finds Richard Trethewey in the attic. Richard explains the use of the mini duct system to save the homeowners space in the attic. Later, Tom Silva visits Fire Chief Terrence Baudin who explains why fires travel so fast in a balloon framed house. Meanwhile back at the house, Roofing contractor Tommy Santos and Kevin install a shingle style metal roof.

#25 - Westford: Updates Under a New Roof

Season 46 - Episode 18 - Aired 4/3/2025

Charlie and Tom Silva work in the attic, installing a hip beam and roof rafters to match the original roof. Downstairs, building scientist Joe Lstiburek discusses with Kevin O'Connor how insulating exterior walls can damage siding if energy flow isn't considered. Later, Mark McCullough brings in a stone cutter to cut through the original foundation, creating a garage door opening in the basement.