The WORST episodes of This Old House

#1 - Saratoga Springs: Raise The Roof

Season 43 - Episode 31 - Aired 5/26/2022

The original foundation needs repointing. A steel beam is installed in the new basement. Trends in plumbing fixtures are explored. A truss system is the solution for the 3rd-floor living space, which leads to a visit to the manufacturer.

#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 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.

#4 - The New Orleans House - 4

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

#5 - The New Orleans House - 5

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

#6 - Jamestown: Net Zero From the Ground Up

Season 40 - Episode 2 - Aired 10/13/2018

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.

#7 - 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.

#8 - West Roxbury: Focus On Finishes

Season 43 - Episode 25 - Aired 4/14/2022

A quartz countertop and hidden receptacles are installed in the new modern kitchen, while original crown molding is matched in the dining room. It's time to hang the interior doors. Hardware installation marks the beginning of the finishing details.

#9 - Saratoga Springs: TOH In Saratoga Springs

Season 43 - Episode 27 - Aired 4/28/2022

It's off to the races on a new project in Saratoga Springs, NY; but first, the crew gets a history of the bustling city. They meet new homeowners Evan and Whitney and Evan's mother Susan. The house has been in Evan's family for seven generations.

#10 - The Melrose House - 3

Season 7 - Episode 20 - Aired 2/20/1986

Work proceeds inside and out on Tug's attic, as the roof is shingled and skylights and windows are installed. Our host is given a special tour of New York's Trump Tower, where luxury and elegance abound.

#11 - The Reading Ranch - 7

Season 7 - Episode 15 - Aired 1/16/1986

We go on an encore field trip to Ryland Homes, Maryland-based manufacturers of prefabricated houses renowned for low cost and energy efficiency. Back at the construction site, our host and our master carpenter work with Frank to build the deck on his new second-story addition.

#12 - The Newton Cottage - 7

Season 7 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/21/1985

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

#13 - Summer Special: Return to Paradise

Season 42 - Episode 30 - Aired 9/16/2021

Residents of Paradise, California woke on the morning of Nov. 18, 2018, to find their quiet town overtaken by an uncontrollable wildfire. The fire would burn thousands of homes, businesses, schools and make it difficult to escape—resulting in 85 deaths. This Old House follows three families on their emotional journey as they rebuild their homes.

#14 - Brookline Mid-Century Modern House: Finally Finishes

Season 40 - Episode 25 - Aired 6/22/2019

Installing closet systems, modern baseboards and a linear wall drain in the master shower; selecting door hardware; installing floating bathroom vanities.

#15 - In and Around Boston - An Artful Apartment 4

Season 6 - Episode 26 - Aired 3/29/1985

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.

#16 - Behind the Build: Memorable Makers

Season 42 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/18/2020

This Old House features talented makers. From young blacksmiths metalworking to a woodworker who finds centuries-old lumber under water, we visit people and places all over the country who make beautiful household items.

#17 - Summer Special: Rebirth of Detroit

Season 42 - Episode 29 - Aired 9/9/2021

Kevin, Richard, and Tom follow a family on their journey to restore an abandoned house in Detroit. The city has a program to bring these empty houses back to life, revitalizing the neighborhoods.

#18 - 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.

#19 - The New Orleans House - 3

Season 12 - Episode 21 - Aired 2/15/1991

#20 - The Jamaica Plain House - 18

Season 12 - Episode 18 - Aired 12/29/1990

The final day. Boston's Mayor Ray Flynn drops by to welcome Hazel to the city and gives her a wreath. Designer Joe Ruggiero shows us the three different treatments he gave each floor of the triple-decker, and we see how the stenciling and checkerboarding in the foyer were done. Out at the workshop, the guys build a folding screen for the first-floor dining room.

#21 - The Lexington Bed and Breakfast - 18

Season 10 - Episode 18 - Aired 12/29/1988

The crew installs a metal railing on the granite patio using hydrolic cement. We then visit a single-family home development in Aurora, Illinois, featuring houses so energy-efficient the builder guarantees that annual heating bills will not exceed $200.

#22 - The Lexington Bed and Breakfast - 16

Season 10 - Episode 16 - Aired 12/15/1988

Our host and Jim Sinek discuss the budget. Meanwhile, plastering contractors have begun their work. Our host tries out plastering stilts. Then we visit a bed and breakfast in Williamstown, Massachusetts, where the homeowners used the B&B income to restore their 1770 farmhouse to museum quality. Back in Lexington, our host checks out the fireplace chimney pipe in the attic. Outside, the crew has built a faux chimney to hide the metal pipe and give it a brick facade.

#23 - The Santa Barbara Bungalow - 4

Season 9 - Episode 24 - Aired 3/10/1988

Work on the California bungalow continues with the homeowners pitching in. The crew starts shingling the new roof, and our master carpenter starts to assemble the pergola. Electrician Rudy Escalera stops by and landscape architect Grant Castleberg shows his rough design plans. Later, our host takes a tour of the Hearst Castle in San Simeon.

#24 - The Westwood House - 20

Season 9 - Episode 20 - Aired 2/11/1988

Our host leads us on a tour of the finished and decorated Weatherbee Farm with interior designer Jean LeMon. Upstairs, designer Joe Ruggiero shows us simple decorated techniques used in the master bedroom and bath.

#25 - The Phoenix House - 3

Season 8 - Episode 23 - Aired 3/19/1987

Tom and Ellen's Phoenix home receives exterior insulation and flashing, as well as a typical Southwestern viga and latilla ceiling in the master bedroom for added protection from the heat. The balcony piers and staircase are finished with adobe plastering, and viewers learn how to install flagstone paving. Our host pays a visit to Frank Lloyd Wright's famed Talesin West.