Sweat Equity

Even with a great design/build team, there’s still a lot we do as the homeowners. We didn’t have to, but we added to our workload, and set things up for some finishing touches that will make the difference when you walk in the front door in a few weeks…

First, I took down the 1980s vibe mirror tiles that were by the front door. To no one’s surprise… the paint underneath was AVOCADO GREEN!!!  AHHHHHHHhhhhh!!!!  But when it’s scraped, sanded and painted, it will look really, really good. The stupid tiles had double-sided tape on the back, so that means extra prep for the painters before they start painting. But we kinda knew that was coming.

Then, in a fit of inspiration (and possible insanity) I decided to take up the ripped up carpet on the steps. It’s a good thing that we did, because in places the padding underneath had fallen apart, and there was a definite “aroma” to the carpeting that I don’t think we will miss. (Be grateful that blogs are not scratch-n-sniff!)

As with any demo job, the ripping out part was easy. Removing a gazillion staples and nails to finish the job on the steps was not!  I conscripted our high schooler to help me, and she and I got 99% of the staples out. Then I vacuumed and washed down the steps. It’s already a huge improvement. Once the painting and so on is done, we will be re-carpeting the steps and upstairs hallway. But for now, the wood steps look much nicer.

So it was a little sweat equity, but I think it was a good idea. Don’t you agree?

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Seeing the “bones” start to take shape!

We’re now at the point where we can see the ‘bones’ of the rough in. It’s pretty amazing to get a feel for what it will look like.

This week the major demolition was done. I had the kind of week at work where quite truthfully I wish I had been given a hammer to smash some things. It might have helped my disposition. Be that as it may, enough of the changes are happening that we are feeling like we know what it is going to be like.

And it’s amazing!

After the demo was done, the next big tasks were to install the new kitchen window, remove the old kitchen window, and move the sliding door to its new location near the dining room. Then the interior wall came down (which used to be one side of the kitchen backing to the front hall), and the bulkhead was reduced. Standing in the space with the new footprint and some of the rough wall outlines gives a pretty clear idea of how it will look.

Take a look and see what you think!

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Well, not the best day… but a LOT happened!

The best laid-plans (and communication) can go awry.

Today the entire kitchen was demo’d and all of the appliances were removed. I thought I had another day or two. (I did not check the master schedule – it was our fault! They had warned us.) Fortunately, I was able to get something leftover (ka-bobs from the weekend) to warm up for dinner without too much trouble. I moved all of the contents from the kitchen fridge to the basement freezer and fridge. We also had to take down a dust wall to get some things out of the dining room. I had not finished cleaning that area out, and so… well… we had to do a bit of extra work tonight, work that we were not exactly planning on doing… but had to be done, nonetheless.

The good news is we have done 99% of the work for the construction moving/packing/relocating. The last bit will be when we have to be out of the way for the installation of the floors… in about 6 weeks.

So it’s out with the old…

And in with the temporary…

Until we get to the new!!

If you give a kid a marker…

…they WILL write on the walls if you let them.

George, our on-site foreman, told me that a lot of families let their kids write all over the walls right before the dry wall is demo’d. So I made the offer, and it was accepted. 🙂 I enjoyed what I found when I got home. Here’s just a small bit of the fun:

There’s still time if you want to come decorate the remaining wall. 🙂

3 more weeks until inside demo…

We found out today we have 3 more weeks until inside demo begins. We will have to vacate the current kitchen and move into our alternate space then. While I have pared things down a lot, I know that last hurdle will be a big one. Right now I’m trying to decide how to handle things like our pantry items. Do I store them? Sort and pitch? Stockpile some essentials? I’m guessing it will be a little bit of all three. The biggest challenges will center around doing the laundry. We have to walk through the construction zone to get to the basement (where the washer and dryer are located). The basement is also where we have our major chill time (TV, etc.)

It’s a small inconvenience towards a bigger goal.

Hmmmmm…. sounds a lot like life.

Welcome to my castle…

We have a moat!

We came home yesterday to find the back door of the garage barricaded, and a four foot trench dug out to the side yard. The longer, narrower trench is part of the new required drainage system. We’re delighted that we can do this – it’s something we have wanted to do for a LONG time! Today a larger trench was added for the footers at the back of the house, and now the sliding glass door is barricaded as well.

Here’s what it looks like:

Directly under our bedroom, at the sliding door (watch that first step!)

Looking down to the left, behind the garage.

But all I can think of is this:

“You SWAM the Moat?”

Demo on the outside…

Day number two of construction!

I came home from work and found that the patio and arbor were demolished. Here’s what the back of the house looks like now:

This is view from behind the garage, looking towards the dining room.

This is a view that shows pretty much the area of the addition. It will begin where the house meets the garage on the right, and span the rear of the house to about the location of the present gas meter. (The gas meter will be moved.) The left side of the addition will have a small porch with a sliding door that will lead onto an L-shaped patio (that will wrap the addition.)

Good stuff!