Posted by jsexton – December 2, 2006 4:53 PM
On Friday the plan was to put down the last coat of polyurethane on the hardwood floors. You'll remember that I'm very particular about the floors and want them to look bright and shiny. So Aaron agreed to do a final coat after the heavy duty work was finished.
So we moved out one last time (we thought) to avoid the polyurethane fumes. We decided to make a fun night of it, staying at a hotel with an indoor pool. We ordered food, watched TV, swam in the pool and ate breakfast out. We were all excited because, with the floors finished, we could begin moving furniture back into the living room and dining room. Life could begin returning to normal.
When we returned home around 11:00 a.m. today (Saturday), major disappointment. The floor team had not made it to our house at all. We were furious. The whole night out had been unnecessary.
Gretchen called Aaron and he too was upset. The last he had heard on Friday, the floor crew was running late, but still planned to arrive around 5:30 p.m. He had no idea why they didn't show, and started making calls. To make it up to us, he's going to cover the cost of our night out. I gotta tell you, he is a stand up guy on all fronts.
Throughout this remodel I've stayed cool whenever issues popped up. This time, not so much.
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when doing renovations and home improvements you should not be so judgemental and upset but remember the final product is what counts. things happen that we have no control of. be grateful that you could afford a night out.
My husband and I just finished our dream home, and yes there were problems, but the reward was well worth it.
P.S.
I would not do it again- dont think my marriage could stand it
Rhonda
Posted by Rhonda – December 12, 2006 7:57 PM
While I enjoy your chronicles, I'm having a hard time feeling your anger and sympathizing. You can afford to move out while you pay to have someone else come in and do the work? I wish! I'm finishing my kitchen remodel and my girlfriend, her two kids and I ate out of a microwave while the kitchen was down. We lived with the sawdust and drywall dust and paint and stone sealant fumes while things were getting done. We mixed every batch of mortar and brushed every stroke of paint and sealant. We saved a TON of money and have the satisfaction of having done it all ourselves. Please, don't complain too loudly.
Posted by Don – December 13, 2006 6:47 AM
We expanded our kitchen out to our enclosed back porch. My husband has done all the work, plus his regular job. He has made all the oak cupboards and has worked as hard as any one that does this for a living. This has been going on for 9 months, but we plan to stay the rest of our lives in our 95 year old home. We are nearing the completion and every trip to the Home Depot, Lowes or Menards has been an adventure. Many changes in color scheme and styles, but I can see that we are going to love and be proud of what has been accomplished. Something you do yourself is something you can treasure forever.
Posted by Chris SMith – December 13, 2006 9:09 AM
Wow! All good stuff. I too am planning a kitchen remodel and am thankful for blogs such as this. Here is where I am to date. I can't afford expensive contractors and would love to feel some of the satisfaction of having done something myself/ourselves (depending on how much assistance the wife brings to the table). So that's the easy part - I/we plan to do the bulk of the work myself/ourselves. This will be a challenge in and of itself. I'm not a very experienced handy-man. There will be countless hours of research, trial, and error. However the biggest obstacle I can see moving forward is materials selection and finishes (no point in mentioning money again). My wife and I have vastly different tastes and to add tension, the marriage is already on the rocks for various reasons. Hence forth my dilemma: Remodel or remarry? I have no choice other than to remodel but this may be the perverbial nail in the coffin for the marriage. Perhaps soon to be handy-man, soon to be single-man. Any takers?
Posted by Moe004 – December 13, 2006 10:32 AM
Not Happy has every right to complain - it was their time and their money. I have been in a renovation nightmare for the last 13 months. My original contractor turned out to be a huge crook, he left us with holes in our house, no kitchen and took a lot of money from us. I am on my second hot plate! The Better Business Bureau is a joke and there is no money left for a lawyer. So, I think homeowners need to stand up for themselves and demand that the people in this business live up to what they promise. Not all contractors are bad, but I bet if you start asking around you will hear more bad stories than good. We have a decent contractor now, but they work on so many different jobs at the same time you still get no-shows and false promises.
Good luck to you all!
Posted by Mel – December 14, 2006 9:43 AM
I really enjoy reading all of these blogs. We just bought our very first house, and it is very old, needs lots of repairs. We want to start in the kitchen and bathroom, and I know it is going to be a HUGE learning experience. My husband is very good when the demolation is in process and then the rest just takes forever. Any hints on where the best places are for tile floors and cabinets? He wants hardwood and I am thinking that would look awsome, but for the bathroom I dont think the wood would last as long as the tile, am I wrong? Any hints on how to make this go smoothly I would greatly appreciate it. Did I mention we are going to TRY and do most of this by ourselves? Should be VERY interesting.
Posted by Andrea – December 15, 2006 3:07 PM
Please help me with my HOUSE its really messy and too small I have 6 people living in a three bedroom house.
Posted by Brandy – January 10, 2007 10:31 PM
Bad contractors, no shows and time off to wait for them you bet. My second time was the charm. I put in a penalty for those no show and we are behind days $200.00 a day off our contract. If they won't sign say goodbye and find a contracter who is willing to give his word and money to back it up.
Posted by Laura – January 12, 2007 10:19 PM
She has every right to complain. My husband is a contractor, and would NEVER not show. Sometimes things come up, he still has a family ya know.. but he would call. In fact, he only asks for a percentage of the money up front and the balance when done. NEVER EVER pay the full amount of front and have it all in a contract. Thankfully this means I save a bit of money. But his regular job comes first then side clients. I waited 6 months for my dream bathroom to be done. I am worried about the kitchen, bigger project. But I have motivation, he likes to eat!
Posted by Patty Fantetti – January 14, 2007 9:08 AM
I too have started to remodel my kitchen. So many choices, and what I like and love keeps changing. However, I got a referral for a cabinet builder, checked his references, and will get a half-price deal on cabinets. It's good to go from a 12,000 price tag (Lowe's) to a 6,000, so I now can afford my dream of granite countertops. Those too will be far cheaper than the home improvements...around $42 a sq. ft...but will still run a cool 3,000...shewww...I'm building a room in my basement to serve as a den until we get through with remodeling. Since we plan to take the wall out between living room and kitchen
we will need an area for some solice. I have always done all the interior painting and upkeep, (hubby loves race cars)but I sure don't appreciate him taking off to do whatever when I'm trying to finagle room to accomodate new den. What is he thinking???? I guess he thinks I can handle it, but being in school to get my bs degree, getting through Christmas,and cleaning out the awful basement is getting to me!!!! I surely can relate to all the marital problems remodeling is known for. I guess I need to hush up and be glad my husband (after 20 yrs of marriage) is finally letting me get the kitchen of my dreams, but he sure doesn't want to pay to get that room built. And,he came back home in the evening(after the framer finished)and looked at the room and had the nerve to say...'it is really small, and I wanted the wall next to the stairwell'. To that I replied, 'well, you should have been here.' I have to give him credit though, he did leave me his truck to go get the materials for the room, and he took our little girl (4), God bless him! Be glad when it's over...6 months????.. I hope not!!!..but it is looking that way. Maybe by Thanksgiving our whole family can enjoy it...I just got to get those before and after pics..so much to do! lol
Posted by karen hilton – January 26, 2007 10:37 AM
Am i the only person who has trouble with the 3-D kitchen designer? i tried to see where I could report this to no avail....oh well my fault I guess for not getting measurements on paper. Anyone know of some other programs I can use? Thanks
Posted by Kim – February 28, 2007 12:45 PM
Love what you did for your kitchen. We are going to renovate our kitchen too. May I ask the dimension of your kitchen before and after? Also, what type of floor you got for your kitchen. I too have little ones at home. Thanks
Posted by Jessie – March 5, 2007 10:14 AM
I need some ideas ! My kitchen is knotty pine walls and one wall in the dining room is knotty pine. I really like it though it is dated. However, I need to change some wood trim and crown moldings and don't think I can match the knotty pine color. I am getting ready to redo the house to put up for sale. Do you think it would be better to paint the knotty pine walls? I need some ideas as I have never had to deal with this before.
Posted by bobbie – March 5, 2007 3:12 PM
Jesse,
Our footprint for the kitchen did not change as we did not add anything on to the house. By knocking out walls it gives us the visual openess of a large space. And we don't have a wall oven unit cutting the space in two as we originally did. The dimensions of the kitchen are approximately---18' long X 12' wide, this does not include the 4' of space behind the bar stools (right where the bathroom used to be).
Posted by Gretchen – March 13, 2007 10:46 AM
Bobbie-with the knotty pine... I had knotty pine walls and knotty pine cabinets. I tried everything!!! painted them... filled the groves and wallpapered.... finally had to gut it to the studs and start over.
Posted by Patty Fantetti – May 9, 2007 11:04 AM
