Week 33: Finally at the Front!

 
 
 
 

With the foundation work done, the work on the front porch was started this week. Lots of progress as well on the kitchen and the tile work and the interior lighting. Next week the focus will be on the front porch and siding as well as getting functional plumbing in the kitchen and 1st floor guest bath. The tile work in the master bath should be done next week as well and then we can focus on the stairs and the interior doors and an occupancy permit!!!

Week 32: Earth, Fire, Water

 
 
 
 
 
 


An interesting week on the job site. A new coat of waterproof rubber was applied to the foundation block. They will put some crushed stone and perforated pipe down in the hole before backfilling with the dirt (which now forms a 15 foot mountain in my front yard!). As they backfill they will place the footings for the front porch. After that the framing of the porch and final push on exterior siding can proceed.

The gas was hooked up to the stove this week so that now works. The kitchen counter tops also arrived so by next week I should have a fully functional kitchen. The vanity for the guest bath has been installed(just waiting for the counter top) and the shower is functional because the hot water tank was hooked up.

The master bath shower had no progress this week because my tile guy got called to another job. I'm hoping he'll be back soon. I ordered stair rail parts and interior doors and those should start coming in over the next two weeks.

Had a bit of a scare this week as well. I saw a small puddle of water in the master bath one evening and assumed it was from a bucket that had been knocked over. Turns out there was a small pin hole in the test cap on the hot water line. The spray of water was so fine that it wan't visible. When I visited the site the next day (Saturday), the small puddle of water was a much larger puddle of water! I called the plumber and contractor and they both arrived at the house in a matter of minutes. It doesn't look like there was any damage to the floor or the ceiling on the first floor. Good thing the test cap itself didn't release or there would have been a BIG mess!

I'm moving out of my apartment next weekend and into the guest cottage of friends of mine on the island. I think it will be another 2-3 weeks before the house is ready to move into.

Week 31: Siding and Shower

 
 
 
 
 


Lots of progress on the exterior siding this week. The bridge connecting the garage and the house has a roof on it and is fully sided. The front of the house is the only major part of the house that needs siding at this point! Unfortunately there was no sign of the fellow who is going to excavate the dirt away from the front of the house so that I can re-coat the foundation block. Hope he shows up next week! In addition to the siding the trim work on my big front dormer is finished and the the carpet has been laid in three rooms. The tile work on the master bath shower is also making very good progress and I bought the treads for the stairs.

The gas stove will be hooked up next week and I'm also hoping that the kitchen counter tops will be in by then. It would be great to have one fully functional bathroom and a functional kitchen by the end of next week!

Week 30: Indoor plumbing

 
 
 
 
 
 
 


By next week the front of the house should look different (finally!). This week the focus was on getting the tile down. I also have one functioning indoor toilet and a working whole house vacuum system. The radon remediation guys came and finished hooking up the motor and when the electrician comes back he'll hook up the switch. Progress was made on the master bath shower this week too.

Starting next week we'll have additional men on the job and they will focus on getting the siding done. Someone is coming to check the drainage around the foundation and my carpet will be installed too. The outside of the house should look quite different by this time next week!

I started moving things into the apartment and will continue with the easy to move stuff. I'll try to get some friends with strong backs and trucks to help with the big stuff later in the month.

Week 29: 90% Complete

 
 
 
 
 


I was out of town all week and came back to find that all of the hardwood flooring is down and that the tile work is well underway. The hot water heater is on site but it isn't plugged in yet. More progress was made on the electrical fixtures as well.

I had an appraisal of the house performed in order to get a line of credit to finish the rennovation and that went well. The paperwork was waiting for me when I got home. The estimated return on investment looks really good, better than I had anticipated. And, according to the appraiser, the house is 90% completed! Should be able to get working plumbing and a finished staircase in the next two weeks and then I can get an occupancy permit and can start moving in.