Reno Update

First of all, I need to apologize for not posting in a while. My folks came down for a visit, which usually means I'm busy doing tons of stuff around the house I didn't realize I needed to do. Plus, it's been about a million degrees all week, and my air conditioner has been on the fritz, so that needed a complete replacement.

Not fun.

And for some reason, Blogger has been running really really slowly the last little while, so this post has actually taken me three days to type!

So anyway, the reno project in the Man cave has been progressing really slowly. I'm not sure why, but apparently it takes forever to order and paint quarter round to cover the ends of the floorboards.

Even though this project was supposed to be completed by July 1, and then by July 15, and then by last Friday, there's a guy in my basement installing a bench to cover the water services. He's also supposed to finish the trim today. They can't find the electrician who has the trim rings for the pot lights.

The owner of the company went on vacation this week. So I'm unimpressed.

We did some painting in the back entrance to match, since the contractors are only doing the basement. There was no problem with the primer, but it was too humid for the surface paint so it bubbled.

At first we thought it was a latex on oil problem, but the primer was latex an two coats of that ought to have done something. Plus, with two coats of primer, I wouldn't expect any reaction between new and old paint.

My theory; and the concensus at the paint store; is that the primer adhered properly to the old paint, and the new paint held to the primer. But when the new paint buckled from the humidity, it was the old paint that let go of the plaster.

Luckily it's only a few spots. So once the a/c has a chance to dehumidify the house and allow the paint to cure, I should be able to sand those spots flat, patch, re-prime and get the walls painted again.

Isn't reno time fun?

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Reno Update

Things are definitely moving along in the Man Cave. In a matter of a few days, the crew got the wiring roughed in, the pot lights installed, and the drywall up. We're just waiting on some mud and tape.

So we went from this last week:

To this, this week:

Lookin' not too bad, huh? The cove you see at left is where the TV will be mounted. It sits right between two support posts, and frames the wall just nicely. Here are a few more for comparison:

That's the TV nook with nothing in it. A few points of interest: First, the outlet is on the back side of the wall, in order to have all the wiring go behind the theatre. Second, the two posts were framed out to provide a flat working surface that won't interfere with the flooring (there's a concrete footing at the base of each post that would otherwise cause a headache.

Without too much explanation (I hope), these should give a clearer idea of what the entertainment space will look like:

 That little hole you see in the TV area (roughly centre on the pic) is actually just marking out the cold air return. The one at top right is for a switch that will kill power to the whole home theatre. You may not realize this, but home electronics use 60% of their power when the device is turned off but not unplugged. Don't believe me? My TV has a red light on it to tell me that it's off. OFF?! How stupid is that? Since I don't need that light, or an internal clock on my TV, VCR, DVD, or home theatre receiver, the simple solution is to cut the power to the whole system when it's not in use (you can do this with a power bar as well...you will see a drop in your hydro bill. It's kind of scary, actually).

So...what's next? Picking out the laminate and paint colours, of course. And the plumber will be in early next week with a jack hammer to carve out the floor for a sump pit. You see the far alcove? The pit will be behind that part of the wall, hidden from the rec room side. With luck, they'll find gravel under the floor so they don't have to dig any trenches.

Yeah. Jack hammer. This'll be fun...

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Summer Project #3: Reno Update

Well, it's been an extremely productive week for the reno guys working on the Man Cave (capitals intended...muahahahaha!). I'm surprised actually at how quickly it's come together, considering other projects I've seen that just sort of drag on and on (and on and on and on...).

It's gone something like this:

Monday: Demo. Pull everything apart. Start framing (needed 2 new stud walls installed on the exterior block to accommodate proper insulation).

Tuesday: Finish framing.

Wednesday: Frame the stairway wall with 2x2 studs and insulate with styrofoam).

Thursday: Electrical. Discard old wires (apparently quite a few that weren't attached to anything), rough in boxes.

Friday: Electrical. Finish installation of pot lights, switches, outlets. Fix the goofy mistake (I wanted to wire the home theatre behind the wall and put a switch in the rec room...they faced the outlet into the rec room and put the switch on the back side of the wall. Huh?). Install insulation and vapor barrier.

Yeah! So we have lights and the work is almost done. What's left?

Well, the drywall for one thing. They're also going to cut in a sump pump, although I personally think that's a complete waste of time and money. This was the first flood in this basement in 50 years. The insurance company insists though, so we're stuck with it.

Kinda stupid if you ask me.

Flooring goes in last, of course, and I'm just getting started in picking the finished floor. Here's a tip: Don't fall for good prices on laminate without first finding out what the cost per square foot of installation is. Got it? That can easily double or triple the price of your floor.

So, for the weekend it's moving boxes again...this time away from the partition wall so I can get stuff set up for the TV installation!

Mmmmm....TV.

(Yes guys, pictures are coming soon!)

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The Basement Reno Starts

Back in March I had a flood in the basement. Not a big one, just enough to ruin the carpet and throw my life into organizational chaos for a few months.
In the interim, there have been delays with insurance and getting a quote on the reno--mostly to replace the floor.
Finally I got a call from the contractor, and they're moving in today. This will be a few more, days of chaos no doubt, but at least it's going somewhere.
This is fairly extensive mind you. Framing, flooring, drywall and some electrical too...not a small job. So before you jump on me for not manning up and doing the work myself, remember I'm just one set of hands. We'd be pushing Christmas by the time the painting got started.
These guys are a team. They'll be done in two weeks or less.
The one part I'm not thrilled about is installing a sump pump. The insurance company insists, even though this is the first time this basement has flooded in 50 years (and it was caused by a clog in the city's storm sewer, not from any fault in the basement itself). But if it has to be done, I guess it has to be done.
Now it's just down to waiting for my man cave to get put back together.
I hate waiting.

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