Oct
2
Demo and Contractors
October 2, 2007 |
Have two meetings with contractors scheduled for later in the week for House #2, and met with one guy yesterday. Nice enough guy, but he mainly does commercial work, and got pretty squirrely when I started asking about timelines, when he could start, etc. He also was an hour late meeting me, which probably isn’t the best indicator of successful contractor/client relations in the future.
I’m also in the process of lining up estimates for window replacement, instead of the original plan of rolling that into the general contractor duties that I eventually hire. With the usual lag time in getting windows ordered/built/installed I need to get rolling on this, and most contractors would just sub it out anyway.
The window replacement budget may be a little tight, as I’ve got 14 windows to replace, and had initially budgeted $3,000 for the project. $200-$250/installed window isn’t impossible, as we’re not talking about the fanciest of windows, but it’s cutting it close. I may go with glass blocks in a bathroom window, as I can handle that myself, and there are two windows that open up to the patio that I could possibly use glass blocks in, too. Once the patio is framed in for a screen porch/sun room the windows may look a bit out of place anyway (as they were originally normal exterior windows, before the patio addition was created), so glass blocks there shouldn’t look too odd.
I’m making good progress on the demo work, and should be done by the weekend. All the carpet and tack strips are up in the front living room that I’m tiling, and the wood paneling in the old den is about half gone. So far so good as far as no surprises lurking in the framing, which I was a bit worried about. The old den/soon-to-be master bedroom was an addition at some point, so you never quite know what you’ll uncovering when you start opening up walls. Everything looks solid so far, though, with no goofball framing or construction choices or electrical, no water damage, no mold, nothing.
I always feel a bit weird when demoing stuff like this. Granted, it was pretty cheap paneling and not the most stylish cabinet/entertainment center or shelves that I demolished, but, you know, someone picked it out and had it built, and was likely very pleased with the new improvements to their home. I still get a sense of happy glee when I finish projects in my own home, wandering around smiling, looking at how nice it looks, and I can’t help but imagine someone in the past doing that with all of the stuff I’m yanking out, smashing to bits, and throwing on the trash heap.
But if it’s gotta go, it’s gotta go. And it pretty much had to go.
