Take it from us- The Story of How We Chose to Renovate Our Entire Home (February 2019).
“Don’t take advice from someone who hasn’t been where you’re going.”
These words of wisdom ring true for our company and, perhaps more interesting- our family. We can speak from experience when it comes to complete home renovations. We washed our dishes in the bathroom tub while thick sheets of plastic separated the rooms in our home. The following is the story of just that!
The Start of February 2019
In the winter of 2019, we began work on our own home. As the last blog post mentioned, we quickly outgrew our three-bedroom bungalow. January was slow enough that we could squeeze our own home onto our docket.
It was exciting! Up until this point, our basement consisted of concrete and cobwebs. Our only home project to date has been waterproofing the basement by physically digging trenches and filling them with concrete.
So, I was excited to have a fully functional basement that was more than just dry.
Covid- March 2020
As you can see from the dates, our timing wasn’t great. A month later, the entire world shut down. It was a miracle that we completed the first phase just in time and something else entirely that we made it nearly to phase three.
The phases/plan
FINISH THE BASEMENT
- Move stairwell to old laundry area
- Demo area and remove appliances
- Build stairs and frame
- Frame basement to separate spaces for one bedroom, living room area, laundry room & storage area
- Run electrical for standard plugs and switches
- Run plumbing from old laundry room to the new
- Run gas line for appliances & vent appropriately
- Drywall, Mudd & Taping
- Trim & Doors
- Paint
- Carpet flooring in bedroom & living space
- Tile laundry room.
Phase Two:
Demolition of the central area
Gut the main floor’s current kitchen/living room down to the studs.
Covid impacts
So there we were, with half a home and a fully finished basement (thankfully), and forced to deal with a complete set of circumstances. The world delayed our project, which was supposed to take six weeks to finish.
I’m telling this story to show that sometimes, the best-laid plans…don’t work. What does that mean? We adapt.
It meant a lot of hard work, specifically for Brian. In hindsight, it was also a great learning opportunity for him, but he wouldn’t have said that then. He had to rely on himself exclusively when he was used to a team behind him. What choice did he have? He was on the tools and fully involved, exhausted day in and day out. But it should tell him and anyone who has seen our home what he can do, even under the most challenging circumstances.
Thankfully, a month or so later, the government specifically addressed renovations and construction projects, and with a set list of rules, we could continue. To be clear, there were parts of our home in particular that my heart had long been set on, but there was no possible way Brian could accomplish them on his own.
We spent a long time trying to find the perfect beam to be the central, eye-catching feature of our 13-foot cathedral ceiling. Brian is many things—but not Superman.
The delay meant we were without a kitchen for a long time. Our BBQ and tub (for the dishes) became our most valuable asset. However, regardless of the stress, we could complete our dream, which had been four years in the making.
“Don’t take advice from someone who hasn’t been where you’re going.”
So, we end where we began. But here’s something I’d like to add: Don’t choose a builder who hasn’t built his own home. Our family has personally experienced and lived through a complete home renovation. We know better than most the disruption it brings, which drives us to do everything we can to keep your projects running on time and smoothly.
Because, in the end, was it worth it? Absolutely!
