Let's Talk Remodeling

[Galahad]

Shovan! It looks awesome! You must be so happy to have this show on the road!

Indeed. Looks great. It's so much better to be "moving" huh?

OT: Out new favorite show is called Holmes on Homes on Discovery Home network. All of you remodellers check it out!

 

[binny]

Holmes is fantastic!

Shovan that looks awesome! I love your choices there

Thanks, i gravitate towards blues mostly but I just got rid of the blues LOL. I have been searching " French country decor" and have a few ideas but most of them are pretty pale.

 

[Hixski]

Oh wow! The arch and floor and backsplash look great, and really make all the difference!!

I really like the arch too!! Your tile floor is very similar to the one we have in our kitchen. I have a small vent to make. WHY!!! do things have to break when you are least expecting them. Our fridge crapped out on us this week. We have another small one for temporarily but we are going to have to buy a new one. That is going to take a chunk out of my remodeling budget. We just replaced our dishwasher a couple of months ago. Grrrrr!!@!$**!! I think the dog is going to have to get a job. He has been living free here for too long.

Ok, sorry, vent over.

 

[shovan]

I really like the arch too!! Your tile floor is very similar to the one we have in our kitchen. I have a small vent to make. WHY!!! do things have to break when you are least expecting them. Our fridge crapped out on us this week. We have another small one for temporarily but we are going to have to buy a new one. That is going to take a chunk out of my remodeling budget. We just replaced our dishwasher a couple of months ago. Grrrrr!!@!$**!! I think the dog is going to have to get a job. He has been living free here for too long.

Ok, sorry, vent over.

Thanks everyone, I'll post some more this week!

Hixski, I know how you feel, it's a good thing we signed a contract on the kitchen or it would not have been done. The roof around our fireplace started leaking had to have that repaired this week. Turned out to be more than just the roof but also inside the fireplace. And the pool pump broke too!

 

[mickeysgal]

Wow - everyone is making such big strides in their projects. Congrats to all. I love seeing everyone's pictures.

We're slowed down a bit on the basement. We're finishing the storage room and hopefully within a week we can load it with all the stuff (aka junk) we apparently think we need. Just our Christmas stuff alone will take up most of the room in there.

After the storage room is complete, it still leaves us with the tile work for the kitchette, bathroom, wall sconces, carpet runner, fans, and the dreaded doorknob decision. We'll need all of 2008 to run this project to completion.

 

[mickeysgal]

Actually given that the last floor in there was white this shows MUCH less! I do notice that the dog brings in footprints but it isnt terrible.

I bought this mop at Lowes

and I just use a direct form the bottle floor cleaner with it. Its quick and easy and doesnt get the floor too wet.

Binny, thanks for the picture. I'm going to go look at this at Lowes. I've been swiftering and vacumning like crazy to keep it clean. I think things will settle down a bit once we move in all the storage room stuff and wash down the garage area where things are being kept now. There is still too much drywall dust and cement chalky stuff around and it keeps getting dragged in on everyone's shoes. I think the floor will become more manageable then - I hope!

Are you seeing any scratches with the dog's nails? We haven't let ours go down into the basement yet.

 

[binny]

no I havent noticed any scratching at all form the dog. Her nails desperately need to be trimmed and while the clik click click can drive me over the wall I have noticed and scratches. We had this in our old houyse as well in the living room, dining room, hallways and entry all high traffic areas and never had any scratches.

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

no I havent noticed any scratching at all form the dog. Her nails desperately need to be trimmed and while the clik click click can drive me over the wall I have noticed and scratches. We had this in our old houyse as well in the living room, dining room, hallways and entry all high traffic areas and never had any scratches.

I have hardwood floors too, throughout my entryway, living room, breakfast room, and kitchen. I also have Chloe.

Seriously, I don't notice any scratches on mine. They don't look perfect, but then again, we've been living on them for over four years, so they look about what I'd expect them to look like.

Still pretty, with a blemish (aka - dropped cans) every now and then, in the kitchen.

 

[mickeysgal]

I have hardwood floors too, throughout my entryway, living room, breakfast room, and kitchen. I also have Chloe.

Seriously, I don't notice any scratches on mine. They don't look perfect, but then again, we've been living on them for over four years, so they look about what I'd expect them to look like.

Still pretty, with a blemish (aka - dropped cans) every now and then, in the kitchen.

We have hardwood throughout our first floor and have three dogs (one weighing in at 98 pds. ) . Its a light stain and doesn't show surface scratches as easily as I would imagine the darker woods. The basement is a darker stain (Brazilian Cherry) and I was wondering since it seems to show every piece of dirt and dust, whether light surface scratches from dogs paws are showing just as easily. Ok, I'm just too chicken to let the dogs down there to find out.

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

We have hardwood throughout our first floor and have three dogs (one weighing in at 98 pds. ) . Its a light stain and doesn't show surface scratches as easily as I would imagine the darker woods. The basement is a darker stain (Brazilian Cherry) and I was wondering since it seems to show every piece of dirt and dust, whether light surface scratches from dogs paws are showing just as easily. Ok, I'm just too chicken to let the dogs down there to find out.

That's a good question. I guess it would matter if what's underneath the surface is lighter than the stain?

You could always invest in about 100 of those stain pens, and let 'em have at it!

 

[Miss Jasmine]

Shovan, that is looking good!

We got the call yesterday that our countertops will be installed Friday!

 

[BillSears]

I posted this in a thread of it's own but I thought I'd repost it here to get the experts advice. So any suggestions? Who would you call to get this sort of thing fixed?

*****************************************
OK I started out with wanting to replace my carpeting in my dining room. It was a light brown carpet that was there when I bought the house 14 years ago.

I decided this was a job I could probably do myself but with a bit of trouble. But hey it would be fun to do...right????

So here we are light brown carpeting and the ominous corner. I moved all of the furniture out of the room and I notice the discoloring on the floor molding in the corner.

Ok I spend some time getting all of the carpeting up. The layers of padding. The tacking strips, etc... I can see the discoloration clearly now. I wonder what that is?

I start shopping for flooring and I decide on a laminate. Then it rains!!! WTH!!!! There's water on my dining room floor!!!! OK I can deal with this. But the puddle was the night before I left for vacation so it'll have to wait.

When I got back from vacation I sprayed the side of my house with the hose. I eventually find out that the leak is at the bottom of my window or maybe the top of my brick siding. OK I need to get the widows replaced anyway so they can fix that leak when they replace it. But the floor will have to wait until the leak is fixed.

And so it brings us to today. It was pouring tonight and I saw the water again. I figure it's time for me to track down the leak. So I go over to the wall and try to figure it out. I can't see a thing except water on the floor.

Well I've always hated that paneling. Since the leak is behind the paneling anyway I might as well take down the paneling to make sure I've found the leak.

What the heck is that. The paneling is sitting on the sheetrock underneath it and the sheetrock doesn't look good. I go over and look close and I can see the stud in the wall has rotted away at the bottom!!!!

I start taking away more paneling and I see cracks and MOLD!!!

OK I'm screwed! But at least I'm going to find that leak. That sheetorck has to come down!

So there it is. The leak is coming from the bottom of the window area. It still could be the window or maybe the top of the brick or who the heck knows for sure. But it's alot worse then I thought. I'm going to have to replace multiple studs in an outside wall. Along with the windows, the sheetrock and who know what else. It's probably been leaking for 15+ years. Maybe since the previous owner replaced the windows.

I hated that carpeting but maybe I should have just left it there.

So do you have any suggestions?

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

So do you have any suggestions?

Beware of the towel bar syndrome?

Seriously, I've been where you are. One simple, loose tile, led to a TOTAL bathroom remodel. We pulled that one tile off, and behind it was black mold.

Hours later, and the realtor in me freaking out the whole time, we had the bathroom gutted to the studs. We had black mold down to the flippin' studs!

All I wanted to do was get rid of some simple seafoam-green tile, and I ended up having a whole new bathroom. If it makes you feel any better, I do love the end result!

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

Shovan, that is looking good!

We got the call yesterday that our countertops will be installed Friday!

You must be so excited! It's almost over!

 

[Galahad]

You must be so excited! It's almost over!

It will feel so much better just to have a counter! With us, it was still quite a lot of work after the counter was in, but I felt like I had a kitchen back at that point and they were working around me instead of the other way 'round.

 

[BillSears]

Beware of the towel bar syndrome?

Actually I've already decided to redo the dining room since I have to get rid of the paneling and put in a new floor. I might as well get rid of the ugly built in cabinets too. I also need to replace that ugly formica? countertop on the pass through area. Hey while I'm at it why don't I lower that pass through? Wait a sec the pass through countertop doesn't match the kitchen countertops They need to get changed too. I ought to get the kitchen floor replaced too so the kitchen and dining room match now. Hey the kitchen has some paneling in it, let me get rid of that. That woodstove in the kithcen that I've used less then 10 times in the past 14 years? Get rid of it. The cabinets are 40 years old, time for them to go! My refrigerator has been making noises and it's 14 years old. My stove has to be 40 years old and besides I've been wanted to replace the electric stove with gas, all I have to do is run a gas line over there.......

Darn this is going to get expensive.

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

Actually I've already decided to redo the dining room since I have to get rid of the paneling and put in a new floor. I might as well get rid of the ugly built in cabinets too. I also need to replace that ugly formica? countertop on the pass through area. Hey while I'm at it why don't I lower that pass through? Wait a sec the pass through countertop doesn't match the kitchen countertops They need to get changed too. I ought to get the kitchen floor replaced too so the kitchen and dining room match now. Hey the kitchen has some paneling in it, let me get rid of that. That woodstove in the kithcen that I've used less then 10 times in the past 14 years? Get rid of it. The cabinets are 40 years old, time for them to go! My refrigerator has been making noises and it's 14 years old. My stove has to be 40 years old and besides I've been wanted to replace the electric stove with gas, all I have to do is run a gas line over there.......

Darn this is going to get expensive.

Yep... you're done for.

 

[Miss Jasmine]

Actually I've already decided to redo the dining room since I have to get rid of the paneling and put in a new floor. I might as well get rid of the ugly built in cabinets too. I also need to replace that ugly formica? countertop on the pass through area. Hey while I'm at it why don't I lower that pass through? Wait a sec the pass through countertop doesn't match the kitchen countertops They need to get changed too. I ought to get the kitchen floor replaced too so the kitchen and dining room match now. Hey the kitchen has some paneling in it, let me get rid of that. That woodstove in the kithcen that I've used less then 10 times in the past 14 years? Get rid of it. The cabinets are 40 years old, time for them to go! My refrigerator has been making noises and it's 14 years old. My stove has to be 40 years old and besides I've been wanted to replace the electric stove with gas, all I have to do is run a gas line over there.......

Darn this is going to get expensive.

And so it begins...

I am excited about the counter installation, believe me I am.

 

[Hixski]

Actually I've already decided to redo the dining room since I have to get rid of the paneling and put in a new floor. I might as well get rid of the ugly built in cabinets too. I also need to replace that ugly formica? countertop on the pass through area. Hey while I'm at it why don't I lower that pass through? Wait a sec the pass through countertop doesn't match the kitchen countertops They need to get changed too. I ought to get the kitchen floor replaced too so the kitchen and dining room match now. Hey the kitchen has some paneling in it, let me get rid of that. That woodstove in the kithcen that I've used less then 10 times in the past 14 years? Get rid of it. The cabinets are 40 years old, time for them to go! My refrigerator has been making noises and it's 14 years old. My stove has to be 40 years old and besides I've been wanted to replace the electric stove with gas, all I have to do is run a gas line over there.......

Darn this is going to get expensive.

Yes, it is going to get VERY expensive. Our current list for Home Depot includes 5 gallons of paint. A door with frame for the basement. Quite a few bags a dirt for a new section of landscaping. Lots more caulk. New ceiling fan for the great room. DH smoked his drill so he needs a new drill.

The new refridgerator comes on Monday. At least that is out of the way. I have a job interview next week. And somehow I want to get a round of golf in.

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

Yes, it is going to get VERY expensive. Our current list for Home Depot includes 5 gallons of paint. A door with frame for the basement. Quite a few bags a dirt for a new section of landscaping. Lots more caulk. New ceiling fan for the great room. DH smoked his drill so he needs a new drill.

The new refridgerator comes on Monday. At least that is out of the way. I have a job interview next week. And somehow I want to get a round of golf in.

You really need to get your priorities in order.

Shouldn't golf be #1 on the list????