Total remodel job - Repairs, Remodeling & Renovations

Jester · #16 (**permalink**) 01-31-2008, 10:54 PM

Wow serious project on your hands. We'll be with you the whole way. G'luck. C and I might be doing some remodeling ourselves in the near future.

shan · #17 (**permalink**) 02-02-2008, 11:11 AM

Good luck J, nice to hear from you. You guys getting ready to do the nursery? Make sure you do lots of pink cause it will be a girl this time

shan · #18 (**permalink**) 02-02-2008, 06:21 PM

I finally got some pics of the outside of the house.
Here is from the road, we are going to take off the ugly chimney and put a small covered deck on the front so we don't have to stand in the rain when we are unlocking the door.

Here is the left side of the house. We are getting rid of the three trees and making a parking area right there so we don't have to park on the road. Next year we are putting in a small two car garage.

Here is from the property line of the back of the house, for in town it has a big back yard. We are putting up six foot privacy fence around the back yard with a little dog run on the side where the back door is so we don't have to worry about dog doodoo when K is playing.

Here is the other side of the house. Well never mind I just realized that my dh forgot to take pics of that. But yeah that is the outside of the house. I know it is small but it will be perfect until we buy dh's parents house.

heather6773 · #19 (**permalink**) 03-02-2008, 08:04 AM

Looks good Shan any more work done? I love watching remodeling. It gives me ideas~~~

shan · #20 (**permalink**) 03-03-2008, 07:20 AM

I am sorry I haven't been on here in a while. We have been stalled due to the nasty weather we have been having. We have also switched the bathroom with the laundry room so we could expand the kitchen a little. I will have to scan the new blueprint and post it. Right now we are waiting for word from the city to let us know if we need permits to fix the foundation problems. We also need the ground to be above 32 degrees before we can start pouring it. We have bought a lot of supples for the house. My IL's garage is now packed to the brim with construction materials. We got a letter in the mail from Menards saying that if we used our card last weekend we would get 20 percent off and not have interest or payments till next year. So we jumped on that. We have ordered the bathtub, so we can start getting the measurements to build the frame for it. All of the floors are up so now the house is just a shell. Only the framing and roof still exist. I can't wait for it to warm up and the house to really start taking shape.

shan · #21 (**permalink**) 03-06-2008, 02:56 PM

Well mother nature has decided to help us out with ripping down the house. The big ice storm we got this week may have helped us more than we know. With all those big trees right beside the house we had limbs falling every where. So now that ugly eye sore of the chimney is gone it just fell off the house and several limbs fell onto the roof. Right now dh is over there trying to clean up what he can. Last night they went over and put up plywood over all the holes in the walls from trees. That is about all the news until this winter weather breaks and we can start with the foundation. That should be fun. LOL

shan · #22 (**permalink**) 03-19-2008, 03:32 AM

Now the roof is off and we are starting to tear the rest of it down. I would post new pictures but my batteries in my camera died. If I can ever remember to buy new ones I will be doing good. It has been putting down some rain here, but if all goes right by the end of this weekend the back half of the house should be gone. We have more sales starting this weekend. "March Madness Sales"

They will think of anything to come up with sales. So this weekend we will be getting the siding, roofing, windows, and doors. We already have the stuff for the framing, insulation, dry wall, some cabnets, and the sub flooring. You know you see people getting those big dumpster all the time and I never realized how expensive they really were. We have dumped almost two grand just in dumpsters.

That is just crazy. Plus the stupid thing has probably ruined our yard. That is alright because one of my sisters is a landscaper.

It never hurts to have friends in low places. She is always giving my dad (who has a super green thumb) plants that are almost dead and he revives them and gives them to other people to plant. Of course, I don't know if I will get around to planting anything this year due to the garage that is going up next year, but I might do up the front yard. I plan on putting some lilac bushes by the bedroom and kitchen windows too so when I open the windows for the first time in the spring my house will smell like fresh flowers.

shan · #23 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 08:48 PM

Well work has resumed once again. They went over yesterday to take the roof off of the back half of the house. When they got it off they gave the back half of the house a push and this is the result.

shan · #24 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 08:56 PM

When they gave it a push it just fell over. Seriously. I mean who ever put up this house needs shot. I can't understand why the house didn't fall down before now. When the guys were on the roof taking off the shingles, it was shaking while they were up there. Then my dh calls me and says the house fell down and I flipped. I thought he meant that it happened while they were on the roof. I was grabbing stuff to rush over there when he clarified that when they got done my dh's bf gave the outside wall a push and it moved at least a foot. So they guys got the hair brained idea to see what happened if they all gave it a push. They were being lazy. It is horrible to think of what would have happened if some one bought the house and fixed the cosmetics of the house and didn't check the structure because I don't think that house would have lasted through another winter. Just crazy.

Turtleheadfred · #25 (**permalink**) 04-08-2008, 08:06 PM

OMG! I'm glad no one was hurt and, like you said, you found this NOW and not later - and that no one was UP on the roof! That is AWFUL!!!

heather6773 · #26 (**permalink**) 04-10-2008, 06:29 PM

WOW that is crazy. I'm glad you guys are doing it the right way. Its going to be so solid when your done.

shan · #27 (**permalink**) 04-11-2008, 10:32 AM

Yeah, Turtleheadfred I was getting nervous while they were up on the roof. It is crazy how bad that house was.

I am so glad it is going to be done right also Heather, I wouldn't want my house to fall in around my ears!

We went yesterday and got all our permits!!

So now we are good to go. We are probably going to knock down the existing structure and start from the ground up leaving the basement because it was actually done right. So it won't be considered new construction, but it will be darn close. We have also decided to square the house off because with the foundation being bad in places and needing repoured it makes more sense to square up the house and be done with it. That gives more room in our bathroom and K's bedroom. Once we have the new blue prints of the house done I will post them on here. I am thinking we won't be in there till August or September due to having to get inspections and things. But my FIL is excited to get started with the house because it will give him an idea of what he will go through when building a new house for him and his wife.

heather6773 · #28 (**permalink**) 04-12-2008, 03:51 AM

Thats awesome that you get to expand some rooms.

Csara · #29 (**permalink**) 04-12-2008, 07:16 AM

Wow - that is so exciting!! Seems like a TON of work, but I'm sure it will be well worth it when all is said and done. Good luck.

Turtleheadfred · #30 (**permalink**) 04-13-2008, 09:40 PM

That's wonderful that you've found something "positive" out of this! And increased footage is VERY good! Also that the basement (your TRUE foundation) is solid is another GREAT sign!

It will be hard work - but somehow I think that makes it more "valuable" to us personally... KWIM?