Some photos of the new staircase

Bathrooms done, now we need power and a kitchen!

Things have been moving along the past week.  Unfortunately last weekend someone broke in and stole several things including the contractors generator and tools.  Even with that setback, the contractor finished the bathrooms and Friday began working on the oak staircase.  During the weekend and various nights I spent time installing the lights and finishing up the alarm system.

 

 

The plan this week will be for the Contractor to finish the staircase and begin on installing the kitchen cabinets.  With the cabinets in place he can have the granite installed. Our BIG challenge this week will be to get the power company to come out and connect the power.  The problem is I had the Contractor move the meter to a corner of the house.  I was given some bad information from a power company representative who basically said we could move the panel since we destroyed the front wall.  Now after I called the power company they are telling me I need to pay a large amount of money to have their crew come out and install a new cable.  The other problem is I do not know how long it will take to get them to complete the work.  Without electricity I cannot complete the alarm and will not be able to purchase any appliances for security reasons.

Interior doors and more tiling.

  As we only have a few weeks left I figure it's probably time for another posting to show whats been going on. Each night I have been going to the house and verifying that some progress is being made each day. We can't afford any day without some type of progress if we want to finish by the end of the month.

 

During the first part of the week the contractor focused on finishing the bathroom tiling. Overall I am very pleased with their work. Both bathrooms turned out exactly like I had sketched them, so I can't complain.

 

Today the Contractor began installing the interior doors and trim. Nothing really special about the doors. Originally I wanted solid pine doors and the Contractor agreed that he would buy them. But after he realized that solid pine doors were twice as much as what he normally buys, he told me once again that I would have to pay more. I decided this fight wasn't worth it and let him install the standard 6 panel door. I also noticed tonight when I went to the house that they installed the fascia board in the front of the house. The fascia board is basically the only barrier between the outside and my tiny attic space. Thanks to my Dad's suggestions the Contractor installed several air vents along the board.

 

Paint, floors and tiles!

After a few reminders from a couple of friends I guess it's time to update. For the last month my family and I have been in Peru on vacation. During that time the Contractor was literally waiting for the paint to dry! We chose a off-white color for the walls and a classical white color for the ceiling. Overall I'm pleased with the paint job, a lot of touching-up will have to be done before we move-in but at this stage it looks good.

Once the paint was dry the Contractor began placing the oak flooring. The flooring comes pre-stained and went in pretty fast. When I got back from Peru on Tuesday the flooring was 80% complete, with the kitchen and entryway still left to be completed. Today when I was there they completed the rest.



Yesterday afternoon I received a call from the Contractor stating he wanted $750 additional to tile the bathrooms. Our contract was a little vague, but back in July before the project began, my Father and I confirmed verbally the tile design and he agreed that he would do the job. Now he wanted me to pay more because he said the tile was not standard and required additional work. So once again we had a long fight over the phone and I said he would do the work for free or he was fired. He said his guys would do the work, but I need to pay $250 at least, I said I would not pay anything extra. The conversation basically ended there, but when I arrived at the house this morning the tiling was already 70% complete. I guess he knew his guys had already started and was trying to get something out of me. At this point he knows he must complete the project since all his profit is tied in the completion of the bathrooms and kitchen. As usual he was just being dishonest in order to scrounge a few extra dollars.

Originally we thought the cabinets would be here and ready to install by now. The problem was I decided that I wanted to put some decorative trim on the top and base of the cabinets. I should have known that decorative trim means extra work and in-turn means I would need to pay more. At this point I don't want to pay this SOB anymore money and I will install the trim later on when my Father is back in town. On Monday I will call the cabinet store and cancel the decorative trim in order for the contractor to order the cabinets at no additional cost.

So the plan this week is for his guys to finish all the floors and tiling. Following those items they can install the doors and trim throughout the house. They should also be installing the new gutters and fascia boards.

Walls at last!

Well after several weeks "inspections" we are back in business. Two laborers showed up at the house last Thursday and began installing drywall. It was about a 2.5 day process for two guys to get 120 pieces of sheet rock up. Then they taped the seems and started putting the putty in to make it all smooth. Because of the cold temperatures here in DC and the fact we have no electricity yet, the house is COLD. So nothing will dry very fast and it could take about two weeks before we are ready for a first coat of paint. Hopefully the painting will be done in three weeks, but who knows.

In the meantime I am trying to get the electrical turned on so we can get space heaters in to speed things along! Since I installed a new service panel on the other side of the front door, the electric company will need to come out to the house and do a bit of work. I'm told that can take several weeks.

Finally on Monday morning, my father went home to Seattle. I was able to talk him in to staying past the Apple Cup, but he drew the line for being home in time for Turkey day. While he was here he did A LOT of work as always. He re-framed the bedroom closet, installed new patio pavers, poured a 16'x20' cement driveway, patched the roof, installed all the insulation, and much more to move the project along. Thanks again Dad!

This weekend my plan is to buy all the faucets, sinks and light fixtures the contractor needs. I'll be leaving for a long vacation next week, so it's really important everything is ready.

Inspection time, week 4??? (my time to vent!)

Well not a lot of progress on the house since the last posting unfortunately. The contractor failed the first plumbing inspection two weeks ago and is now scheduled for his second attempt this coming Wednesday. The electrical inspection passed last Thursday, luckily my father was at the house to let the inspector in. Once the plumbing passes on Wednesday, the contractor will call and schedule for the framing and HVAC inspection to happen. Overall I am extremely concerned at the lack of progress on the part of the Contractor. He did not pass the first inspection and then was unable to schedule a second inspection until I basically did it for him on Wednesday. Of course the Contractor is saying it's the government of DC's fault by not answering their phones and not returning their messages.

The good is my Dad is here and as always is working his tail off. It's been really nice drinking beer with Grandpa at night and talking about everything. The kids and Yeny also love spending time with him. Since he has been here, he has finished installing the gas fireplace, installed the molding on the front of the house (pics soon!), fixed all the lighting locations, and patched the heck out of the roof. The Contractor cuts a big hole in the roof and then expects us to fix the hole since it's not in the contract. Again I know everyone is saying "you get what you pay for!"