In my defense, I had a baby (via caesarean), we signed papers on a new house, moved, started construction, and we are still living in two rooms without much in the way of general organization. I'm lucky I'm still able to find the computer no less post on a blog! But life is starting to get a little better. The construction inside is done and we're now looking for tenants to occupy the 2nd floor of our house (another big job) and just waiting on the deck to be finished.
So here are some quick updates:
The kitchen window is in! Once the island counter is installed, we'll be completely finished minus painting the trim and crown molding.
The chimneys were leaking and causing mold to grow in the attic. So we had them cleaned and capped. Aren't the caps pretty?
And the most recent project is the replacement of the deck! It was poorly constructed and attached to the house improperly which caused rot in the lower basement walls. It was also fairly unsafe (one of the rails fell of a week after we moved in) and couldn't really be repaired. The "footings" were on cement blocks on the ground rather than being cemented into the ground and the whole thing was a pile of splinters.
Here are some old before pictures from when we first visited the house back in March.
The deck was actually two pieces set at different heights and different depths. So the new deck will be all one piece and all one height (I know... we're completely crazy with our "planning"!)
Here it is coming down. Part of the railing is already gone and you can see where the contractor sawed through the temporary railing we put up.
The lovely stairs our realtor painted for us because the bank really thought the peeling paint was an issue. I have to say- a coat of red paint really did make them safer!
The original craftsmanship!
And on to the new! Yeah!
The view from a distance. The steps are going down into the yard now instead of leading to the driveway where we'll be putting up a fence. It will make the deck less appealing to curious thieves.
The decking is composite so it should last 15-20 years. The railings should be here in another week and those are vinyl so they should outlive the deck! It's been an expensive project because the deck is a HUGE 380 square feet and because of the materials but it will be worth it in the long run.
For more pictures of the process, watch the slideshow below!
More updates as life gets a little less hectic!
5 amazing comments:
yeah, our deck wasn't even on posts. it was on pieces of wood lying on the ground. I mean, you could expect that from an older house with "handy" owners, but from a builder??? we put in the concrete blocks to get our certificate of occupancy, and well, you know the rest.
enjoy your new kitchen!
Looking great guys! Can't wait for it to be all finished and comfortably settled in. Hang in there, you're almost done.
You guys are still neck deep in renovations. I need to remember you guys when I'm throwing my own pity party about still needing to paint and prime. The new deck looks awesome and the switched up staircase seems way more appropriate. I hope the boys are feeling better! Oh and yes, I sniffed the swaddlers the whole way home. Baby!!!!!
That looks like a lot of fun!!! Lets just say I am glad there will not be any renovations in our new house. It is looking good though.
Wow, a lot of projects, I can't wait to see it all when it's finished. The pictures look great.
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