Remodel Day 138 - 6/20/2011

The electrical work continues but there is nothing very exciting to report.  The  wiring is being run so we can put lights into the closets and the fire alarms are being installed. 

Here's what it looks like.  Not too exciting....

So instead of a boring post, I've decided to mix things up a little....and present my "Homage to Dust". 

There is dust EVERYWHERE.  I remember when our friends the Jessens were doing their remodel and Nicole was telling me how much dust was in her house.  I smiled politely and nodded, not understanding the gravity of her statement.  Until now that is.  I finally understand.  There is dust in the bathroom, on every surface, inside my shoes......literally and without exaggeration.....everywhere.  So with that said.....I present to you.....

My Homage to Dust

Dust on the lamps

Dust on the piano

Dust on the tables

Dust on the carpet.  But the carpet is going away, so I guess this one is ok.

And dust on the kids. 
Actually, Catie wanted to join in on the dust documentary
so I thought she should get some recognition for her assistance. 

Remodel Day 135 to 136 - 6/17/2011 thru 6/18/2011

The drywall continues and this crew is speedy quick.  They are practically done.  There are some small patches left, but this is to complete some electrical and cable wiring that needs to be done. 

Here you can see how quickly the ceiling in the great room went up.  We had to keep our eye on the work so we could get pictures in progress.  You can see me talking to Bonnie in the background.  I seem to be explaining something about the switches by the front door.....I think. 

I included this picture to show you the doors more than the drywall. We went with a pattern that matched our existing doors, but we splurged on the real wood doors.  We had originally budgeted for the hollow-core doors, but they looked so cheap we decided on the upgrade. 

Future linen closet

Here is the partial crew in full swing. 
They were everywhere and obviously have this down to a science. 
They worked so efficiently it was amazing to watch.

Here you can get an idea of what the skylights will look like.  We were still worried about the lighting in this room.  But now that the drywall is going up and the skylights have been put into place our fears have been alleviated.....for the most part.  I just want this to be a light and airy room instead of the cave it used to be.

Green board near the kitchen sink. 
Used for areas that will have water near it.

Green board in the bathroom.

And last but not least. 
Catie could not miss her chance for another photo op. 

Remodel Day 134 - 6/16/2011

GRANITE, GRANITE, GRANITE!!!!! 

The days I've been awaiting (and partially dreading) have arrived.  I've begun shopping for granite.  The first outing was to Quality Stone and Tile in North Hollywood. I have to say the visit was a bust.  I had NO idea what to ask, NO idea what parameters I had and most importantly no tape measure.  From now on, I will never leave the house without a tape measure.  After wasting about an hour of a very nice sales lady's time, I went home with no more information than I started with.  Just alot of pictures but they were not meaningful.  I had not written down names or slab sizes. 


So this morning, I grabbed Rob and asked him some questions.  And here's the information I gathered before I headed out again.


1. The island will be 9' 8" so I should find a slab that is at least 120" (about 10').  Otherwise I will have a seam in the island and I don't want that.
2. I need 2 slabs.
3. I will have my own fabricator (guy that cuts the granite) come and pick up the slab after I choose one.
4. My budget is $2400.  More than enough.  Rob has budgeted for 3 slabs and we will only need 2.


And now we headed out to another yard that was alot bigger.  There was alot more to choose from but the customer service was not as good.  Also I just took Emily with me this time.  The younger 3 kids were at camp (amen) so it was easier to focus.  Last time I took them to the granite yard they all decided to play a game of imaginary paint ball while hiding behind and in between huge slabs of granite.  I was imagining them either having a granite slab fall on them or worse having them knock over a slab of granite and cracking it and then we'd have to pay for it.  OK - maybe the first scenario was worse, but the mayhem did not help me try to focus on choosing anything. 


Back to the fun part.  I am going to post pictures of the leading contenders.  I'd love to get your vote on which one you like.  I'm going to keep my pick a secret. 

Golden Persa.  This one was a heart breaker.  It was not long enough.



Typhoon Bordeaux



Venetian Gold

Colonial Gold

Nacarado



Fussion.  Before you vote on this one, know this picture is just for fun and it doesn't do it justice.  It has the most AMAZING blue/rose tones in it.  And it sells for $55/square foot!  Ouch!!  The others ranged from $12/square foot to $16/square foot.  We just liked looking at it.  It is amazing to think that nature created this.



Remodel Day 133 - 6/15/2011

The drywall has arrived!!! 

Actually it was delivered late in the day yesterday. 

But it took the guys a while to carry it all inside. 

And then the fun began.....see the pictures below.

Drywall is in the house!  Literally....

Jess and Cate's room

Ceilings first. 

Emily's room

And here's an aside.  The brown coat of the stucco was applied yesterday.  It takes 7 to 10 days to dry before the final coat of the stucco is applied.  This is a correction to the prior post about the scratch coat.  This is the step that takes a while to dry, not the scratch coat.

Remodel Day 132 - 6/14/2011

Jumping ahead a few days.  Now the work is being parceled out to specialty crews.  Electricians, insulation guys and today the stucco crew was back.  Today is time for the brown coat to go up.  Just FYI - it's gray not brown, not sure about the name.  I thought I'd explain it since the pictures look gray.  The crew was done in 1 1/2 days.  Amazing. 

Here you can see the brown (but looks gray) coat going on.

Close up.  The left is the brown coat and the right is the scratch coat.

Remodel Day 129 - 6/11/2011

The stucco work continues.  Today is the scratch coat. 

It needs to set for 7 to 10 days before the next step which is the brown coat.

This pile of sand was irrestible to the kids. 
They could not resist the urge to jump in it. 
The workers were not too happy about it.  :(

Here's the final product. 
It looks like lines have been raked through it. 

Remodel Day 128 - 6/10/2011

It's insulation day.  Lots and lots of insulation and weird looking insulation to boot. 

When we moved into this house there was no insulation.  Not one bit.  I find this kind of crazy considering we live in the Valley with it's blistering hot summers.  But still, there was none.  In 2005 we decided to have cellulose insulation sprayed into the walls.  Holes are poked in the walls and this stuff that kind of looks like dust/lint/wood shavings is pumped into the walls.  I have to be honest.  It did NOTHING to improve the heating/cooling situation in the house.  Lesson learned. 

So now here we are and we get to do it right.  I remember either pink or white insulation.  This is big fat hairy looking insulation that is brown.  It's the insulation that is required by Burbank.  They have "greener" requirements than Los Angeles.  That is a good thing, but it is very strange looking. 

It's called EcoBatt. 

It is different from other insulation because:

• Made primarily from sand, one of the world’s most abundant and renewable resources

• Contains no phenol, formaldehyde, acrylics or artificial colors
• Contains a minimum of 30% post-consumer recycled glass content

Check out the website for more details.
http://www.ecobatt.us/eco_batt.html

This insulation was used in combination with a rigid board insulation called R-Tech which provides a sound proofing element.  We used for the bedroom walls that faced the bathrooms to try to minimize the noise. 
http://files.buildsite.com/dbderived-f/premierindustries/derived_files/derived317193.pdf

When Henry saw it he asked "Mommy, are we building a haunted house?"  Too funny....it does sort of look creepy.