Exterior Shots

Anyone want to buy a fully renovated home in Charlotte?

This blog post is surely a few months overdue, after all we’ve been living in the house close to two years are this point.

Whether you’ve been to this blog before or are reading up about our renovation for the first time, you’re probably wondering how we went from tiling to where we are today. Well, as luck would have it digital cameras and construction sites do not mix. As a result I lost step with keeping the photojournal on the home renovation and never posted a final summary of what we were able to accomplish.

So, without further adieu, here is a detailed overview of what we managed to do to the house during our ten month renovation:

At long last…

…we no longer have to jump up into the house…the stairs are finally in…and they look great…just a little back fill and some concrete and we’ll be ready to install the lilac blue stone tile to finish them up!

  

Return of the Big Update

This blog, as with all things construction, is a hurry up then slow down mentality.  Between inspection delays, minor repairs to trade work, a week off to finally go on our honeymoon and more inspection delays we finally have things to update on.  First and foremost we are done with all of our inspections - electrical, plumbing, mechanical, framing and insulation – and we have been able to put the walls back in the house.  Now that we are in the midst of mudding and taping, I’ve been able to start working on things like the cement board backers for the tubs and preparing to lay the new hardwood floors.  So, without further adieu, the inspections:

Plumbing – One trip, one score (this would be the only time that happened):

Mechanical – Three trips, two approvals, one sticker:

Framing & Insulation – Two trips, one approval:

A few words on inspections…

All I have to say is what the !@#$???  So, electrical rough in was completed on Friday afternoon and the electricians called for the inspection.  The inspectors came first thing Monday morning and failed the house for something very minor.  The electricians didn’t put enough stud guards in the framing near the electrical panels to avoid a nail or a screw from going through the high voltage wiring. 

As far as we are concerned that is fair enough.  The last thing we want after spending the national budget of Guam on this remodel is for a nail to go through a 30 amp wire and burn the place down.  The electricians came right out, remedied the issue and called back in for a reinspection.  This is where things begin to drive me insane.

I get a call 3pm on Tuesday from the electrician to let the inspector into the house.  No problem.  I run over there and the inspector is sitting in his truck.  I get out, unlock the house, wave to the inspector and get back in my car – and sit.  15 minutes goes by and the guy just sits there in his truck.  Then he starts it up and drives away without ever going into the house to check to see if four little pieces of metal have been tacked into the studs!

Insensed about this I call the electrician and he checks the system online and the inspector reports that the home was inaccessible.  Inaccessible!!!  Not only was the door unlocked, I was fricking sitting right fricking there not 30 feet from where he was!!!  So, we have to call in for a reinspection again.  This time the electrician puts my cell phone number on the inspection ticket for them to call me directly as we aren’t expecting any subs at the house on Wednesday.

Wednesday comes and goes with no calls from anyone.  I have no business over at the house that day, so I go to a few appointments and figure we’re just getting pushed off until the next day for getting this thing inspected.

Thursday morning I go to the house to meet the HVAC guy who is going to run a new wire from the heat pump up to where the new thermostat will go and run the gas line to the kitchen for the cooktop.  As I unlock the door what do I find?  A love note from code enforcement failing the inspection on Wednesday due to what you may ask?  That’s right – the home was inaccessible!  As my grandfather would have been oft to remark this is the phone age not the stone age!  Not only did they know my electricians number, but my electrician gave them my number!  The laziness and incompetence is astounding.

Yet again, a reinspection is called in.  Yet again, my cell phone number is listed as the contact.  Friday morning around 8:30am my cell phone rings.  Its the electrician letting me know that the inspector in en route.  Don’t you just love how they follow directions?

I get to the house about 5 minutes after speaking with the electrician.  I unlock the house, open all the doors – front and back – and toyed with the idea of either putting up a blinking neon arrow to all entryways to the house or leaving trails of cheese so they could find their way in.  The inspector shows up 10 minutes later, manages to actually exit his vehicle, gained access through the wide open front door and – finally – passed the house!

Five days, four visits, three stud guards, two failures and one approval. 

Three times the charm I guess:

The Big Update!

Its been more than a month since the last post and there is a lot of catching up to do.  We’ve been busy reworking flooring and subflooring, getting plumbing, electrical, structured wiring and whole home audio going.  We’ve also been busy making the final decisions on fit and finish now that we are about two weeks away from having the walls back in the house.  Just some minor plumbing rough in, insulation and a few inspections remaining before it is time to wall it back up!

Our Renovation Story…

Let me tell you a story about a man named Jed…

Yes, we bought a house from a man named Jed and now we are getting ready to tear the thing apart. As you can see the place isn’t exactly our dream home, but that is nothing a few hammers and prybars – along with the GDP of a small island nation – can’t fix.

Our basic goal with this renovation is to make the house floor plan more open and create a more logical flow. Currently the house is a 3 bedroom, 1.5 bathroom house. Qualifying it as a third bathroom is a bit of a stretch and the half bathroom is a true example of a “water closet”. Not only will we be adding a full second bathroom and creating a full true second bedroom we will also be doubling the size of the kitchen and creating a mudroom that will have a full laundry and pantry to enhance the storage area. When everything is done the master bedroom will have it own dedicated master bathroom and a full walk in closet compared to the shared bathroom and next to zero closet space currently in the home.

With our plans in hand and our construction loan ready to go we are about to begin the demolition process. So, follow along with us over the next few months to see our progress as we attempt to transform truly an ugly duckling into a home we will actually be proud to own.

Here are some more pics of the new castle:

 Next step: Demolition!  And our motto for demolition is “When in doubt, rip it out!”