Construction
This section covers the construction stage of our remodel—Day 20 to Day 9.
For previous work see:
Day 20 —Can Lights & Ventilation
August 1, 2008
Frank & Sandy removed the drywall, etc. from the old ceiling light fixture to get it ready to add insulation. Put holes in the ceiling drywall for the can lights, installed some of the light fixtures and put a hole in the roof for the cooktop ventilation.
Day 19 —More Electrical
July 31, 2008
Frank & Sandy worked on the electrical again today. They ran wires through the chase and in the ceiling.
They also marked where the can lights will go. There are a few where we need to decide the final location. When they opened up behind the old lighting fixture in the ceiling, they discovered there is no insulation in that area. Now they will need to tear out the old fixture to add insulation instead of just drywalling over the old fixture.
Day 18 —Chase, Soffits & Cabinets
July 30, 2008
Sandy will be helping Frank the rest of this week. They are working on the electrical chase and soffit. Frank made the top piece of the soffit while Sandy ran wires through the chase.
This is on the wall in the breakfast nook area facing into the family room. We will have a light in the soffit arch that will illuminate some artwork that will be "framed" by the soffit.
Day 17 —Soffits
July 29, 2008
I was gone all day today, but came home to discover Frank & Julie had made interesting progress on the soffit for the hood a well as the one for the electrical on the wall above the breakfast nook. Luckily nobody was up on the ladders when the Chino Hills earthquake struck this morning!
Day 16 —More Electrical
July 28, 2008
Frank & Julie worked on electrical stuff today. I went over to Cagle's and picked up the Kobe hood so they could start planning on the soffit they will be making for it. The hood is not tall enough to reach the high cathedral ceilings so they are framing a box where the hood will attach to the ceiling.
Day 15 —Concrete
July 26, 2008
We were out of town for the weekend, but Frank and & Julie and their concrete guy came and poured the concrete Saturday. Here is a picture of the kitchen with the trenches filled in. The concrete for the driveway looks good too. Now we have to wait 28 days to drive the RV on it.
Frank also finished the garage electrical stuff.
Day 14 —Plumbing
July 24, 2008
Today Frank worked on plumbing, getting ready for the main sink, prep sink on the island and the refrigerator's ice maker. He did some electrical work and continued with fixing the issues with the garage lights. This afternoon the concrete guy came and put in the form for the concrete they are adding to the driveway.
They will be back on Saturday and to pour the concrete, both for the driveway as well as the kitchen. Frank also plans on finishing the garage electrical stuff.
Tonight's pictures don't really show much, so look for the next update and new pictures by Monday.
Day 13 —Finish gas & prep for concrete
July 23, 2008
Frank finished up the gas line to the island and put the dirt back in the trench in preparation for the concrete on Saturday. Julie came and helped in the morning. Then Frank worked on some existing electrical issues in the garage. Turns out the outside garage lights were not properly wired, so he is redoing that for us.
This photo is from yesterday, but I had so many cabinet pictures, I didn't post it. It shows the old window opening and where Frank is getting ready to reframe for the new smaller window.
Day 12 —Cabinets & First Inspection
July 22, 2008
Lots of pictures today! We went down to the cabinet shop and took a look at the progress. It's really looking nice! See the cabinets section for the photos.
The inspector came today. Everything is looking good. Frank got clarification from the inspector on the city's gas line requirements for the island. He has a little more to do for that now, but the inspector approved everything for now.
Frank did additional work for the window reframing.
We purchased a new doggie door over the weekend, but it didn't fit in the existing opening. So Frank cut the concrete and installed the door for us.
Day 11 —No Inspection
July 21, 2008
Frank did a few things while waiting for the inspector, but not much that would show in a picture.
Unfortunately there was a mix up and the inspector never showed up.
Day 10 —The Window
July 18, 2008
Today Frank removed an odd triangular piece of concrete from the driveway so it will be replaced when the new concrete is poured. Otherwise it would just end up cracking more than it already had.
Then he removed the window from the nook. We are making the window a little smaller so we can put in a pantry cabinet in the bumped out little corner and extend the countertop. He also filled in some of the trenches in preparation for the inspection on Monday.
I had another company come out to give me an estimate on replacing our windows. We need to make a decision soon and at least get the nook window ordered. It's a small world—the guy's step-mother is from the San Diego area and does agility. She has a sheltie and a cattledog, but I didn't recognize her name (which doesn't mean anything as I am so bad with names...).
Day 9 —Utilities
July 17, 2008
Frank & Julie removed more concrete, dug out more dirt and fixed a cracked drain pipe. They had to do extra digging to uncover all of the cracked pipe. There were tree roots around the pipe and it was damp in the area. Who knows how long it's been that way.
Then they put in the water lines, gas line and drain pipes. Everything is progressing nicely.
I believe the inspector is coming on Monday and the concrete guy will be out late next week. We had some of the grass removed out front so they can pour a bit of extra concrete for the driveway to make it easier to get the RV in and out.
