View Full Version : Frustration Day
By age 65 you would think that I would know that home improvement projects will always take longer and cost more than you anticipate. But no, I expected the tile installer to be here not at 11:15 when he showed up but at 8:30 as I was told to expect him. Then I should have known not to expect the installation of tile in a 5'5" by 10'6" room to be completed in 1 day. No, I will have the washer and drier in the living room for the rest of the week. Tomorrow we do the grouting and the installation of the quarter round baseboard. Then we get to wait until the grout can be sealed and the quarter rounds painted. Then I can get the washer and drier out of the living room and actually wash clothes. Sigh.
That's a lesson I learned long ago. My last three month home improvement project, turning my raw 2300 sq ft basement into finished space, took over 5 years to complete, one weekend at a time.
Luckily for me, the longer a project takes, the greater the satisfaction (or is it relief?) once it's completed. I hope you'll feel the same. :)
I can relate, but in a different way: the aftermath.
I just had the house re-roofed. They were on-time and on-budget, but the rented dumpster put some cracks in my driveway. I can't really complain because I'd given them permission to park it there. So now, with tiny bits of old roofing and nails in my yard that I'll be picking up for weeks, and getting the cracks fixed, it looks like it will be a little while before I can say it's finally completed.
A colleague told me the same thing today: he actually fired his landscapers because while they did a great job trimming his big trees, they somehow manage to dislodge some of the rest of the desert landscape so it looks like it's been kicked around. He was getting tired of raking and putting everything back the way it was.
Anyway, hope you're washing clothes soon !
So now, with tiny bits of old roofing and nails in my yard that I'll be picking up for weeks, and getting the cracks fixed, it looks like it will be a little while before I can say it's finally completed.
Lainey, I've had roof work done a few times on various properties, and in each contract there was a stipulation (that the contractor put in, not me) to "sweep" around the house with a magnet on wheels which picks up any excess nails. If this wasn't done for you (or not done to your satisfaction), I'd call them back. I don't know if they can do much about the shingle bits, but they may be able to pick up the bigger chunks as they wheel around the magnet.
My husband says, "the longer it takes to do a project, the longer one has to thoroughly plan-out and execute the design, making for a better end result". :)
Don't be hasty and rush things, Florence, because the waiting time will prove to be the biggest reward of all!
Lainey, I've had roof work done a few times on various properties, and in each contract there was a stipulation (that the contractor put in, not me) to "sweep" around the house with a magnet on wheels which picks up any excess nails. If this wasn't done for you (or not done to your satisfaction), I'd call them back. I don't know if they can do much about the shingle bits, but they may be able to pick up the bigger chunks as they wheel around the magnet.
Yes! When my roof was done there wasn't a bit of shingle or nail to be found.
By age 65 you would think that I would know that home improvement projects will always take longer and cost more than you anticipate. But no, I expected the tile installer to be here not at 11:15 when he showed up but at 8:30 as I was told to expect him. Then I should have known not to expect the installation of tile in a 5'5" by 10'6" room to be completed in 1 day. No, I will have the washer and drier in the living room for the rest of the week. Tomorrow we do the grouting and the installation of the quarter round baseboard. Then we get to wait until the grout can be sealed and the quarter rounds painted. Then I can get the washer and drier out of the living room and actually wash clothes. Sigh.
It'll be great when done. When I created a tiled laundry room out of a bedroom I still had my washer/dryer hooked up in their former location....UNDER the stairs. 7 years later I am still thankful every single day because I'm not bumping my head on the stairs.
I was telling DH on Sunday that this awful kitchen sink installation will be just a memory in a few days. We spent the entire day ourselves removing an old cast iron sink (I think it weighed 100+ lbs) and then installing all the plumbing and finally the new sink and faucet. Many trips back and forth to Lowe's to buy this tool or that pipe. Even with the best of plans, these projects always seem to go awry.
Thanks to all my home-improvement fellow sufferers. It will be worth it when finished. It will be worth it when finished. It will.....
Just a quick update. They did a really good job with the tile and even installed some quarter rounds to the baseboards. It looks much improved. We have ordered the new blinds for the window in the laundry room. I am thinking of putting a decal on the wall, "Bubble, bubble, soil, and trouble..."
I love your laundry room sign idea!
My daughter suggested stenciling it. I've never done stenciling but I suppose if I mess it up, I can paint over it.
Yes! When my roof was done there wasn't a bit of shingle or nail to be found.
I think the problem is my front yard is rock landscape. Tiny dark rocks = hard to see bits of shingle and nails. I did two more sweeps of the front yard though by hand and I think I got almost all of it.
and related to this, can we have a reality show where a crew shows up and says, "I'm going to fix everything wrong with your house"? I think Extreme Makeover started out like that, remodeling houses of deserving families, until it turned into an over-the-top extravaganza to the point where the families got into financial trouble trying to maintain them.
I know that different companies and groups will participate in these types of one-day blitz home fix-ups for charity, but I think the Extreme Makeover crew could have repaired every house on the block for the cost of a teardown and building of a mini-mansion.
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