Remodeling projects.

[JERRY2KONE]

Some of the work that was done I do not have very good pictures of, like the door between the house and the garage for instance. By law, and local codes it has to be a 30 minute fire door that closes automatically(spring loaded). It was very small and hard to get appliances and furniture in and out of the house. Considering that this was going to be a rental home I wanted to make it easier for tenants to move in and out of the house. So I removed the old door, re-framed the opening, and put in a code ready 42" fire door. Leaving tons of clearance for just about any kind of appliance or furniture to move in and out easily.

There were also four very large sliding glass patio style doors in this house. Why I do not know. They were way too large for the house and very old and ugly aluminum frame single pain doors, and the locks had been broken for years. I removed three of these doors, framed up the openings, and installed all new large double pain modern sliding windows. The fourth and final door was removed, re-framed, and a new modern security sliding door was installed for the back porch entryway.

The final phase of this part of the project was to replace all of the remaining windows in the house with modern sliding double pain windows. Replacing these windows was much easier, because they were all direct fit windows for the old openings, or very close so that framing was simple. At the same time while replacing all of these windows I figured it would be a good time to remove all of the siding materials from teh outside of the house. I removed over 1000 lbs of old steel sears siding, two walls covered with very ugly fiberglass siding, and two walls of faugh concrete stone style stuco. Removing the concrete was the most difficult part of the entire project, because of the sheer size and weight of this material. Although I did find a tricky was to get it off of the walls using a steel 3/8" cable. I managed to get one corner of the concrete loose and wrapped the cable around it, then I attached the other end to the toe-hitch of a huge Chevy Silverado truck and pulled it loose. It peeled right off of the house like a big piece of tape. BUT because it was all lathed together I had to cut it off piece by piece and remove it to a dump site. I did manage to get a few shots of this just as I started the job and once it was all down.

I also tore down two 10' sections of privacy fencing on either side of the house and rebuilt the fence and installed new heavy duty security gates for easy owner access. I replaced all four of the outside water spickets with new 1/4 turn ball valves. And I also had to create a new cement two step cement staircase for the back door. This will stay in place and eventually we will build a 400-500 sq ft wooden deck over it. I also removed the old front door, and tore down the entire glass entryway and reconfigured the opening to center the door and install a brand new beautiful fiberglass security door with triple latching system. Which allowed us to remove the 50 year old security gate off the front of the house. I also cut a mail slot into the front wall of the garage closest to the sidewalk, and built a new mail box system. This makes it easier for mail delivery, keeps the mail completely out of sight, and makes it so the resident never has to leave the house to collect the mail, because it gets deposited into the mail box in the garage. Another home made asset that saved money and time, and yet improved the overall workings of our home.

This was a pocket door leading into the kitchen, and I never liked it, so I removed it totally and opened up the entranceway to about 5 feet.




There was a huge fireplace smack dab in the middle of the livingroom, and man was it ugly. I just did not have the time to tear it down and remove it, so I repainted it, and built a wall next to it installing a closet on the back side and created an office space or even a fourth bedroom.

[JERRY2KONE]

Overall the place turned out quite nice compared to how it looked two months prior. After I was able to complete all of the major projects I replaced every inch of door, window, and floor trim molding and installed all new 3" moldings to make the place look more modern. In the last two weeks of my vacation my wife and her family came in and painted the entire interior and cleaned the place up. We had already replaced the roof, and had a brand new furnace installed, and the last thing we had done was to have another family friend come in and stuco the outside of the house with "Arizona Sunrise" colored stuco. One of our neighbors is a landscaper so he keeps the front and back yards tip top, and for a final piece of insurance we hired a home warranty program that covers the entire house structure and all of the electrical, and plumming systems including all of the appliances. The emergency call system is through the Sears company. With us traveling around the world we just don't have the time to worry or deal with incidentals like that. The house was rented out in Jan/2011 and the new tenants just love the house.

So who else has remodeling projects out there to share with us?

[pinkpanda3310]

Your an inspiration Jerry! I wish I did get into remodelling. Ironic since I work in construction Given that your family was not there at the time is the best way to do it. There is no way my missus would go through that. Nice work mate.

[JERRY2KONE]

Yea thanks. Actually my wife loves to assist when I am doing stuff like that, and she is great at cleaning up behind me as I move along. BUT one of us has to work and pay the bills. Plus I can move a lot faster and get more done most of the time when I work on my own. While I was on this adventure I got up every single morning around 0700 and jumped right in with the next project. I worked pretty much none stop throughout the day and most nights colapsed into bed around midnight or later.

I took one day off during the entire 6 weeks to take one of our son's to the local Six Flags amuesment park there in Vallejo. It was a nice break in the action getting to ride the coasters and have some fun, and after I took him back over to his grandparents house I got right back to work that evening. The experience was exhausting, but I had goals to meet, and the overall meaning of this whole project was to improve this house and create an environment that would allow us to get the house rented out for a reasonable monthly amount to help pay the mortgage. So I had an internal pride that would not allow me to fail. There were friends and family members who stopped in from time to time to lend a hand for a few hours here and there, but the overall responsibility lay with me to get it all done. People were amazed at how much I was able to accomplish every time they would show up and see a completely new house. I kept going no matter what came up or what obstacles got in my way. My personal goal was to complete at least one major project every day, as well as working on little items along the way to break the manotiny.

So thanks for the kind words and for taking the time to look through my adventure. I never really worked in construction, but always wanted to. I took a Vo-tech class in high school "Building Trades" and learned enough to help me have the confidence to take on just about any task, and find my way to a resolution. I do love doing stuff like this so that is my ace in the hole so to speak, and I am passionate about creating things that show great quality and will last forever. So this was a fun process to go through. It is challening, but nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it. The only true limits we have are those which we set in our own minds. Life is good.

[reno911]

I'm speechless, awesome job. I myself may be getting with you later Jerry, as we just wrapped up the move this weekend into the new house. Gots some projects on the horizon.

[lincpimp]

Home projects are fun, and you look to have done a great job Jerry.

I am currently in the middle of adding a 5th bedroom to my mother-in-law's house. We "found" a large attic area above her bedroom, and managed a 11'x13' room out of the space. I put in the floor in 2 nights and my cousin is doing the wiring. I have to reframe 2 closets and put in 3 doors. Lots of fun.

[JERRY2KONE]

Originally Posted by lincpimp

Home projects are fun, and you look to have done a great job Jerry.

I am currently in the middle of adding a 5th bedroom to my mother-in-law's house. We "found" a large attic area above her bedroom, and managed a 11'x13' room out of the space. I put in the floor in 2 nights and my cousin is doing the wiring. I have to reframe 2 closets and put in 3 doors. Lots of fun.

Thanks Reno just shoot me a PM and ask away. I enjoy helping others with stuff like this.

Thanks for the compliment James. So where are the pictures? We want to read your experiences and see the photos of what you started with and how it turns out.

Its great to see so many others not afraid to give the DIY a shot on projects like this one. As long as no one gets hurt and your efforts don't end up costing you more to fix your mess its all good.

[_paralyzed_]

I was a framing carpenter by trade (now a professional smartass) and growing up my dad was a general contractor. I also lived on farm growing up, anything mechanical or carpentry related was fixed on the spot by me and pops. He often said, "why pay someone else to do it and pay for their vacation to Hawaii, we'll fix it ourselves AND go to Hawaii".

Anyhoo- That's some awesome work Jerry! Not only the work itself, but the dedication and self discipline to get it done in the alloted time. I am very impressed Jerry. There are lots of men half your age (40) that couldn't do what you did.

Thank you for re-posting this here, I enjoyed seeing your work

[JERRY2KONE]

Thanks a lot Harold. My father use to tell me pretty much the same thing as I was growing up. He said he wished he had more talent & skills so that he could fix more stuff on his own, and that made me want to learn and know more. It only made sense to me that the more you know how to do on your own, the less you end up spending to pay someone else to do it for you. On average you can save 60% TO 80% by DIY compared to spending your hard earned money having someone else do it. The other factor is that when you do it yourself you know it gets done right and it won't have to be re-done a few months later, because some jackass ripped you off and used cheap materials and did the job halfassed as well.

Thanks for the compliments sir. Too many contractors today look for shortcuts to save time and money so they can quickly move on to another sucker, and we end up getting screwed paying for a job that only gets done halfway right. I don't trust any of them, and I would rather keep that money in my pocket.

[lincpimp]

I also redid my kitchen recently. Removed a wall, rewired one side of the house (the orignal electrician wired thru a fir down that I had to remove, asshat...) moved gas and water lines and welded up and installed a 15' steel I beam and steel columns. Also had to demo around 1500lbs of bricks and move them manually... Allotted 12 grand inc the 3800 for quartz countertops and 5000 for the apliances. Spent the rest on a cabinet and some lighting and plumbing. God only knows what labor would have cost, maybe 15 grand...

Also plan to redo my closet, extend it into the attic space and double the size. Should be fun, attic work in the summer.

[JERRY2KONE]

Originally Posted by lincpimp

I also redid my kitchen recently. Removed a wall, rewired one side of the house (the orignal electrician wired thru a fir down that I had to remove, asshat...) moved gas and water lines and welded up and installed a 15' steel I beam and steel columns. Also had to demo around 1500lbs of bricks and move them manually... Allotted 12 grand inc the 3800 for quartz countertops and 5000 for the apliances. Spent the rest on a cabinet and some lighting and plumbing. God only knows what labor would have cost, maybe 15 grand...

Also plan to redo my closet, extend it into the attic space and double the size. Should be fun, attic work in the summer.

I never do attic work during the daylight hours, because of the heat. Put in some really good lighting even if only temporary. You can also open up one of your A/C ducts while you do the job and help to keep things a bit cooler while you work, than seal the duct back up. Plus do the work at night, when things cool down somewhat. Doing custom work of any kind is always a treat, because you get to do it your way, and don't have to explain crap to some half whit so he can screw it up and charge you through the nose for his version or interpritation of your expectations.

[mistercrash]

You been busy!

You sure have the right to look back at it now and be proud sir, looks like you did real good. The place looks awesome, you should get a very good return on the investment not to mention that you can rent the place at a much higher price. From the pics I have only one suggestion, the sliding doors I saw in front of the washer/dryer. Maybe put a pair of folding doors instead so that you have access to both the washer and dryer at the same time. Or maybe you've done it already and I missed the pic.

I couldn't believe that the whole electrical system was not grounded to anything all this time.

I really like what you did to the place mate. Looks really good. I love the kitchen especially. I bet the wife loves it too. I also like what you did with the old kitchen cupboards. Brilliant idea instaling them in the garage. I helped a friend rip out his old kitchen and never thought of doing that with the cupboards. Anyway we had tons of fun smashing them with 10lb sledge hammers. LOL.

I could never get motivated to do that kind of work. For what ever reason I just don't like remodeling. I am the type of guy to smash everything with a hammer and start fresh. I built my first house. Did lot of the final work my self like tiling, painting, layed down the floorboads,concreting around the backyard and the driveway, all the garden beds.......... When I split with my ex and had to sell the place I was pretty shattered. All that work and I didn't even get a chance to properly enjoy and appreciate it. My curerent hose I just bought brand new from a builder. Paid a little more but the only seat I broke was moving in. Yeah, I guess you could call me lazy.

Anyway just registered with UE forum. Is it any good?

[_paralyzed_]

Originally Posted by BIG-block

Anyway just registered with UE forum. Is it any good?

the site owner has lost interest and you will never get approved. Atleast I never did. PM me if you do!

[JERRY2KONE]

Originally Posted by mistercrash

You been busy!

You sure have the right to look back at it now and be proud sir, looks like you did real good. The place looks awesome, you should get a very good return on the investment not to mention that you can rent the place at a much higher price. From the pics I have only one suggestion, the sliding doors I saw in front of the washer/dryer. Maybe put a pair of folding doors instead so that you have access to both the washer and dryer at the same time. Or maybe you've done it already and I missed the pic.

I couldn't believe that the whole electrical system was not grounded to anything all this time.

It does feel pretty good about the whole situation, and the wife and I are proud of what we were able to do with such little money and not a lot of time. It was either that or file bankruptcy on it. I wish it was so we could reap great benefits from it. With the market crash the mortgage is upside down by about $100K making it impossible to sell without losing even more, and the rent still does not cover the entire mortgage, but we are in a much better spot now with it rented out. It sat empty for two years while we were covering the entire monthly cost of owning it (mortgage, taxes, & insurance) in California. In 2009 it cost us nearly $50k in expenses just to keep it out of the banks hands. I worked all year just to see about 90% of my pay go right into the operating cost of that house.

We still feel fortunate compared to alot of others, watching so many walk away from their homes who are in similar situations and just can not keep up. We still have steady income and the house is now rented out for the next couple of years at least. SO we have some breathing room for now.

The one thing the wife said as we had to leave Cali and get back to work is that with all of the work I put into the house she wishes that we could live in it and enjoy the beautiful environment that we created there. There is still work to be done, but we just don't have any extra capital to put into it. We may end up retiring there is things do not change over the next 5 years or so. I was hoping to sell it and build our own house on a 5 acre lot some place quiet.