Still annoyed

I cannot be reached right now. Not impressed with Telus. Even with the authorization...there is another issue which "we can transfer you to Telus Mobility to explain"...because whoever I was talking to couldn't explain. So, I've discontinued the number to the old address. I have to wait till tomorrow to get a new number for the cell phone. Hassle.

Annoyed already by the cell phone

I got the fancy phone with the fancy buttons, and a plan I think I understand. Yet, I can't receive a phone call. Telus is blocking the transfer of the landline to the cell phone because I am not the primary contact on the landline. Ben has to waste his time calling them to "authorize" the changes I want to make to the account. Now, keep in mind that I already talked to Telus & Telus mobility about transfering the line last week...they made notes in our account, told me I just needed to go and get the phone. Pain in the arse. So, don't call me...I'll call you...at least until we get this "authorized".

Moved.

We're out. We're out of the condo. Ben is doing the walk through with the new tenants as I type. So...we have electricity, but we don't have cable or phone. As such, I bit the bullet and finally got myself a cell phone, one with all the bells and whistles too. What a great sales person I found. Now I just need to figure out how to use the thing. Those who call me, I transfered our old home number so that you don't need to change your speed dial. Talk soon.

Renter Found!

Yay! Only took one week to find a good renter...they must be good, she brought us a bottle of wine when she came to sign the lease. So, we're packing away all our belongings. The movers are coming this saturday. Here's hoping that we'll have a drywall dust free house, and a working bathroom. If anyone has any good microwave recipes, send them along. I don't expect we'll have a working kitchen for a month or two.

Milestone

This is what our place has looked like, essentially, for the last 7 months or so...


And then this arrived...


28 bundles of it insulated the walls, then poly was stapled to all exterior walls and the ceiling (note: a fair amount of bruising to Ben's knuckles occurred)...


All seams were tuck taped or acousti-sealed, 26 potlights & numerous electrical outlets were cut out and tucked taped...long nights...late, oh so late nights...


And then, 8 month of work was covered up in one day.


Here's the living room, insulated & partial poly:


Living room with complete poly, and tuck tape:


Living room sheeted with drywall:


Kitchen island bulkhead, poly & tuck:


Drywall:


It's a huge relief to have the drywallers working away in there. Every wall is now sheeted, and they've moved on to tape, mud, and sand. We're hoping to move in by the end of the month, however...renters must be found first. Know anyone in Calgary who's looking to rent a 2 bed condo right close to downtown?

What happened to September???

An entire month...not a single post. How embarrassing. As you may have guessed, we've been swamped. Since he already wrote it, here is an excerpt from an e-mail Ben sent to his parents:

"We seriously don't have time to do much these days! I pick up Nei from work, get changed and then off to the house until 10ish. We've got drywallers starting Monday so it's been a bit of a mad panic trying to get every last thing done before the walls get closed up for good. Just to update you a little, we finished all the wiring, plumbing (inspector made me re-do more of what I thought I had done correctly...), ran all the cat-5e and coax cable, ran all the speaker wire for the home sound system, installed the gas fireplace, insulated the entire house (Nei was a one woman machine!), and numerous other tedious little, but important tasks. Of course, all the windows and doors have been installed now and they look fantastic! The house wrap is finished on the exterior and ready for stucco. The electrical service has been moved to it's temporary location until it can be buried. Last night we started the poly vapor barrier which is really the last thing we need to finish before drywall starts. We've booked the movers for October 25th and have started to look for renters for our condo. So that's about it for now. It's been hectic to say the least, but we're still having fun. We can't wait to see the drywall go up."

Did he say "we're still having fun"?...yeah, for the most part...we are still having fun. And, and...I am an insulating queen!

Note: For all you DIYers out there - don't kiss someone who has been handling poly vapor barrier. Shocking, hurts the lips...real bad.

Big Fat Posting (Part I)

The month of August has gone by quickly, but we crossed off many items from our list. This three part series is a little out of chronological order and shows only the most visual tasks. That's just the way the blogging happened - deal with it. The weekend of August 2nd & 3rd the fireplace built-out was constructed, August 9th&10th- master bath and basement windows, August 17th - the mudroom window/door and the 23rd-front window and door. We also completed running the data & co-axial cable...photos of that are kind of boring...it looks like wire.



For me, these two projects felt like a huge accomplishment. We installed our first window, the small one going into the master bath and a huge window/door combo going into the mudroom. I don't know why, but the first window was so exciting! Such progress! A window! Yes, we're closing up the house...now we're in business! Wow, then the second window...well, that one was just huge. I couldn't believe that Ben & I moved and lifted it in place - just the two of us. Indeed, I will not deny that there was fear in my eyes. Turns out, we were like a well oiled machine, getting the base in place, then walking it into standing position...team work, my friends, good ol' team work...

First, the Tyvek. Yes, we know it's upside down - that's the way we roll.


Pop that little guy right in there, yay!


Peel & stick.


More peel & stick.


Then the big window went in. We took the door out to reduce the weight, and the larger portion of glass will be installed on site. Still, trust me...it was heavy!


Here's a close-up with the door in place.

Big Fat Posting (Part II)

Next, the story about the front windows.

As most of you know, we had deliberated over the windows for months, finally ordered them, then waited and waited, despite the fact that we were told 2-3 weeks. When they arrived, we were so excited...we almost didn't notice that all the windows for the front of the house were wrong. They were supposed to be wood interior/wood exterior. Instead, they were wood interior/metal clad exterior, just like the windows for the back of the house (see Big Fast Posting I). Now, metal clad is very nice and far less maintenance than wood - but we had made that decision for design purposes (just wait till you see the finished product!). So, we sent them back. One week later, they deliver the newly made front windows...also wrong. Clearly stated to the manufacturer, these windows were to be stain grade. Yet, they showed up caulked with ugly, ugly beige caulking. Great...if you're painting over it. No, no, we're designers...we have something in mind, ugly caulking is not part of it. So, we sent them back again. It takes a little longer, and then the windows show up in our backyard again, and the caulking is striped. They did a decent job, we'll take it.

If you read Part I, you'll remember that the window/door combo was quite the task for the two of us. Knowing that the front window was much heavier and to be installed further from the ground - I told Ben that I would not be lifting the front window, and we must recruit three men to help out. Actually, 3.25 men were available to help us out. Big, big thanks to Billy, Justin, Kamal and his son Stephen. We ended off the evening with beer & pizza till dusk in the front lawn, the hoppcha bunny stopped by for a visit too.

Hey Ben...where's the front door?


It's in the front yard...


Ben & Billy bring in the new front door (I don't know why this sentence is underlined, I can't find where to turn it off)



Ben & Billy say "Hi!"


Kamal & his son climbing in the tree. Stephen & I were very busy collecting pine cones while the guys prepped for the window.


I wanted to take a picture of all the guys carrying the window, a good action shot. But, I was too excited and forgot. Then, I wanted to take a picture of all the guys hanging out after...I forgot to do that too. Oops. Here' a picture of Ben about to nail in the last few nails.


I also don't have photos of the basement windows, we installed those the same day as the master bath window. I'll make sure to get them this weekend. Seven window/doors down, three to go!

Big Fat Posting (Part III)

This is the story of a happy little build-out. This particular build-out was made to house the fireplace in the living room...

First, a cut was made into the stucco:


This is the tool that was used:


Next, Ben peeled back the stucco like the tin off a can of tuna...except with a crowbar:


Then, the structural support was added on the inside:


Promptly, a platform was built.


And then...the wall came out!


This is what it looked like from the inside:


The platform was covered with poly and ply...


And then, the sides were added and bolted to the structural supports:


Ben says "Hi!"


Finally, we closed it in with OSB.


And that was the weekend the build-out was made.

and the wall came down...

Finally, the wall between the addition and the house was demolished. It's been a long time coming, and Wow - does it ever open the space up.

Ben pried the stucco off the wall using a crowbar like a can opener.


Stucco...all gone...

By the way, that's a fake wasp nest hanging in the corner. It keeps real wasps from building their nest nearby. $10 at Home Depot & Rona, and it really works.

This is the roof rafter that split, we're not sure how...but Ben replaced it.


Here's a look up into the underside of the addition's roof.


"Hi" says Ben.


The view from the master bedroom into the ensuite. There will be a sunken tub below the window. Just imagine drywall and stuff.


All opened up...


Ben working on something...


All closed up for the day. Yes, our back yard is rather trashy.

Ben want's me to post another!

I say "No. It's too late." Here's a dangler for you...next post...demolishing the wall between the house and the addition! Ooooo, very exciting.

But for my shrubbie friends out there, here's a pretty flower from the garden:

Second post for tonight...

Since I have time, I'll get a second installment posted...keep scrolling down for today's earlier post.

Here is Ben busting up the sidewalk, so I can dig a hole:


Here's me digging a hole, so the concrete cutters can get their equipment in the hole:


Here's the hole in the concrete that the concrete cutters cut, so we can put a bigger window in...the window is supposed to be delivered this Friday.


This is Ben building a bulkhead around the duct work in the "lower level":


This is the bulkhead which will be over the kitchen island. For our designer type friends out there, we have some fancy-shmansy Sistemalux fixtures to go in there. Much thanks to Tara & Vektra Lighting for making that happen!

I know...I know...

Yes Folks, it's been awhile. I've got a lot of photos to post, but since it takes long enough to download them - I'll do it in installments.

Since the last post, it felt like the renovation was going very slow. Plumbing, electrical and framing is not as showy as demolition. Every stud looks like the next stud , and there is so much stuff that needs to go in the walls before the drywall goes up. So, the changes have been less drastic...and so, less photos to show off. Here's a few photos from June 15th & 21st.

This is me eating a bagel in the main bath:


This is Ben's handy work for the main bath shower & bath rough-in:


This is Arjen's pet beaver:


This is a nail puncturing a pex pipe, whoopsie...


This is the water line from the nail in the pex pipe. We were really lucky here, the nail held the water until we left the house...then once the pressure built up, it created a nice fine mist. Fortunately, the water didn't make it past the sub-floor and the wet-vac took care of most of it. The wood dried very nicely, no warping, no mold.