New York Renovator

I’ve done some DIY tree removal, believe it or not. As a teenager, we lived on top of a forested mountain, Spencer’s Mountain style– living off the land as much as possible. We relied on wild game for food and on wood for our winter heating fuel. It was an interesting few years for me. While I liked living off the land and being self-sufficient, I didn’t want to be dirt-poor, and i had ambitions as a kid, so I left after I grew up. But I look back on those years with a fondness for homesteading. Maybe I’ll do it again, someday.

We used to fell our own trees. My stepdad would pack up the three boys and me into his rusty old pickup truck, and off we go into the forest. My mom always had conniptions when we left. She remembered the scene in Spencer’s Mountain where the tree falls on the dad. Well, that wouldn’t happen with my stepdad. Because he had us fell the trees while he supervised. lol But I do remember one close call where my brother cut too deep an angle, and the tree was going right toward him. He moved out of the way, but it was a scary time. My brothers (two of them) later moved to North Carolina, where they bought properties and presently had a professionaltree service Cary NC and Raleigh tree service take down some trees. It’s a TOUGH job, not an average DIY project, to be sure.

I found this video that so exemplifies how difficult tree removal is. Oopsie! Oh dear.

The kids and I felled a tree on this property a few years ago, but it was a small (25 feet) ornamental tree. Still, little trees are HEAVY. Tree felling is serious business. We had to have a huge, huge dead maple removed from the front yard a few years ago (the thing was about 50 feet tall, and only about 20 feet from the house. It dropped HUGE limbs onto the front yard from time to time. The limbs only occasionally glanced the roof– thank God it never damaged it seriously. There was NO WAY I was going to let The Hubs take it down. We hired an arborist and he took it down. It took him two days, but the guy did it and he was amazing. The kids loved watching him swing around on the rope! He was like an acrobat!

So tree removal is serious stuff. You should always contact a Durham tree service pro, or look in the yellow pages for an experienced arborist. Some professionals can also offer some good tips on pruning trees and caring for trees.

I love to DIY, but tree removal is for the birds. Ugh.

Have you noticed it these days? Consumer products are so junky these days! What is going on?

We bought some beds for the kids about 5 years ago. They seemed very nice (and cost nice, too). But now, they are totally junked. I remember in the Good Old Days that beds would last many years before the mattress and box springs gave out. These new things are awful. They are lumpy, bumpy, torn… what gives? This seems to be the plague of modern shopping today– nothing is built to last like it once was.

Anyway, I’m skipping the box spring and mattress stuff from now on. It’s so uncomfortable. The Hubs got me a Tempurpedic mattress from a local retailer a few years ago and I love it. (Although the foundation we got has severe defects and we’ve had 3+ replacements so far). If the memory foam mattress is on a solid, firm foundation, it’s the BEST bed ever. If it’s on a creaky, shifting foundation, it’s horrible. Needless to say, we’re going to get a better foundation box that doesn’t break down every 6 months…. and I’m going to be getting memory foam for the kids as soon as I can. I think it is better for their spines. And they will definitely sleep better.

Memory foam mattresses are not exactly cheap, though. The local store sells them for about $1000! I have four kids, you can see where this would lead me…. but once again, it’s Buy.com to the rescue. They sell memory foam mattresses, can you believe it?! There’s a nice 10″ model (twin size) for about $300. And the shipping is free. VERY nice.

The best thing to do with the memory foam mattresses is to place them on a solid base. I have plans to make very simple bed bases, out of lathe stock wood pieces, a wood frame, and a slab of thick plywood. This will provide the foundation as well as the bed frame. And it will be as solid as anything. The kids can even paint them or decorate them in any way they desire. I had a bed like that when I was a teen (we had a regular foam mattress, not “memory foam” back then) and it was solid and comfortable. These kinds of beds are also very durable– no cheapo particle board and Chinese glue!

So that ends one problem. I love Buy.com. I have ordered tons of stuff through them over the years, and I have never been displeased! They ship fast, their service is incredible, and they don’t sell me junk! Plus, they always have one outstanding sale or another. Even on memory foam mattresses! Kudos to Buy.com!

Chuck from Secondary Roads noticed my island in the new kitchen. So I thought I’d mention it.

The island is a big one, on great big casters. I cut a portion of the butcher block countertop slab to fit on it. Originally, I was going to use a simple table, sheesh maybe slap together wood from tv stands or something, or maybe construct a table of my own, using the butcher block as a tabletop. But as the renovation dragged on, and my list of Things To Do grew larger and larger, I decided to shell out the bucks and get one. I bought this island at my local Bargain Outlet (a chain of discount materials here in the Northeast). It cost a heck of a lot of money: $240. For that amount, I expected the materials to be first-rate and the instructions to be a breeze.

NOT.

The instructions were TERRIBLE. We had to take it apart three times due to poor or missing instructions. And the material is “OK.” But one of the stiles had been obviously cracked during manufacture, and had been glued together at the factory (in China).

We love the island– the concept of an island– and we made new parts of sturdier wood to make this work. So I don’t intend to complain about the island, per se. I just expected a lot more for my money. I wouldn’t recommend this particular island (it’s “Sunnywood”), but I do recommend the style: a big box of shelf boards with cabinet doors, and a sturdy wood countertop. We love our kitchen island for this. It also helps to direct traffic and keep passers by out of the work area. AND it makes a terrific barrier with which to play hide and seek with Livvy.

It’s nice to know that all the back-cracking work we’ve been doing on the house provides manifold benefits.

The housing market slump this year really slowed down new construction. As an owner of an old home in the midst of vicious suburban sprawl, I was actually happy to see the new construction slow down. Something similar happened in the late 70s (the economic downturn) after a period of profligate sprawl (in the 50s and 60s), which led to an increased awareness of restoring and renovating existing homes (in the 80s). TV shows like This Old House and Home Again sprouted up from the ashes of a recession. So recessions and slumps are not always bad news. I think it is better to work with what you have rather than create immense waste in building new. Why knock down a perfectly healthy old home, fill up landfills, clogging up rural spaces, and spend millions building new?? The lost art of renovation may be making a comeback.

#1 A New Addition
According to Dave Ramsey, one of the best returns on your renovation investment is a new addition, such as a bedroom or family room. Such a renovation could give you an 83% return on your cost! I was stunned to read this. For one, I had thought that most homeowners were going “smaller” with their homes, not necessarily adding more square footage (and more maintenance and expenses) to the house.

#2 A New Kitchen
Additionally, the kitchen has always been the prime return investment winner in renovations. I was surprised to see it fall to #2 in Dave’s list (he said that a kitchen re-do can give you about 72% back). I suppose one of the reasons for the lower grade is because kitchens are one of the most expensive areas of the home to renovate. Yes, I would agree. Although, because we did our own work 100% of the time, our return will be much more than 72%. We spent approximately $13,000 to gut and restore the kitchen, dining room, and laundry room… we also insulated these rooms, which make them more energy efficient, and we also redid the entire electrical system and water supply system for the house. Not a bad deal.

#3 The Bathroom
I am not one to splurge on a bathroom. I like it to be a “get in, do your business, get out” kind of room. Dave says that renovators can easily allow the bathroom remodel to “get out of hand.” Appliances and fixtures ARE very expensive, and I guess people are tempted to install things like saunas, whirlpools, towel warmers, etc. I don’t like such luxury, so when we remodel our bathrooms, I don’t expect these to be a problem. But renovating the bathroom came in at #3, which homeowners recouping about 70% of their investment. That’s really still a terrific percentage!

One very important thing to remember when renovating is KNOW YOUR COMMUNITY. If you live in a wealthy area of McMansions, go ahead and build that davidoff cigar room or vaulted wine cellar. But if you live in “middle America” or a small town, you will never recoup your investments in the luxurious hot tubs, custom-made concrete countertops, and silk draperies. I tried to stay as basic as I could with our home. It is so easy to go overboard, especially when the “experts” and magazines are all enticing you to spendspendspend on their expensive products. I tried to keep a balance of getting products I really liked, products we really needed, and staying within the middle-income class of my region. Even so, I do think I splurged a little too much. :-p

And I am gratified to see that all our blood, sweat, and tears actually has value in the community and economy. I knew that our renovations would not only bring us more comforts and energy savings, but that it would boost our home’s value and possible return investment should we ever sell. It’s nice to see this confirmed.

I spent a LOT of time renovating the downstairs of the house. I also spent a LOT of time comparison shopping. Ugh! I am so sick of shopping I could scream. It was hard work, believe it or not! I hadn’t known that a neat website called ShopWiki could have saved me a ton of time (and money, no doubt!). ShopWiki is exactly how it sounds– it is a “wiki,” or collaborative website of multiple resources, for shopping. ShopWiki is unique because they don’t just dump you with search results that are bought and paid for by advertisers (like, *ahem* some other search engines)– ShopWiki REALLY searches for WHAT you are LOOKING for.

You can search ShopWiki for anything. and come up with relevant results for your shopping expedition. ShopWiki will search for all sorts of basic and unique items. Need a particular indoor light fixture or a very special line of home decor products? Search ShopWiki. How about Victorian style lamps, or maybe a very quirky lava desk lamp? ShopWiki will find them!

It’s pretty cool. Now that I have started the decor phase of the renovation, I’m on the search for Norman Rockwell prints, and other nice furnishings. ShopWiki to the rescue!

Here’s a little tip if you’re removing a complicated electrical device (or plumbing component, or whatever)– snap a photo. The digital camera has been one of my best tools for renovation. Thanks to the camera, not only do I get to share this experience with you guys, but I also journalize the adventure here AND the photos serve as a virtual reference diary.

I took this photo of a GFCI outlet that I found was defective. I have to install a new GFCI, but before I dismantled the old one, I snapped a photo of the wiring, to have a diagram so I can rewire the new device.

This saves me a bundle of time– in the past, I would have to go hunting through page after page in books, or searching the Internet, sifting through various search engine results for hydroxycut reviews or what-have-you. With the camera, I’ve got a diary of everything. I also snapped photos of the plumbing and others of the wiring, should I ever need to reference it in the future.

As a precaution– always take photos. What have you got to lose? And you might gain everything in so doing.

Rain barrels are DIFFICULT to find!!! Well, they were. I recently discovered a site that has rain barrels for sale. Finally!

Rain barrels collect, well YEAH, rain! Although we have had no scarcity of excessive rain here in Upstate New York for the past ten years or so, I do not like all the rain that falls from my roof and into the ground by my home’s foundation. I had installed a French drain/dry well kind of contraption (the kids dug a trench 4 feet deep by 24 feet long!), and that has helped immensely. But there’s still a lot of water coming down from that roof, and my home cannot support gutters until we re-do the siding.

A rain barrel is predominantly for rain harvesting. It’s great for areas that have little rainfall. The rain barrel has a small spigot at the bottom, so you can hook up your garden hose and utilize the water elsewhere in the garden (say, for watering plants or filling the watering can). It is a TERRIFIC way to conserve water from your municipal water supply or well. Most rain barrels have a slot or hole at the top of them, to receive water from your gutter system and downspout. Me, I’d just place the rain water barrel under one of my roof eaves, where the rain comes shooting down the valley and into my stone foundation.

Anyway, you can find rain water barrels online in a variety of styles and sizes. Some are very elegant! It’s a good idea to conserve water– good for your wallet, good for your neighborhood.

Remember–way back in the olden days– when most people could leave their doors unlocked and still sleep well at night? Are those days over?

It is a horrible shame that home security is basically a necessity in some parts of the country. Consumer Reports has a good (and free) article about how to boost your home’s security. Among other things, they recommend “kickproof” doors, bright lights, organizing your neighbors into a Neighborhood Watch kind of group, and installing a security system with alarm (but make sure the system is compatible with your voip (voice over Internet protocol) phone system, if you have one); also, there’s the option of hiring a company such as http://www.broadviewsecurity.com/ or ADT to manage the system, too.

Not too long ago, a home security system was a system of wires, but crooks figured out that they could cut the wires and disable the system. :-p So home security has gone wireless. I haven’t looked into this avenue very much, but I’ve considered it. From what I hear, wiring and configuring a wireless security system requires a home security team of experts! I can’t even configure my car alarm. :S I’m too afraid that the blasted thing will go off in the middle of the night or while shopping. I don’t think my neighbors would appreciate my home alarm sirens blaring on and off at 2am. (Although, ALL THEIR car alarms go off periodically at that time!).

So what do you think? Do you think your home needs a security system where you live? If you have one installed, does it work well, or do you get bells and whistles at 2am?

This post is a sponsored post, but all opinions are mine!

One of the best things about renovating an old house is all the quirky stuff you can do, now that the walls are open. It makes all the blood, sweat, toil, and tears worth it.

Previously, there was a make-shift pantry “closet” under the stairs. I disliked it, because you had to squeeze around a corner of a wall to get into it (and if you tried to use that section of the kitchen for a fridge or to store boxes, you could not access the stair pantry at all). It had no light, was cramped, and was ugly. I vowed I’d totally close up and waste the floor space before I rebuilt that horrible alcove.

When designing for the new kitchen, I decided to utilize the same space, but make the access from the open side wall of the stairs that faces the kitchen, and not from under the stairs.

Old Entrance to Closet. You can see all the kitchen floor space that was wasted just to get IN there.

So we’ve been working on a few creative ideas for this unusual spot beneath the stairs. For one, I wanted a tall, narrow pantry between two studs. It’s VERY tall, and VERY narrow, alright!

I’m not very concerned that it is so deep. I know there’s the possibility that boxes or cans will be pushed to the back, lost forever… but I don’t care; I need the space. I’ll get one of those grasper-things on a long pole to reach the backseat cans. Or I’ll only stuff big items back there. Whatever. I like the quirkiness of the pantry.

Next to the pantry shelf, we’ll be placing a large cabinet box with slide-out trash cans. This is a little trickier, because I have to design the cabinet and the various shelves within it all. I got the slide-out hardware set from an online auction, too. More to come on this project, later.

So, now this is how the tall pantry shelf is developing. I have to even things out, install trim around the wood to cover holes and straighten the appearance, and of course I need to work on the larger cubby hole to the left… but things are coming along.

Anyway, it’s little things like this that make renovating an old house fun. I’m also going to create a time capsule box with a newspaper, a Bible, and perhaps a note, and place it in one of the interior wall studs should a future remodeler find it. Although, to even consider that someone may rip all this out someday in the future makes me very queasy…

I’m spending money like a drunken sailor. Actually, worse than that– I’m spending money like Congress. Oooo watch the dollars fly! OK, I KNOW we need the cabinets, the countertops, the lumber, the flooring… and I’m not going bananas buying the luxury items. But even the cheap stuff is expensive! I have never spent this much money before in my life, ever.

I have been finding some really great deals on stuff, though. I needed a pull-out trash bin system- you know, one of these things:

The larger ones at Lowe’s are about $300. Yes, THREE HUNDRED DOLLARS. For two plastic trash cans, metal drawer hardware, and the pieces of wood for it. WOW. Selling kitchen remodeling supplies is quite the racket, eh? I was not going to pay $300. I didn’t have the time to make my own roll-out thingie, either… so I found that exact setup on eBay. I won the bid! $117!!! It’s still a heck of a lot of money, but I’m glad I got it for so much less money.

I am loving my local Grossman’s Bargain Outlet store lately. I bought my cabinets from them (more on that later). I had to make two trips to get my cabinets, to two different Bargain Outlet stores. This is because they didn’t have all the cabinets in stock that I needed. And I just didn’t have the cargo truck equipment or van ladder racks to haul everything around at once. :S

Here are the cabinets I purchased:

Bargain Outlet was having a “Wheel-O-Discount” promotion when I bought them. You spin the wheel and get anywhere from 5% to 50% off your entire order. Wow! So i rang up a big bill, and spun the wheel!!! What did I get, what did I get?? 5%. I was pretty sad. I got an additional 10%, though, for signing up an account with the store… but I was pretty bummed.

Well, we had to go to Bargain Outlet again, and I bought up another big bill of stuff (not as much as the first bill, but pretty big). I asked my son to spin the wheel.

HE GOT 50% OFF!!!!

I couldn’t believe it! Why didn’t I have the kid do it for me the first time?! Oh well! I saved almost $500 off my order. I was so excited!!! The clerks are the store were all real sourpusses, though. LOL.

It is possible to buy building supplies online. So far, I have ordered wallpaper, a stove range hood, a dishwasher, a kitchen sink, gas space heaters, countertops, Tung oil, network equipment, trim molding, plumbing supplies, and cabinet hardware. Some of the best stores I have ordered from include:

Lumber Liquidators
DoItBest.com
HomeDepot
Lowes
eBay
PEXSupply.com
Buy.com
NorthernTool.com

These stores have been pleasant to deal with, have great prices, and their shipping and delivery is great. There is also NO WAY I could have purchased these things at the stores and hauled them home. I have only a minivan. It will hold 4×8 sheetrock and plywood sheets (yay!), but there are no van partitions to hold anything beyond that. So I have relied heavily on delivery. It costs a little (most of the time) but it has saved me endless labor (and saved my van from the heavy loads).

Once we finish the Sheetrock and the painting, the renovation will start to get interesting and more fun. The photos will have more interest, too. There are a LOT of loose ends to wrap up, though. I realized the other day– while the construction schedule ends right around the last week of August, I will be working on this project at least up until December. I still have lots of trim work, custom cabinets and pantry shelves to make, decorative accents to paint, heaters to plumb and install, a few interior doors to install, and more. Whew!