I took these pictures on Monday evening, and when I went back over on Tuesday in the early afternoon, the whole basement was done. It was blocked off so it could dry, so I don't have pictures of it done yet.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Basement: Radiant Heated Flooring
This is what the basement floors looked like before they poured the concrete over the heating tubes.
I took these pictures on Monday evening, and when I went back over on Tuesday in the early afternoon, the whole basement was done. It was blocked off so it could dry, so I don't have pictures of it done yet.
I took these pictures on Monday evening, and when I went back over on Tuesday in the early afternoon, the whole basement was done. It was blocked off so it could dry, so I don't have pictures of it done yet.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Photo Update: March 30
Apparently we may be seeing some brick soon. Here are some photos of the early getting ready stages:
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Sacwal Flooring: Part 1
Today was another decision-making marathon with Joanne.
This time the meeting place was Sacwal Flooring, and I had my Mom with me because Scott was working.
We started with hardwood, and found some nice maple flooring. My stipulations for hardwood were:
1. Hard Maple (We like the grain AND it has a high rating on the Janka hardness scale.)
2. Medium stain (I LOVE dark stained wood, but it is hard to keep looking clean and shows scratches and dents way too much)
3. Not too glossy (Again, it looks awesome but too impractical.)
4. Has to be in our hardwood allowance, and not over budget.
So, these options really narrowed our choices down to about, um, three choices. I quickly choose the one that looked the least red and had the widest planks. It was actually under budget which was amazing.
Then we moved on to tile. This was so fun! I was the most nervous about tile because there are literally thousands of options and we have a lot of bathrooms plus a laundry / mudroom area.
But Joanne really took over here and started pulling out beautiful tiles that matched the countertops so nicely and I have to say that the tile was one of the most fun things I've done yet in the whole building process.
Joanne gets all the credit. And John (The Sacwal owner who was part of the whole process). He was awesome too. They can pick out grout colours like nobody's business. Seriously, it's a well-honed talent.
We even manged to do some cool detail stuff in the bathrooms which I'm so excited about. And again - all within the allowances. I think we may have had one $100 upgrade.
We picked out tile for the fireplace surrounds as well.
Next we moved on to carpet. I took a leap of faith and got the berber / plush blended carpet that Joanne & John simply raved about. It was a nice colour, practical for kids, and again (not to beat a dead horse here) was in the carpet allowance.
Three of the bedrooms will have the same carpet as the stairs / hallway, but I chose a shag carpet for the master and Samantha's room (different colours though).
Finally we moved onto the last flooring area: the basement. This is where Scott and I have had the most discussion on WHAT to get. I hate carpet. He hates laminate. What else can you put in a basement?
We thought we had found a suitable compromise when we found CORK flooring until we saw the prices. $$$ Yikes! More than our hardwood!
We found a cork flooring clearance and the colour was bearable, not great, but okay. We went ahead and selected it.
By this time, it was 2 1/2 hours later and time to go. Joanne had brought her paint samples, but we decided to save that adventure for another day.
This time the meeting place was Sacwal Flooring, and I had my Mom with me because Scott was working.
We started with hardwood, and found some nice maple flooring. My stipulations for hardwood were:
1. Hard Maple (We like the grain AND it has a high rating on the Janka hardness scale.)
2. Medium stain (I LOVE dark stained wood, but it is hard to keep looking clean and shows scratches and dents way too much)
3. Not too glossy (Again, it looks awesome but too impractical.)
4. Has to be in our hardwood allowance, and not over budget.
So, these options really narrowed our choices down to about, um, three choices. I quickly choose the one that looked the least red and had the widest planks. It was actually under budget which was amazing.
Then we moved on to tile. This was so fun! I was the most nervous about tile because there are literally thousands of options and we have a lot of bathrooms plus a laundry / mudroom area.
But Joanne really took over here and started pulling out beautiful tiles that matched the countertops so nicely and I have to say that the tile was one of the most fun things I've done yet in the whole building process.
Joanne gets all the credit. And John (The Sacwal owner who was part of the whole process). He was awesome too. They can pick out grout colours like nobody's business. Seriously, it's a well-honed talent.
We even manged to do some cool detail stuff in the bathrooms which I'm so excited about. And again - all within the allowances. I think we may have had one $100 upgrade.
We picked out tile for the fireplace surrounds as well.
Next we moved on to carpet. I took a leap of faith and got the berber / plush blended carpet that Joanne & John simply raved about. It was a nice colour, practical for kids, and again (not to beat a dead horse here) was in the carpet allowance.
Three of the bedrooms will have the same carpet as the stairs / hallway, but I chose a shag carpet for the master and Samantha's room (different colours though).
Finally we moved onto the last flooring area: the basement. This is where Scott and I have had the most discussion on WHAT to get. I hate carpet. He hates laminate. What else can you put in a basement?
We thought we had found a suitable compromise when we found CORK flooring until we saw the prices. $$$ Yikes! More than our hardwood!
We found a cork flooring clearance and the colour was bearable, not great, but okay. We went ahead and selected it.
By this time, it was 2 1/2 hours later and time to go. Joanne had brought her paint samples, but we decided to save that adventure for another day.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Electrical Update
Everything in the way of electrical outlets, wiring, and lighting is done now.
I was so impressed with how fast that all went it in. Basically three days and it was done, with just a couple of minor things to tweak here and there.
I think everything looks awesome except for Scott and I both agree that we mostly likely have too many potlights in our great room. But I guess it's better to have too many than too little, as long as they are on dimmers.
I was so impressed with how fast that all went it in. Basically three days and it was done, with just a couple of minor things to tweak here and there.
I think everything looks awesome except for Scott and I both agree that we mostly likely have too many potlights in our great room. But I guess it's better to have too many than too little, as long as they are on dimmers.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Stubbs Walk Through
I met Allen Stubbs to do another walk through today. Scott couldn't make it this time, but it was pretty easy.
He brought the floor plans from our previous meeting where we had determined where we wanted to rough in our cable outlets, phone outlets, speakers, central vac, security, etc.
Allen's experience was evident and he made some good recommendations. He also said that thinking everything through beforehand had helped us.
We will haven't decided what exactly we will trim out in terms of audio-visual, but it's all going to be roughed in at least.
He brought the floor plans from our previous meeting where we had determined where we wanted to rough in our cable outlets, phone outlets, speakers, central vac, security, etc.
Allen's experience was evident and he made some good recommendations. He also said that thinking everything through beforehand had helped us.
We will haven't decided what exactly we will trim out in terms of audio-visual, but it's all going to be roughed in at least.
Appliances - Done
I bought all of our appliances today. We ended up purchasing at Goeman's as they gave us the best price.
They had a building package discount, as well as an affiliation with Woody's (our kitchen place) so it worked out to be pretty reasonable.
I was thrilled that we stayed under our appliance budget, which was important to us.
I spent a fair bit of time time researching and comparing specs and brands for kitchen appliances, and not a whole of time on washer and dryer research.
But the pair we bought came highly recommended online and just going to front loading is going to be such a huge improvement from our current washer. Plus the set was on sale at the store, so with the building discount and a bonus mail-in rebate, they were a super deal.
Now we just have to find out who will install the cook top and ovens. The builder is taking care of the dishwasher & fridge, and the washer & dryer will be installed by Goeman's. Because the cooking appliances are built in, there is an installation cost involved. The salesman at Goeman's seemed to think that our builder or kitchen place would be cheaper than their own installation costs.
They had a building package discount, as well as an affiliation with Woody's (our kitchen place) so it worked out to be pretty reasonable.
I was thrilled that we stayed under our appliance budget, which was important to us.
I spent a fair bit of time time researching and comparing specs and brands for kitchen appliances, and not a whole of time on washer and dryer research.
But the pair we bought came highly recommended online and just going to front loading is going to be such a huge improvement from our current washer. Plus the set was on sale at the store, so with the building discount and a bonus mail-in rebate, they were a super deal.
Now we just have to find out who will install the cook top and ovens. The builder is taking care of the dishwasher & fridge, and the washer & dryer will be installed by Goeman's. Because the cooking appliances are built in, there is an installation cost involved. The salesman at Goeman's seemed to think that our builder or kitchen place would be cheaper than their own installation costs.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Photo Update: Shingles
I thought the roof went on pretty quickly.
March 9: Just starting to shingle
March 11: Making some progress
March 15: Done!
Plumbing
The plumbing started going in early last week, and the beginning of this week. These two tubs have been installed too.
This is where our washer and dryer will go eventually.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Appliance Shopping
We need to finalize our appliances this week, so I have been doing some shopping and comparing.
I made the decision early on to NOT insist on matching appliances in the kitchen. Each brand specializes in different appliances, and I don't want to be tied down to any given brand just so the "handles will match", while sacrificing function and performance in the mean time.
I will post another update when appliances are finalized, which should be in the next couple of days.
I made the decision early on to NOT insist on matching appliances in the kitchen. Each brand specializes in different appliances, and I don't want to be tied down to any given brand just so the "handles will match", while sacrificing function and performance in the mean time.
I will post another update when appliances are finalized, which should be in the next couple of days.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Electrical Walk Through
Today we met Rick, Joanne, and Stan (the electrician) at the site for our electrical walk through.
We went through the entire house, inside and out (except for the basement, which isn't framed yet) and chose where to put pot lights, lighting fixtures, electrical outlets and switches.
Joanne was so very helpful during this process, and thought of so many practical ideas (separate switch for Christmas tree lights, etc). Her experience really saved the day for us, as I believe the whole process would have taken double the time without her.
We ended up adding a ton of extra pot lights, over and above our allowances. But since I am not willing to commit to having a large amount of lamp lighting throughout the house, we wanted to be sure to have enough light in the ceilings. I think we should be good.
We had been told to really think things through beforehand, to be sure we include everything now. I understand why that sounds like good advice, but I did find it hard to anticipate what we might need in the future, even if we aren't using it now (for instance, desks in the younger children's bedrooms). Again, Joanne was so helpful in this department.
One thing I am excited about is that Rick has included door jam light switches in our pantry and all larger closets. This was something he had done in his models and Scott and I loved it when we saw it. It's so practical and I think it will just be so convenient.
This was another great learning experience for us and I really enjoyed it.
We went through the entire house, inside and out (except for the basement, which isn't framed yet) and chose where to put pot lights, lighting fixtures, electrical outlets and switches.
Joanne was so very helpful during this process, and thought of so many practical ideas (separate switch for Christmas tree lights, etc). Her experience really saved the day for us, as I believe the whole process would have taken double the time without her.
We ended up adding a ton of extra pot lights, over and above our allowances. But since I am not willing to commit to having a large amount of lamp lighting throughout the house, we wanted to be sure to have enough light in the ceilings. I think we should be good.
We had been told to really think things through beforehand, to be sure we include everything now. I understand why that sounds like good advice, but I did find it hard to anticipate what we might need in the future, even if we aren't using it now (for instance, desks in the younger children's bedrooms). Again, Joanne was so helpful in this department.
One thing I am excited about is that Rick has included door jam light switches in our pantry and all larger closets. This was something he had done in his models and Scott and I loved it when we saw it. It's so practical and I think it will just be so convenient.
This was another great learning experience for us and I really enjoyed it.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
The Basement Window
Last weekend Scott and I were able to walk through the basement for the first time.
Right away I noticed that one of the windows looked like it was too far down the wall. According or our blueprints, it was supposed to be in the middle of the spare bedroom, but looked like it was in the middle of the whole wall.
I emailed Rick early the next week, after going out again just to double check from the outside and take some pictures.
Rick replied right away and said he would look into it.
The next day he called us to say that the window was indeed in the wrong spot and that they would fix it right away.
He also said they would have noticed it eventually, but it would have been later down the road when they were finishing the basement, at which point it would be a lot harder and more time consuming to move. He thanked us for pointing it out when we did.
I was really impressed with the way Rick handled the whole situation, and I was relieved that it could even be changed at this point (because they will have to redo the concrete and everything). At first I was pretty concerned, but was happy to have it resolved so quickly.
Right away I noticed that one of the windows looked like it was too far down the wall. According or our blueprints, it was supposed to be in the middle of the spare bedroom, but looked like it was in the middle of the whole wall.
I emailed Rick early the next week, after going out again just to double check from the outside and take some pictures.
Rick replied right away and said he would look into it.
The next day he called us to say that the window was indeed in the wrong spot and that they would fix it right away.
He also said they would have noticed it eventually, but it would have been later down the road when they were finishing the basement, at which point it would be a lot harder and more time consuming to move. He thanked us for pointing it out when we did.
I was really impressed with the way Rick handled the whole situation, and I was relieved that it could even be changed at this point (because they will have to redo the concrete and everything). At first I was pretty concerned, but was happy to have it resolved so quickly.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Photo Update: March 3
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Stairs & Railing
Today we drove out to Pro Stairs & Railing.
We picked out rod iron spindles, a nice handrail, with wooden posts that match the moulding on the outside of the stairs.
The staircase is oak (builder's standard) and will be stained to match the hardwood flooring.
Since this was an area in which we did not want to spend extra money on upgrades, the decisions were pretty easy and it was not a long meeting. We chose our favourite of 3 rod iron spindles, and stuck with the standard black matte finish.
I think it will look really nice.
We picked out rod iron spindles, a nice handrail, with wooden posts that match the moulding on the outside of the stairs.
The staircase is oak (builder's standard) and will be stained to match the hardwood flooring.
Since this was an area in which we did not want to spend extra money on upgrades, the decisions were pretty easy and it was not a long meeting. We chose our favourite of 3 rod iron spindles, and stuck with the standard black matte finish.
I think it will look really nice.
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