Full House Refurb log - Work in Progress - Dark to Light
Discussion
Still just decorating going on at this moment. Decorator unfortunately taking longer to finish due to the time it's taking for the top coats to dry. He's having to split his time between another job during the day, and ours in the evening. Thankfully he only lives a couple of miles away so not too far to travel. But poor lad must be working 15 hours a day. Doing a good job though.
Whilst painting was ongoing I decided to tackle the last big job that I'd been putting off. Mainly because this room won't be getting done for a while until funds are available. And we were using it as a storage room for all the random tools and things. It was a shame to lift up this floor. Solid wood flooring, but it will be carpeted in here and while I had a skip on site I decided now was the time to rip it all up. Joiner had already completed the facings inside (despite me asking him not too).
All the boards were nailed together and to the floor as well, which was incredibly frustrating. But an hour or so cleared the room. Folks must have had some built in units at some point, was probably a bedroom.
Back to the living room now and the decorator managed to get a couple of top coats on the walls and it's really starting to take shape. Fireplace now really stands out as a feature piece against the walls instead of being lost in a sea of colour and patterns. I also took a bit of time to fill and patch the inside of the media cabinet.
TV wall all painted and ready for the electrician to come back and finish up the wiring.
Whilst painting was ongoing I decided to tackle the last big job that I'd been putting off. Mainly because this room won't be getting done for a while until funds are available. And we were using it as a storage room for all the random tools and things. It was a shame to lift up this floor. Solid wood flooring, but it will be carpeted in here and while I had a skip on site I decided now was the time to rip it all up. Joiner had already completed the facings inside (despite me asking him not too).
All the boards were nailed together and to the floor as well, which was incredibly frustrating. But an hour or so cleared the room. Folks must have had some built in units at some point, was probably a bedroom.
Back to the living room now and the decorator managed to get a couple of top coats on the walls and it's really starting to take shape. Fireplace now really stands out as a feature piece against the walls instead of being lost in a sea of colour and patterns. I also took a bit of time to fill and patch the inside of the media cabinet.
TV wall all painted and ready for the electrician to come back and finish up the wiring.
So decorator mostly finished up stairs. Everything is ready for the fitted wardrobes to go in. Only bugbear with the master bedroom is the horrible cable from the security sensor that's in the hallway. This was previously running from under the floorboards in the hall, under the carpet / door, and then up the side of the facings on the door. It's old and horrible, caked in paint. I'm assuming that I could possibly splice and replace the cable? Will have to look into it. Only problem is that I'm going to be away when the carpets get laid and won't have time to sort it before.
So on to the next big item on the list. Getting rid of the front doors. I must admit that I had wanted something with a bit more glass on the doors + side panels, but got overwritten on that one. Typical modern anthracite door though. But very happy with the patterned glass.
Lads phone whilst we were still at the rental house asking when we would be there. Of course we'd left a key with their office so they could let themselves in if needed but this was left off the paperwork. No problem he says, we'll just break in. Never got to see the old door coming out, but they were well into preparation by the time we arrived.
Electrician back as well. Had to re-bore the holes in the kitchen ceiling for the downlights since we'd over boarded the ceiling, thankfully all but one of my measurements were correct, and one I had just forgotten to write down. So we moved it slightly which actually worked out better and more in line with the rest of them.
Aaaand before I knew it the lads were done with the front door. Bit of sealant and patching to do. They also got the new side garage door installed as well.
So on to the next big item on the list. Getting rid of the front doors. I must admit that I had wanted something with a bit more glass on the doors + side panels, but got overwritten on that one. Typical modern anthracite door though. But very happy with the patterned glass.
Lads phone whilst we were still at the rental house asking when we would be there. Of course we'd left a key with their office so they could let themselves in if needed but this was left off the paperwork. No problem he says, we'll just break in. Never got to see the old door coming out, but they were well into preparation by the time we arrived.
Electrician back as well. Had to re-bore the holes in the kitchen ceiling for the downlights since we'd over boarded the ceiling, thankfully all but one of my measurements were correct, and one I had just forgotten to write down. So we moved it slightly which actually worked out better and more in line with the rest of them.
Aaaand before I knew it the lads were done with the front door. Bit of sealant and patching to do. They also got the new side garage door installed as well.
So moving on with the electrical work. Finally got the downlighters going in to the completed rooms. Upstairs master bedroom just regular LED on dimmer. For all the rooms downstairs we're using Philips Hue white ambience to tie into the whole house system.
Sharps dropped off all the installation stuff for the wardrobes and basically just cluttered up the place due to being 2 days early.
Sparkie got on with important things like getting the TV unit finished and with a help from his mate, TV on the wall.
Sofa's arrived as well.
Fast forward a week or so, Sharps back round to start working on the wardrobes. Sparky ran out of time allotted so is off to another job in the meantime. Middle bedroom first and then started on the master bedroom.
And that pretty much takes us up to date as of the middle of March.
Sharps dropped off all the installation stuff for the wardrobes and basically just cluttered up the place due to being 2 days early.
Sparkie got on with important things like getting the TV unit finished and with a help from his mate, TV on the wall.
Sofa's arrived as well.
Fast forward a week or so, Sharps back round to start working on the wardrobes. Sparky ran out of time allotted so is off to another job in the meantime. Middle bedroom first and then started on the master bedroom.
And that pretty much takes us up to date as of the middle of March.
smithyithy said:
Some great progress, really enjoying reading this.
How has your experience been with Sharps, in general? We've been thinking about custom built-in wardrobes / storage and they're typically the one that comes to mind first..
Hit and miss. The sales experience was fine, we let the designer have a pretty free reign on most of the interior design as they tend to know best. Good suggestions. Some had to change slightly when the surveyor came out to do the full measure up. Not much discount to be haggled for. Think we got about 6% off the original quoted price, which like all these other companies already comes with a built in discount most of the time. Being able to customise your design is a nice option. Very flexible on how you want each unit to look, combinations of materials and finishes on the sliding doors for example. How has your experience been with Sharps, in general? We've been thinking about custom built-in wardrobes / storage and they're typically the one that comes to mind first..
Communication was a bit hit or miss with their office. Mostly our mistake as original contact details were for me, but travelling for work and no mobile phone access meant missed calls. Despite forwarding on contact details for my partner again and again.
The prep work they require for the installation is quite extensive as they typically don't install backs, and sometimes sides, to their wardrobes. So all the walls must be pre-prepped. In our case not so much an issue as we were plastering and painting everything anyway.
Delivery was fine, 1 week before installation date. Install seems to be going ok, partner seems happy with what's gone in but wont have a chance to see it myself until early April.
Edit: however, all that being said, the spaces that we're putting the wardrobes into are bloody awkward. Lots of angles, lots of the panels needing scribed to wonky old walls etc etc. In that sense it was a no-brainer to get a proper fitted system in place rather than a standalone.
Edited by RichTT on Thursday 14th March 09:22
smithyithy said:
Cheers for the info, doesn't sound too bad. We have a loft room that would require a fair bit of designing around (which is their bread and butter I'd assume) but it's all painted plaster currently so by the sound of things we've need to do a fair bit to get it 'install ready'..
I'll keep an eye on your progress and how it turns out :thumbsup:
No, having had free standing units before it was definitely the best use of space for our situation. They can work around wonky walls and the like, but anything that you would consider building up against needs to be 'finished' as that's what you will see in the back of the cupboard. I'll keep an eye on your progress and how it turns out :thumbsup:
AC43 said:
That really appeals to my inner OCD.
I was sort of trying to achieve something similar with a comms cupboard in the hall to hide the RCD's, alarm, CCTV, phone, TV & sat interconnects, wifi & base stations etc.
I managed to get everything tucked away out of site but the randomness of how everything has been placed irritates me every time I see it.
This is it all wired up. Obviously without the shelves and kit in place. Plan on running a soft cable tidy top to bottom to keep everything organised. Some of it is not ideal. Will have to run a phone cable from the master socket up to the base station. Will obviously be HDMI coming from the 2nd and 3rd shelves down to the underfloor cable conduit as well. Will post up some pics once it's all installed. I also have a bit of OCD when it comes to planning this sort of stuff. The guys did a really good job in getting it pretty much as I designed it. I was sort of trying to achieve something similar with a comms cupboard in the hall to hide the RCD's, alarm, CCTV, phone, TV & sat interconnects, wifi & base stations etc.
I managed to get everything tucked away out of site but the randomness of how everything has been placed irritates me every time I see it.
Edited by AC43 on Thursday 14th March 11:37
In other news it appears that despite two visits from the Sharps surveyor to draw it up, and then reconfirm once we'd plastered. Still couldn't measure correctly.
Edited by RichTT on Thursday 14th March 11:53
Antony Moxey said:
I am utterly hopeless with tech - can you explain what all of these things are and what they do please?
Not so complicated as it seems. When planning out the media cabinet i needed to make sure i had enough sockets to power everything that was going in there, as well as plan out the network wiring to keep it all as hidden as possible. From this diagram I made the 3D sketches to give to electrician and fitters. So I made sure I had enough hard wired ethernet to feed TV, Sky, Xbox etc.
There's also a soft limit of 50 items that can be connected to the Philips Hue lighting bridge. So I had to plan accordingly and not just make every room in the house a Hue light. I kept it mainly to the 'public' areas. Living room, kitchen etc. But then I have motion sensors about the house. So for example a guest gets up in the night for a pee, the upper and lower hallway lights will come on dimly to allow you to get round the house without falling over or down anything.
Same goes for the front porch, as soon as you come in the front door, and it's after dusk, the downstairs lighting will come on.
dhutch said:
Looks like a bloody good bash through and spruce up to me, one to watch for sure.
Look a nice plot and a good sized build. Having just removed a very similar (if edwardian) brown painted wood frame from out sitting room ceiling I can feel you pain with trying to get it off without buggering the ceiling above. In our case, four in oval wire nails and lath and plaster! Build thread to follow I expect in time.
What was the reason for replacing the skirting rather than painting if you are ending up with them white?
Daniel
The only thing I'm struggling with at the moment is getting my partner to understand that I want picures of EVERYTHING while I'm away on this work trip. Look a nice plot and a good sized build. Having just removed a very similar (if edwardian) brown painted wood frame from out sitting room ceiling I can feel you pain with trying to get it off without buggering the ceiling above. In our case, four in oval wire nails and lath and plaster! Build thread to follow I expect in time.
What was the reason for replacing the skirting rather than painting if you are ending up with them white?
Daniel
We didn't like the over fussy design of the original skirting and wood work. Plus the thought of keying, undercoating, treating the wood to stop the tannins coming through and then 2-3 top coats on all that wood was not something I wanted to do. Less painful to get some nice new primed MDF, little bit of filling, sanding and then 2 top coats and done.
Finally the other half (but not the enthusiastic thread maker and photo taker half) has sent me enough photos to update the thread.
So, we last left the house updates with the Sharps lad installing the wardrobes. Unfortunately not the best situation, both the master bedroom cupboard doors and the hallway cupboard doors were measured wrong and I'm waiting to hear back on when we might get them made and installed. Installer said possibly next week.
The plumbers arrived on Friday and started the essential works of getting some heating back in the bloomin place. Sparkie also managed to come back, but as the plumbers needed power and he needed it off, he didn't get much done.
Plumbers installed a new filter system under floor and power flushed the old pipes before installing the new radiators. Resulting rust is rather worrying but as we're replacing 90% of the radiators in the house it should be fine with the filter in place from now on.
Some good news though, my robo mower arrived! Missus hauled it all the way up the stairs in the box thinking it was her new bathroom cabinet. Wasn't best pleased when she opened it up to find this.
Lads cracked on with installing the radiators downstairs i the living room (not plumbed in yet but at least on the wall). And radiators upstairs.
New 35A breakers in the fusebox due to installing a bunch of new sockets and things. We seem to get occasional power drop outs so when I get the consumer unit replaced I'll get a UPS system installed. Sparky thought about installing the Nest Thermostat but is going to wait until I come home. Doorbell installed but not functioning just yet. Also bought a new chime for the inside.
Anyway, plumbers back on Monday along with the joiner to finish off the skirting and lay the flooring in the hallway.
So, we last left the house updates with the Sharps lad installing the wardrobes. Unfortunately not the best situation, both the master bedroom cupboard doors and the hallway cupboard doors were measured wrong and I'm waiting to hear back on when we might get them made and installed. Installer said possibly next week.
The plumbers arrived on Friday and started the essential works of getting some heating back in the bloomin place. Sparkie also managed to come back, but as the plumbers needed power and he needed it off, he didn't get much done.
Plumbers installed a new filter system under floor and power flushed the old pipes before installing the new radiators. Resulting rust is rather worrying but as we're replacing 90% of the radiators in the house it should be fine with the filter in place from now on.
Some good news though, my robo mower arrived! Missus hauled it all the way up the stairs in the box thinking it was her new bathroom cabinet. Wasn't best pleased when she opened it up to find this.
Lads cracked on with installing the radiators downstairs i the living room (not plumbed in yet but at least on the wall). And radiators upstairs.
New 35A breakers in the fusebox due to installing a bunch of new sockets and things. We seem to get occasional power drop outs so when I get the consumer unit replaced I'll get a UPS system installed. Sparky thought about installing the Nest Thermostat but is going to wait until I come home. Doorbell installed but not functioning just yet. Also bought a new chime for the inside.
Anyway, plumbers back on Monday along with the joiner to finish off the skirting and lay the flooring in the hallway.
Edited by RichTT on Saturday 16th March 12:11
dxg said:
Indeed. Great to see someone just cracking on and getting it done. My house has been stuck in the 'making good' stage for the last couple of years...
It's a million times easier when you don't have to live in it. And it's also easier when you admit to yourself you were woefully unprepared for the real cost of everything and throw money at the problems to make them go away. Side project budgets on hold for minimum 6 months, maybe 12.
mcg_ said:
Nice house and refurb OP. Love the garage.
thanks for sharing.
I'll love the garage more once it's empty of building materials and storage boxes!thanks for sharing.
In other news my sometimes better, but definitely hungover, half decided to go out last night for st patricks and met up with some friends. As such she is hungover and useless today and only let the joiner in before heading back to the rental whilst he cracks on. Only photo update of the day is a new hatch cut in the floorboards in a spare room.
He's going to start the flooring in the hallway but need the plumbers back to hook up the radiators and remove the old pipes before he can complete it.
So, a bit of progress for this week so far.
In discussion with the company doing the staircase refurbishment they agreed that it was best for the joiner to remove the kick plate on the lowest step as this was being replaced in it's entirety and they would trim to fit on top. Will give a much neater finish. Plumbers unfortunately not in today so joiner had to do his best with laying as much as he could until they remove the old central heating pipes coming out of the floor. There's a few other jobs for him to continue but hoping that they get in early today.
Electrician is finished up. Only missing the setup of the NEST gear but that will wait until I get home.
Decorator still coming and going finishing up little detail bits and the occassional scuff from workmen. Going to ask him to just hold off and come back after we've moved in and then touch up any bits that have been marked. He also did the first "sparkly" coat on the middle bedroom wall.
In discussion with the company doing the staircase refurbishment they agreed that it was best for the joiner to remove the kick plate on the lowest step as this was being replaced in it's entirety and they would trim to fit on top. Will give a much neater finish. Plumbers unfortunately not in today so joiner had to do his best with laying as much as he could until they remove the old central heating pipes coming out of the floor. There's a few other jobs for him to continue but hoping that they get in early today.
Electrician is finished up. Only missing the setup of the NEST gear but that will wait until I get home.
Decorator still coming and going finishing up little detail bits and the occassional scuff from workmen. Going to ask him to just hold off and come back after we've moved in and then touch up any bits that have been marked. He also did the first "sparkly" coat on the middle bedroom wall.
richatnort said:
Great thread mate just read from start to finish! It's interesting your plumber is putting the heating filter under the floor, as you're meant to clean them out every 6/12 months aren't you going to have to take the floor up every time & it be a bit of a fiddle?
I like all your home automation gear too i've just ran ethernet to 4 of our rooms now and it's made a big difference along with a WIFI mesh system. i'm sure you've already thought about switches for all the wires but I managed to bag a 24 port Netgear switch off eBay for £20 delivered and it's working a dream so could save you some serious beer money looking at this option if you haven't already!
Also i couldn't read anywhere what you're plans are with your stairs but interested to hear what you're doing! Sorry if i missed it!
The filter is just underneath a hatch. So no problems getting access. I like all your home automation gear too i've just ran ethernet to 4 of our rooms now and it's made a big difference along with a WIFI mesh system. i'm sure you've already thought about switches for all the wires but I managed to bag a 24 port Netgear switch off eBay for £20 delivered and it's working a dream so could save you some serious beer money looking at this option if you haven't already!
Also i couldn't read anywhere what you're plans are with your stairs but interested to hear what you're doing! Sorry if i missed it!
Edited by richatnort on Wednesday 20th March 08:33
I've got an 8 port switch at the moment but can always expand later if I need. Using Google Wifi for the mesh network in the house and garden, then once I run a cable to the garage will set up another Wifi access point there.
Stairs are getting refurbished. So all the trim, bannisters and railings etc getting removed. Everything non-removable will be getting oak capped and then new bottom stair from solid oak. Railings will be inset toughened glass with oak bannisters. Will be LED lights up the running board as well which the sparkies will have to come back and wire up later on.
Edited by RichTT on Wednesday 20th March 12:05
Windows are all due for replacing in May/June. There wasn't a plan to get them done this quick due to the cost but after having spent time in the house, seeing how many are just buggered, it needs done. Will be half frame on the inside with oak sills. Window company has a nice chap that comes round after the windows are in and touches up the paint and decorating.
Trustmeimadoctor said:
Where are the tall rads from?
They're Neva Anthracite Vertical radiators. http://www.reinadesign.co.uk/portfolio/neva-vertic...
Schmeeky said:
Great thread and great project!
Deffo the right thing to take loads of photos. I'm doing a similar thread atm (The story of #48), and that's making me wish I'd taken way more photos. You so quickly forget what stuff was like when there was so much going on... And looking back to how it all was before you'd started is way satisfying and helps you remember just how much work was entailed....
So.. love the new doors. Oak and Danish oil combo is a winner! How many coats did you use?
Getting rid of all that horrible dark wood is very pleasing as well. Although I cheated at my place and just painted it all!
Love the new front door and its position so you can see it while washing the dishes!
Looking forward to updates and seeing that staircase turn from ugly duckling to beautiful swan!
Thanks. Been following your thread as well. I'm a bit of a document-aholic when it comes to any projects I work on. Deffo the right thing to take loads of photos. I'm doing a similar thread atm (The story of #48), and that's making me wish I'd taken way more photos. You so quickly forget what stuff was like when there was so much going on... And looking back to how it all was before you'd started is way satisfying and helps you remember just how much work was entailed....
So.. love the new doors. Oak and Danish oil combo is a winner! How many coats did you use?
Getting rid of all that horrible dark wood is very pleasing as well. Although I cheated at my place and just painted it all!
Love the new front door and its position so you can see it while washing the dishes!
Looking forward to updates and seeing that staircase turn from ugly duckling to beautiful swan!
Oak doors have only had a single coat upstairs. Unfortunately ran out of time before I had to come away for this work trip. Also, and possibly more annoyingly, they didn't get a coat before the plasterer was mucking about upstairs. We'd been as careful as possible in covering them all up but there's some bleached bits on the middle bedroom door. I've tried to sand it out and will re-oil it once I'm home to see if it's any better.
Will end up giving them 3 coats though.
Single biggest mistake was getting the doors hung before we had the plastering and decorating completed.
Not a huge amount of updates today. Plumber back in to finish off the downstairs radiators and plumbing (minus a few things). Still getting a lot of rust on the filter magnet so bloody glad we decided to fit that.
Laminate floor in the hallway is Quick Step Classic Oak Light. In case anyone wondered.
https://www.quick-step.co.uk/en-gb/laminate/impres...
Small update for the weeks end.
Joiner finished in the hallway and porch. Finally have heating back on in the house although still have three small radiators to get fitted once some other flooring is down. Will need to caulk and paint some little bits of the skirting that's just gone down but these are minor things.
Sharps re-delivered the doors for the hallway and master bedroom and should be fitting on Sunday all being well.
Once I get home I will be looking at the security system and likely buying nice new replacements for the IR sensors in the rooms. You can still see the hallway one bagged up from decorating.
Joiner finished in the hallway and porch. Finally have heating back on in the house although still have three small radiators to get fitted once some other flooring is down. Will need to caulk and paint some little bits of the skirting that's just gone down but these are minor things.
Sharps re-delivered the doors for the hallway and master bedroom and should be fitting on Sunday all being well.
Once I get home I will be looking at the security system and likely buying nice new replacements for the IR sensors in the rooms. You can still see the hallway one bagged up from decorating.
Mr Pointy said:
Has your plumber done a proper clean & powerflush of the heating system? That's a lot of rust to be floating around through the boiler.
Lovely & light inside now.
Something to think about when the windows are done: before they remove the existing ones consider cutting all the way round the edge of the plaster with a multisaw. It's a big job but when they remove the old windows it's not a gentle process & I've seen some pretty signiicant damage to the plaster & your is already painted & finished.
Supposedly, but I will be getting on to them next week to find out if they did actually. I'm not home at the moment so having to rely on my partner keeping me up to speed. Lovely & light inside now.
Something to think about when the windows are done: before they remove the existing ones consider cutting all the way round the edge of the plaster with a multisaw. It's a big job but when they remove the old windows it's not a gentle process & I've seen some pretty signiicant damage to the plaster & your is already painted & finished.
I'll have a chat with the window installers and see what they have planned for the removal.
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