Connecticut rehab – Week 2

Another week goes by and it’s been more of the same: ripping stuff out. Both inside and outside, nothing but demo and breaking stuff. Thankfully, by this upcoming weekend we should finally be to the point where we have actually started to add to the building rather than just tear it apart. Demo is fun for about 10 minutes, then you realize that its bad on the back and a disaster for your lungs. It will be nice to be past that stage. Its been going well so far and I still think we are still on track for a late June completion.

Below is a rundown of what we worked on this weekend:

1. Finished cleaning up the fireplaces and prepped the old mantle in the dining room for hardwood patching.
2. Ripped out the old chimney in the upper bedroom to free up some uninterrupted wall space.
3. Finally figured out how we are going to handle the laundry space and cabinets in the kitchen.
4. Ripped out the wall between the two bedrooms to make way for the new hallway orientation.
5. Ripped out the unmaintained brick patio in the rear. The good bricks will be used to finish the walkway in the rear. As for the broken bricks… anyone in the market for some free fill?
6. Lots of general cleaning.

Overall, not too bad for a weekend of only 30 man-hours. Thankfully, we’ll have a full crew of workers on hand starting next weekend. Real progress will finally start to materialize. My next mission is to prepare everything for the tuckpointer and window guys to come next week. Some of the window frames need to be prepped and the old door opening in the upper bedroom needs to be framed up so the tuckpointer can brick the opening up to window height. Once we have that done, it will be time to frame the new hallway and the laundry cavity, as well as install the walkway in the backyard.

If we manage to get all that finished we will be all set with our contractors. During the week of May 12th we would be ready for the tuckpointer, the roofers, the window installers, the electrician and the plumber. Progress is good. I just hope we can get to that point before the end of next weekend. Mother’s Day could make that a challenge.