Quarterless Laundry

Day 14: April 29, 2008

Even though he will have to move the washer and dryer to sheet rock, Aaron gave me the gift of a working washer and dryer today. The most exciting feature is that the water line will not have to be dumped into the laundry sink. Instead of messing with our stucco, Aaron vented the dryer out the window by removing a glass block. At first I thought this was strange but in walking around our neighborhood, I noticed several homes that do this. I did 6 loads of laundry to celebrate this achievement!


The wall behind the washer and dryer will be sheet rocked. We are not going to immediately finish the floor. Eventually, I would like to lay marmoleum throughout the entire basement. I am hoping to install a cabinet above the washer and dryer for storage. I will also try to incorporate drying racks and a place for my ironing board and iron.

Electric Company

Day 13: April 28, 2008

Harry the Electrician spent all day installing lights and outlets. He definitely put in a long day as he finished at 9:30 PM! He was so sweet and kept checking in to make sure he was not disturbing us. I mentioned that we needed light in the space where Scott will be relocating his brewing supplies and he mentioned that another homeowner he did work for gave him a sample of their homebrew. Scott and I decided we should introduce him to REAL homebrew so we gave him a bottle of smoked ale. It is the least we could do for a guy who spent over 10 hours in our basement!

Light above the toilet. Even though it kind of looks like a spotlight on someone while they are doing their business, it would be too dark without it.

Light in the shower and fan (vent) just outside of the shower.

The top box will house the thermostat for the in-floor heating and the bottom box will hold the switch for the lights and the fan.

Lights above the laundry area.

Switch at the bottom of the stairs which will control both the light at the bottom of the basement stairs and the lights in the laundry area.

Harry the Electrician noticed that we were using an extension cord to power our toaster (pulling the electricity from the outlet used for the refrigerator). He thought this was a bad idea so he fixed the problem by installing an outlet!

Inspired Weekend

On Saturday, I wandered around South Minneapolis on the Minneapolis St. Paul Home Tour with my buddy Liz. It was so much fun and provided me with a lot of inspiration. I was also able to reflect on what makes me feel like I am home. The first home we went to was new construction and while it wasn't one of those obnoxious city McMansions, it felt like a model home and I left feeling like the home owners had zero personality. All of the homes we visited afterward varied from the modern to the traditional. While I lean toward a more traditional style home on the exterior, I did find some features in two of the more modern homes that I liked. After our basement construction is complete, I would like to steal one home owner's idea by installing Armstrong rubber stair treads on the stairs leading to the basement.

Sunday was spent gardening from 8:00 AM until 5:00 PM. A full work day! I hauled two loads of mulch in the Prius and decided while I was heavy lifting I would pick up some top soil to increase the foundation around our home. While it was important to do this to help drainage, more importantly we needed to hide the pink paint that was showing :).

Thanks to Liz's reminder, I installed the peony cage just in time!

Ugh oh! I just found another home improvement project. Mom and dad- get your paint brushes ready!
Because I managed to kill the climbing rose bush, I made the decision to remove the arch trellis from the entry into our backyard. This will be available to a new owner on my garage sale this spring!

The path into our backyard sans rose trellis arch. I will be redoing the stone walking path at some point this summer.

I took this photo to show the spot in our yard where I would like to add a tree. Our home is not showing but it is on the right and my goal is to obstruct the view from my home into our neighbor's home. I do not want a tree that will grown really wide or tall. I am interested in something that will offer visual interest year-long. Any ideas?

29 Cu

Day 12: April 25, 2008

The goal of the washer and dryer being connected by the time I returned from Atlanta was not met. Aaron was going to do a temporary set-up but I passed since I was able to do laundry at a neighbor's house since we were dog sitting this weekend. The plumbers tell me that everything should be in place on Monday, April 28. Sorry, but I am not holding my breath.

The copper supply lines have been added for the washing machine.


The supply lines for the shower appear to be plastic tubing.

Frame it up!

Days 10 & 11: April 22 & 23, 2008

The shower is framed and ready to be installed.

The room is starting to be framed. Because we didn't want to have an Engineer working on the project, we are working around the floor post. This is the view of the bathroom from the outside.
This is the view of the laundry area from inside the bathroom.

All Systems Go

Days 8 & 9: April 18 & 21, 2008

Venting that apparently goes out the roof.

Not sure what this does but it is no longer in my basement. I am wondering if it is a water pressure gauge of some sort?

Aaron informed me that the rough-in passed inspection so they were able to back-fill the giant holes in the basement and fill with concrete. He says it is possible the shower will be installed by Thursday!

The left of the pole will be the entrance to the bathroom. I am still debating between a standard swing door and a pocket door.

This is where the vanity sink will live.

Plumbing Paradise

Day 7: April 17, 2008

Today I worked from home so I greeted the plumber when he arrived around 9:30 AM. He got right to work with his plumbing buddy to help. I had to leave for a meeting and when I came back I found several new pipes. At least I think they are pipes. I consulted a Glossary of Plumbing Terms and still have no idea what it all means. I spoke with the contractor and he said the plumbing will be ready for inspection next week. That means that the pace should start picking up and my photos may start becoming more interesting? Well, at least to those who care about bathroom construction!

Hot and Cold

Day 6: April 16, 2008

Yesterday (AKA Day 5), nothing seemed to be photo worthy which Scott translated to mean that nothing was done. I will reserve judgment on that. Today (Day 6), I arrived home to find a shovel at the bottom of my stairs- good sign since I didn't leave such a tool lying around. To my delight I found the hot and cold valves! Woo Hoo!

The washer and dryer will live near that toolbox and bucket.

Honeymoon is over

Day 4: April 14, 2008

After a weekend of dirt discovery and a trip to the local laundromat, the romance of this whole remodeling thing has vanished. I'll be honest, I feel like I have sand in my teeth as I write this.

Today I was hoping to come home to a drastically different construction site. Instead, the only chance I could detect was a hole in the wall where they are venting through the roof. It looks pretty much the same from the stairs and I wasn't willing to wade through the sand to take a closer look.

I learned this weekend that I love of doing laundry on Sunday mornings in my PJs in the comfort of my own home while watching Sunday Morning on CBS. I will never take this mundane chore for granted again. We packed up two baskets full of dirty clothes, our concentrated All, Bounce sheets and hangers and headed to the coin operated laundromat. For some reason I imagined new, clean, quiet machines with credit card payment as an option. No, no, no. These places are stuck in a time warp with their machines from the '70's. Our clothes smelled like burnt rubber after spending 30 minutes in the dryer with only one temperature setting- scalding. I have made the decision to go with my original plan- buy more undies and socks to help us get through this phase in the remodel without anymore trips to the laundromat!

Liz, I'll let you use my dumpster if you let me use your laundry room!

The Big Dig

Day 3 & 4: April 10 & 11, 2008

Day 3 of construction looked very similar to Day 2 and rather than risk losing the interest of my devoted readership, I would combine day 3 and 4. Aaron called me the evening of Day 3 and informed me that it was spent marking things for the plumber as he was going to start his work the following day. Aaron warned me that it was going to be messy and loud. A little dirt I was anticipating. What I wasn't ready for is below.

After a long day at work and a 2 hour journey home (I won't bore you with my tales of missing buses and walking through the slushy rain/snow mix), I arrived at home around 7:30 PM. This is the vision I had the moment I stepped in the door. A gigantic sandbox.

I do not envy the plumber- this is dirty work! I imagine it is pretty difficult work too- jack hammering through concrete. The small photo on the left is to show our new utility sink - exciting.

After realizing the scope of the trenching, I realized I would have to abandon all thoughts of keeping things clean in my house. Finally! An excuse for the dust! It was strange going to bed knowing there was a big hole in the basement. I kept wondering if animals could somehow get in.

Day 2: April 9, 2008

Insulated and framed the east facing wall of the bathroom space.

Ever since I became interested in remodeling, I actually envied homes that had dumpsters sitting in front of them.

Before and After (Day 1)

I know we have all seen dungeon-like basements so I realize I shouldn't be ashamed of the below photos. But, I am experiencing a certain level of vulnerability by posting them. The disorganization, the stains on the walls, the random brew supplies hanging off of walls makes me feel so exposed. At any rate, here are some shots of what is now a construction site. As I mentioned earlier, we are concentrating our renovation efforts to the north west corner of our basement. I will provide daily progress posts so you can seek how quickly (and slowly) this space starts taking shape.

Left side of the North facing wall (58th Street side). Future site of finished laundry space.

Right side of the North facing wall. Future home of a 48" sink vanity.

A pocket door will go where the laundry basket is hanging out.

This is where the toilet will sit (where the beer shelf is now).

This is where the 48" shower stall will live.

April 8, 2008 - Day One of Construction

Note: the washer and dryer have been disconnected. Can I use your laundry room?

Disgusting double utility sink is GONE. Actually it is sitting upsidedown in my backyard if you want it.

I never knew that insulation and 2x4s could make me so happy!

So, I wouldn't want it to look like this for months on end but the space already looks better to me.

While I have never had a contractor inside my home doing work, it seems Aaron left things very tidy.

Let the Work Begin!

Aaron called today and he is fixin' to start our basement bathroom project this week! Of course I immediately went to a couple of local home improvement stores to purchase all of the parts that will make the whole. Yikes! I did lots of research so intellectually I knew the costs involved. Let me tell you that nothing could have prepared me for the range of emotions to follow after purchasing: a shower stall, toilet, vanity, vanity top, sink faucet, shower faucet, tile and pocket door. Of course it doesn't help that I found a dent and a crack in my precious Prius before this spending spree.

For those of you keeping score, yes, this means I made a tile decision. It came down to finances and flexibility.

This choice is also inspired by Liz Hruska's main bathroom which I covet. I suppose I am technically being true to the era of my home though nothing is original so I am not sure what actually existed 60 years ago.

Because everyone loves before and after photos, I will post the before shots this week. Then the fun begins- the original purpose of this blog- a daily update of the construction progress/process. Stay tuned!

This Can't Be Good

I am taking a "time-out" from my working from home activities to share a startling revelation I just had. I looked up from my laptop to find this:



Clearly it is a stain. Probably from water. Tell me there is nothing wrong with my roof. Refer back to my list of "unsexy" projects to recall that we have already dealt with this issue. Say it ain't so!

This is specifically where the stain is located:

Good thing Aaron the contractor knows a thing or two about roofs. I will inquire with him to determine potential causes. Maybe it was always there and I just now noticed it? Maybe a coat of paint is all that will be needed? Wishful thinking I am sure. Maybe this will be just the excuse I need to get rid of that hideous texture on the ceiling!

Anyone out there have some suggestions of what this might be?