Remodel Update - It's Done! - Flooring, Trim And Final Painting

A spoiler. The rooms are done as of 9 PM last night. I put in the last trim screw and Lu took over to finish the trim paint. Last brush stroke went on at 9 and we were officially done. I'll go over flooring and trim painting today and then in the next day or so do a final post including comparison photos so you can see where we started and finished.

Flooring. There are as many choices here as opinions in a political convention. For us when we want a hard surface we normally go with either tile or vinyl plank flooring. For the hallway we went with the vinyl plank flooring.

That's Allure by TrafficMaster. I've talked about this stuff before. We absolutely love it. It's hard, wears very well, goes down easily and can be used in both dry and wet applications. We did the kitchen floor in California with this stuff and have absolutely no complaints.

Here's how it goes down. First thing to remember is it's free floating. No glue involved and you can take it up as easily as you put it down. I've even reused it. Take a look at this photo. The planks are 3 feet long by 6 inches wide. You can see the back and front of the planks. There is a one inch sticky strip on each side that mates up when you set the plank and holds them together.

Start by setting whole planks until you need to cut. You can either score and snap or make a cut with either a chop saw or a jig saw. I like the chop saw for 90 degree cuts for length and the jig saw for intricate cuts like the areas around doors. Lu does the score and snap when she's in a hurry. It works well but the saw will give you a cleaner cut end.

When the cut is done line up the planks

And press into place. Easy peasy. We went with Country Pine.

Hallway flooring done it was time for carpeting. We made sure we had the entire hallway floor done, especially the entryways into the bedrooms, before the carpet guys got here. They arrived just before 10 AM and were done by 3:30. They were prompt, professional and did a very nice job. This was the only part of the project we contracted out since it's both frustrating and free. Hey, free is good.

The Girl's room

And the Boy's

A shot from the kitchen. You can see the unpainted trim.

A better look at that floor. I really like the look, kind of an old pine thing.

A shot looking down the hallway.

With the floors done it was time to finish up the trim. We let the floors rest on Monday and went for the finish line on Tuesday. My job was installation while Lu handled the paint. I got the better end of that deal as I was done by about 4 and she didn't knock off until 9. This is an example of a room carpeted and ready for paint. Can you guess who's room this is?

I start with the doors since I want the verticals to go all the way to the floor. A word on fasteners. I tend to finish so that I can remove if we decide to change things later. To that end I attach trip with 1 1/4 inch brads and then screw everything down with 2 inch wood screws. That allows me to firmly attach the trim to the underlying studs and sill plates and I can still uncover the screws and remove the trim if I ever want to.

I can also fudge the wood trim to make sure it lies just as I want it. Once the trim was in we filled screw and nail holes with light spackling and then sanded everything down.

We had plenty of wall paint left over which was a good thing as Lu wanted the trim to match the walls.

It's amazing how the trim blends into the walls after painting. We wanted the coverage and the depth the bigger trim provided without drawing the eye. I think (hope!) we succeeded.

And just like that this project is finished. We took a useless room and turned it into two very useful bedrooms and a small hallway with a pantry. Not only a practical value but also an increase in the resale value of our home. It took a lot of very hard work and a not inconsiderable expense but the end result was worth everything we put into it. We are happy but it's funny. We woke up asking what needed to get done today. It's a weird feeling being done. Good but weird. I think we'll take a few days off and then start decorating. Lu already has a lot of pink stuff for the Girl and I have a few things for the Boy. I'll post final photos after we get everything in place.

For now Lu and I are basking in a job well done. It's by no means perfect but it is well built from quality materials and feels solid. The rooms are quiet and well insulated. The windows are modern. The wiring and construction are code and we've added a much needed pantry. Look for some before and after later this week. The transformation is amazing if I do say so myself. There is nothing like a big project done.

Thank you all for reading and adding in your support and thoughts. We appreciate you all coming along for the build. I'm now eying the master bedroom and the new bathroom but I think I'll put them off until after the kids visit in June. Lu and I need to decompress for a month or two before we jump back in.

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Remodel Update - Paint And Pantry

Sorry I've been away so long. We went on an overnight trip up north (just a head clearer) and I've been in a bit of a funk lately. No reason just the blahs. The good news is we are very nearly done with the kids room remodel. The paint is done, the fixtures are in and we're ready for flooring and trim. The hallway is essentially done and the carpet gets installed on Monday morning. We should be move in ready by Tuesday. More on that later. Today it's paint and pantries.

If you're going to do a large painting project preparation is key. Well, in my case prepping for Lu is the key because I don't paint. Cars and other metal yes. Rooms no. That's Lu's bailiwick and she can have it. To that end I did the gentlemanly thing and bought her a brand new tool. And yes, she loves her tools almost as much as I do mine. Et Viola, a spray gun.

That's a Wagner Procoat. It's a self contained gun in that it doesn't need an exterior air supply. No hooking anything up to an air compressor. Just put everything together, supply the paint, turn it on and you're good to go. It has an exterior feed system. Basically you put the hose into the paint can and it feeds itself. It works with all sizes of cans up to 5 gallon. Good thing too because Lu used 3 gallons of primer and about 3 more gallons of paint. Lu loves the thing and swears her days of rolling are at an end. It's Warrior Class Lu Recommended!

When Lu goes the brush and roller routs she usually just cuts everything in and doesn't tape. With the new spray gun she decided tape and newspaper was indicated. Paint will get everywhere.

I left for the day since even being in the neighborhood of actual work makes me break out into hives. By the time I got back she was basically done. Of course spray painting ain't exactly the same as brush and roller. It's....a little messier. It is a lot quicker though. One coat of primer and two coats of paint in a day. That's the face of a woman who did a days work. As my contribution I helped her clean up. Hey, I'm nothing if not a giver. In spite of containment precautions Lu still spent two days cleaning paint dust off everything in the house. Oh the joys of a remodel in a house you're still living in.

As soon as the paint dried it was time to install the new pantry. The only place we had to expand our kitchen storage and put in a pantry was in the hallway. That's the primary reason I left it so wide, to leave room for cabinets. Hey, you'd almost think I planned this stuff out. I already took out one kitchen base cabinet when I installed the dishwasher and we'll probably lose another base and upper cabinet in the kitchen remodel so we need the space. I considered building something custom in the space but the honest truth is I suck at cabinet making. Badly. So we settled for these.

Those are Oak faced pantry cabinets. Each is 84 inches tall, 24 inches wide and 18 inches deep. With two side by side that's an extra 42 cubic feet of storage space. It's right outside the kitchen in the hallway proper so it's very handy. We already can't remember what we did without them. Installation was a snap. We wrestled them into the hallway then I bolted the two cabinets together. I pushed them back to the wall and then used wedges under the bases to angle them back until they fit flush into the wall. Flush was more important than true level though I did level them as best I could given my parameters. They actually ended up almost perfectly plumb through sheer luck more than anything. Then I Ramset them to the wall. I could have used masonry screws but what fun would that be? The main weight will be on the bases which is why proper and careful wedging is essential on an uneven floor. Otherwise you run the risk of pulling the back out of the cabinets when you get them loaded down.

The view from the back porch looking toward the rooms. That electrical box used to be outside in the old back porch.

And from the rooms looking toward the porch. You can see the light fixture in the ceiling. It really lights up the space and is needed if one wants to use the pantry at night. The switch is by the back door.

From there it was time to install the fans in each room. The Girl gets the all white fan while the Boy gets the brown side down. It's apparently boyier that way or something. Meh. Chicks and decorating. The paint turned out nice didn't it? Lu does good work. I might even hire her again.

After all that was done we decided we had a dead space next to the pantry that was aching for more storage space. We shopped and found a matching upper cabinet that would fit perfectly. It's 30 wide, 36 tall and 12 deep. Not huge but every little bit counts here. We stopped at the local stone place and found a cast off piece of Granite from another job he only wanted 25 bucks for. A little judicious trimming with a circular saw, water and a masonry blade and it fit perfectly. It's a little rough but will work well for what we need.

Storage on the cheap.

Just the right spot for the dog food container. You can just see the floor there but I'm holding off talking about that until the next post.

Time for some trim. Since we already put in the flooring in the hallway we could safely put up the trim. We went simple. Lu likes the look of 1x4 and we decided to go with pine instead of MDF. Two reasons. I like the look of painted wood and some of the joints are uneven due to the old construction. It's much easier to fudge wood without it breaking than MDF. I'll end up using just about 150 board feet of trim.

Lu getting all artsy on me. The trim was put up with a combination of finish nails and screws. Remember those King and Jack studs I installed when I put in the doors? Yep, you can screw recalcitrant trim boards right to them if you need to. One of the benefits of doing the work yourself is you know right where every stud and board is. I can't put up the interior room trim until the carpet gets installed. Lu will tackle the paint on the trim as soon as that is done.

We are soooo close. Next update should finish out the remodel. I'll be covering flooring both in the hallway and individual rooms. Then it'll be time for decorating. We're already painting some furniture. Wait until you see the shelving unit for the Girl. Eye searing Hot Pink. It's been a long haul and costs went a bit above my initial estimate but them they usually do. Still, we should be in around $3500 which ain't half bad considering how much we've improved the house. I'll also have an Angus Rehab update as well as a post on our trip.

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Remodel Update - Texture

We got through another big step today. Both rooms and the hallway have been textured and are ready for paint. Lu will do the painting on Thursday.

Texture is very straight forward and isn't terribly complicated though it is messy. To get started you'll need just a few things.

You'll need a goodly quantity of spray on texture. Trust me on this. It vanishes like smoke from the electrical system of a British sports car. We used almost 10 pounds on 2 rooms and a smallish hallway. Get texture if you can as opposed to joint compound. Joint compound will work but you'll have to thin it with water to get it to work properly through the gun.

You'll need a spray gun to apply the texture. Mine comes with three tips for various densities, small, medium and large. Medium works for most applications but test spray something before you begin to make sure it's exactly what you want. If you have a minor repair or a really small job you can buy spray on texture in rattle cans the same size as regular paint. For anything else I recommend investing in a good gun.

And you'll need a compressor to supply high pressure air to the gun. Get one big enough to supply a constant air pressure of at least 60 psi to the gun continuously.

Take a couple of minutes to take off the doors and sover those things you don't want textured like windows. It makes clean up much easier and faster.

 I know the bucket of texture says premixed but I find it works best if I stir it up before application. It gives you a better consistency and better flow through the gun. If you have joint compound, which is thicker, this is the time to thin it out.

Then it's just a matter of filing the hopper and spraying on the texture to the consistency you desire. Over and over again. Lu and I both hate popcorn ceilings so I sprayed the texture on walls and ceiling. Just be careful not to tip the hopper too far back lest you end up with a large glob on your face. Not that you won't get messy anyway because you will.

Body, clothes, floor and tools. The texture will get everywhere. Just be as careful as you can and figure on doing a lot of wash up.

It's kinda hard to see but this is what you'll end up with. Walls and ceilings covered with texture and ready for paint. The texture gives depth to the drywall surface and hides lines, divots and imperfections. Remember, perfect is the enemy of good. I guarantee you even professionals have mistakes in their drywall. We're looking for consistency and uniform coverage not absolute perfection. When the primer and paint go on they'll also do a lot to add to the surface look you want.

This is pure Do It Yourselfer territory. Anyone can do texture you just have to have a few things and the desire. Checking labor rates for professional crews will provide all the motivation you'll need. Besides, nothing feels better than a job well done.

Another box checked and one step closer to being finished. Tomorrow we'll do a complete cleanup including scraping the floors and those areas not supposed to be textured that caught some anyway and moving all the tools out and back to my shop. Then we'll buy the primer and paint. Lu is our painter and has decreed Thursday as paint day. I think I'll find somewhere else to be on that day. I hate painting. After paint we'll have the rooms carpeted. I'm going to hire that job out though most flooring companies figure in the cost of installation in the price of the carpet. Then it's just touch ups and fixture installation. When we're finished I'll do a review and present the final cost breakdown. I'm figuring we'll come in right about $2500 total.

Man, we're getting close. I can't wait to be done.

Six

Remodel Update - Mud And Tape With Sanding!

I'm sorry about the dearth of interesting posts. I'm just not feeling it these days. OPSEC has something to do with it but mostly I'm just burned out a bit. The remodel is taking up so much if my time that Lu and I are too tired to do much more than watch a little TV and sleep until 10. Speaking of the remodel we've got the taping and mudding done in the kids rooms and have one sanded.

I'm not going to go into a lot of detail on mud and tape other than to say how we do it. There are a lot of ways to complete the task, this is just ours. To start you will need some supplies, starting with drywall joint compound. We have two brands available locally, Sheetrock and Westpac, but they aren't exactly the same.

The Sheetrock brand is thicker while the Westpac is thinner. Both do basically the same job but go on differently. The thicker compound is best used to fill in large cracks and screw/nail hones while the thinner is easier to use for taping. Different styles and needs based on who's doing what work but do be aware that not every bucket will be exactly the same in all regards. I love the one pound buckets. They clean up well and the lids seal almost air tight. Great for putting small stuff in like ammunition and range brass. You'll also need tape/putty knives in a variety of styles and widths. More is better here. Some like wide and some narrow but the job may require more than a few.

Lu is the general contractor for this phase. Neither of us has done a lot of drywall finish work but she's done the most as well as the most research so she got to call the shots. She had me doing the window trim and screw hole filling while she did the bulk of the seam taping. Oh, and I did the sanding. You'll see why a little later.

The concept is pretty simple. Apply compound (mud) over the seam, put on the tape, press it in and even it out with a knife and then go back over it and apply a second coat of mud over the tape. Let it dry and sand to desired finish. You may have to go back and touch up spots or even apply another coat depending on your final finish. We're going with a heavy coating of texture so our final sanding doesn't need top be as perfect as it would if we were just sanding and painting.

Drywall tape comes in long rolls. You do have to be careful while slinging mud around. If you get globs on the tape rolls you may be down at the hardware store buying more.

Here's where we started. Bare drywall covered walls ready for finishing.

 Here's the boss, primed and ready for the day. You can see she's got a seam started. She's short so she did a section and then moved on until she had a run completed. Then she went back and final mudded the tape. We're slap and dash finishers. We probably used a lot more compound than we needed but sanding is easy if messy. Slap it on and move along is our motto.

She's using the knife to flatten the tape, press it into the mud, get out air bubbles and squeeze out the excess mud. I caught her in mid command mode in this picture. "Put down that @#%@ing camera and get back to work you lazy slacker!"

She's using a 4 inch knife. Why? Because she's the boss and the boss said so that's why. I get to use a 2 inch knife. I think that's sexist. Help, I'm being oppressed!

When the taping is done it's time for sanding. That's my job. There's a variety of useful tools I use including this one. That's my DeWalt random orbit sander. It's a great tool but please use it carefully. It can tear through drywall compound like stink but it can also sand down through the paper surface and into the interior of the drywall board faster than you can imagine. It can also tear up stuff your wife just did and, trust me on this, that is no fun at all. If you do that she's liable to make you do the repair so word to the wise here. I generally only use it on rough patches and screw holes where I can't do a lot of damage.

Mostly I rely on the old standbys, cheese graters, sandpaper and sanding blocks.That big one is for corners. I like them because there are an awful lot of corners in a room. The pole is a sanding device used to more easily get to the ceiling. It's great for us old guys and the sand paper attaches with hook and loop so they're easy to change out. As I said we're going with texture on the walls and ceiling so I only used 80 and 150 grit sandpaper.

I really love the sanding blocks. They're basically sandpaper on a foam block. Either big for corners or smaller and flatter for everything else.

Of course sanding does produce a byproduct. Drywall joint compound dust. That's why it's my job. Dust masks and good ventilation will help but sooner or later you will end up looking like this.

I opened windows and used a fan to blow out a window but to no avail. Anyone else thinking of Procol Harum's Whiter Shade Of Pale? No? Well then you're in luck. Here ya go.


In the end it was done. We still have to go back over and correct any mistakes and The Boy's room still needs some sanding but we're nearly ready for the next step.

On Thursday I anticipate applying texture. Think about 5 gallons of thin joint compound applied with a spray gun to walls and ceiling. It'll be a blast!

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