Enough of COVID...what are you doing to the house?

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I bought my house in 2000. There is not a stitch of original drywall, wire, or insulation - every room has been stripped to the studs and reinsulated, rewired, and re-drywalled. I've replaced the roof, gut-renovated the bathrooms and kitchen, refloored the entire house, and did a major overhaul of the pool and yard. I converted our underground garage to a media room and replaced it with a detached garage.

Last year I was feeling close to done. then along came the need for new, new siding, eavestroughs, 4 new windows, and after 20 years of family service we need to reno 2 bathrooms, refinish hardwood, replace 1000sq' of decking, and lift/level 2000'sq of pavers.

I don't think the work ever ends. When you think you're finished, you just end up at the start of another thing.
 
Mad Mike said:
I bought my house in 2000. There is not a stitch of original drywall, wire, or insulation - every room has been stripped to the studs and reinsulated, rewired, and re-drywalled. I've replaced the roof, gut-renovated the bathrooms and kitchen, refloored the entire house, and did a major overhaul of the pool and yard. I converted our underground garage to a media room and replaced it with a detached garage.

Last year I was feeling close to done. then along came the need for new, new siding, eavestroughs, 4 new windows, and after 20 years of family service we need to reno 2 bathrooms, refinish hardwood, replace 1000sq' of decking, and lift/level 2000'sq of pavers.

I don't think the work ever ends. When you think you're finished, you just end up at the start of another thing.
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24 years, the usual past due to redo what was previously done.... the never ending loop.
 
crankcall said:
Yup , my move in ready house …. Five yrs and a hundred grand later ….


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It was ready to move in. It wasn't ready to live in. We all have parts of our houses that we don't love and their redevelopment has been brought up by our significant others.
 
i'll take some of the blame on renos , we left a IMO very nice house to move closer to friends and the lake . Needing to make this one as nice as the last is partly me . I like things looking a certain way .
 
GreyGhost said:
Uhoh. Ordered parts from a Canadian supplier to keep money here instead of helping Bezos even though cost was higher and shipping time was much longer I was hoping for better quality parts. Parts arrived a week later. One bearing fits. The seal and other bearing are a hard no. Wife is going to be ******. Sent company a message. We'll see how they deal with it.
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They are dealing with it poorly. Parts of Canada Ltd. (partsofcanada.com) in AB should be avoided. I submitted their online form Sunday night. Nothing. I called yesterday and left a message. Nothing. I called today and left a message. F those guys.
 
Mad Mike said:
I bought my house in 2000. There is not a stitch of original drywall, wire, or insulation - every room has been stripped to the studs and reinsulated, rewired, and re-drywalled. I've replaced the roof, gut-renovated the bathrooms and kitchen, refloored the entire house, and did a major overhaul of the pool and yard. I converted our underground garage to a media room and replaced it with a detached garage.

Last year I was feeling close to done. then along came the need for new, new siding, eavestroughs, 4 new windows, and after 20 years of family service we need to reno 2 bathrooms, refinish hardwood, replace 1000sq' of decking, and lift/level 2000'sq of pavers.

I don't think the work ever ends. When you think you're finished, you just end up at the start of another thing.
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My late father was spot on when he said the only thing that works in an old house is the guy that owns it. Glad we took his advice and didn't buy an old house.
 
timtune said:
My late father was spot on when he said the only thing that works in an old house is the guy that owns it. Glad we took his advice and didn't buy an old house.
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What's old? Brand new houses have a huge list to correct the lazy/incompetent work done. I havent seen a coped baseboard in any house unless I did them. Not hard but a bit slower and looks so much better.
 
timtune said:
My late father was spot on when he said the only thing that works in an old house is the guy that owns it. Glad we took his advice and didn't buy an old house.
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That only works if you never live there past 10 (maybe 15 years)... A properly updated old house is no different in that context.
 
timtune said:
My late father was spot on when he said the only thing that works in an old house is the guy that owns it. Glad we took his advice and didn't buy an old house.
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I’d say new houses have more issues than old houses typically.
 
GreyGhost said:
What's old? Brand new houses have a huge list to correct the lazy/incompetent work done. I havent seen a coped baseboard in any house unless I did them. Not hard but a bit slower and looks so much better.
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A battery chop saw and a battery angle grinder is fast but 40 or 50 in house is an hour. Every crumb counts when it's not your house.
 
mimico_polak said:
I’d say new houses have more issues than old houses typically.
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I was surprised at how shabby our brand new construction "luxury" townhouse looked when we moved in in 2008. Cracks in the basement and garage floors, but apparently not covered by Tarion warranty since a Toonie couldn't fit in it - seriously??? Nevermind everything else that they reluctantly did deal with, some taking 6 months.
 
Relax said:
I was surprised at how shabby our brand new construction "luxury" townhouse looked when we moved in in 2008. Cracks in the basement and garage floors, but apparently not covered by Tarion warranty since a Toonie couldn't fit in it - seriously??? Nevermind everything else that they reluctantly did deal with, some taking 6 months.
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"Luxury" townhouse or condo means 6-8" poplar baseboards instead of 3-4" MDF and if your builder is extra luxurious they may throw in some tiny crown molding. Behind the finishes, there is normally zero difference.
 
timtune said:
My late father was spot on when he said the only thing that works in an old house is the guy that owns it. Glad we took his advice and didn't buy an old house.
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Don't buy and old house unless you plan to make it a new house. I don't mind, I've redone several over the years, a couple from the the 1800s.

In my case, I bought an old 30 year old house in 2000 then redid the whole thing. The last redo was 20+ years ago, the house raised 3 kids, 2 dogs and a few cats -- now it's an old house again!
 
Taking new into a couple of classes.

Track housing, condos, towns (even called luxury or not) tend to be pretty poorly built over the last decades. Specially the non-surface viewable/mechanical items. Just a factor of the trades shortages and the rates they are (were) building at. Some years are far worse than others. Of course lets not talk about the "Holmes Approved" fiasco that takes it to another level.

Second class is truly custom built (one off, not track) by a high end builder. Still lots of potential issues but at least there should be a higher attention to detail by the GC.

For anyone that buys (or has built) new construction. I recommend getting a competent home inspection before any warranties expiry. Wait a few years before finishing the basement etc.
 
backmarkerducati said:
Taking new into a couple of classes.

Track housing, condos, towns (even called luxury or not) tend to be pretty poorly built over the last decades. Specially the non-surface viewable/mechanical items. Just a factor of the trades shortages and the rates they are (were) building at. Some years are far worse than others. Of course lets not talk about the "Holmes Approved" fiasco that takes it to another level.

Second class is truly custom built (one off, not track) by a high end builder. Still lots of potential issues but at least there should be a higher attention to detail by the GC.

For anyone that buys (or has built) new construction. I recommend getting a competent home inspection before any warranties expiry. Wait a few years before finishing the basement etc.
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Ive had 3 'new construction' homes, I used a small builder and oversaw every detail. My first one was a basic builder-grade house, the finishings were as cheep as you could get -- I could barely afford to have color in the paint! But I made sure the bones were put together properly and that paid off.
 
Mad Mike said:
Ive had 3 'new construction' homes, I used a small builder and oversaw every detail. My first one was a basic builder-grade house, the finishings were as cheep as you could get -- I could barely afford to have color in the paint! But I made sure the bones were put together properly and that paid off.
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I find most builders have similar standards. The outlier I have seen (in a good way) is the Valvasori brothers in Hamilton. They care. Their name is on the company and they try hard to make a better product. Most builders focus almost entirely on cheapest. Valvasori will spend more if they think it improves the end product (even if the end user may never know).
 
backmarkerducati said:
That only works if you never live there past 10 (maybe 15 years)... A properly updated old house is no different in that context.
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Not really buying it. MadMike talked of gutting and drywalling every room along with new wiring. Old houses have stone foundations and such. My poured concrete foundation has needed no work in the over 30 years I've lived here. Likewise the only drywall I've replaced was a small bathroom with plastic "tile" that effed the drywall when it came off.
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