houseremodelingupdate

House Remodeling Update

Welcome to our way to keep friends & family updated on what's going on.

Construction performed by Sherwood Construction - 630-204-1779

January 20, 2006 - The Kitchen is finished.... almost, all that's left is some trim. There's also 2 pictures from the fireplace., which we think is really cool (or should we say hot). And a picture of the powder room. The green color is growing on me. We still have to set up the new dining room, but the main thing is the construction is pretty much finished. Just adding the toekicks/trim, which is on hold awaiting an extra part from the manufacturer. So far it's been just over 4 months! What a long process. But we think it looks great!

January 13, 2006 - Countertops were installed today! Hooray! Should have a working sink tomorrow. Here are some pics of the kitchen with the countertops. The cooktop is not installed yet - so that's what the big hole is for.

January 6, 2009 - Well, we're still not done yet. Here are some updated pictures to show the general layout and where the stoves will be. They are set up, but not completely installed, as they have no electricity to them. We're still waiting on countertops, the heated floors, some electrical work and a few other details. We will also have two upper cabinets by the kitchen window with appliance garages in them, but they don't get installed until after the counter tops go in. Oh and the pantry does have a door, it's just in the process of being stained.

December 21, 2008 - They finished the fireplace today (on a Sunday - don't worry the Bears play Monday night) and it looks really really nice.


December 20, 2008 - All the cabinets are installed, except for the end panels. The countertops are to be measured Tuesday 12/23 and the stone workers have started on the fireplace. Just a few more weeks....(we hope)

December 15, 2008 - We have the beginning of a kitchen. Today they started placing cabinets and the electrician was here so we have more than 1 outlet in the family room and a beautiful ceiling fan. Take a look at the prelim pictures:

December 12, 2008 - We had a little delay with the flooring because the cement on top of the warming tiles was still showing high levels of moisture and we decided to err on the side of caution and not install the bamboo until the level was low. But the floor is in and it is GORGEOUS! The two guys that installed the floor did an excellent job. There is still some cardboard on the floor for protection since we still have some workers coming and going and moving things around.

They also moved some of the cabinets into the new kitchen area and will install next week. The stone on the fireplace is also to be installed next week. It's starting to come together.

December 3, 2008 - They finished installing the warming tiles for the floor and put in some particle board to even out the kitchen floor. Don't know when the flooring will be installed, but the bamboo was delivered today.

December 2, 2008 - Wow, December already. Well, we've been through sanding, priming, some painting we did ourselves and the beginnings of our floor - well beginning the installation of the heating elements.

November 22, 2008 - We got some mud today. Check out the dust cloud in the 2nd picture of the family room.

November 20, 2008 - All the sheetrock is up. It's amazing how much smaller things look now. And see if you can find Rachel Ray in the background of one of the pictures. I was going to retake it, but I think it's pretty funny.

November 19, 2008 - They closed off the service door access from the garage to the addition. We're very happy for this because there were a LOT of cold air and drafts that came in that way. They also took down the temporary wall.

November 18, 2008 - Sheetrock started today! Yipee! Still have a ways to go of course.

November 13, 2008 - I know it's been a long time since I've updated the website, but it's not because they haven't been working, they've jusst been doing things that are hard to photograph - like plumbing, electricity and heat ducts. We finally just got some insulation too.

October 31, 2008 - Happy Halloween! Well, we've had a flurry of activity this week, but not a lot of pictures. Who really wants to see pictures of Electrical boxes and plumbing lines?! But it's all necessary, of course. Here's a picture of the hallway view. Usually the temporary wall is up, but while the guys were on their lunchbreak I snuck a picture.

I've added some siding pictures, looks like they did a real nice job of matching to the existing siding (see the second picture).

October 24, 2008 - Got the windows today! finally! There was a delay at the manufacturer, but they're here now so it's all good. They've also installed the patio door and done some more framing. Electric and plumbing will be here some time next week.

October 22, 2008 - The sink is gone (we're now relegated to paper plates and washing dishes in the tub - oh joy!) They've started building walls in the inside for the closet and the powder room, and we're down to the subfloor everywhere except in the existing family room (which is to become a foyer and dining room) and currently still has carpet.

October 21, 2008 - We had a slow down in construction last week, waiting for supplies and crews, but they were back at it early Monday morning with the beginning of the demolition of the kitchen. On Monday they took out half the cabinets and countertops, pantry and the desk area. On Tuesday they took the oven and most of the tile flooring throughout the kitchen and hallways. So far they left us with a sink, but I'm sure that will be gone soon to make way for the new patio door. Especially since they've already closed off entrance to the patio via the old back door.


October 11, 2008 - Yesterday the roofers showed up and got the entire roof done in one day. They did a really good job of matching the existing roof to the new roof. The framers showed up to get their tools and clean up. It's really moving along and looking good. Not sure what the next step is, but I'm sure we'll be losing our existing kitchen soon. Should make dinners interesting around here.

October 10,2008 - Sorry for the delay in updating, but we had some rain on Monday afternoon and evening, which didn't allow for pictures and the rest of the week, they guys didn't quit working until after it was dark. They're definitely hard workers. I actually had to go out and take pictures this morning. Here are the updated pictures, as you can see, they've made a lot of progress.

October 3, 2008 - Wow, the boys really worked hard today - they were here until 6:30pm. But look at how much they got done. It looks like a room, well 2 rooms.

October 2, 2008 - Lots of work done today. looks like a completely different house from the back (which I guess is really the point).

October 1, 2008 - Now it really feels like we're under construction. Access to the dinnette area is officially closed. We had some demo work and more framing done today.

September 30, 2008 - After a few days off due to a crew change and some rain, we got some framing done today. The guys worked late, quitting after 5:30. Take a look at what they accomplished"

September 23, 2008 - Foundation is done!

September 22, 2008 - Concrete was poured today. Here are the updated pictures.

September 21, 2008 - Updates: Passed our first inspection on the footings on Friday. Guys came back and worked Saturday to put up the forms for the foundation walls. Next inspection is set for tomorrow.

September 18, 2008 - Construction has begun! Day 1 and we've got a really big hole in the ground and lots of dirt. I'm sure it'll get more exciting, but here are the pics if you want to check it out:

September 9, 2008 - Received confirmation from the City of Elgin that our permits were ready.

Here are some pictures of what we had to start with.

As you can tell our kitchen is definitely in need of some updating (notice the burnt formica countertop in the third picture!). And ignore the landscaping please, we knew it was going to be torn out, so we let it go wild (honest! it was on purpose!)

We'll be doing lots of updating, moving rooms around and adding on. It's a large undertaking, but it should be fabulous when it's finished! Keep checking back - construction starts on September 18, 2008.

Construction performed by Sherwood Construction. 630-204-1779