Electrical nightmares
Koontz - It's Wednesday now and the electrical problems on the current job were happily resolved yesterday. So I can say in one sense that it's been a productive week. On the other hand, both the problem and the resolution were unplanned for events, so I lost a day working to resolve the issue, when I should have been working on what I bid on.
That's both the joy and the frustration with remodeling.
My partner and I always tell clients' that regardless of their plans, once walls start to come down, ideas may start to change. The client has perhaps thought about this remodel for years; has it all down as to what she/he wants, and then we rip out the first wall and the perspective is so different, that new and sometimes better ideas start to develop. The idea is not to be too wed to "the plan". Let yourself have room to change and adapt.
We also make sure that clients don't try to shorcut their jobs in the interest of the budget. They want new counter-tops but they want to keep the old sink. That's a no! I can guarantee that the new counter will look like it was never replaced if we don't also change out the materials around it. That is not the place to scrimp on your budget.
What we sometimes forget to tell the client, because we actually forget about it, is that working on older homes can sometimes cause problems in areas close-to, but technically out of the area of the remodel project.
That's a bit of the problem we had on this job this week.
The electrical problems I spoke of in my last post were caused by wires shorting out against each other in a sub-panel box not involved in the remodel. It turned out there was a problem brewing there though that demanded to be addressed, and it was actually lucky for all of us that the problems came to a head while we were on site. Although this box was not in the scope of work we were dealing with, it reminded me of something my Dad once told me about working on cars. "You fix one thing, and the part next to it starts acting up".
It seems there's always at least one thing that comes up on a job that was unexpected. A new design concept, an unplanned repair, a cat that goes under the house through that hole I cut in the floor, (really, I've just heard stories...). When you hear your contractor say, "Oh, oh", you might want to start practicing your deep breathing, and remember, it might be a discovery that saves your life down the road.
That's both the joy and the frustration with remodeling.
My partner and I always tell clients' that regardless of their plans, once walls start to come down, ideas may start to change. The client has perhaps thought about this remodel for years; has it all down as to what she/he wants, and then we rip out the first wall and the perspective is so different, that new and sometimes better ideas start to develop. The idea is not to be too wed to "the plan". Let yourself have room to change and adapt.
We also make sure that clients don't try to shorcut their jobs in the interest of the budget. They want new counter-tops but they want to keep the old sink. That's a no! I can guarantee that the new counter will look like it was never replaced if we don't also change out the materials around it. That is not the place to scrimp on your budget.
What we sometimes forget to tell the client, because we actually forget about it, is that working on older homes can sometimes cause problems in areas close-to, but technically out of the area of the remodel project.
That's a bit of the problem we had on this job this week.
The electrical problems I spoke of in my last post were caused by wires shorting out against each other in a sub-panel box not involved in the remodel. It turned out there was a problem brewing there though that demanded to be addressed, and it was actually lucky for all of us that the problems came to a head while we were on site. Although this box was not in the scope of work we were dealing with, it reminded me of something my Dad once told me about working on cars. "You fix one thing, and the part next to it starts acting up".
It seems there's always at least one thing that comes up on a job that was unexpected. A new design concept, an unplanned repair, a cat that goes under the house through that hole I cut in the floor, (really, I've just heard stories...). When you hear your contractor say, "Oh, oh", you might want to start practicing your deep breathing, and remember, it might be a discovery that saves your life down the road.
permalink
