Update and Some Good News (for a change)!

A quick update on the water damage: All drywall was repaired and various baseboards were replaced.  It took two visits as they missed some areas the first time.  For those that are considering painted before your 10 month, I don't recommend it at all!  The areas that I had already painted (after my 10 month) only had the drywall repaired.  They didn't even bother to paint with the original wall color so that I at least had one coat of paint on it before adding our custom color.  The patched areas still do not blend with the original drywall.  I have put three coats of paint on.  It's getting better, and I am thankful that it is in the stairwell where it is hidden by shadows, but it is aggravating to have to go through painting the stairwell again.

Onto the good news!  The laminate flooring in our foyer, hallway and powder room has been an issue since we moved in.  The flooring installers have been here about four times (I've lost count) trying to fix issues with loose subfloor along with creaking and squeaking in the flooring.  Supposedly, it is binding up under the baseboard.  They kept trying but were unable to eliminate the noises.  Because of the volume of water that got onto the floor, it was determined that they would need to replace most of the laminate and because of the noise issues, they agreed to replace it all.  Since they were replacing all of it, I asked to select a different flooring.  They agreed!  I have never liked our laminate.  It has such a high shine finish that every little spot shows.  Sweaty footprints always mark up the floor, and unless it's been freshly cleaned, it looks awful.

We went to the showroom to select new flooring, and the flooring rep was great.  Since we were selecting floor "after the fact," we were allowed to pick from the entire showroom, not just the Ryan room.  We were able to bring home a few samples, and we are excited to be getting handscraped hickory solid wood flooring!

Here are a few pictures:

It is gorgeous, and I can't wait for it to be installed tomorrow!  More pics to follow :)

Nothing More, Nothing Less

When we first met with our PM at our pre-con meeting, we had a few special requests.  They were all denied.  Our PM told us, "I will build you the house that you contracted.  Nothing more, nothing less." Unfortunately, we received much more than we asked for.  We didn't ask for leaky windows, siding issues, shoddy carpet, crooked walls, crooked trim, doorknobs that fall off, $300+ electric bill because the HVAC installer put the wrong kind of battery in the outside sensor, squeaking and creaking floors, cracks in the drywall, numerous other issues and all the half-hearted repairs that come with them.  The most recent example of their ineptitude occurred a couple of weeks ago.  I am still dealing with the repairs and awaiting the outcome which is why I have hesitated to blog about it.  But, I need an outlet to vent, so here's the scoop:

I was on the first floor when I heard a sound like a firehose hitting the house on the second floor.  First, I ran outside.  Nothing seemed amiss, so I headed for the second floor.  The washing machine was running, so I checked on that first.  The sound wasn't coming from the laundry room, so I followed it to the secondary bath.  The sound was coming from behind the shower enclosure.  I flipped the shower faucet on and there was no water.  At this point, I ran down the steps to find water pouring out of my foyer light.  I headed to the basement and found water running down the pipes and door frame around the storage area.  I turned off the water to the house at the water meter.  About five minutes had elapsed from the time I heard the sound to when I turned off the water.  It was warm water, so I assumed a hot water line had burst.

I called Ryan's emergency line.  I explained the situation to the rep on the phone.  He gave me the plumber's phone number, said he would contact the plumber and the Service Manager and that I would be hearing from them shortly.  When an hour had passed and I didn't hear anything, I called the emergency line again. The rep that I spoke with that time asked me if I had explained that it was an emergency.  Really??? I can't see how anything that I explained did NOT constitute an emergency.  We couldn't use our water.  There was water dripping from several locations.  I could not believe she was implying that it was my fault for not expressly stating it was an emergency.  That's what the emergency line is for!

After she rewrote it as an emergency ticket, I got a call from the service manager.  He came over within 20 minutes to inspect the damage.  As we were walking through the house, the plumber arrived.  (Imagine my panic when I saw it was the same genius who, when reconnecting the master bath faucet during a previous repair, never bothered to turn the water back on and check to see that everything was connected correctly.  This resulted in water dripping through my eyeball lights above my fireplace because he did not re-install the faucet properly).  Anyway, the plumber came in and after telling my story, they tried to determine the location of the leak.  They first thought it might be the hot water connection to the the shower.  They cut a three feet by eight inch hole in my closet only to find that that connection was secure.  They headed to my daughter's bedroom under the assumption that it would be a connection at either the sinks or the toilets.  They ended up cutting five holes in the wall!

The final diagnosis was that the installer didn't cut the lines long enough to wrap around from the shower and pick up the lines from the sinks.  So, he added a coupling.  This would have been sufficient, except that he didn't bother crimping the metal band at the coupling.  There was nothing holding the coupling together.  The plumber was surprised that it didn't come apart the first time the shower was run.  The kids prefer our shower, so that shower does not get a lot of use.

Here are some pictures of the damage. Some pics may need to be clicked on to see the effects of the water.

Water dripping down the siding

Water dripping from light switch
at the bottom of the basement stairs

Bottom of basement stairs

Puddle in basement bath

Water dripping from pipes in basement storage area

Water had slowed by the time I took this picture.
At the time I turned off the water, there was a curtain
of water coming down through this doorway.

Streaks where water ran along the joists
in the family room ceiling

That is not a shadow.  That is wet drywall
near the foyer light at the bottom
of the stairs.

Basement stairwell taping

This is an example of the repair job in the main stairwell.
Needless to say, I'm not impressed.

I have sent an email to the service manager regarding the quality of the repairs.  I am awaiting his reply, but if this is not handled to my satisfaction, I am prepared to go over his head.  I have been nothing but patient with all of this, but I am at my wits end. There is also a flooring issue, but this has been way too long already!

A New Addition!

We spent 8.5 years in our last house debating whether we wanted a deck or a patio.  Needless to say, when we moved out, the construction steps were all that we had! We swore that would not happen in this house.  We were leaning towards a deck all along, but had a few doubts along the way.  We met with around 7 deck builders before making our decision.  This was done back in April.

When we chose our deck builder, he told us that it would probably be mid-June before they would start.  He filed for the permit right away, though, in case he was able to start sooner.  We got a call last Wednesday saying that they would start on Monday.  The weather looked great, so he thought they would be done midday on Thursday.  Well, of course the weather didn't hold, but they have almost finished.  Final cleanup will commence tomorrow.  Without further ado, here is our deck!

Morning of Day 1

Materials being delivered

Day 2

End of Day 2

End of Day 2

End of Day 2

End of Day 3

End of Day 3

End of Day 3

The completed deck!
Notice the stairs come down straight and at an angle.
The deck builder suggested that because we wanted a wider staircase.
I think it looks so much better than just wide steps.

Color Consultation

I had a color consultation with a designer from Sherwin Williams yesterday to pick colors for the house. I don't know if they offer this service everywhere, but by buying a $75 gift card, I got to spend an hour and a half with the designer. She started with a walk through of the house while I described how we used each room, what furniture was staying, etc. and then we got to the fun part. We started with the main color that would be used for the foyer and all hallways. Then, we moved to the family room and kitchen. Because they are open to each other and share a wall, we needed a color that would work for both areas. After that, we moved to the morning room. We built on each previous color, ensuring that the rooms would flow well. The dining room, office and powder room were next on the agenda.

From the top clockwise: Accessible Beige for the foyer, hallways and stairwell; Balanced Beige for the family room and kitchen; Spiced Cider for the morning room; Svelte Sage for the dining room; Requisite Gray for the powder room; and Grassland for the study, which is my craft room/office.

For the upstairs, we chose Honeydew and Vivacious Pink for DD's room; Great Green and Stream for YDS's room; Cay for the kids' bath; Jersey Cream for the laundry room; and Poolhouse for ODS's room.  We did not pick a color for the master bed and bath as I am planning to get new bedding and haven't settled on a color scheme as of yet.  

Again, I'm not sure if it's everywhere, but our Sherwin Williams is having a 40% off sale April 19-21.  The color consultant said that that is what her employee discount is and that it doesn't get any better than that. I am really looking forward to getting some color on the walls!

Survey Work

As many have advised, I waited until after the 30 day fixes were complete before sending my survey. I put it off until we had been in the home for a few months because I wanted a chance to experience the home for a bit to be able to accurately assess the home. Unfortunately, there were so many issues that I couldn't give out the coveted 10s on the overall home. There were segments of the home that I rated highly, but others that were just carelessly done that couldn't receive high marks. All of the individuals that we worked with were great, so they all received 10s. I went into great detail on the survey as to likes and dislikes, and I was happy to find that the survey allowed comments on individual areas.

Fast forward a few months, and I got a call from our PM. I gave him high praise on the survey because he was excellent to work with. However, I'm sure it didn't go we'll for him when our survey was received. I felt I needed to be honest in the survey, but I didn't want it to reflect badly on him. His schedule was very busy, so he wasn't able to come out until November. We spent a couple hours going through every room in the house. I was able to point out every issue, and he took detailed notes and pictures. I was given the option of having the work done then, or waiting until after the holidays. We opted for after the holidays since it was going to take a full week. The first full week that our PM could be here was this week.

Here's a rundown of items they are fixing and some pics:
Laminate flooring and transitions cut too short
Laminate transition seams not flush
Laminate floor creaking and crackling due to binding up under trim
Water damage to window seal
Many drywall issues including kitchen counter pulling away from the wall
All small walls not being square (drywall repair and new trim)
Window that has been repaired twice being replaced as it is still leaking
Hump in middle of basement bath floor
The planned joints in the basement concrete floor were never filled, so every crack is felt through the carpet. They are pulling up the carpet one half at a time to fill the cracks.
One of the fireplace stones sticks out at the bottom by about an inch and a half and will be replaced.
New mirror for powder room since ours had a flaw right in the middle

PM has set aside a whole week and is planning to be here most of the time so that he can supervise (and I'm sure he doesn't ever want to have to come back!). I have to say that I could totally understand him having an attitude with me, but he has been nothing but helpful. Also, all of the workers have been very respectful (though they all make me feel old by calling me ma'am!).

House Tour, Part 2

Here are a few more rooms that, while not finished, are at least presentable.

Morning room chandelier

This is my biggest steal so far for the house.  It was originally $189.  I saw it on clearance for $89, but still wasn't sure what I wanted for that room.  One day while wandering through Lowe's, I saw it sitting, fully assembled, on a shelf in a completely unrelated aisle.  It was marked down to $47.  I made sure it could be returned if it didn't work.  We only needed to add a $3 part to make it work and there it is!

Another view of the lovely chandelier

I opted not to take a picture of DH hanging the light.  That vaulted ceiling is pretty high.  He ended up putting his 6 foot step ladder on top of our table in order to reach.  Don't try this at home, kids!

Our family room furniture finally arrived.  It took almost 10 weeks!

You can't tell in this picture, but the feet of the two sofas are two different colors of wood.
 I'm trying to decide how much it bugs me.

I love our fireplace!  

This sofa sleeper was supposed to go in the finished basement area under the morning room.  However, I failed to take into account the small hallway that contains the basement door. There was no way for the movers to swing a 92" couch through the hall and doorway.  So, there it sits in our living room.  It will probably end up in our bonus room as it is not what I envisioned in my living room.  But, it works for now.

That computer armoire houses the kids' computer so that it is out in the open.  

Powder room

Those two pictures are held by the first two nails to be put into the house by us.
I like to wait until I am absolutely sure where I want something before putting holes in the wall.
So, we still have lots of plain walls!

Just a little corner stand to try to draw attention away from the large vent cover.

Tomorrow begins some major deconstruction and reconstruction on the house.  They will be removing the columns to replace the stoop, repairing windows, removing the bathtub to determine why it's creaking (which involves removing tile) and fix the squeak in the kitchen floor.  I'm trying to remain calm :)

30 Day Follow-Up

Our 30 follow-up service was today.  There were a few minor touch-ups to be done along with more major issues to correct.  Our PM came out to the house last week to inspect the more serious issues to have a plan of attack ready.

1.  The master bathtub would creak whenever anyone stepped in it.  The plumber filled the tub with water to weigh it down and then sprayed foam insulation through the access panel under the tub.  We have to leave the water in for 24 hours and then we'll find out if the foam was successful in supporting the tub.

2.  The glass for the master shower enclosure is severely scratched.  PM will call the manufacturer and order a new piece of glass.

3.  Squeaks in laminate flooring were fixed and creaking the vinyl flooring was fixed.  There is still a squeak under the vinyl that will be fixed later as it was just found yesterday and the flooring guy didn't have the proper tools to fix it today.

4.  We had creaking all along the main traffic pattern through the family room.  We never noticed it until we closed on the house.  PM and the handyman determined that the sound was wood related, so they had to open the drywall in the finished basement soffit and screwed the 2x4s and joists which eliminated the sound.

5.  We have some window issues.  On about half of our windows, the seal on the bottom of the one side has failed.  This has caused damage to the window sills.  PM said that he knows of another house where 15 windows had to be replaced.  He will be submitting a claim to the window company and they will have to replace the windows and the sills.

6.  When our stoop was poured, it was still getting cold at night.  To protect the concrete, the contractor covered the stoop.  The cover apparently moved because it looks like something was dragged through the wet cement.  PM had his concrete guys come out and look at it.  There is nothing they can do short of removing the stoop.  They were going to do that this week, but we were having furniture delivered finally (another post on that will be coming) so it will be done after the 4th.

7.  Our shutters on the stone front are not attached so that they lay flat.  PM will contact the stone mason.

8.  Flashing over the garage door needs to be nailed down and there is a dent a trim piece on the gable over the garage.  The siders will be back to fix.

9.  Various paint touch-ups were done and the paint on the sides of the fireplace was removed.

10.  The edges of many of the interior doors were rough.  PM said this has been a complaint from other PMs.  Doors were sanded down and the paint touched up.

Our handyman is on crutches due to a broken heel, so our PM actually did some of the work too.  I was greatly impressed with how accommodating our PM was with everything that I asked.  His answer to everything was "We'll take care of it."  Definitely happy with how things are being handled.  As much as I wish issues didn't arise, I am please with how they are being resolved.

We Have a Kitchen!

We made our weekly pilgrimage to the house and there was so much to see.  This week all vinyl, tile, cabinetry, countertops, trim and railings were installed.  We were also surprised to see that the pillars for the front porch were also done.

Here are some pics in random Blogger order because I'm too tired to mess with moving them around :)

Here are my "What were they thinking" trim pictures

Seriously, did they stutter with the nail gun?

Master bath vanity

The obligatory picture of the gaps between the trim and the wall

Access panel in master closet for soaking tub

My kitchen :)
Love it!
Antique Mascarello with Maple Cognac Cabinets

Where my huge new fridge will go

I guess the counter didn't fit so they shoved it into the wall???

DH caught me pointing to the area at the back of the cabinets
where the flooring was cut too short.  PM has already said
that they will add some shoe molding to fill in the spot.

Kids' vanity

Unstained railings
View from bonus room

Basement bath vanity

Our beautiful stone fireplace
(Buff Ledgestone)

Peninsula view
If you look closely, you can see the ogee edge!

Unpainted pillars

PM was out of town today, so I'm sure he will take care of the trim and countertop issues when he returns.  He has taken all of my concerns very seriously thus far and we will be talking about this on Monday.  Other than the trim issues, we really love how the house is coming along.  The fireplace is unbelievably gorgeous and we couldn't be happier with the way the kitchen is coming together.

Next week will be a bit boring until Friday.  On Monday, the drywallers will be back to do touchups.  Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday will be painting the doors, trim and walls.  Friday begins the finishing touches: faucets, fixtures, door handles, etc.  I can't wait to go next week to see how much has been completed.  Now, if someone would only come buy my house and someone else come pack for me, life would be grand!