The Daily Biff

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Laundry Final
We hired a new tile subcontractor to finish the laundry room countertop (the other one was "too busy"). The new guy, Emil, laid the tile yesterday and then stopped by this morning to apply the grout. The finished product looks great - it looks much better than the plywood countertop we have been living with for the past couple of months (and doesn't leave sawdust on our freshly washed clothes. Here is a picture of the final outcome (click to enlarge):

Before Emil could finish the countertop, I had to remove a couple of electrical boxes that were too low on the wall (poor planning on our part). I cut the boxes out yesterday and left them dangling in the wall space. Emil then installed the backsplash trim over the lower inch or so of both of the open holes. After I picked up Bryan from the airport, he helped me re-cut the holes for the electrical boxes so that after the cover is installed, the hole is completely covered. It looks great. Thanks Bryan!

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Mudroom Final
We received the bench cushion for the locker bench in the mudroom today. It was actually done a couple of weeks ago, but the outfit that manufactured it did not make it according to Kristy's exact specifications, so it had to be redone. The cushion was the last and final detail needed to complete the new mudroom. Click on the two pictures below to view the final outcome.

The floor has been upgraded to hardwood (instead of linoleum). The lockers and bench are now occupying the space where the washer and dryer used to be. The sink cabinet has been completely upgraded. The doors, door sill trim, and alarm keypad have been repainted to black and the wall faux treatment is new. Lots of work went into this little room, and now it is 1000% better. We are very pleased with the result.

(Update Thu Aug 31 00:45:16 PDT 2006 // added pictures)
(Update Sat Sep 9 08:54:21 PDT 2006 // moved to proper category

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Kitchen Window Sill
Part of the scope creep of the vault removal project included the removal of the old deteriorating MDF window sill. The idea was to replace the sill with solid-surface granite if there was enough leftover after the island and mudroom sink were fabricated. Fortunately there was enough material. The new kitchen window sill was installed today.

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Eliana Bedroom Final
The windows shutters were installed in Eliana's bedroom this morning. This was the last detail that needed to be complete in her room. It is now completely done. Here are a couple of pics (click to enlarge):

The room turned out a bit smaller than we had hoped. But when Eliana is older, she will have the nicest bathroom in the house (including the radiant heated floors) all to herself.

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: The Final Details
We have been working hard for the past few evenings putting the final touches on the rooms affected by the vault removal project. I have finished repainting all of the doors and they are now all rehung. The black light plates are now installed as well as the newly repainted black security system wall console and the whiteboard (which now has a newly repainted black frame). I repainted the mudroom walls (yellow) and then Kristy applied the brown sponged faux finish over the top of it to match the kitchen. I then put a top sealer coat on the mudroom walls to protect them from little hands. I also put a top coat on the faux finish Kristy did in the bathroom. Tedious work... but it had to be done.

We are now just missing a few final details. In the living room I need to install this high-load X10 switch I bought to control the new Christmas tree lighting circuit. It's not a high priority item, but it needs to be done before Thanksgiving at least.

The kitchen island lacks the drawer front for the drawer below the microwave, some trim around the island legs, and new kitchen stools (on order). Our window sill still needs to be replaced with either some solid surface marble (to match the existing granite), or if that isn't possible... some black painted trim. The kitchen also needs a top coat sealer of the faux finish.

The mudroom is missing drawer fronts on the drawers and the false front on the sink cabinet. I need to rehang the key holder on the wall next to the door. I ordered some cool under-cabinet lighting to install above the sink. The hooks are now installed in the lockers, but the locker bench cushion needs to be ordered.

The bathroom countertop isn't done and we haven't heard from Jason the tile guy about starting new work. We'll probably have to locate another subcontractor. One that work is done, all of the bathroom tile will need to be cleaned and sealed. There are also three drawer faces that are not yet installed.

Eliana's bedroom is done. The bedroom shutters have been ordered and the install is scheduled for August 8th.

Kristy's office is almost there. The office also lacks shutters (installation is also scheduled for August 8th). The ceiling needs some mud to level it out (and will then need to be repainted). I have spoken with the drywall subcontractor about it (and one of the proprietors has been out to look at the work), but I haven't heard any word since then. Kristy's desk latching mechanism also needs to be dressed up.

The goal is to have all this done by the end of July. Hopefully by then, only the shutter install will remain.

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Murphy Bed
The finish cabinetry in the house is now pretty much done. Kenis, Stewart, and Joe were all out on-site today to polish off all of the last major items that needed to be done (they all commented about how rare it is that the three of them are on-site at the same job together). There are still a few final details that need to be tied up, but everything is essentially finished (at least to a point where it is functional).

Kenis has done a fantastic job building and assembling the murphy bed in Kristy's new office. I moved the mattress onto the frame today and snapped some pictures of it. Check them out (click to enlarge):

The first picture shows the murphy bed up with the desk lid down. This is the mode that it will be for 95% of the time. The power and the data is all live now and Kristy just needs to move her laptop and a chair in there and she is ready to go.

The second picture shows the murphy bed cabinet with the desk lid stowed. There is a small (but strong) magnet mounted in the inside of the desk insert that keeps the desk lid snugly in place.

The third picture shows how the murphy bed mechanism is unlocked. The two outer blocks on the upper panels fold out. There is a thick string attached to the blocks. When the blocks are folded out, the string releases two locks that are hidden in the upper frame of the murphy bed cabinet. The two blocks double as the bed legs.

The fourth picture shows the bed down with the mattress (I even threw on a fitted sheet for the benefit of the picture). There are some lights on the inside of the murphy bed cabinet that are controlled by a touch switch on the top of the head board. The switch is not visible in the picture.

If you come to visit us in Sammamish... this bed is where you will be sleeping. The mattress is not an innerspring type, but instead is made entirely out of polyurethane latex foam layers. It is manufactured by Stearns & Foster (the Villa series). I haven't slept on it yet, but it feels plush yet supportive. Come up, stay awhile, and give me your own personal review!

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Solid Surface Countertops
The solid surface granite countertops for the kitchen island and the mudroom wash basin were installed today. Despite the fact that it was impossible to match the existing granite tile in the kitchen, it still looks very good. Check it out (click to enlarge):

The kids have already been hard at work testing the strength of the 3cm-thick granite on the kitchen island. It has been awhile since we have had a functional kitchen island (I removed the old one back on February 6th), so they have been busy walking all over it and enjoying the view. Berkeley is now able to scramble up to the top of any countertop using only the friction of his bare feet against the base cabinet surfaces. He'll just jump up to get his elbows on the countertop and then use his toes against the cabinetry to push his body up (spiderman style). Since the countertop is still barely above his eye level, it is quite a feat to watch.

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Stair Treads and Rails
We had our wood stair treads and rails replaced with darker material to match the newly refinished floors elsewhere in the house. The guy we hired to do it started (much later than he said he would) yesterday and needed a few hours today (to make up for lost time) to finish up. Regardless about how I feel about having someone work on Sunday (in my own home), it is done now and it looks real nice. Here is a picture... click to enlarge:

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Office Desk Fold-Out
The fold-out desk in Kristy's office was installed today. When stowed, the desk lid looks like just another panel on the front of the murphy bed. While in use, the desk lid is held up by a couple of secretary arms. I snapped a picture of it... click to enlarge:

There is a black power and data grommet that is revealed when the desk folds down. The power is live in the grommet right now, but I need to trim out the data cable and punch it down back in the box. Work continues on the cabinetry installation and will probably not wrap up until the middle of next week.

The first picture is of the cabinets that will ultimately hold much of Kristy's office items (the rest of the space is dedicated for guest use when the room is functioning as a guest room). There will be custom pull-outs for her sewing machine and fax/multi-function printer in the space on the lower left. The drawer space in the lower right will be for file folders. The shelf space above will house books and other various work-related materials.

The second picture shows the frame of the murphy bed. The center blank hole in the frame will be where a fold-down desk is to be installed. It is kind of hard to visualize just yet, but I'll snap more pictures as progress is made.

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: New Kitchen Island
Stewart was back today to install more cabinets. He brought our new kitchen island and installed it. It is longer than the old island and is open underneath for seating. The microwave cabinet is still on the one side. It isn't much to look at just yet (I didn't snap a picture). Later on (possibly next week or the week after next) the stone fabricators will have the solid surface granite slab ready (i.e. it won't be ready by the time my Mom and Dad pay their visit to us this weekend... oh well).

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Eliana's Armoire (Revisited)
Our first attempt at moving Eliana's Armoire into her new room was unsuccessful. So I arranged with Baxton a time for him to drop by and take the window out of her room so that we would have an opening which we could use to navigate the behemoth into her bedroom. Baxton dropped by this afternoon to take the window out while I hoisted the armoire up to the roof with this very clever equipment hoist I rented at the local Hertz rent-a-center.

Baxton has the window out in about 15 minutes, we had the armoire into the bedroom in another 15 minutes, and then Baxton re-installed the window in about 20 minutes. He showed up at 4pm, and we had the armoire in there and the job complete by 5pm. Baxton is good.

Here is a pic of the several thousand dollar armoire suspended in the air about 12' above the ground:

It was quite a sight.

:: Posted by rus on Tue, 30 May 2006 10:20 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Mon, 29 May 2006

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: More Painting
I spent my Memorial Day hard at work on some of them items on Kristy's Punchlist. I used my handy dandy airless paint sprayer to shoot the doors. I had a rough time of it. I used a smaller spray tip for the letters and then forgot to switch it out for the doors. So I put a lot of product on the doors and had to roll some of it out. There has been a lot of cottonwood "fuzz" floating around in the air and some of it ended up on the fresh paint. I'll have to find some time to brown-paper-bag sand the items and then shoot them again. *sigh*

:: Posted by rus on Mon, 29 May 2006 11:50 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Fri, 26 May 2006

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Eliana's Room
Kristy spent much of the day finishing the hand painted artwork below the chair rail in Eliana's room. Late this evening we put a clear glaze over all of the paintwork (including all of the red trim) to protect it from scuffing. I snapped a few pictures of the final work, but our camera just refused to focus on the walls (too little contrast for the AF system I guess). You'll just have to take my word for it that the room looks great. We'll be moving in her bedroom furniture (with the exception of the armoire) over the weekend. Once that task is complete, Eliana's bedroom will be a done deal.

Rooms that still need some work: the mudroom (finish cabinetry and paint), the kitchen (the new island will get installed next week), the bathroom (finish cabinetry and tile countertop), and Kristy's office (cabinetry).

:: Posted by rus on Fri, 26 May 2006 11:49 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Thu, 25 May 2006

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Finish Cabinetry Progress
The cabinet installation is proceeding along very nicely. The main installer, Stewart, is doing a fine job making sure all of the details are addressed. For example, after the ¾" plywood was installed on top of the base cabinets in the utility room, I mentioned that the span over the washer and dryer seemed to have a lot of play (that was yesterday). Today Stewart spent part of the day installing steel reinforcement below the countertop across the same span... making the countertop much, much stiffer. Nice.

Here are some sample pics of the progress:

The first two pictures show the bathroom cabinetry base and wall units installed. The third picture shows the crown around the ceiling off the bathroom that Stewart as well as the trim around the mirror that provides a nice frame. The fourth picture shows the new mudroom cabinetry.

:: Posted by rus on Thu, 25 May 2006 11:01 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Mon, 22 May 2006

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Cabinet Installation Started
Installation of the custom cabinetry began today for the mudroom and the utility area of the new bathroom. The installers will be here all week and will move from those two rooms to Kristy's office and the kitchen (the new kitchen island will be nice to have). I went to snap some pics and discovered the camera's battery was drained. So I'll have to snap a few pics tomorrow. But what they have up so far looks sharp.

(Update Mon May 22 22:26:27 PDT 2006 // title formatting)

:: Posted by rus on Mon, 22 May 2006 10:12 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Mon, 08 May 2006

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Kristy's Punchist
Kristy prepared a list today of the final details that need to be addressed to finalize our vault removal project (and subsequent project creep). The goal is to have each of these done by the end of May (responsible party in parenthesis):

install bathroom cabinet doors and drawer faces (Rus)
paint kitchen doors black (Rus)
paint kitchen window trim black (Rus)
paint white board frame black (Rus)
paint e-l-i-a-n-a and b-e-r-r-e-t-t letters red (Rus)
install Eliana closet shelves (Rus)
remove old laundry cabinets (Rus)
clean up garage (Rus)
paint detail in Eliana's room (Kristy)
touch up downstairs bathroom paint (Kristy)
glaze laundry walls (Kristy)
finish family tree (Kristy)
buy murphy bed bedding (Kristy)
buy murphy bed mattress (Kristy)
buy office mirror (Kristy)
hang office mirror (Rus)
install paintable wallpaper in new nursery (Kristy)
paint nursery wallpaper (Kristy)
buy kitchen granite tile for window sill (Kristy)
buy kitchen granite slab for island (Kristy)
rehang family pictures in hallway (Kristy)
install cabinets (Kenis Loven Construction LLC)
clean carpets (to be determined)
install kitchen tile (Jason the tile subcontractor)
install laundry tile (Jason the tile subcontractor)

Baxton stopped by today and collected the final check for the services he rendered. He helped me install the bathroom cabinet doors and drawer faces.... so check that one off the list!

(Update Mon May 22 22:26:27 PDT 2006 // title formatting)

:: Posted by rus on Mon, 08 May 2006 10:48 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Sat, 06 May 2006

Home Removation Project: Vault Removal: Living Room Re-assembled
In the morning and early afternoon, Kristy and I put the living room back together. Here it is, in all its glory, with the vault removed:

Done deal.

(Update Mon May 22 22:26:27 PDT 2006 // title formatting)

:: Posted by rus on Sat, 06 May 2006 1:47 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Thu, 04 May 2006

Home Removation Project: Vault Removal: Final Painting Touch-ups
The painting crew dropped by to address the last remaining issues. They touched up and/or repainted most of the trim and just a few spots on the walls. I had them respray all off the bathroom vanity doors and drawer faces as they weren't done well before. They look nice now. The red doors in Eliana's new room still need to be redone, but they didn't have enough leftover paint for one more coat. So they'll return and finish tomorrow.

(Update Mon May 22 22:26:27 PDT 2006 // title formatting)

:: Posted by rus on Thu, 04 May 2006 10:48 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Thu, 27 Apr 2006

Home Removation Project: Vault Removal: Hardwood Floor Final Coats
The hardwood floors got their final coats today. Everything now has two coats of "Swedish" urethane finish and two coats of a water-based urethane. The result is quite nice... in fact, it is really quite beautiful.

However.... don't look too close.

As I mentioned earlier (see "The War of the Floors"), I was pretty concerned about the scratching or "swirl markings" in the wood before the stain was applied (see here). At a results of my concerns, the wood-floor subcontractor had a "disinterested third party" come out and take a look. He was of the opinion that the scratches would become muted by a couple more coats of finish. And so, I acquiesced and consented that we would proceed instead of having the subcontractor redo the floors (I was highly doubtful at the time if he was even capable of doing a better job... bah!).

Well, two coats of finish later the floors look better... but the scratches are definitely still there. Are the scratches less visible? Yes. Would I like the job to be done over? Yes. Will I require the job be done over? Probably not. The floors aren't great... but they are good enough. The wife is getting project fatigue and just wants to move all of our furniture back into the rooms and be done with it. So the floors stay... they aren't great, but I guess they'll have to do. *sigh*

Here are a couple of pics of the dining room floors. In the foreground is one of my favorite models:

(Update Mon May 1 17:10:37 PDT 2006 // added pictures)
(Update Mon May 22 22:26:27 PDT 2006 // title formatting)

:: Posted by rus on Thu, 27 Apr 2006 11:40 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Wed, 26 Apr 2006

Home Removation Project: Vault Removal: Cabinet Installation Schedule
We decided last weekend to go with the bid provided by Kenis Loven Construction for our cabinetry work (for more details on the bids provided by Kenis, see here and here). We dropped a deposit by on Monday. Today, we got a note in the mail today that included our estimated installation date... everything should be fabricated and installed during the last week in May and first week of June. That will be nice.

(Update Mon May 22 22:26:27 PDT 2006 // title formatting)

:: Posted by rus on Wed, 26 Apr 2006 11:17 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Mon, 24 Apr 2006

Home Removation Project: Vault Removal: Black Trim Plates Installed
Over the weekend I came close to installing all of the black trim plates in the kitchen that I bought earlier this week. Today, my new x10 black rocker switch (that controls the back patio lights) and my black speaker controls arrived (via mail), so I quickly installed them. It looks a lot better now with the black trimplates instead of the white ones.

(Update Mon May 22 22:26:27 PDT 2006 // title formatting)

:: Posted by rus on Mon, 24 Apr 2006 11:00 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Wed, 19 Apr 2006

Home Removation Project: Vault Removal: Occupancy Permit Issued
We passed our final inspection today and received our occupancy permit for the new bathroom, office, and bedroom. We are now free to do whatever non-code-like activity we wish to the new space... like installing closet-like cabinets in Kristy's office.

Baxton also installed all of the stained baseshoe around the trim in the kitchen today. The final coats for the hardwoods go on sometime next week.

(Update Mon May 22 22:26:27 PDT 2006 // title formatting)

:: Posted by rus on Wed, 19 Apr 2006 10:02 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Tue, 18 Apr 2006

Home Removation Project: Vault Removal: Bathroom Glass Delivered
The bathroom glass was delivered and installed today. This includes the mirror for the bathroom vanity, the 3/8" think shower glass enclosure panels, and a small mirror for a medicine cabinet that we had made for our master bathroom potty closet (yes, more project creep!). After the mirror was up on the wall, I installed the vanity fixture we purchase some weeks ago. It provides plenty of light for the entire area... which is always a good thing for a bathroom.

After the installers hung the shower door, they noticed that there was a ¼" discrepancy between the top of the door and the bottom of the door over the 78" length. It was barely noticeable to even someone as finicky as myself, but nonetheless the installer decided that it wasn't good enough and said he would order a new door - one that fit absolutely perfectly. Bravo!

Here are some pics I snapped today:

The first two pictures are of the shower glass enclosure. The third picture is of the bathroom vanity.

(Update Mon May 22 22:26:27 PDT 2006 // title formatting)

:: Posted by rus on Tue, 18 Apr 2006 10:56 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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Mon, 17 Apr 2006

Home Renovation Project: Vault Removal: Dimmers, Switches, and Trim Plates
I replaced all of the upstairs switches with illuminated decora switches this evening (6 in all) and installed fan timer switches in each of the other bathrooms (the electrician recommended that I do so as he has seen "too many house fires started by bathroom fans left perpetually running"). I also installed a couple of Lutron dimmers on the living room corner and spot lights.

While I was over at Lowe's buying supplies, I noticed that they carry a real nice looking variety of black receptacles, switches, and trim plates. I didn't buy any today, but I've made an inventory of the kitchen and decided to replace all of our white switches, receptacles, and trim black with black equivalents. It might be tricky finding the speaker controls and internet/phone modular jacks in black, but I'll hop on this new-fangled intarweb and see what I can find.

(Update Mon May 22 22:26:27 PDT 2006 // title formatting)

:: Posted by rus on Mon, 17 Apr 2006 10:27 pm
:: Filed under /projects/vault_removal

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