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Purron · 06-21-2010, 05:11 PM

Installed a Jotul wood stove and made a custom tile platform for it to sit on. The stove pipe goes into a brick chimney. Used thinset to attach the tile to a 1/2 underlayment. Had the job inspected by the county and it passed no problemo.

WhoDaresWins · 06-21-2010, 06:29 PM

I'm impressed! You and DH are talented remodelers. I like the look of the home...very clean lines and done in a way that anyone would like it if you do decide to rent it. I agree with some others who say sell the bigger house and downsize to this one. And a garage/workshop would be a wonderful addition.

Purron · 06-30-2010, 07:58 AM

Latest project: tore out carpet from a small downstairs room and found hardwood floor underneath. It looked bad on the surface - paint glopped all over, some kinda adhesive blopped in spots, and very dirty. Otherwise, it looked sound so we decided to refinish the hardwood floor instead of having carpet put over it again. Now, all the floors on the main level are either tiled or hardwood. Here are some pictures staring with the "before" and showing the refinishing. We rented a machine from Home Depot to remove the old finish and sand. Well worth the $45 rental fee. We did have to do a small closet and the borders by hand.

At this point, we need to touch up a few areas then it's ready for stain and poly. We'll do that in the next few days since the weather will be perfect (low 80s, low humidity) and we can open the windows for ventilation.

Purron · 06-30-2010, 08:03 AM

Oh, I put a wallpaper border in the bathroom too. $3 from the bargin bin at Wal Mart. Love deals like that!

CuppaJoe · 06-30-2010, 08:10 AM

Sweet! When are you showing it or will you stay there for awhile.

Ronstar · 06-30-2010, 07:16 PM

Great job! With all the hardwood, tile, and the wood stove, you'll have a tough choice on which house to stay in when everything is done.

Purron · 06-30-2010, 07:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronstar

Great job! With all the hardwood, tile, and the wood stove, you'll have a tough choice on which house to stay in when everything is done.

Well, the plan is to move into the former rental and focus on fixing this place up. The two houses are about 8 miles apart. Once they're both fixed up, we'll sell one since we don't want to be landlords anymore.

I think we should see which place can be sold more easily in this market. I know DH has his heart in the old place even though it's so small, funky, old and simple compared to where we're living now. He agrees we should make a decison based on what makes sense financially. We'll see what happens.

Purron · 08-08-2010, 04:07 PM

Just finished the upstairs floors. The underlayment was in poor shape so we installed new. Hired a local company to put in new carpet and padding. Here are a few picks of this latest project.

Purron · 08-08-2010, 04:53 PM

Next project: building a garage. I've lined up two companies to talk to us this week. Both highly rated and been in business for a long time. My job: do research, find good companies, and schedule appointments. DH's job: work out the details and decide if either company is the one for us. Both of our jobs: make the final decision before signing on the dotted line. Here's the vision:

Plan 2910 - Just Garage Plans

Thinking this might cost about $30K. Northern VA is a bit pricey. Any advice welcome

bbbamI · 08-08-2010, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Purron

I'm thinking living in a much smaller place means DH needs space outside the house, so we're thinking a big garage with lots of space for his ~~junk~~ stuff. Oh, and an extra fridge for brews so he won't have to come inside when he's ~~goofing off~~ working out there.

Ummmm, very nice garage plans, but is there room for a refrigerator?

Purron · 08-08-2010, 06:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bbbamI

Ummmm, very nice garage plans, but is there room for a refrigerator?

You betya a fridge will be in the plans

Nords · 08-10-2010, 01:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Purron

Plan 2910 - Just Garage Plans
Thinking this might cost about $30K. Northern VA is a bit pricey. Any advice welcome

Even for a tenant I think you'd want heavily-insulated walls and an insulated main door. A space heater (for workshop projects or a man cave) might be a luxury for a higher rent. Especially for a tenant you'd want a minimum of exposed water piping.

Have you considered a wall-mounted door for high-clearance vehicles?
http://www.early-retirement.org/foru...oor-44731.html

There are a couple dozen other threads (using the phrase "garage door") worth perusing for equipment and living-space considerations.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Purron

You betya a fridge will be in the plans

Well, I don't know how tenants feel about Kegerators...