A Major Home Expansion Renovation

[Fishindude77]

Thanks for the update!
Were you able to get your first choices in appliances

I know you're a pro at this, but my tip having just gone through a build is: pick the floor(s) first, then the stain & quartz.

Yes, appliances are already delivered and sitting in the barn in their shipping boxes.
I'm staying out of those finish selections, my wife and daughter are handling. Custom cabinets are real long lead time, so needed to be selected first.

[rennigade]

Yes, appliances are already delivered and sitting in the barn in their shipping boxes.
I'm staying out of those finish selections, my wife and daughter are handling. Custom cabinets are real long lead time, so needed to be selected first.

I wouldnt recommend keeping your appliances in the boxes. How do you know if they work? Not sure where you purchased but most places only allow a narrow window to return appliances. You may stick them in your new kitchen only to find they're not working.

Our kitchen is expected to be done in August. I ordered appliances the other day from costco. Expected to arrive next week. I will be removing our current appliances and sticking them in place. They will get used until June when I demo the entire kitchen. If they're broke or come damaged, they're going back.

I hope you at least visually looked at them to see if anything was dented or broke?

[Fishindude77]

I wouldnt recommend keeping your appliances in the boxes. How do you know if they work? Not sure where you purchased but most places only allow a narrow window to return appliances. You may stick them in your new kitchen only to find they're not working.

Our kitchen is expected to be done in August. I ordered appliances the other day from costco. Expected to arrive next week. I will be removing our current appliances and sticking them in place. They will get used until June when I demo the entire kitchen. If they're broke or come damaged, they're going back.

I hope you at least visually looked at them to see if anything was dented or broke?

This is not something I'm real concerned with. They are brand new, the boxes are undamaged, so I'm not going to open them. This way they stay clean and protected until install.
Purchased them from a local appliance store, not a big box outfit like Costco, Lowes, etc. so I can actually deal with a human that can make a decision if we have any issues.

[disneysteve]

This is not something I'm real concerned with. They are brand new, the boxes are undamaged, so I'm not going to open them.

Story time.

The first major appliance we bought after getting married was a full-size freezer for the basement. We got it from a local appliance store. Truck comes and they unload the box, which is in perfect shape. The open it up and unwrap the freezer and it has a huge dent down one side. Back on the truck and away they went. We arranged a new delivery date. Truck shows up again. Box looks perfectly fine. I make them open it on the truck before they bother unloading it. Freezer has a very similar dent down one side (no it wasn't the exact same unit). Best I can figure is the equipment that picks them up to box them in the factory was damaging them in the process.

I called the store immediately. Explained the situation to the manager and said I was willing to keep the dented one for a decent discount. We agreed on a price and kept it. Since it was going in the basement, we weren't concerned with the cosmetics as long as it worked fine and was fully under warranty. Never had an issue with it, other than the dent.

[rennigade]

Story time.

The first major appliance we bought after getting married was a full-size freezer for the basement. We got it from a local appliance store. Truck comes and they unload the box, which is in perfect shape. The open it up and unwrap the freezer and it has a huge dent down one side. Back on the truck and away they went. We arranged a new delivery date. Truck shows up again. Box looks perfectly fine. I make them open it on the truck before they bother unloading it. Freezer has a very similar dent down one side (no it wasn't the exact same unit). Best I can figure is the equipment that picks them up to box them in the factory was damaging them in the process.

I called the store immediately. Explained the situation to the manager and said I was willing to keep the dented one for a decent discount. We agreed on a price and kept it. Since it was going in the basement, we weren't concerned with the cosmetics as long as it worked fine and was fully under warranty. Never had an issue with it, other than the dent.

I cant imagine having as much leverage 2 months from when the appliances were delivered vs 2 days. Sometimes people have to learn the hard way.

[ua_guy]

I love a good scratch-and-dent deal. First house, got 50% off a Bosch/siemens front-loader washer-dryer set because the sides had some minor dents. Our laundry hookups were in the garage, so, no big deal, they fit right in!
Then we got a good quality Bosch dishwasher for $300 originally $999. It was black (matched our kitchen decor at the time) and had two minor chips in the finish on the door edge. Took a black Sharpie to the chips and couldn't even see them. That dishwasher did 7 years of awesome service and was still going when we sold the house.

But yes, I would always open a new appliance out of the box. If not for scratches/dents, but for any missing parts (very common) or they might not even work, DOA! Just make sure you do it before any return period is up.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

turns out now though scratches and dent open boxes might not work. My neighbors desperately needed a dishewasher with three kids. So the husband drove an hour to get an open box in stock and install it himself that day. They ran it and the lower deck wasn't washing. He had to pull it out and return it. Thought they were getting around the waiting. But desperation. So they went with another one and it worked. As long as it fits and works now. And there wasn't much savings they said.

[Fishindude77]

Broke ground on the home project this morning, right on schedule.
They're busy tearing out sidewalks right now.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

so what is the timeline?

[Fishindude77]

Shooting for six months completion, so approx. Oct 1st.

[bjl584]

Shooting for six months completion, so approx. Oct 1st.

I hope that holds.
There are still a lot of things that are backordered.
I was helping do some cleaning on new construction with a lady recently, and a lot of homes are half built due to supply chain issues.
Homes without countertops. Some without appliances. Others with only half the electrical completed. Some without flooring.
It really is a big headache right now.

[ua_guy]

Sounds like it really depends on where you are. There's a bunch of new completed builds around here, and another subdivision was just cleared, and they've already got a 2-story framed, with roof sheathing up, and they just started a few weeks ago. Of course, interest rates are now ~5% so that might take the wind out of some people's sails.

[Fishindude77]

Progress update after (6) weeks:
All exterior demolition complete; TV tower, utility feeds, sidewalks, landscaping, etc. gone.
All interior furnishing are gone; cabinets, plumbing fixtures, doors, flooring, trims, etc.
Interior of existing home is totally gutted out to the studs and sub floors and un-needed existing walls have been removed. It was a dirty job tearing out all of the old plaster, lath and insulation.
The entirety of the HVAC systems and plumbing systems have been removed. The majority of electric is removed, leaving enough for temp lights and construction use.
Existing floor system had some sag issues, new structural beams, posts and footings have been installed in the basement to straighten that out.
Floor slabs have been poured in the basement, previously dirt floors.
Crawl spaces for two new expansions have been excavated, walls poured, slabs poured, drainage systems installed, etc.
Large openings have been created in the existing basement walls between basement and crawl space for mechanical access, etc.
Interior framing changes within the existing home are underway; plumbing up walls, adding new walls, straightening up floors, etc.

Overall pretty pleased with my contractor and progress. Have a really good young man running the show.
Most of the real dirty work is now done, should start seeing the new framework for expansions come to life over next few weeks.
Last big ticket items we need to select are the light fixtures. Most other items have been selected and / or purchased.

Living in a camper sucks, but we'll survive.

[disneysteve]

Sounds like things are moving along very well. I hope the progress moves forward smoothly.

un-needed existing walls

This phrase made me laugh. "Oh, who needs those walls? Get rid of them!"

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Got photos?