Unfinishing the Basement

Before


After

Gutted!

All that's left of the kitchen is the electrical wires and plumbing. The lovely orange/pink tile in the kitchen and sunroom was removed as well as the cabinets and countertops. The sheetrock is in terrible shape and we discovered there isn't insulation behind it, so we will be putting in new insulation and sheetrock along with rewiring the kitchen.


The kitchenette has also been gutted except for the upper cabinets, which were in good condition. The kitchenette will become the laundry room, and I think the cabinets will be perfect over side by side washer and dryer.


Tux is checking out the plywood and wondering where the carpet went.

Ceiling Repair

Now that the roof has been replaced, it was time to repair the rotted portions of the ceiling in the front room and one of the bedroom closets.


Front Room


Closet


As you can see, it's not quite finished, but it's mold-free!

Treemendous Pile of Wood

This huge tree was up-rooted today before it up-rooted my house.


Now there is a large bed of wood shavings...


...and a lot of firewood....


...and a lot of kindling...


S'mores anyone?

An Alarming Day!

My house came equipped with a security system, but it was in the same condition as the rest of the house. Today the alarm company came to set up the system as well as make a few repairs.


Now the motion sensors are actually detecting motion throughout the house instead of on the floor!

Out with the Old Roof

Out with the Old Roof (and rotted back deck and dog pen)




In Progress




In with the New Roof!


Notice that the dog pen and rotted deck are gone too!




Next week they will cut down the tree and then put a new roof on the room to the left of the tree. They didn't want to put the new roof on before cutting down the tree in case a limb fell on the house!

1st Before & After Shots

It rained in Atlanta yesterday, which might not seem like such a big deal unless you have a leaky roof and a non-waterproofed basement. Fortunately, the roofing crew is supposed to start tomorrow, and basement crew will start once the roofing crew is finished. As you can see, I now have a swimming pool under my swing set. I'm sure that any minute now my phone will be ringing with people who want to adopt this swing set and pool!

Here is the first Before & After photo! Today I cleaned the bathroom with the polka dots and the hallway. I don't think anyone had cleaned this house since it was built in 1960. Seriously. Who lives in a house with walls like this?? Mildew, dirt, pets, I don't even want to know.... I put on my N95 mask, goggles, and cleaning gloves, and got to work! (The N95 mask is worn by healthcare providers around patients with TB. Or H1N1 patients depending on the CDC's most recent guidelines.)

Before

After

The house is really starting to look and smell clean! While I was finishing up on the hallway walls this evening, my dad was busy puttying and trying to keep heat from escaping my house. The panel under the attic stairs was bowing out so he hammered that back into shape to keep the heat from escaping to the attic. The damper on the fireplace is broken so he taped it up with a dry cleaner bag. Just in time, since the low tonight is in the 20s!!

I have to work again tomorrow, so no cleaning for me. Hopefully I won't have to wear an N95 at work...I need a break from that mask!

200th Pint

I have officially been a homeowner for a week now! The dehumidifier and the heat have been running for a week, and the house is finally starting to dry out. This afternoon I emptied the 200th pint of water from the dehumidifier! I also finished mopping and scrubbing the walls of 3 of the bedrooms with chlorox. I took Tux and Scout with me to the house today, and they had fun running all over the backyard and chasing each other all day while I was cleaning.

When my dad got there after work, we puttied the nail holes, dents, and scratches in 2 of the bedrooms. Since I had a steep learning curve and the putty was dry and hard to work with, he actually did most of the puttying. (Is that a word?) Tux also tried to help with the putty by following my dad's every move and attempting to eat any putty that fell on the floor. Then we decided it was probably best to go home so we could feed them dog food instead of putty.

Tomorrow evening while I'm at work, my dad is going to putty the 3rd bedroom. I'm planning to add on to the end of the house where the yellow bedroom and bathroom are, so we're not doing anything to those rooms right now. Tomorrow is my first day of actually working in the ER, so I will be using my hands to start IVs instead of scrubbing walls. I hate that I won't be able to work on my house tomorrow, but it's probably a good idea to give my brain cells a break from the chlorox fumes.

Back Yard

Unfortunately this tree has to go before it uproots the house.


Here is a video of the backyard. The white boarded up area is covering a sliding glass door that someone broke through when the house was foreclosed. To the right of that is a strange dog pen type thing that had a door and padlock on it. Maybe the previous owner hung out with a former Atlanta Falcon player who had a thing against dogs?? Yes, there is a paved basketball court in the backyard, complete with posts for a tennis net. Not sure how they played tennis on the grass side of the net... Let me know if you are interested in the swing set!

"Finished" Basement

Looking up the stairs from the basement


This is the finished basement


I think "finished" might be a bit of an exaggeration


Complete with a built in sump pump...

Hallway and Middle Bedroom/Bathroom

Walking down the hall towards the other bedrooms


This bedroom has been painted extensively!


But it has 2 closets!


Might need a few coats of primer!


And so will the bathroom!


No wallpaper, just a lot of brightly colored paint!

Jack and Jill Walked Up the Hill

I think this was the master bedroom


Has this big closet and another smaller one


A Jack and Jill bathroom connects this bedroom with the other bedroom


This bathroom is very white, unlike the other ones

Down the Yellow Brick Road

Walking down the hall from the sunroom


Bathroom


Step up into the bathtub...?


Of course the bedroom is yellow too!


Sliding glass door with extra protection : )