Author Topic: The Barnhouse Transformation  (Read 88210 times)

geekette

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #300 on: February 12, 2017, 02:53:48 PM »
Shut up about the destination. Let's just enjoy the ride, ok?

Fair enough ;)

Do you texture walls up there in Canada, or are they those weird super smooth walls?
Smooth walls are weird? 

Shinplaster

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #301 on: February 12, 2017, 03:48:28 PM »
Shut up about the destination. Let's just enjoy the ride, ok?

Fair enough ;)

Do you texture walls up there in Canada, or are they those weird super smooth walls?
Smooth walls are weird?

Yeah - I always thought the orange peel walls in the U.S. were really strange.  Why?  Are your drywall guys really bad at seams, so you have to hide them with orange peel?  Bad enough we have textured ceilings - no way I want textured walls too.

Prospector - it's looking great.  I am in awe of your skills and hard work.   Drive safely tonight.

Cannot Wait!

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #302 on: February 12, 2017, 04:16:12 PM »
If you're having weather like Kingston,  stay put!  Pretty to look at but nasty to drive through.
Your place looks awesome!  So much work!

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #303 on: February 12, 2017, 05:50:23 PM »
Belleville was -8°C and heavy snow. GTA was -3°And heavy snow. A 5 degree drop over an hour and a half drive. Crazy.

Traffic was heavy, lanes were mostly trackbare but there were some drifts to work through. It was an intense drive, but I just kept the speed low (around 75km/h most of the way) and the foglights on. It was OK.

okits

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #304 on: February 12, 2017, 06:51:33 PM »
Glad you are home safe.  Definitely feels like winter returned, with a vengeance!

paddedhat

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #305 on: February 12, 2017, 07:28:08 PM »

Yeah - I always thought the orange peel walls in the U.S. were really strange.  Why?  Are your drywall guys really bad at seams, so you have to hide them with orange peel?  Bad enough we have textured ceilings - no way I want textured walls too.

Very regional, here in the states. In the northeast, textured walls are pretty unusual. Course it takes a bit more skill hanging and taping to do a decent smooth finish. I've done some work in CA. where the drywall install quality was so bad that if it wasn't textured, it would of basically need a skin coat plaster finish to hide the mess. Actually saw guys leave gaps big enough to stick your fingers through, around  electrical boxes. The taper then used 45 minute durarock, and rebuilds the hole with an 18' diameter patch, as he swirls the mud in a circle around every box.  Yep, those guys really NEEDED texture, thick paint, and not too much interior lighting, or big windows. 

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #306 on: February 12, 2017, 07:35:51 PM »
Wow. Even if could do work like that!

geekette

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #307 on: February 12, 2017, 10:59:12 PM »
I've never seen textured walls in the southeast either. The only place I've run into them (ouch) was in Texas. I thought maybe it was just a rental thing. Hated it.

Bracken_Joy

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #308 on: February 12, 2017, 11:00:20 PM »
Wait. Can another PNW'erener chime in and let me know if our walls our textured? I'm super confused now. Pretty sure they are. (And I'm wondering why, since we grow so much damn mold, you'd think you would want smooth walls you can wash?)

Metric Mouse

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #309 on: February 13, 2017, 12:55:20 AM »
Wait. Can another PNW'erener chime in and let me know if our walls our textured? I'm super confused now. Pretty sure they are. (And I'm wondering why, since we grow so much damn mold, you'd think you would want smooth walls you can wash?)
We've got a nice knock-down texture on our walls. Very easy to wash.

Anatidae V

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #310 on: February 13, 2017, 04:39:18 AM »
We do brick and plaster. I don't think we do drywall except for cheap reno's. And the walls are smooth, very slight texture.

meerkat

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #311 on: February 13, 2017, 05:36:43 AM »
A coworker just moved into a house that had popcorn on one of the walls. Like popcorn ceilings, but on the wall. It had been painted over multiple times so they couldn't just scrape it off so I think they plastered/mortered/something over it instead.

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #312 on: February 13, 2017, 06:32:06 AM »
A coworker just moved into a house that had popcorn on one of the walls. Like popcorn ceilings, but on the wall. It had been painted over multiple times so they couldn't just scrape it off so I think they plastered/mortered/something over it instead.

We have that in the bathroom. THE BATHROOM!!! How I am going to work with this is unclear right now. I was thinking of taking a belt sander to it to smooth it over, then overlaying DW on top of it. This may be scope creep though. I am not supposed to be doing anything with the bathroom, but the living room now looks ultra-modern and new and the bathroom looks straight outta the 70's.

GilbertB

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #313 on: February 13, 2017, 01:10:30 PM »
A coworker just moved into a house that had popcorn on one of the walls. Like popcorn ceilings, but on the wall. It had been painted over multiple times so they couldn't just scrape it off so I think they plastered/mortered/something over it instead.

We have that in the bathroom. THE BATHROOM!!! How I am going to work with this is unclear right now. I was thinking of taking a belt sander to it to smooth it over, then overlaying DW on top of it. This may be scope creep though. I am not supposed to be doing anything with the bathroom, but the living room now looks ultra-modern and new and the bathroom looks straight outta the 70's.

I've had success with a heat gun and a scrapper, came off in strips once the edge was softened.

paddedhat

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #314 on: February 13, 2017, 03:32:28 PM »
A coworker just moved into a house that had popcorn on one of the walls. Like popcorn ceilings, but on the wall. It had been painted over multiple times so they couldn't just scrape it off so I think they plastered/mortered/something over it instead.

We have that in the bathroom. THE BATHROOM!!! How I am going to work with this is unclear right now. I was thinking of taking a belt sander to it to smooth it over, then overlaying DW on top of it. This may be scope creep though. I am not supposed to be doing anything with the bathroom, but the living room now looks ultra-modern and new and the bathroom looks straight outta the 70's.

Don't forget, lots of pre-1980s popcorn had asbestos in it. If you were unlucky enough to grind it into a cloud of dust, and it had Asbestos in it, not only would you endanger your own health, but you would create a pretty impressive hazmat site. We had a genius "professional" do something similar in my  area, a while back. A small time flooring contractor goes into a county welfare office, and uses a floor buffer with a sanding screen to prep the floor for a new layer of vinyl tile. As the cloud floated over clients and state employees, one asked if the guy had a copy of the Asbestos lab's result on the floor? A few million later, the remediation, and the lawsuits were wrapped up.

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #315 on: February 13, 2017, 03:44:30 PM »
Good point. Maybe I tear out more walls then... at least it's a small room. I'll be to think through this.

dilinger

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #316 on: February 13, 2017, 06:02:23 PM »
Wait. Can another PNW'erener chime in and let me know if our walls our textured? I'm super confused now. Pretty sure they are. (And I'm wondering why, since we grow so much damn mold, you'd think you would want smooth walls you can wash?)

I haven't seen many textured walls around here, but plenty of textured ceilings.

EDIT: unless you count cracked plaster walls as "texture" ;)

Yay 1920s housing everywhere..
« Last Edit: February 13, 2017, 09:46:01 PM by dilinger »

Bracken_Joy

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #317 on: February 13, 2017, 06:17:29 PM »
Wait. Can another PNW'erener chime in and let me know if our walls our textured? I'm super confused now. Pretty sure they are. (And I'm wondering why, since we grow so much damn mold, you'd think you would want smooth walls you can wash?)

I haven't seen many textured walls around here, but plenty of textured ceilings.

Okay. I mean, pretty much all the walls I've ever lives with are slightly texture-y, but just like... little swirly patterns. I didn't know if that counted as "textured" or not?

geekette

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #318 on: February 13, 2017, 08:08:51 PM »
Wait. Can another PNW'erener chime in and let me know if our walls our textured? I'm super confused now. Pretty sure they are. (And I'm wondering why, since we grow so much damn mold, you'd think you would want smooth walls you can wash?)

I haven't seen many textured walls around here, but plenty of textured ceilings.

Okay. I mean, pretty much all the walls I've ever lives with are slightly texture-y, but just like... little swirly patterns. I didn't know if that counted as "textured" or not?
If it's not smooth, I'd say it's textured. I guess some are easier on the skin if you bump into them. In TX, I'd get scraped.

Ours in NC are drywall, smooth joints, and painted.

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #319 on: February 16, 2017, 05:29:49 AM »

Cannot Wait!

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EngineerYogi

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #321 on: February 17, 2017, 11:54:44 AM »
I've never lived in a place that didn't have textured walls, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Northern California. But I've also only lived in homes built since 1980... so maybe that's part of it?

RetiredAt63

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #322 on: February 18, 2017, 07:05:29 AM »
My house was built in 2000 - smooth walls, textured ceiling.  I hate the textured ceiling.  I would hate textured walls more.

geekette

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #323 on: February 18, 2017, 09:32:17 AM »
We've had houses in NC built in '85 and '88 with textured ceilings and smooth walls.  Both are, IMHO, a money saving shortcut.  Bleah.

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #324 on: February 19, 2017, 07:51:18 AM »
Paint makes everything better!


Anatidae V

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #325 on: February 19, 2017, 08:04:04 AM »
Nice! Looking really good from here!

snacky

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #326 on: February 19, 2017, 08:11:06 AM »
Have you considered renting this place out? It looks tenant-ready, and I've heard that the best way to make money on a rental is to have people renting it.
YMMV.

okits

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #327 on: February 19, 2017, 04:18:07 PM »
Paint makes everything better!

Beautiful!

snacky's revolutionary idea may just work.  It will take time to find tenants and move them in, so start showing the place now?

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #328 on: February 19, 2017, 05:09:11 PM »
I've heard a rumor that 8.7/10 potential tenants prefer working plumbing...

RetiredAt63

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #329 on: February 19, 2017, 06:16:22 PM »
Tomorrow's a holiday!  Is this a 3-day Barnhouse weekend?

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #330 on: February 20, 2017, 06:35:39 AM »
Time to paint a ceiling...

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #331 on: February 20, 2017, 07:08:26 AM »
BTW folks, "Oh my dollar" podcasts are great background noise for painting.

It's actually getting hot in here... need to open some windows.
« Last Edit: February 20, 2017, 08:00:07 AM by Prospector »

couponvan

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #332 on: February 20, 2017, 10:46:58 AM »
I've heard a rumor that 8.7/10 potential tenants prefer working plumbing...

Given the mess some tenants leave, I believe that ratio is accurate.

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #333 on: February 20, 2017, 12:12:14 PM »
Looking good!! How's that wrist?

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #334 on: February 20, 2017, 01:13:27 PM »
The wrist feels fine! Thanks for the concern!

Helper won't let me get back to work.

Dicey

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #335 on: February 20, 2017, 01:24:00 PM »
With a helper like that, who wants to work? Glad the wrist is better, though I'm pretty sure you wouldn't cop to it even if it wasn't. Badass stoic that you are.

meerkat

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #336 on: February 20, 2017, 01:31:28 PM »
Helper won't let me get back to work.

Your supervisor, not your helper. Your supervisor is making sure you take all required breaks because you'll be a better worker in the long run if you take your breaks. If those breaks happen to require belly rubs, well, that's just how it goes.

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #337 on: February 20, 2017, 07:28:47 PM »
A great working weekend at barnhouse. We painted the everything. Living room has the lower portion of walls done, ceiling done, and trim rings installed on potlights. We may need a second coat of "renter's brown" on the walls, and we need to do the top portion of the walls. In between we're putting up plate rail. That has to wait for new windows (to order this week).

Upstairs, the bathroom is done minus the floor and reinstalling fixtures. I am a little up in the air on the vanity and may bring in a unit from Ikea that I saw a week ago and looks way better than the old one. Next weekend I'll take up a bucket of levelling compound and get the floor in, then worry about the fixtures the following week.

In the master bedroom, the ceiling is all primed and painted and after feeling how soft the plaster on an end wall was, I installed drywall over it. Next weekend we will sand and skim coat the drywall, then hopefully prime it on Sunday.

Over the past week, plumbers came by and hooked up the drains, but we are still on a temp feed for water and no meter hooked up. We really need resolution to the whole water/plumbing situation soon.

We need to paint the ceilings upstairs (all of them) and come to a resolution on WTF we're doing with the kitchen/dining room. Whatever we choose, there will be marital discord.

Those who have been through (R@63, CannotWait) do you remember the kitchen? What are your thoughts? IMO we at least need to find a way to get a microwave and dishwasher in.
« Last Edit: February 20, 2017, 07:54:08 PM by Prospector »

RetiredAt63

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #338 on: February 21, 2017, 06:36:05 AM »

Those who have been through (R@63, CannotWait) do you remember the kitchen? What are your thoughts? IMO we at least need to find a way to get a microwave and dishwasher in.

You've done so much to the rest of the house, I need to see it, can't do it from memory.  I need to go to Barnhouse town this weekend for something Saturday morning.  I am looking at the drive, and chickening out and renting a motel room for Friday night, I just can't do there and back again in one day.  So I could come by Friday night if you guys get there at a reasonable hour, or Saturday afternoon on my way home.  Sound good?

Also, for things like that a floor plan would be good.  Maybe post in PBKMaine's decorating thread?

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #339 on: February 21, 2017, 06:43:57 AM »
The plan is to get out of here during the PM peak and arrive up there around 7:00. This would allow us to skimcoat the drywall in the master bedroom and markout the livingroom for paint before bed on Friday.

With a load of good fortune (as in its not likely to happen) we could get down levelling compound in the upstairs bathrooms well. That would have us hitting the bed around midnight.

SAT AM we would paint the top portion of the livingroom walls and see whether the drywall had dried enough for sanding (I doubt it would have). Once the walls are painted, we'd start laying in the living room floor. If everything is too wet to work on the main floor, I may try to jack another part of the basement to level off the main floor bathroom.

So yeah - we'll be there. The condition of the house and our ability to socialize may be limited though. We are really in go mode now that the drywall guy isn't holding us up..

RetiredAt63

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #340 on: February 21, 2017, 07:05:45 AM »
The plan is to get out of here during the PM peak and arrive up there around 7:00. This would allow us to skimcoat the drywall in the master bedroom and markout the livingroom for paint before bed on Friday.

With a load of good fortune (as in its not likely to happen) we could get down levelling compound in the upstairs bathrooms well. That would have us hitting the bed around midnight.

SAT AM we would paint the top portion of the livingroom walls and see whether the drywall had dried enough for sanding (I doubt it would have). Once the walls are painted, we'd start laying in the living room floor. If everything is too wet to work on the main floor, I may try to jack another part of the basement to level off the main floor bathroom.

So yeah - we'll be there. The condition of the house and our ability to socialize may be limited though. We are really in go mode now that the drywall guy isn't holding us up..



I'll PM you.

couponvan

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #341 on: February 21, 2017, 07:43:49 AM »
IMO, even though I haven't been through the house, a microwave and dishwasher are huge selling/renting features.  An over the range microwave is fine for a rental.  Consider a narrower sink base to make room for the dishwasher.  (At our FIRE house, we went with a 33" sink base and a 33" refrigerator width upper cabinet to make room for a standard size dishwasher. RTA JSI cabinets saved us a bundle on cabinetry costs and look great.)  The U shaped upper and lower cabinets including assembly (hired a warehouse guy to do assembly on the weekend) was $3,000.  This included fancy extras like roll out pot drawers and lazy Susan corner cabinets in both U corners.  You wouldn't need those in a rental.

I am just so damn impressed by your progress. 

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #342 on: February 21, 2017, 07:58:00 AM »
IMO, even though I haven't been through the house, a microwave and dishwasher are huge selling/renting features.  An over the range microwave is fine for a rental.  Consider a narrower sink base to make room for the dishwasher.  (At our FIRE house, we went with a 33" sink base and a 33" refrigerator width upper cabinet to make room for a standard size dishwasher. RTA JSI cabinets saved us a bundle on cabinetry costs and look great.)  The U shaped upper and lower cabinets including assembly (hired a warehouse guy to do assembly on the weekend) was $3,000.  This included fancy extras like roll out pot drawers and lazy Susan corner cabinets in both U corners.  You wouldn't need those in a rental.

I am just so damn impressed by your progress.

I am looking at $3500 in cabinets (Ikea) plus dishwasher and microwave, plus countertops. I think we'd be  at about $4500 for cabinets/counters and then another $1500 for appliances ($700 each DW and MW with integrated hood).

I can cheat on the walls and not bother with the plaster at all if I use backsplash judiciously. The Ikea install involves a steel bar screwed to the studs, which would hold back crumbly plaster. If I wrap the whole kitchen with the cabinets, I can just bury the plaster in cabinetry. As for the existing flooring that doubles as a backsplash, it would peel off in a single layer, and then be replaced with tile. For tile, my favourite colour is whatever I find on the discount pile/re-store.

A bank of 12" cabs under the kitchen/dining room passthrough would up the price marginally, but allow for a "breakfast bar" in the pass-thru. This is something that Momma has already flagged as worthwhile.

There is an existing drop-ceiling with ugly acoustic tile. I am thinking it would be a small cost to replace the tile with something in th edesigner aisle in Lowes. No mess, and little effort for a "new" look. Grease-stained acoustic tiles aren't pretty.

RetiredAt63

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #343 on: February 21, 2017, 08:28:56 AM »
Microwave - I hate over the range ones, too high, too much danger of accidents.  Better to just have lots of outlets available, and a really good exhaust fan.  Dishwasher I would definitely go with, I will be looking for one in the townhouse I rent.  A pass through would be good, and maybe even part of a breakfast bar?  I don't like them myself but I know they are popular.

couponvan

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #344 on: February 21, 2017, 08:47:39 AM »
There is an existing drop-ceiling with ugly acoustic tile. I am thinking it would be a small cost to replace the tile with something in th edesigner aisle in Lowes. No mess, and little effort for a "new" look. Grease-stained acoustic tiles aren't pretty.

I agree on replacing the tiles, paint the drop frame the same color as the new tiles.....grease-stained frames will look 100% better repainted.

Microwave - I hate over the range ones, too high, too much danger of accidents.  Better to just have lots of outlets available, and a really good exhaust fan.  Dishwasher I would definitely go with, I will be looking for one in the townhouse I rent.  A pass through would be good, and maybe even part of a breakfast bar?  I don't like them myself but I know they are popular.

I hate having a microwave taking up valuable counter space. In a rental, the range-hood microwave is a cost effective option I think most renters would like. For those that want a counter microwave, they can add one. 

Anatidae V

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #345 on: February 22, 2017, 04:48:30 PM »
There is an existing drop-ceiling with ugly acoustic tile. I am thinking it would be a small cost to replace the tile with something in th edesigner aisle in Lowes. No mess, and little effort for a "new" look. Grease-stained acoustic tiles aren't pretty.

I agree on replacing the tiles, paint the drop frame the same color as the new tiles.....grease-stained frames will look 100% better repainted.

Microwave - I hate over the range ones, too high, too much danger of accidents.  Better to just have lots of outlets available, and a really good exhaust fan.  Dishwasher I would definitely go with, I will be looking for one in the townhouse I rent.  A pass through would be good, and maybe even part of a breakfast bar?  I don't like them myself but I know they are popular.

I hate having a microwave taking up valuable counter space. In a rental, the range-hood microwave is a cost effective option I think most renters would like. For those that want a counter microwave, they can add one.
Interesting, it's so hard to find a rental with a dishwasher here that I didn't even bother adding it to my list of wants when looking. I am a normal sized woman, and I would need a stepladder to reach a rangehood microwave. Can't you put it on its own built-in shelf? Then it's off the counter, but not as high as a rangehood one (which, I don't think I've ever seen here, but I have seen them on their own built-in shelves).

meerkat

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #346 on: February 22, 2017, 05:08:19 PM »
Microwave - I hate over the range ones, too high, too much danger of accidents.  Better to just have lots of outlets available, and a really good exhaust fan.  Dishwasher I would definitely go with, I will be looking for one in the townhouse I rent.  A pass through would be good, and maybe even part of a breakfast bar?  I don't like them myself but I know they are popular.

I hate having a microwave taking up valuable counter space. In a rental, the range-hood microwave is a cost effective option I think most renters would like. For those that want a counter microwave, they can add one.

I have recently encountered microwaves that are built into the cabinets, so they're just below counter top height. This seems to leave counter top space available and not have the microwave right over the potentially hot stove, but it takes away valuable cabinet space and it's harder for me to stare at my food while magical invisible beams do something to make it hot.

The best set up I've seen had a whole wall devoted to the fridge and oven and microwave and a cubby for other small appliances (I think the cubby even had an outlet inside). This was a kitchen that was built in a new construction house, though.

Le Poisson

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #347 on: February 23, 2017, 09:09:13 AM »
Finally got around to drafting up the kitchen. This is a quick & ugly sketch, but it should get the point across. Pics below are snips from the first post in this thread.

The last image below is from teh RE listing - it shows the view from the dining room looking through the pass-thru into the kitchen. We painted the panelling to match the cupboards and brightened it up a bunch already.

My issues with the kitchen:
- fridge sticks way out and feels like walking into a canyon
- stove next to exterior door is not ideal.
- Cupboards are dated. The listing pics are magical.
- Countertops are utterly fubar-ed.  No matter what we do, they must go.
- No dishwasher
- Corner cupboards are an abyss - you can't reach the back of them.
- Drawerfronts have been pulled away from carcasses
- Cupboards have been repainted many times and not all layers are adhering

Positives about Kitchen
- Built like a brick shithouse
- Floor is new
- Lots of cupboard space
- Dining room passthru works well.

Options for redo:
1. Repaint cupboards, replace counters. Call id good enough for a rental.
2. As above, plus try to install a dishwasher by removing one cupboard below. I don't think this will work because the entire cupboard frame is a monolith.
3. Remove all doors, make new ones, keep carcass/layout. Replace countertops.
4. Remove and replace entire kitchen, work dishwasher and microwave into new layout.
5. Same as 5, plus add a bank of 12" base cabinets and a countertop in front of the pass-thru to create a breakfast bar.

Other ideas???

snacky

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #348 on: February 23, 2017, 09:15:49 AM »
1 or 3. Anything else is insanity.

G-dog

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Re: The Barnhouse Transformation
« Reply #349 on: February 23, 2017, 09:33:45 AM »
1. What are the estimated costs and timelines on each of your options?
2. How does each option impact the rent you can ask?
3. How long to recoup the cost of each option?
4. How does each option otherwise impact rentability - time on market?
5. What was your original plan? Why change?

Without above info - my gut reaction is the same as Snacky's.
If the cupboards are solid, strip down to bare wood before re-painting.

Countertop microwaves are fine, looks like there is enough room.

I got rid of my dishwasher to gain cupboard space (small kitchen).

It feels like you've had plenty of scope creep in this place - but it's tough to do all this yourself on weekends only...