Tuesday: There was yet another company helping out on our project. The contractor arranged for a landscaping company to come out with a rather bulky piece of machinery to dig the trench for the sump pump drainage. Appropriately callled a trencher, it is basically a large chain saw that can cut a narrow four foot deep ditch. ABS pipe is run from the sump pump, out through a hole in the foundation about 40 inches below grade and then transitioned to larger perforated drainage pipe, commonly called “big O.” Unbfortunately, the trencher bit the dust after about 25 feet, or half of the planned length so they were not able to finish the job. As an added bonus, we discovered the location of the leach field, as the machine sliced through 3 drainage tiles (so far), resulting in an additional repair bill. The damage was easily fixed with couplings to join a new length of big O to the old sections.
While this work was going on, the contractors drilled a hole through the basement wall for the new pipe and prepped the rest of the plumbing inside. And somewhere along the way, a third coat of paint was applied to the kitchen.
The HVAC contractors were also on site for part of the day, doing whatever it is they were doing. I am certainly glad that I am not paying those guys by the hour because they sure seem to be taking their time.
Wednesday: Our dishwasher was delivered in the morning, ready to be installed whenever the contractors are ready. The contractors grouted the tile in the hallway, installed the new sump pump and tied in the necessary plumbing, and installed a new window in the basement.
The new window was no small project. The previous owner had cut in a larger opening in the basement wall and installed a picture window. Unfortunately this was yet another example of how he messed up the structure of the house. The framing inside was no longer properly supported. This was fixed a couple of weeks ago with jack posts and angle iron. Outside, the bricks were not properly supported. This was fixed today with another piece of angle iron for a lintel.
The old window was also installed at ground level and the landscaping was a bit lower around the window, which had been a source of water infiltration on several occasions. The new window is smaller, and the contractors built the wall up so the window is now several inches off the ground. Now I can build up the landscaping so it slopes away from the house.
The old basement window (shown here with the new lintel to support the bricks) was installed at grade without proper structure.
The new basement window (shown here with the concrete forms still in place) is now several inches above grade.
Granite counter tops!!
The granite counter tops were delivered and installed on Wednesday. The installation took a couple of hours. Upon completion of the installation, the installers took the time to educate my wife and me about the maintenance and care of the countertops and offered to answer any additional questions that we may have had. I am confident that we made the right decision to spend the extra money for granite as opposed to selecting a cheaper laminate top. The granite is absolutely stunning. I doubt I can throw around enough superlatives to properly convey how thrilled we are with how thrilled we are with the new kitchen.
Granite countertops installed.
On Thursday, the contractors will be finishing the plumbing and installing the appliances, including our new dishwasher. We will finally be able to use the kitchen Thursday night, even though the back splash may not be installed for another couple of weeks. Just being able to do dishes in the kitchen sink is cause enough for celebration at this point. Getting the refrigerator out of the family room is just gravy!