Piff Poff

It takes a while for your tastes to change, back in the UK we would never have bought a car with tan interior - well, we don't even notice anymore. We have struggled to get a bathroom sink unit that I like, it's taken years (2) to find one that I'm happy with 8 months later, it's still in box and I've gone off it now - as it's really not what I want but I was getting desperate for my en-suite to be finished, ha, no need to panic, en-suite still a shambles.

If your really struggling to find something, it might be worth a trip across the border, we have found that the stores in Montana have lots of alternative stuff to up here, I think you'd end up in Seattle? Well that should be a veritable shoppers dream, if we find stuff in Montana!

Anyone want a sunshine ceiling - you can have mine and every other blinking flouescent blinking light I've got in this blinking house! OH and you can take all the oak cabinets with you too, I'd be quite happy to never look at orange oak again:curse:

WendyS

Oh yes I was speaking to a lady yesterday about shopping in Seattle, sounds a great excuse to go earlier.

Steve_P

Uh oh I smell a kitchen reno coming on.

Butch Cassidy

So do I. (Thats if I have any time/money left after 'she' has her way with the bathroom(s))

getoutofbritainquick

Canadian standards for wire size are different sizes to European. Using a light wired from the UK could actually cause a fire due to the current being virtually double in Canada for the same wattage. For example a UK lamp rated at 100 watts takes approx 0.4 amps but the same wattage lamp would take approx 0.8 amps in Canada. Some ceiling fans also require upgraded wiring. If you are going to use UK standard light fittings get a qualified electrician to carry out the work.

Piff Poff

IN MY DEFENSE

When we bought our current house, the main reasons were for it's location and the fact it has two double garages, the one condition I laid down was that we were to do renos (it's an old house). We were on a five year plan, with one major job tackled each year (winter) - there was money in the pot from the sale of the other house to fund this.

Year one - en-suite
year two - main bathroom
Year three - kitchen
year four - basement bathroom
year five - basement

We are in year five, the en-suite was demolished in year three.......I think I've been patient

Since then we have bought another house to eventually move to when kid finishes school, so neither of us now want to spend BIG money (nor have the BIG money to spend) on our current house. Saying that improvements still have to be made to get the most out of this house. I HATE THIS HOUSE now. Thinking of doing a plumbing/tiling/dry walling course at home depot so I have an idea of what to do and doing the jobs myself.

Steve_P

If it's any consolation we always disliked our kitchen and said that it needed a make over.

It only took us 20 years to get there.

R I C H

I've the opposite scenario to cope with....I don't know what's worse, having massive disruption for several months, or taking things steady. So far, since Nov:

Weeks 1-2 demolish 75% of interior walls, driveway remodeled and resurfaced, extend barn and add power
Weeks 3-4 new framing/drywall
Weeks 3-8 re-side house and barn
Weeks 5-6 plumbing/electrical
Weeks 7-8 taping and mudding
Weeks 9-10 painting, trim, baseboards, existing kitchen moved to basement

To do:

3 bathrooms to fit out
New kitchen on order to arrive early March
Old flooring to be removed
4,000 sq/ft of new flooring to lay
1,000 ft of fencing to erect
Irrigation pump/system to install by creek

Should be finished sometime in April. Then it'll be time to relax.

Piff Poff

I think it's better to get it over and done with, in all honesty, you bought the house knowing it needed work - same as us, if you don't start these things straight away you can become complacent and it can become a 'later' scenario.

Had I known the en-suite was going to be in a demolished state for 18 months and still counting, I would not have let the demolition take place. I think what has annoyed me most is we bought our future home and OH thought the most important thing to do was build a garage there - so yes he now has three double garages (full) and I still have a house that I am now very unhappy in. I did argue that the garage money (his inheritance) would be better spent on the en-suite but HE can do it cheaper and better, although this remains to be seen.

Now what's the reckoning that this will be one of the few threads he reads?? Stand by for the fallout