Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Big sigh (of relief)

We are over the hump!  Our pre-drywall meeting was on Tuesday and we had minimal issues.  Most of our concerns were either already addressed or already noted for repair/replacement.  

Confirmed: 
  • No attic access panels in the bedrooms.  All will be in the attic
  • Garden tub - Access panel via vanity; water shutoff valve via vanity
  • Floodlight switches in respective bedroom and in morning room
  • No light switch for garage within the mud room
  • Bottom of fireplace exterior will have soffit panel
  • Flooring crew will sand down the OSB edges for a smooth subfloor
  • Hole between garage and basement will be parged
  • All gaps/hole to be filled (most were)
  • Locations of the hose bibs
To fix:
  • Electrical - fix twisted and kinked wires
  • Electrical - align gas fireplace switches for eyeball lights and flame
  • Electrical - raise height of outlet in laundry room (as placed, would be covered by cabinets)
  • Address nick in the front door (fix or replace door)
  • Replace cracked OSB in dining room wall
  • Roofers to return for finishing work; tuck safety wires back under shingles when done
  • Install two missing motion sensors (Guardian)
  • Replace wet duct line; scope remaining HVAC ducts
  • Replace shingled porch roof with metal roof
  • Extend closet in attic (special request granted)  :)
~ *~

Randomness:
  • The master plans were just taunting me but our PM just would NOT look the other way so I could grab them and run.  
  • The inspectors were also busy at the house and we're hoping to hear that we've passed all inspections by the end of the week.  
  • Environmental Stoneworks left a package for us (Aspen field stone) -- it's a bit early but I have stone! 
  • The best surprise of the day was that the house was nearly dry, even the basement!
  • Our water lines are not color-coded for temperature.  Call me quirky but I was looking forward to seeing a bunch of red and blue running through the house.
  • When we finish the basement, we'll have to work around some pipes (line for the hose bib and furnace drain)
  • RH installed temporary stairs from the second floor to the first-floor landing because the joist layout wasn't exactly right.  CG blueprints will be adjusted.
  • The Courtland has 4 support posts in the basement and Courtland Gate only has two.  We received two extra (but they're being returned)
  • The washer pan in the second floor laundry room drains to the basement.  I don't know why it never occurred to me that we would have one, especially since the attic furnace drip pan also drains to the basement.  I'll take pleasant surprises any day!
  • The landscaper will sod the entire lot and plant vegetation.  He'll also water the lawn for about 2 weeks (on a timer) and leave us the sprinklers and hoses.  How awesome is that?
~ * ~

Cool things our PM did/will do for us:
  • Bedroom 4 is supposed to have an access door to the garage but it'll be a solid wall since we will have access via the attic.  (Yay! no door in the middle of the wall!)
  • Had our floodlights installed next to the windows so we could replace the bulbs easily.
  • Had our floodlights wired so that we can turn them on/off from upstairs or downstairs.
  • Extend the closet in the attic to take advantage of the closed off space.
  • Placed the shutoff valves and access panels for the corner tub within the flanking vanities so we could keep a sleek tiled front
  • Install oil-rubbed bronze shower surround (our community only gets stainless/nickel finish) so it will match our faucets/shower system when we swap them out later. **
  • Help coordinate installation of new faucets and shower systems since we cannot get the ORB finish from RH
  • Help coordinate installation of ceiling fans with the electricians since we are not purchasing them through RH
  • Deal with Guardian
  • Put up with my idiosyncrasies  O.o
** Our PM said they use Moen shower valves in our community so if we ever wanted to replace our shower system, it'll need to be a Moen.  Check with your PM for any restrictions just in case!

~*~

Our family friend, the building code official, was able to walk through the house with us.  The things he found were quite minor and best of all, we received a big thumbs up!  What a huge relief!!!  While we knew RH would build us a wonderful home, particularly with our PM, it always is great to receive validation from an expert that we'll be getting a solid home.

Thank you, Uncle C, for coming out with us!
Thank you, T, for being an awesome PM!

(related posts: Pre-Pre-Drywall Walkthrough and Photos)

13 comments:

  1. Wow, that was a long list, but it looks like everything is going in the right direction.

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    1. Fortunately, they were minor. The HVAC piece was the big one. Looks like everything passed inspection and we're at the drywall phase now!

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  2. Hi AnJ, you certainly have covered all your bases. You are doing a great job! I love it! BTW-your PM is the BOMB!

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  3. It seems like your PM is really working with you... that's awesome! I agree the placement of some of the pipes in the basement will be kind of annoying when we go to finish it. I would be interested to see how they lay it out when they are finishing the basement themselves... they definitely could have made it more "user-friendly".

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    1. We'll have a bit of a bulkhead here and there but overall, it's a pretty good space.

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  4. I agree, PM "T" rocks!!! Your house is looking great! I saw the Carroll County inspector there this morning...

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    1. Hey neighbor! I suppose the inspector liked what he saw -- got word from T that we passed inspection on Friday.

      We're starting to go through (too much) stuff and I have a ton of girl clothes (newborn - 4T). I've been hanging on to most of them for far too long. Would you interested in snagging some freebies?

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    2. That would be great! I have a TON of clothes thru 9 months, but not a whole lot from 12 months on... By the way, your siding and shutters are up and look awesome!

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    3. Already? Boy, they sure don't waste any time, do they? Thanks for the update!!!

      All of the smaller sizes are buried in the back of the closet but I hope to get to them during the week. If all goes well, I'll have my first delivery for you this weekend.

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    4. You rock! Today, there were a ton of people at your house! Looks like they delivered the indoor doors and I am assuming the cabinets...

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  5. I had my out of state uncle, who builds custom homes, walk through our home. It was a relief to get the thumbs up, wasn't it?

    So strange they wouldn't sell you oil rubbed bronze. Do they offer the door hardware in oil rubbed/antique bronze in the house?

    Our division said Ryan homes didn't do wood stairs. But I showed my sales rep blogs, he in turn shared with the PM, who called the factory. Talk about a great group of people!

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    1. It was a total weight lifter! I can't imagine the feeling when we get our new keys and then when we sell the current place. Two mortgages is not high on my list!

      That's what we thought. There are options for bronze door hardware and light fixtures. Maybe they'll update it for the next phase of the community.

      No wood stairs?? That's a first. I agree--great people, great team!

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