12345's Profile
Author's Posts
November 13, 2009
Changing Light Fixture
How difficult/dangerous is it change a ceiling lighting fixture? I don't have much experience and hence have no idea if I'm particularly handy, but I can follow a set of directions pretty well. Is this just a simple change or a more dangerous, electrical project that I should hire someone to do? FWIW, we're going from a dome fixture to a hanging, chandelier-esque piece.
November 11, 2009
Window Alarm?
Has anyone used one of those wireless alarms you stick on a window, and that goes off if the window is opened? I'm moving into an apartment, with a large, ugly, light-blocking grate over the window that leads to the fire escape. I'm going to remove it, but I'd like to have some sort of security feature still there.
Oddly, most Google searches have lead to "pool house door alarms," which isn't appropriate, since the pool house in my 740 sq. ft Brooklyn apartment is completely secure.
November 9, 2009
Butcher Block Treatment
Due to budget limitations we're doing oak butcher block counters in our kitchen. Is there anything we can do to make the finish look richer-- a certain type of oiling, treatment, etc. that we can do ourselves?
November 5, 2009
Wallpaper backsplash in kitchen
Has anyone done a wallpaper backsplash (covered in glass) in the kitchen? How much did the glass cost, and did your g.c. do it or did you hire a glass person? Pros/cons?
October 30, 2009
Salem Darrow
Has anyone done a reno with Salem Darrow as g.c.? Pros, cons, opinions?
October 28, 2009
Dog Daycare
Not exactly a renovation/real estate question, but can anyone recommend a dog daycare in the Park Slope/Prospect Heights area? Our current place has webcams, which we really like and are hoping to find in a dog daycare in our new 'hood.
October 26, 2009
Bathroom Quote
I realized I forgot some key information in the post below:
We got a quote for a bathroom renovation, and I'd like to hear opinions-- expensive, cheap, just right?
Quote: $11,000
Bathroom: 4' x 8'
Job:
- Demo and remove existing walls, ceiling, flooring, vanity, tub & toilet
- Intall new walls, ceiling, sub floor, tiling, bath, vanity, mirror and toilet
- Move shower head approx 7 feet
- Finish walls with 1 coat primer, 2 coats paint
- Contractor says no permits needed
- We will buy and supply all appliances, grout, tile, etc.-- so this quote is just for labor
Thoughts?
October 19, 2009
Kitchen Backsplash
I'm being tortured by a lack of direction with my kitchen backsplash. Can't sleep at night. Get cold sweats just thinking about it.
Long story short, I haven't found anything interesting/inspiring/fun that I really like. We're doing white Ikea cabinets (I know, not thrilling, but budget-friendly) with a dark grey or black silestone countertop. Does anyone have any great, interesting backsplash ideas?
We're going with the white cabs/dark silestone for resale value, but I'd like to get a little interest in somewhere.
Mario Golin
Has anyone used Mario Golin as a contractor? Pros, cons, reviews?
October 18, 2009
GC for bathroom & kitchen reno?
We're looking for a reliable, good g.c. for a gut renovation. The bathroom is our #1 priority; we would love to do the kitchen at the same time, but we'll need to see how much it costs.
Any recommendations on contractors for this small-ish job? This is our first reno, so we're looking for someone reasonably priced, who is a good communicator and will do good work.
Author's Comments
Can you post more photos? Also, how many hours did the work take-- is he reliably quick? (Paying by the hour, vs the project, would concern me, but that's good-looking work.)
Posted by: 12345 at October 26, 2009 4:39 PM in response to Handy Man Recommendation (Pic!)
We're supplying the materials.
Posted by: 12345 at October 26, 2009 9:58 AM in response to Bathroom Quote
Dylanfan-- I'd love to hear about your contractors, too (I'm in a similar position to cgmodern). Can you send your info to me as well? I'm at lefischer at hotmail dot com.
Posted by: 12345 at October 23, 2009 9:59 AM in response to Kitchen Reno: Some D.I.Y.
I'm starting to meet with g.c. for a small bathroom & kitchen reno, but $$ is tight and my husband and I have discussed acting as our own general contractors. Can I email you to ask more specific questions? We'd really like the advice of someone who's been through the process.
Posted by: 12345 at October 19, 2009 5:00 PM in response to Recs from Renovation
CGmodern, those are great questions (and I'm curious about the answers). I'd re-post them in the main forum; you'll probably get more traffic.
Posted by: 12345 at October 19, 2009 12:11 PM in response to GC for bathroom & kitchen reno?
It's an apartment.
Posted by: 12345 at October 8, 2009 8:40 PM in response to Cost of Kitchen & Bath Gut?
Out of curiosity, is this for the Butler Place conversions?
Posted by: 12345 at September 28, 2009 5:46 PM in response to Condo Inspections
Out of curiosity, is this for the Butler Place apartments?
Posted by: 12345 at September 28, 2009 5:45 PM in response to Condo Inspections
Sorry hannible, I don't understand your post. I'm asking for any recommendations from people who had a particularly good realtor when they were buying an apartment.
Posted by: 12345 at April 20, 2009 8:25 PM in response to Buyer's Agent
Responses to Author's Forum Comments
That is just about right for bathroom labor by a licensed and insured contractor.
Posted by: setancre at October 26, 2009 10:56 AM in response to Bathroom Quote
I say overpriced. Should be about 7K-8K.
Posted by: Kensingtonian at October 26, 2009 11:41 AM in response to Bathroom Quote
Filing:
If you are doing anything other than replacing the existing plumbing fixtures in kind on the existing plumbing roughing the job should be filed. Often, the work that you are describing is filed by the GC's licensed plumber as an Alteration and Repair Application.
Pricing:
One strategy is to have the contractor break his bid down by trade, for example: demolition, carpentry, waterproofing (you need some)plumbing, tile/stone, electrical, glazing, genral conditions, profit and overhead. Also, have the contractor include a time frame for his work.
Ed Kopel Architects, PC
Posted by: edkopel at October 26, 2009 12:56 PM in response to Bathroom Quote
Sound expensive to me, unless you are having it tiled floor to ceiling in really hard to install tiles.
Posted by: brooklynstyle at October 26, 2009 1:26 PM in response to Bathroom Quote
My partner was nervous about me posting even these photos of the interior of our house. I'm sorry to say this is all for now! My handy man, Jackson, worked over a few months on the whole house - it was a mess! He is fairly quick, but more importantly, he is reliable, he showed up every day on time and didn't take on any more jobs till he had finished mine.
Posted by: Queenie at October 26, 2009 4:56 PM in response to Handy Man Recommendation (Pic!)
It is hard to armchair quotes like this, but it sounds within bounds of a reasonable cost. Of course you could find cheaper, and certainly more expensive, too. But I would recommend not letting price be your sole guide when choosing a contractor, or any sub. Quality, reliability, honesty, and follow-through-itiveness (er, yeah, don't look that one up in the dictionary), and good communication skills are just as important.
ThinkC
www.think-construction.com
Posted by: ThinkC at October 26, 2009 6:46 PM in response to Bathroom Quote
Sounds good to me. Are they licensed and insured? I believe they are correct about no permits needed, since you're not moving any waste lines. You can double check on the dob web site. I'd be sure to see some examples of their work before hiring them, and personally I'd be most worried about their tile installation skills, since I see a lot of sloppy jobs in NYC. Also, are they putting in water-resistent wonder board and all that. If the place is old, you might find problems such as rotted out floorboards and old pipes that fail back to the stack.
Posted by: mopar at October 26, 2009 11:53 PM in response to Bathroom Quote
Another question... that floor looks really cool. What shade/finish/type of wood is it...? I've got a lower level with an ugly tile floor that I kind of despise, looking for a lighter shade to work with...
Posted by: Ghostnote at October 27, 2009 12:03 PM in response to Handy Man Recommendation (Pic!)
On the entire first floor we had to strip about 5-6 layers of old linoleum. In some rooms, nice old wood floors revealed themselves, and in other areas (like the bedroom above) we just stripped it down to the original wide plank baseboards. Then, we just had the wood floor sanded, patched, primed and painted a few layers of high gloss white floor paint. I think it looks great too!
Re: your ugly tile floor - our kitchen has this - and I've been reading about epoxy and latex floor coverings that you can just pour on...
Posted by: Queenie at October 27, 2009 12:44 PM in response to Handy Man Recommendation (Pic!)
Ooh... please post a link if you get a moment, thanks!
Posted by: Ghostnote at October 27, 2009 1:07 PM in response to Handy Man Recommendation (Pic!)
Definitely a landlord, and not a tenant, issue. (Particularly if they're there before you take occupancy.) Your LL should *want* to take care of this, because bedbugs can easily spread from apt to apt, and they need to be taken care of by an experienced bedbug exterminator. Definitely don't try to do this yourself-- you'll be setting yourself up for fruitless work and a scenario that could be costly and aggravating for you once you move in.
Posted by: 12345 at November 4, 2009 7:11 AM in response to Bed Bug Early Detection