While it’s exciting to remodel a room in your home, the excitement balances out with stress and contention.
After all, your house becomes a mess and the project area doesn’t feel much like a home. Then newly discovered details in the process become overwhelming once you realize how much they’ll add to the job — and its cost.
Instead of stressing out, focus on how to make your life, and the contractor’s job, easier.
1. Document Everything
It’s important for clients with a remodeling project to learn the timeline. Besides understanding the contractor’s process, the client must know the timeframe (weeks, months, etc.) to complete the project and what to do if delays pop up.
And here’s the most important part: Write it all down, for records.
Inform the contractor if the project must be completed by a certain period. Also, share any special requests and days when contractors should not work in your home.
And keep receipts of everything, from the project’s beginning to its end, for returns and tax purposes.
2. Pick a Temporary Space
Remodeling a kitchen, bathroom or bedroom is an inconvenience, but life goes on, so it’s important to pick a temporary space that serves the same function as the room under construction. Choose it long before you need it, too.
A garage is a great place to store items you’ve removed from the project area, although you may have to move the car elsewhere.
If you’re remodeling a bathroom, you may want to sleep in the guest bedroom or on the sofa in the meantime, and equip the room with everything you need to feel comfortable and get a good night’s sleep.
Another solution is making arrangements to live with a neighbor or friend until remodeling is complete.
3. Remove and Store All Belongings
The project area must be bare, so remove all furniture, appliances and artwork from the walls and ensure nothing is plugged into electrical outlets. Then take out every item in drawers and cabinets and store it elsewhere.
Tip: Place items from each drawer and cabinet in a separate, labeled box. This makes it easier to restore the items after the remodeling.
Gather outdoor furniture, ladders, power tools — and anything else getting in the way — from the yard so rock boring hire and other exterior projects are seamless. Store these items in a temporary space.
4. Prepare for Dust
Remodeling is messy. Torn-apart cabinets, walls and fixtures stir up plenty of dust. And, depending on the temporary area’s location, the dust could turn it into an unbearable area.
To avoid this, keep doors closed, sweep or vacuum any dust that does leak into the temporary room, and install a window fan to push dust outdoors.
After a successful remodeling, remove any lingering dust by sweeping, vacuuming and turning on the window fan.
Stress is expected when remodeling, but it’s important to let contractors do their job. You just need to focus on the temporary space, documenting all conversations and transactions, and enjoying the result!
Lizzie Weakley is a freelance writer from Columbus, Ohio.
