MORE Black Mold!!!

Well, I decided to tackle a huge project that has been staring at me ever since I bought the house!  I recently had my immediate family and even extended family over for a July 4th celebration, and the main bathroom functioned as it should.  In other words, it took what it needed to out of the house.

But I knew that secrets lay hidden.  How?  Well, I noticed water damage on the exterior walls of the bathroom when I pulled up the kitchen floor, right behind the stove.  I also noticed it in the hallway.  I knew that water had leaked in the past...whether from the air-conditioner or sink or toilet, I knew not.  I only knew that some secret lay underneath that floor.

Upon further inspection, it was evident that the sink had leaked at one point, as the shelf of the vanity had major water damage.

So, what would my remodel find?!  I didn't know...I just knew that I wouldn't be happy with it.

So I started to tear apart the sink and vanity.  The sink came off easy enough.  But in order to remove the vanity, I had to take off the supply lines (they were bigger than the holes in the vanity).  So I took off the supply lines, and as expected, they had minor leaks even though turned off (I have almost yet to find one that doesn't.  These valves are never turned over their lifetime, so they accumulate deposits, and when they ARE finally turned, they don't do what they are supposed to do:  shut off the water!).  So I would have to buy new supply lines.

I had to remove the shut-off valves.  I'll just replace with new 1/4-turn valves.

And then I removed the entire vanity.  My oh my.  Words just can't do this justice, so I'll let this picture describe the whole fiasco:

Look at all of that black mold!!!  This bathroom was a mess!

Yup, MORE black mold.  And lots of it.  I mean, LOTS of it!!!  This house was just covered in mold!  It would all have to go.  Not only do I want to be safe living here, but I want the next owner to be safe, as well.  And let's be honest...a job worth doing is worth doing right.  So I knew that my remodel project just became a bit bigger.  I don't know if I can just clean the walls or if it has gone up inside the walls, too.  Time will tell!!!

I went to remove the toilet, and, of course, an easy job just can't be easy in a remodel.  The bolts and nut that held on the toilet were so rusted that they just disintegrated.  But not enough to break them (of course!).  So I had to cut away the bolts.

The bolts were literally just rust.

So the bathroom is now clear of objects.  But it has exposed a massive amount of black mold.  Obviously, the next project is getting rid of it all!

The bathroom just covered in mold.

Oh, this foreclosure...will it ever end?!

Now the A/C is Acting Up!!!

You may remember that back in February I had some issues with my furnace.  The blower motor burned up and caused smoke to spread all throughout the house, thus kicking on my fire alarm which scared the living daylights out of me.

Well, the temperatures have certainly turned here in the middle of summer, and today I found myself with yet another issue!  My air-conditioning unit was acting up!  I don't remember why I was in the furnace unit, but I noticed that my A-coil was nearly frozen over.  I had a huge hunk of frost!!!

It's not supposed to look like this!!!

Not knowing what that meant, I did some more research (I'm getting REALLY good at researching broken things, and I'm not sure that's a positive...or a negative!).  Well, I learned that it was possible the A-coil itself wasn't draining properly.  Ok, makes sense.  Water condenses, doesn't drain, gets cold, and ices over.

That was the hopeful problem.  Otherwise it could be freon-related or worse.  Well, I'll have to see what the problem is.  For now, I turned off the air-conditioning to allow the frost to melt.  I did take notice, though, that the upper fins are really quite full of dust!

I'm hoping it's just dirty.  Look at those fins!!!  Ew!

But now, all of a sudden, this explains why the floor around the A/C unit is moldy and actively damp.  The water is not able to drain around the frost and just goes where it may...but not in the drain pan.  So is it the A-coil that is not draining properly causing the wet floor or perhaps maybe the drain pipe itself?

We'll have to find out!  But guess what...ANOTHER unexpected project on this house!  It's never-ending!!!

A New Patio Door...Installed Wrong...

Well, today was a big day!  Six weeks ago I finally made the move to replace the French Doors in the living room.  These doors were a cause of a fairly significant water leak that ended up ruining the floorboards in the living room.  Of course, the previous owner simply covered up the leak and let the leak remain hidden underneath laminate flooring.

The original 1991 French doors.  They leaked very bad on the right and bottom.

The view of the original doors from the outside.

The original doors.

The last I would see of this view!

My previous contractor went to replace the doors (removed them) only to find out that the outer wall plate of the house had disintegrated by about three feet.  He replaced the wood down there (in order to keep the house propped up) but wanted to do more work before setting a door in place.  So that was a major setback.

Well, after seeing the work performed from this previous contractor (kind of aggressive work, leaving dents and scrapes along walls), I decided to go with someone else.  I chose a contractor that my sister and brother-in-law just used.  They were definitely not the cheapest, but they promised quality work and backed it up with a guarantee.

I had already returned the new French doors to Lowe's and was sold on putting in a sliding glass door by the new contractor.  I originally didn't like the idea of it (in terms of looks), but as one who would be selling the home, the salesperson said the sliding glass door would definitely be a selling point as people love them.  Also, you could have it partially open with a screen or fully open with a screen, another selling point.  The French doors obviously have no screen.

So I made the move about six weeks ago, and today was the installation day!!!

The installer informed me that he would have to replace the wood down in the crawlspace that the previous contractor had installed, and that there would be "more more than $200" of work there.  I had that in writing.  So the total install for a brand-new door was going to be $1600.  Expensive but necessary.  I needed my doors to not leak anymore!

I also showed him the upstairs bedroom door that leaked.  I was frustrated by the previous contractor for having a brand-new door that leaked, but this new contractor said the door was installed very well.  He just didn't finish his work!  The only thing missing was caulk, something this new contractor would do for free.  He said he would never bash another contractor, especially with work like that.  He was impressed by the door install.  That conjured up memories of a recommendation of the previous contractor:  "He is good at heavy work, but not at finish installation."  In other words, he's a go-getter, aggressive and good at the big stuff, not the little stuff.  The problem is...big doors leak without the little caulk.  It's PART of the job.

The new contractor kindly caulked the door from an install last year.

All caulked.  No more leaks, he says!

Caulked and finally ready to go!  Took two contractors to do the proper work of one!

Oh, well, at least I didn't have to replace that door like I thought I was going to have to do.

While the doors were being removed and replaced downstairs, Dad and I were working upstairs to update my Master Bathroom.  I'm just simply not a fan of gold fixtures.  I think it makes the house look like it's from the 80's or 90's (apt since this house was built in 1991).  Well, a small change can make a big difference, so I decided to replace the bathroom light fixture.  Mom actually found the fixture online from someone who removed it from their home.  It's a chrome fixture, and it's not my first choice, but it works for the cost...I only paid $20.

Well, as was to be expected with any job that Pa and I take on, we removed the old light fixture only to realize that we had our work cut out for us.  The previous electrician knew the drywall was going to be covered, so he happily made a massive hole in the drywall!  "Hey, if it's covered, it won't matter, right?!"  I reckon that proved to be true for 26 years.  But rather than a simple take-down and install, we now had to build the wall back up.  Aghhhh!!!  It's always something.

Look at all that gold!!!

Yuck!

What we found after removing the fixture.  A big hole to patch!

The original installer didn't care how big his hole was...as long as it was covered!

Dad and I had to install a 2x4 between the wall studs to hold the drywall and new fixture.

So what was supposed to be a 30-minute project is now going to take a few days!  I'll have to install drywall, mud, sand, mud, sand, and paint.  What a pain!  It's a small setback, but this house is just full of them!

I couldn't get it all done today as I had to work, but I was able to see the removal of the French doors before I had to leave this afternoon.

Bye, bye, old doors!

Thankfully, everything seemed to be going well!

The doors are gone...on a very cold day!

Ready for the new doors.

I was happy to see the work of the previous contractor, though.  He took the floorboards all the way out to the edge of the house.  I was told the doors leaked because of the deck not being "separate" from the house.  The water pooled and rolled towards the door.

Ready for a new door!

The new frame is in!

It already looks "cleaner!"

I had to head to work while the actual door was installed, but Dad let me know it went smoothly.  And the trim pieces were put back into place.  Perfect!  That's how it should be!  I shouldn't have to do anything!

The new door!

It looks good, but was it installed on a degraded foundation?!

I asked about the work done downstairs, and Dad said the guy said nothing needed to be done.  Oh, no.  Oh, no, no, no.  That is the exact OPPOSITE of what he told me before install!  He said it would be a more expensive install because work definitely needed to be done in the crawlspace.  He had even crawled down there with me to see it two weeks ago!!!  The contract even stated extra work needed to be done in the crawlspace.

And now with me gone they don't do that work?!  I am charged more for less work?!  Work that needed to be done according to the contractor?!

I am so frustrated.  The worker did the exact opposite of what he told me he would do.  And the exact opposite of what he told me was necessary to do.  Why is it so hard to work with people?!

So now I have an expensive patio door that wasn't installed properly.  I cannot fully put into words how this feels!  Dad actually took offense at how frustrated I was, thinking it was directed at him.  No, Dad, I'm just frustrated I was lied to!  I'm frustrated that they change how they work when I am not around!  I am frustrated that they took the easy and quick way out.  I am frustrated that they didn't even tell me, hoping I would not ever know about it.

I am just frustrated at being lied to.  The more I work with people, the more frustrated I get.  It's not supposed to be this difficult, folks!  And it certainly doesn't have to be!  Honor your word!  Don't lie to your customers.  It's REALLY that simple.