So after Two Fiddlers quit fiddling around and quit, we had to find someone else to put in the windows and door in the basement. We hired Quality Contracting (www.qualitycontracting.ca) in Verner to do the work. They showed up a day late, but then did a great job. The windows match the windows upstairs, and they slide sideways as well as swing inwards. An awesome job was done and they look great.
Kyle, Ben and I are busy working at putting up the basement walls and insulating them. We are going with 6" walls with R22 Roxul insulation (with 15lb felt against the blocks, and 6 mil vapour barrier inside). Electric outlets are an average of 6' apart.
Now that Spring is here, all I can say is that I am so glad I did not listen to Thomas and Dean about the drains in the basement. They insisted that once the water was gone, we would never get anymore water under the house, so there was no need for gravel or drain tiles in the basement. Well I can tell you, they were wrong! My sump pump works just great and deals with that water however, and the 6" of gravel and 200' of drain tile all works beautifully. I remember standing in the basement arguing with both Thomas and Dean and they insisted "where can the water come from? It's clay and bedrock". Well I have since learned that bedrock allows water to seep through it, and while the clay certainly holds water, it also allows the water to move through it. The simple proof is that the sump pit keeps filling with water now that the weather is warmer and the snow is all melting. Just goes to show you how little Thomas and Dean really know about proper construction techniques. Thank god they quit and I got in someone who knew what they were doing!
So we hired a local company (Two Fiddlers Construction). Things started well, but in retrospect there were signs that we should have noticed. It is run by two guys, Thomas Monte and Dean Zimmerman. I found out afterwards that their local nick-name is "Dumb & Dumber".
They built a good foundation, and got in the brick layers to build the basement walls. It was then that we went on vacation to the Dominican Republic for 6 days. We left them with money to brace the walls from the inside so that they could backfill around the house so when the house arrived the crane and workers could get next to the walls.
When we returned the walls were not braced, the lot was not backfilled, and more importantly, the basement floor was not poured! The house was supposed to be arriving in two days and instead of a floor we had 4" of clay mud.
Well on the morning of the arrival the crane arrives and before it can set up we need to quickly get an excavator in to level more of the site for the crane. As far as the crane goes, wow, AWESOME!!
If you look closely in the photo to the left, you will see 22 year old Jennifer standing next to the tires that are nearly as tall as her! (PS. sorry the shot is blurry, I used my phone and it was overcast)
This thing was HUGE. It's a 110 ton crane, that can extend it's boom over 240 feet. Yup, taller than a 24 story apartment building! It had two flatbed transports following that were carrying 75 tons (150,000 lbs) of counterweights.
The next photo, on the right, shows Jennifer and Kyle standing next to the hook. That hook weighs more than some small cars! You can also see the excavator working desperately to prepare the site for the crane.
To see this 50,000 lb piece of a house flying 30 feet up in the air is something you can never forget.
So they get the house on the basement. The next picture (on the left) shows the front half of the house in place, and the state of the basement.
As you can see, we need 2x8 boards to be able to walk in the basement otherwise you sink in.
So the second half of the house arrives while they are still shifting the front half into position. They put the second half on, and we are good for the day.
The next 3 days the home supplier works like crazy putting in the posts in the basement and trying to get the house to sit square on the basement walls. It is now that they discover the basement is not square, nor level. While the foundation is good, the walls have not gone up completely equally and they are now over 4" out of square, and at least 2" out of level (at the west end primarily).
After a lot of work, they succeeded in getting the house set.
The basement guys tell me to get a heater and heat the basement to dry out the ground... two weeks and we should have a floor. I insist that we will need drain tiles, gravel, a sump pump, and pump the water out, but they disagree. I get the heater and pay about $50 a day to heat the basement.
December comes and goes, no floor. In fact, the contractors only come by two or three times. Once they bring a pump and pump out the standing water. The other time is to measure the door and window openings to order the windows and door. These were paid for in October, and should have been delivered by the time the house arrived. Meanwhile I start digging trenches to drain water, level areas, and Kyle puts in a sump pit. The sump pump runs and runs, pumping out hundreds (or thousands) of gallons of water.
In January, we start getting annoyed and call them. After one heated phone call they show up and give back some money, and quit.
So we called a friend and he recommended "Cementheadz" from Barrie. They come and see the site, and give us a quote. We get another quote that is $800 cheaper, but he can't do the floor for another month, so we went with Cementheadz. They showed up right on time Monday morning, and got to work. Wow, were we ever impressed. They worked like dogs to get the place done. What Two Fiddlers were not able to do in two months, Cementheadz did in three days. I watched them work and what an amazing job they did. The end results are so amazing I know it is a better job than Two Fiddlers would have been able to do.
The picture at right shows the basement on Wednesday (day three) morning. The floor has been levelled, 6" gravel laid and levelled, and the 2" insulation put in place. Just waiting for cement delivery.
A few weeks later we had to bring a canvas tent into the basement to melt some snow and ice off of it. That water stayed right where it fell. It didn't run to low spots, it didn't even pool. It just sat where it fell. The surface is like glass... add a covering of felt and it would make a good pool table top. :-)
We purchased a factory built home to replace our old home. It is built by Fairmont Homes of Indiana, and was sold to us by North Shore Quality Homes of Massey.
We are in the house now (February 2012), and are busy working on finishing the basement.
The main floor has a huge 530 square foot master suite consisting of the bedroom, a sitting room, an ensuite bath, and large walk-in closet.
The 300 square foot formal living room has a gas fireplace in the corner, and a 6' wide patio door to the back yard. We have set it up with a red 3 piece couch set, and a 90 gallon marine reef aquarium. As of the end of February, the aquarium is still under construction.
The 217 square foot kitchen has custom built cabinetry with all dove-tail corners, in espresso colour. The built-in stainless Whirlpool appliances came factory installed, including a matching oven and microwave in a single unit. The island and all counter tops are Dupont Corian. The kitchen is finished off with a 100 cubic foot pantry, and a custom arched window over the sink.
The dining room (146 square feet) has a south facing patio door. We are planning on installing a greenhouse/sunroom at this door.
The 250 square foot family room is where the TV is located, along with our photos, and paintings from our recent trip to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
The two girls bedrooms and their shared bathroom (320 combined square feet) face the back yard.
The last bedroom (170 square feet) shares it's bathroom with the entry room. The main floor laundry is also in the entry room.
Downstairs is still under construction but will contain two bedrooms for the boys (200 square feet each), an 825 square foot recreation room, and an in-law suite. The in-law suite consists of a 210 square foot bedroom, a 210 square foot living room, a 190 square foot eat-in kitchen, separate shower and toilet rooms, and a walk-out to a private shaded patio.
The backyard has grown in size, as the new house is 10 feet further south than the old house. Come spring, it will contain a 27' above-ground saltwater swimming pool, and 6 person hot-tub, both provided by Aquacade Pool & Spa in Sudbury. The hot-tub will be in the 216 square foot glass gazebo.
On June 29th, at 2:29 in the afternoon, our house caught fire due to a faulty electrical outlet. Jennifer & Kyle were in Sudbury at the time, while everyone else was in the back yard enjoying the, up to then, beautiful summer afternoon.
The fire quickly spread throughout the house, and over the next three hours engulfed the garage and barn as well. Four towns responded by sending their complete fire departments, and the Ministry of Natural Resources sent a helicopter. All was for naught however, as the total place was razed to the ground. The smoke from the fire was visible for over 2,000 square kilometers.
Our insurance company, The Dominion of Canada, treated us very well and everything was settled with them within a few weeks. As a side note, I can not recommend them enough. Irregardless of price you have to pay, it will be worth it if you ever have to make a claim as this was amazingly pain-free... well, the claim process was at least.
When you have an event like this in your life, you really find out who your friends are.
A great friend of ours, Jeff Fremlin, lent us his hunting lodge just down the road for several months. Then when it got cold he rented us a house he had a half hour away.
While I am singling out Jeff, I should definitely say a big thank you to all people who either helped, or offered help.
So after Two Fiddlers quit fiddling around and quit, we had to find someone else to put in the windows and door in the basement. We hired Quality Contracting (
The next photo, on the right, shows Jennifer and Kyle standing next to the hook. That hook weighs more than some small cars! You can also see the excavator working desperately to prepare the site for the crane.
s you can see, we need 2x8 boards to be able to walk in the basement otherwise you sink in.
What Two Fiddlers were not able to do in two months, Cementheadz did in three days. I watched them work and what an amazing job they did. The end results are so amazing I know it is a better job than Two Fiddlers would have been able to do.
We purchased a factory built home to replace our old home. It is built by Fairmont Homes of Indiana, and was sold to us by North Shore Quality Homes of Massey.
On June 29th, at 2:29 in the afternoon, our house caught fire due to a faulty electrical outlet. Jennifer & Kyle were in Sudbury at the time, while everyone else was in the back yard enjoying the, up to then, beautiful summer afternoon.