How clean (or not) does your gc keep the site?
Orit L
8 years ago
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Comments (16)
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how do you keep your pond clean?
Comments (11)I have a 100 gallon Skippy topped with quilt batting. There is a prefilter for the pump made from a well filter that does a good job. I used to run a small UV filter that did a good job. The fish liked it a lot. There were no serious problems with the water until the raccoons dropped lots of potted plants in the pond. It took all year and then some to clear it up. I lost track of how many water changes I made. The pump died because of the small rocks that got through the prefilter. I finally discovered there were two more large clay filled pots that had continued spilling out clay. The water is clear again this summer. I have a new UV light to play with and the replacement pump is doing well. The prefilter will be higher up in the pond so it will suck dirty water rather than thick mud and rocks. Pots of taro will be sunk in very large pots filled with river bed stones. It will be very, very hard for the raccoons to move them. They might be able to rip out the plants but the rock will hold on to the pots. I'll stick to the more common plants for now. I lost too many expensive plants the past two years to the little monsters. That should take care of most of the cleaning. I will net the pond in the fall. There are just too many trees not to....See MoreHow long did it take for your GC to price your job?
Comments (9)We interviewed 5 GCs. First was sort of interested, but our job on an older home was different from the usual work he did building new and/or remodeling newer homes, and it didn't "feel" like a good fit, so we didn't pursue it, even though he seemed like a decent guy and his portfolio of work looked like quality. Second came to look, but when he saw significant structural work he wasn't interested - he was more a cabinet installer/internal design kind of GC than somebody to handle this project. Next one came HIGHLY recommended from a friend who had just done some similar work a few months prior. He came round and gave us some quite attractive rough figures compared to the previous and we wanted some time to think about his suggestions; called him a couple of weeks later to come back, we talked further and asked him for a written bid. Never heard back from him, although we continued to call him to try and get a formal bid. #4 was referred to us via a very bizarre chain of events: even though we got the feeling the project was stalled since we couldn't find a builder, we decided to close on the equity loan anyway since it was all ready to go. At the closing, the title agent started chatting to us, noted that we lived in the same neighbourhood as her family including her brother who oh-by-the-way was a contractor and did we have one yet? I took the number partly to be polite and partly because he was (literally) around the corner, but didn't hold out much hope. In the meantime, I already had an appointment scheduled with a fairly glossy design-build firm so I kept it - they said that we would need at a MINIMUM double our budget, so that was a short meeting! So... feeling somewhat trepidatious I called the guy around the corner that had been recc'd at the bank. He was out of town but we scheduled a meeting for a few days later. He spent 2 hrs at the house, and drove me to see some work he was doing on another property (beautiful work - sealed the deal from my point of view). He came back a few days later with his associate to have another look to see how they could manage the structural stuff, and emailed me a basic proposal a few days after that. We hashed out the remaining details by email and he started 3 weeks later. He CLEARLY wanted the job - he was interested in the house, he (as I later learned) was fascinated by the books on our shelves many of which reflected his own interests and he definitely wanted the gig and he just liked us as much as we did him - it was clearly a "good fit". I had seen his work, his licence and checked his insurance was ok (they all were, of course!), but other than the title agent had no personal references. The day we started work I was PANIC STRICKEN with "what if's?" - I was letting a perfect stranger cut my house in half, I had no human references and aaaaaakkkkkkkk... what was I doing! A neighbour reassured me that she'd seen his work in the neighbourhood and, that in fact, he'd turned DOWN a job she'd asked him to do, but even so - I didn't necessarily do this "by the book"! As those who have been following my renovation know, this guy has been AMAZING, transforming our ideas into reality at a more than fair price (in fact, I truly believe he undercharged us somewhat given the numbers I see other people throwing around for their work). And he, his wife and kids have become friends in the course of it all, so it has truly been "win win" even if we DIDN'T find him via a "conventional" route. Anyway, long answer. I guess the short version is if they follow through, they want the job... !...See MoreDoes Your GC Make Housecalls?
Comments (11)I am also lucky, very lucky. My GC cemented my mailbox in when he saw it was getting wobbly. He built me new steps that go down to the lake. He stopped one day and plugged in the heat cable that's on my roof because he saw some ice build up. He's the sweetest guy and I know I can call him about anything and his wife is just as nice. I had them over for dinner after the kitchen was done and he really enjoyed showing off his work to her. He also brought his son over, who will be graduating from architectural school this spring. He told me to call him if I had any problem with anything too. Some of these guy's are really nice and not in it to rip you off. Nancy...See MoreWays to keep your house clean
Comments (32)I used to be fanatical about cleaning, even when I was young and single. Then when the kids came along I relaxed my standards somewhat but I was at home for 12 years so still managed to keep a tidy and clean house. Then I went back to work part time for 8 years...still managing to keep up..no problem. Then I went full time in my early 50's....managed OK...but not as kept up as before. Well, here I am...61, still working full time...but I just don't have much energy for it anymore, especially when I get home from work. So, it's a combo of age and working full time that has done me in. It's not as clean as I'd like, and new wood floors and espresso furniture that show dust like crazy aren't helping either! Keep thinking of hiring someone but just havent gotten around to it....I am the type who would clean before the cleaning lady gets there so Im not embarrased. And the last thing I want to do is spend the weekend cleaning. It's a dilemma for sure. When I was at the top of my game I would clean the upstairs on Mondays and the downstairs on Fridays. Im thinking in a few years when I retire I won't mind doing it since I will have all day everyday to get it done and can do it in the mornings when I have more energy. Any tips on hiring a cleaning person?...See MoreRachel (Zone 7A + wind)
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