Is There a Subject That You Wish Had It's Own Forum Here?
ritaweeda
4 years ago
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skibby (zone 4 Vermont)
4 years ago
DawnInCal
4 years agoRelated Discussions
What do you wish you had NEVER planted?
Comments (59)Ricky, I use huge leather welding gloves and the same tool as you. How about after they fall and need to be picked up and hauled to the curb? How about while carrying them, dont you get punctures in your hips and arms from the branches sticking out over the top of the can? And then when walking out to the curb (barefooted) to get the empty cans and stepping onto small chunks of these poison tipped organic hypodermic needles that missed the truck? The answer sounds like 'book' material to me! I am waiting to hear 'Karen does THAT part'...See MoreAnything you wish you had included in your contract?
Comments (3)If you are trying to write your own contract without professional assistance it is wise to use or at least refer to a standard published contract form in order to avoid making mistakes that could be costly later. Here is a summary of contract terms I prepared for another thread for a Fixed Price contract: FIXED PRICE CONTRACT OUTLINE - The Contract Documents - list of Drawings, Specifications & Addenda, etc. - Dates of Commencement and Substantial Completion - Contract Sum - Contract Sum, any Unit Prices, any Allowances, any accepted Alternates, and mark-up an Change orders. - Payment - timing, payment schedule & prodedures, interest on overdue payments - Insurance - contractor and owner liability and property insurance - Waivers of subrogation - General provisions - written modifications, definition of the Work, Intent of the Documents, Ownership and use of documents - Owner - responsibility for surveys & legal description of site, approvals, easements, assessments, OwnerâÂÂs right to stop the Work, and OwnerâÂÂs right to carry out the Work; OwnerâÂÂs right to perform construction and award separate contracts - Contractor - Responsibility for: Review of Contract Documents and field conditions, preparation of Construction Schedule, notification to local building authorities, compliance with building regulations, supervision and construction procedures, construction means, methods, techniques, sequences and procedures, coordination of the Work, acts and omissions of the Contractor's employees, Subcontractors and their agents and employees, discipline and good order among the Contractor's employees and others, employment of unfit persons or persons not skilled in tasks assigned, delivery, handling, storage and installation of materials in accordance with manufacturers' instructions, substitutions, warranty, taxes, permits/fees and notices, submittals (shop drawings, product data, samples, etc.), cutting & patching, clean up, Owner access to the Work, and indemnification of Owner, ownerâÂÂs consultants, agents and employees - OwnerâÂÂs Consultant and agent responsibilities - Changes in the Work - Time adjustments, minor modifications, adjustments for concealed or unknown physical conditions, Change orders - Time - Payments and Completion - Applications for payment, materials stored on and off site, title to work, liens, implied acceptance of the work, Substantial Completion defined, Final Payment with release of liens. - Protection of Persons and Property - Correction of the Work - during construction period and one year (or more) afterward. - Miscellaneous Provisions - Assignment of contract, tests and inspections, governing law. - Termination of the Contract - by owner or contractor. - Other Terms and Conditions - to be added by the parties. - Date & signatures of the parties...See MoreWhat do you wish you had done differently?
Comments (150)We're not quite finished yet - finishing details, trim, baseboards etc - so I guess it's a little premature to post to this, but what the heck. I can say that the ONLY things I'm not 100% happy with are the things I didn't decide 100% for myself and/or resesarch like crazy but chose without having explored all the options and educated myself enough to be able to choose based on the facts. Thankfully, there are VERY VERY few of those! Specifically: 1. I originally wanted the floor tile laid diagonally. I got talked out of this because of the extra time and labour involved in layout and cutting, but I suggested we do a diagonal border at the entrance to the kitchen and the backdoor to further define the spaces. I pushed for it somewhat against my GC's recommendation, but it seemed a fairly easy way of adding a little bit of bling, and having SOMETHING in the space that wasn't on the square, since we have shaker doors, square pulls, square tile, brick backsplash etc etc. It's ok, but because the border wasn't done in smaller tiles but used the same ones, there was no way to line up the points of the diagonals evenly across the row compared to the square tiles on the other side. It doesn't look "bad", it's just not what I had imagined - the ONLY thing I didn't draw in my software so I could "see" it, and the only one I look at and think "Darnit - that could have been better!" 2. The threshold between kitchen and diner. I didn't offer any input into this and my GC just did what he liked. I had anticipated that the hardwood would run directly into the pantry, with a threshold only across the line between tile and wood; he chose to run the threshold all the way across (having left a gap under the pantry door). It's a reasonable decision, just not the one I would have made if I had thought about that first. 3. Not a "regret" but something I only JUST thought of today... *after* they had finished the back of the peninsula! They stained a clean piece of veneer to cover the back of the peninsula and it looks great, but only NOW I thought, "We could have stained beadboard and used that!" which would have looked GREAT and added a little more texture. 4. Not a regret as much as a "I wish there had been another option": there really was NO appliance colour that would have worked. The budget dictated we stick with white (especially since our existing fridge - which we have kept - is white), but although classic, it does call a bit more attention to itself than I'd ideally like. Black would have been too much of a "hole", stainless doesn't entirely float my boat unless it's REALLY high end, and almond/biscuit/brown (all of which would actually have looked really good with my materials) are so out of favour that I could'nt even find any. So, white it is. I figure that as the appliances need replacing I can find a good colour and slowly upgrade them. To be honest, overall everything has come out beyond my wildest......See MoreThings you wish you had updated sooner (before a gut remodel)
Comments (19)There were actually several things that we wound up doing before our full remodel...and I'm so glad we did. We moved into a house that had a 1970's kitchen (complete with an avocado stove and non-vented hood). We planned on a kitchen remodel within 2 years of getting into the house. It wound up that it's been a little over 3. We picked up a Craigslist range and got rid of the old one. I don't love the Craigslist range, but it was light-years better than the original. This range is now in our basement hooked up to help us get through our remodel. And it will remain afterward for when I can since I'm getting an induction cooktop for upstairs. We put in a dishwasher. This single thing was the most important thing that we could have done to make the house livable through a terrible kitchen. We are reusing the DW in the new kitchen. We did a bit of rewiring which was completely necessary - so of this will be able to be reused in the new kitchen. Some of it won't. But, the fact that we weren't blowing a circuit every time we used the fridge and the microwave means that it was worth it! I had a rolling cart from our previous house and that was a lifesaver in the current kitchen...the rolling cart is now in our living room serving as a place for the microwave, a few dishes and utensils, and so on to live as a "temporary kitchenette" while our remodel goes on. The cart will go away after we are finished with our renovation...it's a little bittersweet to see it go - it's been such a help through a terrible rental kitchen and another terrible kitchen in the house we bought. But, the few hundred dollars I spent for it has been completely worthwhile....See More
User
4 years ago
woodrose
4 years agoDawnInCal
4 years agojoyfulguy
4 years agolast modified: 4 years agoritaweeda
4 years ago
Lars
4 years agolast modified: 4 years agonickel_kg
4 years ago
Rusty
4 years agoratherbesewing
4 years ago
arkansas girl
4 years ago
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