All of a sudden we have a roof! Closing date set for 12/20. Merry Christmas to us! Probably not my preferred time to move but crossing fingers winter gets a late start here so we don't move in snow.

strategery - I mentioned in the post that I think it is spackling and the painters got it on there.

Going back over to the house this afternoon while no one is there. I plan on soaking a wet towel over the area and then wiping up. I just hope that no possible oils soaked into the quartz. I would never think about using anything abrasive on any of my counter surfaces. Not even Softscrub. Thanks anj_p. And so nice to have a move-in date. What a great Christmas gift!

Keepthefaith MIGirl - I don't have many warm whites for my walls (most of what you see is primer), but I definitely agree with you!

For covering countertops, the builder will put the backer board over the tops, and cardboard on the cabinets. I think that I will add a layer of plastic over the backer board unless it has a layer of waterproofing. The counters have not yet been sealed, and I am not sure when they are coming back, but the tops are now filthy because of the trimmer saw dust all over counters and cabinets. 😥 I cannot cover everything until all cleaned up and then sealed. Objects are being left on them all. On second thought, I believe I will try to cover them with something in the meantime, plus I will make signs not to put anything down on them. MEN!!!

jkent9024 - Great that the door opens into the water closet. We also have an L-shaped off of our sink area. Don't stress about your bath lights. My overhead lights have a slightly different gold finish to them then my dressing table sconces, and the fixture that I have hanging over the tub. They don't have to match.

chispa - We don't understand and have asked our builder to ask the painter. However, I understand that paint bases for Sherwin Williams are low in supply. And certain color hues. So are the containers that the paint is put into. And as mentioned, we can't even get the Pro-Classic trim paint right now. I don't think it has anything to do with shelf life. Heck, I used paint that had been sitting in my basement for 14 years to touch up our house before putting it on the market. Could not tell a difference on the wall!

We might be moving at the same time ... but maybe not! I just noticed yesterday as I walked around the house that one of the 6 panels of the big sliding door is missing. Not sure if it never arrived, broke in transit, broke when they installed or someone broke it later? Need to text the builder.

The builder's wood/framing/trim guys, who are great hardworking guys, were there today. I think they are installing the folding attic stairs, which I think there are 2 or 3 to get to different parts of the attic.

I've just been reading a whole bunch of paint threads ... nothing better to do on a rainy day! I had commented before about my builder getting ahead of me and painting the ceilings. All my cabinets/trim/door/crown will be BM Chantilly Lace in semi-gloss. I like to use BM Aura Matte for walls. The builder went ahead and painted the ceilings in Chantilly Lace, which is fine, but used the Matte finish there too. It does have a tiny bit of shine, which I never saw on the walls, but shows up on the ceiling. Not sure I like it. My drywall finish is smooth for walls and ceilings.

The question is do I get it re-sprayed in flat? It is now or never, if I want it changed, since we don't have flooring/trim in yet and would be relatively easy to spray. I can also have it re-done in a cheaper BM mix, because I don't need the Aura for the ceiling!

What would you do?

Amy10n: funny about Texas - we live there - in Willis, north of Houston (north of The Woodlands and Conroe—moved from The Woodlands to Willis). I had bought the sideboard from a consignment shop in The Woodlands - it was oak, and I was inspired by this photo. I tried really hard to find the Sara Canope Designs chandelier (antique) with turquoise globes like these green ones. Lo and behold I DID find it in 1st Dibs for like $6,000 or something I would not pay! It’s gone now, but it would have been so nice!

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@chispa I would change to flat if I were you!

Thanks @anj_p. I'll go over to the house tomorrow when no one is there and really look at the ceilings. Maybe just change the living areas and hallways to flat and leave the bedrooms and bathrooms in the matte. The closets don't need to be redone!

I agree...No shine, no wine!!!

I was able to get the spackling off of the quartz, but you can see a mark in the right light. It was all over the countertop. I placed "Please do not" signs on all hard surfaces. 😀

I cannot decide if the counters have been sealed yet. How long would it take for them to dry, had they been? And do Quartz counters get sealed?

I thought quartz counters are sealed when they are made. @nhb22 our fabricators gave us a cleaning spray for our counter tops and also said we could use a razor blade to scrap off any stuck on gunk. Our quartz is from Cambria.

@jkent9024 I would skip the sconces then and go for overhead vanity lights. I would be sure to do 3 lights for the mans vanity and 4 lights for your since you have a makeup area. I did 3 for both and Im kicking myself because I should have done 4 or 5. Now my vanity lights are discontinued and I cant find it in the right metal and # of lights. If have to replace both of our fixtures so Im just going to live with it for now.

@jkent9024 do you have dimensions? Ill measure mine and tell you how many lights fit Our vanities and spaces look similar. All 3,4 light fixtures are pretty close to the same width they do vary by a little so I would double check size regardless.

K H - That's what I was thinking. Ours quartz is Hawthorne.

But for the Fantasy Brown marble, the guy who was installing them told me that they will seal them on site. A few hours went by from the time I talked to him mid morning and going back to the house in mid afternoon. When I did, the kitchen counters were covered with construction dust. I did not see how they could have been sealed and then left to the mess the trim guys were making. I asked the guys if the counters had been sealed while I was gone. They had no idea.

UPDATE: I just answered my own question. No way could the countertop had been sealed on Friday. How to seal granite

@K H I know that wall-to-wall, each space is 66" (70" on center studs). But I do not know how wide the sink bases are vs. the cabinet tower and vanity drawer. If I had to guess, I'd say the sink bases are 36" with tower and vanity areas being 30".

Ours our very similar @jkent9024 my only question is if your spaces are closed in by walls or open space. Ours are closed in by walls or cabinets; my vanity space is 54” (not counting the cabinet) and my 3 light fixture is about 23”. This is where I should have done a 4 or 5 light. I have an extra 3 light fixture I could put in but then there would only be 2 inches between the fixtures and the walls!

DH’s vanity is 48” and his 3-light fixture is the right amount of light. Honesty I think he could have done a 4 light also. (I may just buy new fixtures and sell these on fb marketplace) since they are discontined and I cant get a 4 light any longer.

My kids 60” space has 2- 3 light fixtures and it is super bright. Which I really dont mind. All of our leds are the warm white. I dont like the Bright bright leds they remind me of a surgical procedure room!

Kids 3-light fixture is 24” at its widest.

Also our big mirrors are all custom sizes. I ordered them from Menards and then we used mirror mastic, a caulking gun and dry paint roller to push down the mirrors when we installed them. I intend to put trim over them but havent gotten to that yet!

@jkent9024 I would ask for dimensioned drawings. Looks like you cabinet guy uses a similar software. Here are our drawings.

@jkent9024, We got dimensioned drawings for all our cabinet runs (kitchen and bath) from the cabinet folks to sign off on before the order is placed. If you don't have them, then I am sure your builder does. Ask!

@Jkent9024, Do you recall which cabinet and appliance companies are raising prices this week? And did you hear a specific percentage?

@KH - thank you so much for sharing the two bathroom vanity photos! I thought I wanted a sconces like the first photo, but my bath will be more traditional and I prefer the second photo.

@NHb22 - I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bathroom door opening out into the hallway. Is that common? Also, I like your bathroom quartz. Do you mind sharing the name of the manufacturer and specific style?

@anj_p- thanks for the warning against using baking soda and vinegar on quartz. Makes me wonder if I want to change directions, as I use both constantly on my granite too.

For those saying to avoid putting wet glasses etc on quartz, is this something we need to get used to doing all the time? I had no idea quartz was a high maintenance countertop.

As for us, things have slowed way down. Our electrician has Covid and is very sick and told us to get another electrician. We got another bid but are a few weeks behind. Our windows should be installed in the next week or two, then HVAC and electric.

@karen
My current quartz is dark gray. It shows everything. And when I clean it, the water shows previous marks. Drives me crazy.
My sister has a white marble looking quartz. Hers doesn't show anything. Doesn't mean it's not there, but the color probably has a lot to do with it. She cleans hers with clorox wipes.
I had dark brown/ black polished granite in my last house and it was a easy as it comes. I etched my quartz in my current place because I didn't know better and was trying to get all the marks off of it. The etching shows up as a slight discoloration (almost like a white cloud). It's not super noticeable, thankfully. I'm getting white quartz in my house and I'm hoping it behaves better. Most people with quartz love it and say it's low maintenance. I hope I find that to be the case with the white ones. I'm definitely not finding the dark to be easy.

I had Cambria White Cliff in my master bathroom and will be using it again. No issues with staining even with hair dye ... spray with clorox w/bleach, let sit for a few minutes and stain would go away. Had a Pental quartz in my teenagers bathroom and he wasn't careful with what he left on the counters! No issues with that one either.

@NHb22 - I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bathroom door opening out into the hallway. Is that common? Also, I like your bathroom quartz. Do you mind sharing the name of the manufacturer and specific style?

Karen - I am not sure what you are referring to with your question? Did I say something about a bathroom door opening out into a hallway? But to answer your question, I have see that type of situation when the bathroom is too small to accommodate the hall door.

My quartz countertops are Hawthorne. I don't know if that is the manufacturer, or the name of the color/pattern.

Also, is your bathroom door opening into the bathroom or out into a hallway or room? The door opening into the bathroom will be a pain.

Oh, went back and read and see what you are talking about. We have a short hallway that connects our bedroom to the bathroom with our closets on either side of the hall. It's not a public hallway. I was picturing that when asking the question.

For those saying to avoid putting wet glasses etc on quartz, is this something we need to get used to doing all the time? I had no idea quartz was a high maintenance countertop.

I was talking about my marble, not the Quartz. Quartz is pretty hardy. No vinegar, fingernail polish, bleach, or dyes. Nothing hot. Otherwise, it should hold up well.

My sister has a white marble looking quartz. Hers doesn't show anything. Doesn't mean it's not there, but the color probably has a lot to do with it. She cleans hers with clorox wipes.

I am the type that likes to spray and wipe, although Clorox wipes would not be too bad to use. Anyone else have experience with a good spray cleaner? Mine looks like white marble. Had a slight grayish tint. Seen here with a bright white cabinet:

I have Cambria quartz in my current kitchen, color Kingston so it’s dark. It has been absolutely maintenance free and still looks like new. We are definitely using quartz in our new build but may have to go with something a little less $ than Cambria. Hope not, but we’ll see.

@Sherryl small world, we were in Tomball, I know exactly where Willis, etc is. I purchased this piece in Conroe. (TX home pic) Looks rustic, and was the only pop of furniture color I wanted. Now in FL, we will have darker floors, and a lighter kitchen. We‘ll see how it goes! I loved the light fixture in your inspiration pic, I will need to search for something for our dining nook.

I love that turquoise piece. So pretty and one of my very favorite colors. It really pops in a neutral room.

@chispa - I prefer my ceilings to not have any sheen on them so I would ask it to be done in flat paint. I'm not familiar with matte though so it is possible it already is flat.

@lyfia, I always though the BM matte was flat, but not a dull flat. I took a closer look at the ceilings over the weekend and I think the problem is that I am comparing a freshly painted ceiling to dull white primer walls and dirty cement floors! I think once the walls are painted in an off-white matte, the stained beams get installed, the slightly glossy wood floors go in, the pendants & chandeliers are installed, and art gets hung, the ceilings should be the last thing you notice. I guess the thought of having to re-do something is worse than the thought of matte ceilings! ;-)

This morning my builder said they were starting to install beams in the next few days, so having to repaint would slow down the schedule, which pushed me to leave it as is for now. Luckily it is something that can be tweaked later!

I'll probably change my mind again by tomorrow morning 🤪 😁

LOL, chispa - I hear you! Today has been full of ups and downs for me. I am not happy about not speaking up early this morning about something that I was not sure about, but it was too late to change this afternoon. Boo!!! However, I am happy with two decisions that I made AFTER changing my mind.

Our plumbing rough-in was supposed to start today (after they were originally supposed to start last Thursday). Nope. Now they've told our builder they'll be there tomorrow. We'll see if they show up! We hope so, as we want to go out and ask for one more hose bib to be added to the job. And we also want to go to the stone place that is nearby, to kill two birds with one stone (ha!)

So DH and I are doing things here and there to prepare for drywall in 3 weeks. I spent some time pushing the wires into the electric boxes and vacuumed up even more insulation dust which is still everywhere. DH has been nailing up nailing plates that protect the water piping from drywall screws.

Today my first of 2 kitchen faucets was delivered, I ended up going with Delta Leland in Venetian bronze for the main and prep sinks. Got these because everything else I liked was either paused, backordered, or unavailable in this color for who knows how long. I was amazed to be able to get them from Home Depot, my kitchen designer couldn't get them. In fact, I ordered my bath faucets more than a month ago and have no idea when those will get here.

Saturday I chose my kitchen cabinet hardware. The bottom handle and the oval knob. Waiting on the quote.

DH got some sticker shock when we paid off the septic guy today, the bill was $2000 more than what he told me it was last week. We're not broke yet, but that drywall bill will be much bigger and then there is still flooring, the second half of the cabinet bill, DH hasn't a clue what all the faucets are costing... stress is running pretty high.

At least the heat and humidity has broken. It's going to be a beautiful week! Hopefully, I can enjoy a little of it.

@Buzz Solo in northeast MI love your pick of hardware! I have a Delta Leland faucet in stainless and I love it!

The remnants of Ida just hit our area about half an hour ago; it's storming pretty good, and my 75 lb. chicken dog is in my lap. I don't think anything will be accomplished with our foundation work this week, as the storm is forecast to linger through Thursday.

@Karen, my cabinets are Wellborn and my appliances are all different (Sub-Zero, Bosch, GE Monogram). The price increases are coming from the independent retail stores I'm (or more specifically, my builder is) using. I suspect they've been absorbing small price increases from the manufacturers for awhile, but have finally decided they can't honor their price quotes beyond the end of the month. Frankly, I'm surprised they were willing to honor my almost 9-month old quotes for as long as they did.

Wow, I posted on July 2021 and asked if someone started one for August so I am posting here, too.

We have the foundation dug. If the photos are too large, please let me know.

They started the beams yesterday, so the matte ceilings stay for now!

Have to check those recessed lights ... the center one is a pendant. Optical illusion or wonky holes? I know this section had an issue with a truss being in the way of the center line, but they should all still have been in a straight line, even if the line was slightly off from the center of the hallway.

@chispa hard to tell from the photo it could just be an odd angle. I would get out a tape measure and measure from each side to see if they are centered.

@chispa, I agree with @K H that a tape measure will let you know for sure, but it looks like the closest hole is centered while the other two farther back are slightly left of center. And yes, if they can't all be centered, I would rather they were all aligned together slightly off-center.

I think if the center is a pendant it won't be noticeable once the lights are up, and I think they can adjust the location of a pendant a little as well, as long as the base is large enough. Not sure if it would be worse to redo the holes?

I wonder if the drywall guys accidentally shifted one of the boxes/housing if they hadn't been properly tightened by the electricians. I know they were lined up at some point and the electricians were very picky about symmetry and straight lines! I'll go over later and measure.

@wyosue58, Welcome! I assume from your screen name that you are building in Wyoming? How beautiful your site is! I love that part of the country. We had the pleasure of traveling out there and visiting Yellowstone and Grand Teton NP a few years back.

Found some picture before drywall and see what happened. The first recessed light in the distance, is to the left of a beam on the center line, so no other option but to be slightly off center and that was the position used for all the recessed light in this hallway section. Third fixture from the back is a pendant and that was centered in the hallway since it will hang down in the space. I think once everything is done it should be ok. The only fix would be to move the pendant light in line with the recessed lights (and there is space), but I think the hanging light would stick out not being centered in the hallway.

We've had a couple of other issues like this with trusses ending up where we had planned light fixtures. Would be nice if the truss company took a look at the lighting plan and adjusted their layout slightly, or for someone to superimpose both plans and look for conflicts. We had a few things "lost in translation" with our architect being in our old state and having the building plans and engineering done in the new state. I caught most of the issues, but I guess I missed the whole trusses in the wrong place thing. I can't even say I'll use this knowledge for the next build, because there won't be one, but someone might learn from my notes here! 😁

@Emily

Thanks, yes we are in Wyoming. I can watch the building right from my living room. I have not done much right from the being so I hope as we go forward everything comes together. We moved here 18 years ago and were fortunate to purchase the lot next to us because we did not want neighbors that close. Fast forward 18 years and we will have neighbors close--only on the other side--which is our present home. We remodeled our present house 3 years ago and I am still kicking myself for not "Insisting" on building then.

We need to get this one framed in and protected before the snow starts falling. This is one year that I am hoping for a late beginning of winter. The builder was going to use SIP but the delivery time would be some time in late spring. I think I am glad about that because I did not really want that. Some have had a major rodent problem with them eating through the materials. We don't need anything like that.

I really want Marvin windows (like our neighbor) and there is some confusion as to what kind she really has. I gave the builder and his supplier the information I had but it was for one of her sliding French doors--Tempered Low E. For the windows, I should have put Low E Charcoal Hi-Transparency Fbrglas Mesh.

Because we live so far away from things I am having issues with finding what I need.

Let the Rollercoaster Begin.

@wyosue58, Interesting that you are building right next door -- that is convenient! We have a 25-minute drive out to our site, and we are there multiple times a week now. Would love it to be closer! We bought the lot next to ours as well for the same reason. We are building on 10 acres, and our next door lot is 11 acres, providing a good buffer between the neighbor on that side. We are building close to the lot line between the two, in the deep woods in North Carolina. Best wishes for your project. There are always a lot of headaches, but the goal is to be satisfied in the end.

BTW, on windows, our builder is a Pella man. We've never had Pella before but are going that route. Currently some of them are delayed arriving, and there was already an 8-week lead time. Looks like more like 12 weeks for some. I think no matter where you live now, there are problems with supplies of all kinds of things. I read that these supply-chain issues are going to continue well into 2022, maybe even 2023 for some things. 😣

@chispa at my old house I had framing in the way like that and what I ended up doing was put two small recessed lights on each side as I knew the non-symmetry would bother me. Not sure if that would be an option for you. Then it would sort of look like a 5 on a dice except a bit stretched out.

@Buzz Solo in northeast MI, Glad you were able to find faucets you like! We are also doing Venetian Bronze in our kitchen, and we selected Delta Cassidy. Is that what you originally selected also? If we can't get them, it's good to know there are other alternatives. I'd be fine with the Delta Leland you chose as well. I also like your pulls and knobs! We are getting ours through our kitchen cabinet supplier, all pulls, no knobs. I can't even remember what they look like, I picked them so long ago! 😁 I think they are fairly similar to yours.

@Emily

We were going to retire to NC (Caswell Beach-Oak Island). We built and small winter home and had our primary home in North Central Ohio. Funny story about how we ended up in Wyoming--My DH took me on vacation to visit Yellowstone little did I know we would be living in WY. We were driving through Wind River Canyon and I jokingly said--I think I would like a house on this Red Bluff--we went through the canyon and I saw the back of this gray house and I said--I take that one--Guess where we are living. We had no idea it was even for sale. We had 32 acres in Ohio and I never thought my DH would give it up but he was more ready than me. I really wanted a house on one level but this one has a walkout basement. That is why I want to build a new house--all on one level. In fact, there will be ZERO steps.

Marvin was the only manufacturer that I could find that has tinted windows that will work for me.

@wyosue58, Great story! My husband is from Ohio (North Canton) originally. We are also building a single-story home. There will be a step at the front porch and a couple steps at the back, but no steps in the house itself. We are in our 60s, and it's time for a house we can grow old in.

@Emily

We lived in Wellington about 30 miles south of Lake Erie. We are a little older than you and it is very important for us. The first two builders wanted to put our furnace in the crawl space--I said NOT ON YOUR LIFE--EVER!!!!

@Nhb2-
When you said "no vinegar, fingernail polish, bleach or dyes", were you talking about your marble or quartz? Also, you asked
"Anyone have experience a good spray cleaner?"

I like "Better Life Granite and Stone Cleaner". Saw it on shark tank a few years ago and tried it. I love it. I usually buy it online and buy enough to get free shipping, so only buy it every few years. It used to be about. $5/16oz bottle I think.

@jkent9024,
Thank you for the info on your Wellborne cabinets and the appliance price increases.

I am so far behind on all my decisions; it's making me think that I have some sort
of cognitive impairment. I think I make a decision and the next day wake up and doubt everything and start looking again. I can drag out even the simplest decisions! Ugh!!!
The only good thing is that we don't have any time pressures except that if I don't get my$&@! together soon, DH is going to start making unilateral decisions for me and I won't like that either. Can you tell I haven't found a designer to help me? 😢

Karen - I was quoting about Quartz. And that should have said "no fingernail polish or remover"! The remover, especially. It will eat the Quartz finish. I am going to have to figure out how to do my nails. With my travertine, I would spill and just wipe up. Did not hurt the T. stone.

I got excited when I saw that the product you recommend is a spray pump. A pump is what I am looking for (not an aerosol), but when I saw it contains grapefruit, I cringed. I cannot use anything acidic on my marble. Thanks anyway. :)

Question: Were your floors site finished or pre-finished? Love the color!

I am so far behind on all my decisions; it's making me think that I have some sort
of cognitive impairment. I think I make a decision and the next day wake up and doubt everything and start looking again. I can drag out even the simplest decisions! Ugh!!!

We must be sisters...that's me! I blame it on a brain injury I had 18 months ago.

I guess a September Building forum may have already popped up. I forgot to look. Can't believe it is September already! Per request to our builder, the house is suppose to be ready in 4 weeks. We know that's not going to happen. We have been thinking move in date at the end of October. I am thinking more like the end of November, now. We shall see!!!

@nhb22, I saw several stone/granite cleaners today at the grocery store. Don't need them yet myself, but glad to know they're there. We have never had quartz or granite countertops and are getting quartz (Silestone) in our new house, so I will have to learn how to take care of them. I had no idea vinegar was a no-no!

@Karen, Believe me, you are not alone! Our builder had us go around to vendors last summer (2020!) to make our selections so that he could give us a detailed estimate. Then, due to multiple factors, our build got delayed until this spring. So now I've had far too much time to think and reconsider and revisit all my choices. Most of them I'm still good with, but I have second-guessed myself and changed quite a few! In most cases, I think this is a good thing, as I became more knowledgeable and also honed in on what I really wanted. But I am still struggling with a few of the decisions and hoping I've made good ones. This is one of the reasons building is so difficult!

September 2021 thread started!

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6169902/september-2021-building-progress#n=1