The rough-in work (plumbing, electrical, heating, ventilation) is complete at our Ridge-Meadows renovation, which means the drywall can begin.
This is where the new kitchen will be. The windows have been replaced and raised to allow for the cabinetry beneath. The wall in the middle is where the new island will be. You can see the openings for the gas connection and the vent for the fresh air return (for the furnace) which we're going to hide beneath the range rather than leaving it out in the middle of the kitchen where it was before. Lighting is visible in the ceiling at the moment. Once the ceiling is painted and the light trims added they will be much more conspicuous.
This is the dining room end of the room. The entry staircase (behind the wall on the left) was open to the main room. By closing it off we've created a more intimate entry to the house, while increasing the size of the dining room and creating a wall on which the homeowner can place a hutch.
The drywall phase is one of the most trying in the reno experience for a couple reasons:
It marks a sort of "no-return" point in the project. While it is true that lights and outlets can be relocated once the drywall is up, that involves bringing in the trades again, creating delays and adding costs to the job. So, before the board goes up we go over the design to make sure everything is where it needs to be. This pictures shows the new duct work we installed for the ventilation hood. The location of this is critical as it needs to be perfectly centred over the range in the island.
The mess. As careful as are, drywall dust is one of the most invasive substances known to humanity. It will get in everything. Even if we have the doorways sealed with plastic, the dust will find a way through. The best solution is to empty the room. The more valuable an item is, the greater the need to keep it away from the dust. Electronics are especially affected by drywall dust.
The length of the drywall phase is also affected by something we have no control over: the weather. The mud that is used to make everything smooth takes time to dry. That drying time is affected by both heat and moisture. While we use fans and heaters to help things along, if the mud isn't dry it isn't dry, and cannot be sanded. We've been lucky this week ... the weather has been pretty good. We still needed to use some heaters to help things along, but delays were minimal.
Up next: the cabinets!!
Links to other entries in the WIP series on the Ridge Meadows Reno:
Part 2
Part 4
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