Below is a list of our many home improvement and maintenance projects. Most of these are considered DIY projects, which we do 1) primarily to save money and 2) because Scott is a perfectionist (Note: This combination does not lend itself to expediencey). At the bottome of the page you will find the projects that are too big for us to handle and/or require professional help. New items will be added as needed. Completed projects will be striked through (example) and purged at the end of each year.
DIY Project List
- Carpentry
- Conceal TV nook
- Designer closet in MBR
- Fence in back yard
- Hardwood stair treads/risers
- Lay floor in attic for storage
- Quarter round in foyer and living room
- Screen the back porch
- Shelving in garage
- Stairs from deck to yard
- Trim around attic folding stairs
- Electrical
- Accent lights in front yard
- Bedrooms, add recessed lights
- Cable TV - run line to kitchen
- Exterior lights - replace brass w/ black decorative lights
- Flood lights in back yard
- Heavy duty outlets, switches and covers in garage
- Living room, add track lights
- Outlet - add in foyer
- Outlet - add in office
- Undercabinet lights in kitchent
- Exterior Maintenance
- Clean gutters
- Seal deck
- Gardening & Landscaping
- Complete front flower bed at corner of driveway
- Pavers or stamped concrete rear patio
- Plant Yoschino cherry tree in side yard
- Replace dead Japanese maple in front yard
- General Remodeling
- Convert basement ceiling tiles from 4′x2′ to 2′x2′
- Laminate wood floor in office
- Regrout tile around master bathroom tub
- Replace brass hinges w/ nickel hinges
- Tile kitchen backsplash
- Painting
- Caulk between fireplace surround and tile
- Exterior door trim, incl. garage (color: White)
- Family Room (color: ?)
- Foyer/stairwell (color: Cork)
- Front door (color: ?)
- Interior trim and doors (color: #967 White) - The current trim color that the builders selected is too ‘beigey.’
- Boy’s bedroom
- Dining room & kitchen
- Family room
- Foyer & living room
- Guest bathroom
- Guest bedroom
- Isabel’s bedroom
- Kid’s bathroom
- Laundry room hallway
- Master bathroom
- Master bedroom
- Office
- Repair and spot painting (ongoing)
- Plumbing
- Install instant hot water dispenser in kitchen
- Replace front exterior spigot
- Upgrade kitchen sink spigot
- Wrap hot water heater w/ insulation
- Systems
- Replace flexible plastic dryer duct with rigid metal duct
Major Project List
- Carpet - Our house has cheap builder grade carpet, so we would like new plush carpet in the bedrooms and berber in the basement.
- Metal insulated garage door - We have perhaps the only wooden garage door in our subdivision … not sure what the builders were thinking. Also, since our master bedroom is over the garage, the temperatures tend to reflect what is going on in the un-heated/cooled space below.
- Skylights in the living room - There are no windows in the living room — just a sliding glass door — so despite the vaulted ceiling it feels somewhat closed-in due to the lack of light.
- Solid surface counters - Our kitchen laminate counters are adequate, but stone would look great and increase our home’s resale value.
- Upgrade to a dual zone heat pump - Currently we have one system for the upstairs and downstairs. The main level (top) is always comfortable. The basement (family room, guest room and office) is too cold in the summer and too hot in the winter.
