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And the thunder rolls...
Dec. 9th, 2008 06:00 pmBut don't worry, I'm not headed to the night-stand for my revolver, even though shooting the contractors would probably be ruled justifiable homicide.
Today should have been a happy day. The new shower pan in the master bath was to be inspected, and the new cabinets were to be installed in the kitchen.
The first problem appeared early in the shape of the plumbing inspector. He was a bit concerned about one side of the pan liner, which JUST sneaked past code on depth of material. He also wasn't happy because the pan was supposed to be full of water when he arrived, and it wasn't. Call to plumber; plumber plans to come fill the pan for a second inspection.
Then the cabinet people turned up, including our kitchen designer. We'd already noted that a couple of the doors were not properly stained at the factory, and he agreed to replace those. Then they got to checking the measurements. Turned out the vent for the microwave/hood combo was three inches to the right of where it should be - and 3/4" too low. Oddly, so were the electrical outlets for the rope lights (top of cabinets) and under-cabinet lighting. 3/4" is exactly the thickness of the new hardwood floor of course. I told the general contractor multiple times that there would be a 3/4" floor on top of the sub floor. Did he listen? No, of course not.
A hurried call to the general contractor. He wasn't happy. Why not just lower the cabinets 3/4" he asked? Because then I'd have to saw 3/4" off the top of the refrigerator so it would fit in it's alcove, that's why. And no, I didn't plan on doing that. He agreed to come over.
Meanwhile, someone realized the plans were off an inch anyway... so in reality, the vent and electrical outlets were TWO inches too low. Ugh. General contractor turned up and ripped the bottom of the vent, then moved the rope light electrical up. No plan as yet for the under-cabinet lighting.
What about the three inch mis-alignment to the right? Well, it turned out with some juggling of the wood fillers, that the cabinets could be moved over 1.5" to allow the microwave to be centered under the hood.
And the sink? Well, the sink is going to be centered under the window. Isn't it? Apparently not. When everything is laid out, the sink base is three inches off (this on a separate wall). The cabinet guy tries to adjust, ending up 1/2" off center on the sink/window alignment. It'll have to do, because the dishwasher won't fit if they move the sink over any further.
The plumber turned up in the midst of all this, to fill the pan. Should be a quick job. Except after several gallons of water are in the pan, he realizes there is a small waterfall downstairs in the laundry room. And then the power went off. The water had somehow gotten into the electrical system in the laundry room, and blown the GFCI. (That is the GFCI's role in life of course, so for that we should be grateful. No-one died. Yet. Where is that damned revolver?)
After consultation with the General Contractor, who is by now an expert on pathetically inadequate plumbing and plumbers, it turns out the pan guy hadn't bothered to fix the edges of the pan beneath the drain flange. As soon as the water went in the pan, it sailed under the rubber sheet and straight down into the laundry room, via the electrical service.
At this point, they've all gone away. The cabinets are, despite the mis-steps today, looking spectacular. A completely new liner has been installed in the bathroom. And the laundry room, hallway and furnace room are dark and without power. The belief/hope is that tomorrow the wiring will be dry and the GFCI can be reset. We'll see...
Today should have been a happy day. The new shower pan in the master bath was to be inspected, and the new cabinets were to be installed in the kitchen.
The first problem appeared early in the shape of the plumbing inspector. He was a bit concerned about one side of the pan liner, which JUST sneaked past code on depth of material. He also wasn't happy because the pan was supposed to be full of water when he arrived, and it wasn't. Call to plumber; plumber plans to come fill the pan for a second inspection.
Then the cabinet people turned up, including our kitchen designer. We'd already noted that a couple of the doors were not properly stained at the factory, and he agreed to replace those. Then they got to checking the measurements. Turned out the vent for the microwave/hood combo was three inches to the right of where it should be - and 3/4" too low. Oddly, so were the electrical outlets for the rope lights (top of cabinets) and under-cabinet lighting. 3/4" is exactly the thickness of the new hardwood floor of course. I told the general contractor multiple times that there would be a 3/4" floor on top of the sub floor. Did he listen? No, of course not.
A hurried call to the general contractor. He wasn't happy. Why not just lower the cabinets 3/4" he asked? Because then I'd have to saw 3/4" off the top of the refrigerator so it would fit in it's alcove, that's why. And no, I didn't plan on doing that. He agreed to come over.
Meanwhile, someone realized the plans were off an inch anyway... so in reality, the vent and electrical outlets were TWO inches too low. Ugh. General contractor turned up and ripped the bottom of the vent, then moved the rope light electrical up. No plan as yet for the under-cabinet lighting.
What about the three inch mis-alignment to the right? Well, it turned out with some juggling of the wood fillers, that the cabinets could be moved over 1.5" to allow the microwave to be centered under the hood.
And the sink? Well, the sink is going to be centered under the window. Isn't it? Apparently not. When everything is laid out, the sink base is three inches off (this on a separate wall). The cabinet guy tries to adjust, ending up 1/2" off center on the sink/window alignment. It'll have to do, because the dishwasher won't fit if they move the sink over any further.
The plumber turned up in the midst of all this, to fill the pan. Should be a quick job. Except after several gallons of water are in the pan, he realizes there is a small waterfall downstairs in the laundry room. And then the power went off. The water had somehow gotten into the electrical system in the laundry room, and blown the GFCI. (That is the GFCI's role in life of course, so for that we should be grateful. No-one died. Yet. Where is that damned revolver?)
After consultation with the General Contractor, who is by now an expert on pathetically inadequate plumbing and plumbers, it turns out the pan guy hadn't bothered to fix the edges of the pan beneath the drain flange. As soon as the water went in the pan, it sailed under the rubber sheet and straight down into the laundry room, via the electrical service.
At this point, they've all gone away. The cabinets are, despite the mis-steps today, looking spectacular. A completely new liner has been installed in the bathroom. And the laundry room, hallway and furnace room are dark and without power. The belief/hope is that tomorrow the wiring will be dry and the GFCI can be reset. We'll see...
