insight

Protection During A Renovation

Protection During A Renovation - Read this home renovation insight now.

[gallery size="medium" ids="https://www.revisionrenovations.com/wp-content/uploads/wood_drilling.jpg|,https://www.revisionrenovations.com/wp-content/uploads/screws_and_blugs.jpg|,https://www.revisionrenovations.com/wp-content/uploads/carpenty_background.jpg|"]

Protection during a renovation. Protect yourself and your home.

Preparing:

You’ve chosen your contractor and have a construction/demolition start date i.e. it’s about to get busy! Protection during a renovation is key.

If any drywall is going to be disturbed, an asbestos test is required by a certified professional; and if it comes back positive, removed by a specialist hazmat crew.
A lead-based paint inspection should also be carried out in any home built before 1978, as exposure to this can also be harmful.
Any large quantity of drywall being removed or installed will generate a large amount of very fine dust, which if inhaled can be very harmful to the respiratory system. Because of this, it’s always a good idea to ventilate the area as much as possible. Wear a dust mask in the area while work is in progress and seal off the area with ‘poly’ walls for the duration of the work.
Again, prior to commencing work, all air vents should be sealed off to prevent the spread of dust and debris via the ducts. It stops your furnace from being damaged by foreign objects falling into the vent. It saves you time and money having to get the vents cleaned specially.
Floor and surface protection is key protection during a renovation! We use RamBoard, foam and drop-cloths to protect finished surfaces. Often trades are working as fast as possible and are sometimes careless with tools and lack spacial awareness. To prevent any unwanted scratches, chips or scuffs, laying down protection and secure it with tape. It also prevents annoying dusty boot prints on your floor.
Allocate an area for waste and debris to be stored and be sure to make trades aware of this. Setting out your standards of cleanliness encourage trades to maintain their own standards. Nothing annoys us more than careless and messy trades!

Time, money and effort spent preparing for construction mess saves much more tidying and repairing post-construction.

Protection During a renovation:

Maintaining

in extremely busy and active construction sites things get knocked out of place, moved ‘temporarily’ and not be put back. Be vigilant of this and replacing or repairing where needed. This includes removing the waste and debris from the allocated area; garbage removal/ recycling crews can seem pricey, but they’re extremely efficient and leave the place as though nothing had ever been there. Just be sure to separate drywall from the other garbage as they won’t take mixed bags.

Set and live by your own expectations. A clean and tidy work area means their workmanship won't be called into question when they leave. Admittedly, there is always going to be some mess that nobody can control. Avoid the 'blame game' by setting standards and demand they be kept. We have this in our sub-trade agreement.

One of our biggest pet peeves at reVISION Custom Home Renovations is screws, nails and metal fixings being dropped on hardwood floors and not being picked up. Understandably they can get dropped, unforgivable that they’re not picked up. It takes one small screw to be stood on to damage a new hardwood floor. Magnetic ‘brooms’ can be purchased from hardware stores (Home Depot) to prevent this from happening.
This one may sound obvious, but whilst working, trades may forget, something as simple as a few signs reminding them not to put tools on finished surfaces will go a long way.
Lockboxes ensure nobody has to be chased around for access to the project. You know exactly who you have given the code to and when they were on site - accountability.

Post renovation:

Deficiency walk throughs with each trade are beneficial when managing your own project. Be sure to walk through at least twice with a friend or relative first as you may have become accustomed to what you see. Don’t feel awkward about asking a trade questions regarding their work. They’re professionals and if something doesn’t seem right, they will often either have a straight-forward answer or may have just overlooked it and will correct their mistake.
Permits and inspections must to be completed and up to date. This means the final inspection by your constituent city can run smoothly.