I haven't done an update on what is going on upstairs, nor downstairs for that matter - but that is a story for another day. The renovation has been quietly (and slowly) going on expensively in the background, but progress is being made.
We had to pull our plumber into the mix to take the radiators off so that we could install the plaster board on the walls behind and also look at the shower in the bathroom. We have a pretty fancy Grohe shower system and one of the features isn't working - and we found out why. The plumber failed to hook up one of the wires and now we are a bit screwed. There is a slim chance it can be repaired by entering in from the other side of the wall where our wardrobe is, but it is unsure. I will be a bit annoyed if it can't be repaired...
But it is starting to take shape and the form is coming together. The workers we have are working in their off time and they are busy, so we are getting their extra hours which are pretty sporadic. However, we aren't in "too much" of a rush, but at this point, we still need to meet the early 2021 deadline for the evaluation to roll the renovation portion of the loan into the main loan. The difference in interest rates if we can't do this is significant. so we are keen to make it.
However, we are also going to try to extend the evaluation period due to the effects of Covid, as we have been delayed in various ways on both materials and workers. We were finally able to order the tiles we have chosen for the entrance, only to discover that they do not know if they will be able to get them, since pretty much everything comes in from Italy. Supply chains are breaking down.
Tomorrow, we also have to get some temporary electric radiators to keep the upstairs warm, as it is getting much cooler now and without the radiators installed, the wall spackle is not drying fast enough. We have water-heated radiators, but we will also have an AC unit installed and possibly have electric heating in the wardrobe areas, as the radiators might require some very dogy looking pipework that would run through half the house.
As you can see, the structure to hold the ceiling is in and there are a lot of wires running underneath. We are hoping to hide as much of the cabling as we can as pretty much every wire in the entire house has to be replaced - and electrical has been one area of significant budget blowout. It has to be done of course, so we just have to grin and bear it. The 4000€ rebate we don't qualify for would have just about covered what we hadn't budgeted for, but "dem the breaks."
We don't have a time estimate on when we can move upstairs, but I am hoping that we will get up there by November, so that we have some time to get the downstairs on the move. There is less to do on the lower floor other than the labor intensive entrance, so maybe with fingers and toes crossed, we can get a lot done before Christmas and have a "functional" home by the turn of the year.
I am looking forward to 2021, but then, I was looking forward to 2020 and this year has turned out to be a clusterfuck of a year, with so much going "off-plan" it is barely recognizable as a year at all. I don't think anyone was expecting it to be this way, but we do the best we can and see how far that'll take us. There are plenty of things in the world more important than a renovation, but at the same time, there is also the "live life" aspect where we go on about our day, doing the best we can. It has been good to be part of building something real - it has mattered to us.
Let's see if it actually matters.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]