Good thing it's not winter!

Gas company came over first thing this morning and turned on the gas.  I hadn't needed any since its summer and I didn't need the hot water heater since I didn't have any water until a few days ago.  An hour after the gas company left, the furnace guys came to install furnace.  They were first going to remove old furnace and then go pick up the new one.  When I went there 3 hours later, I was surprised that they were gone.  I thought they finished pretty fast.  But, when I went down to basement there was nothing there.  Then I found a note that said the new one hadn't arrived so they will be back when it comes in.  Whenever that is!! My phones were out all day today because I switched providers so first thing tomorrow I will give them a call.  Luckily it's August.....

Roofers showing up tomorrow-we'll see...

Finally got a working toilet!

This is my daughter, Amanda, after she helped me put in the new toilet.  It's kinda of a temporary fix.  We'll have to take it out again when we decide on what floor to put in and what we want to do with the exposed vent pipe to the attic. I hope my niece won't be too afraid to use it when they get here from Cali.  Now that the plumbing is all done, we have a kitchen sink with water and the toilet.   Now no running home to use one..
The furnace is being installed Thursday and the new roof is starting Friday.  It is supposed to take 3-5 days.  Labor intensive because there are 4 layers!  Also, the addition has a flat roof that they are making sloped.  No more flat roof for the Michigan weather!
bye for now..
p.s  I did want to mention that the plumber took the cast iron tub out all by himself!  His friend never showed up so he put it on his back, like a turtle, and carried it down the stairs.  Plumbers are strong!!

Now you see it, now you don't!

The tub is gone and it wasn't a big mess either.  The plumber had a friend come over and help him haul the heavy cast iron tub out in one piece.  I had brought 4 32-gal garbage cans, a bunch of rubbermaid totes and all the buckets I had, just in case they were needed to haul all the pieces away.   I'm sure I'll find enough garbage to fill all of them in the next few months.  A family that  Amanda knows is also remodeling a house and they have a huge dumpster they rented sitting in front of their house.  They said we can use it to dump our stuff.  I'll be taking them up on the offer pretty soon. 

As of a few hours ago, the plumber still wasn't completely done with all the pipes.  It's ok if I don't have water yet because we have other plans for the weekend and won't be spending much time there anyway.  But, it looks great so far.  All new PVC for the drains and PEX for water lines. I'll  hook up the new upstairs toilet I bought at Lowes yesterday on Sunday.  I won't have to run to the local park restroom anymore!

The town Ox Roast Festival started yesterday.  The house is only a block away from all the fun.  Heading there now...

Plumber started ripping out pipes and drains yesterday.(i dont know if 'ripping out' is a plumbing term-ha!). He threw the main cast iron pipe and some galvanized pipe out in the yard. It smelled!  I'm saving it for my friends, the thrifty sisters, so I had to throw a tarp over it hoping no other metal scavengers got it overnight.  The kitchen is a mess! When the plumber cut out one pipe that extended across the width of the room, he said it was filled with black stinky stuff and it poured all over him and the floor.  I noticed when I went back to the house that he had changed his shirt and after seeing the kitchen I realized why.  Today he is supposed to demolish the beautiful turquoise tub.  Darn!
I signed the contract to get a furnace.  It should be installed in the next 5-10 days.  Hopefully we won't need to run it for months!  As soon as it is put in, I need to get ducts cleaned.  They have probably 75 years of dust,toys,spiders and who-knows-what in them.  I don't want Livi and Cori breathing that.  Then we will add our own dust in the next 6-8 months!
I stopped at my favorite store yesterday-Habitat Restore.  I bought a brand-new, still in box, all-in-one utility sink for basement.  It comes with sink, faucet, hoses and P-trap.  In a store it runs about $100 but I got it for $38.  (call me Thrifty).  Also, I got an antique dresser/desk that can be used to make a vanity in the first floor bath.  When we get to that project, I'll send before and after pics.
Got to get going for the day and buy a toilet!

plumbing

Today the water company is coming to put in a pipe to the water meter.  I guess they remove it when houses are foreclosed so people don't use the water in the house for free when it's empty.  Then the plumber should be there to demolish all pipes and the cast iron tub.  He asked me if I wanted to do it and save myself some money. After watching the videos on youtube, seeing how hard it is with a sledgehammer, I decided I'd pay him to do it.  I bought 2 32-gal garbage cans to put pieces in.  I don't know how he'll carry it himself since he doesn't have any help. He said it takes 2 days to get rid of everything and 1 day to put in all the new pipes and drains.  That seems pretty fast to me but at least I'll have water and a toilet by the weekend!

PLUMBING EXPOSED!

Tomorrow the plumber is coming to finally give the house some water.  When I had the house inspected, the bank's real estate agent said that the house wasn't properly winterized (in MI you have to do that!) so the pipes had burst and they didn't want the water turned on to make it worse.  I decided I was going to buy the house anyway and take my chances that there wasn't too much damage, like mold.  I started getting estimates to fix the pipes. It was suggested that I get all new plumbing because through the years it had been fixed by people who might not have known what they were doing (there are 5 types of pipes/drains in the house).  After 4 estimates, I finally picked the plumber yesterday.  For the last week, we have been exposing all the pipes and drains.  The plumber told me that I have one more wall to do in the upstairs bath to expose the vent stack that goes up through the roof.  Gotta head over there now..

August 15, 2011

Hello Family and Friends!!
I thought I would make a blog if anyone was interested in seeing the progress on a house I bought 2 weeks ago and plan on flipping in 9 months or less.  It is going to be a lot of labor (and $) but I have my (little) sister, Cori,  moving to Michigan from San Diego to help.  I know I can't do it without her!
This house was a foreclosure that I couldn't pass up.  It is 1.7 miles from my own home in a town that I have lived in for 19 years and love.  I hope after we are done with the house, a family will move in that will love the house and town as much as I do.