Renovation Timeline: What I learned when I didn't create one for my own project.

As you may be aware, my family is going through a renovation of our own.  Although Rick had no intention to develop our basement, I have always wanted the house 100% complete since we built it.  We started our basement development just after Christmas with no renovation timeline in place.  We knew that we were going to do a lot of the construction work ourselves while working around our full-time work calendars.When it comes to managing renovations for clients, I always put together a renovation timeline so that my clients can see what is going to be done, who is going to be accessing their home, etc.  I knew with our basement that we were in no hurry and that there was going to be no renovation timeline.  Oh boy, can I just say that was a HUGE mistake!

Renovation Timeline

While we did most of the work and love doing the physical work, I was feeling like this project was never going to end.  When we came back from Maui I sort-of put my foot down.  OK - the foot came down hard and I created a renovation timeline so we could get this done!  When I create a renovation timeline I typically work backward from a certain event.  The 'certain event' in my own project was my son coming home for the summer from college.

What was left to do

When the renovation timeline was created, the last of the trades were booked.  Oh - that felt so good!  This past week was a full 'balls to the wall!'  We had

• our bar cabinetry installed,
• flooring installed,
• final plumbing,
• final electrical,
• and install of the closet organizer.

Why having a renovation timeline is so important

Not having a renovation timeline is never an option for me and my clients and what I learned with my own basement development is this:

Ensure you have some kind of timeline/calendar.

If you are renovating any space, make sure your Contractor or Project Manager sets up a calendar. This is the only way (IMHO) to ensure the project moves forward. And while the calendar dates and times are estimates only and subject to change, contingent on availability of trades and actual product arrival, at least you know the rough timeline of your project.Know that curve-balls can happen.With our basement,  we had a curve-ball with the flooring.  Without getting into details, the floor install was delayed by one day which led to the closet organizer installation being delayed by 3 days.  Things like this happen and you have to be able to go-with-the-flow when it is out of your hands.

Good things take time.  

If you are ordering any type of custom furniture, it takes time to have it made and delivered.  We have ordered custom furniture so the timeline for that is roughly 8-10 weeks.  We also have custom floating shelves being made.  While the shelves are made, we are patiently waiting for the hardware to be made.

Keep your eye on the prize.

I know that in the end, our basement is going to be a fantastic living space.  We took time to go over many design options (and Rick is not the easiest client) to come up with the best solution for our family.  We truly are one-day closer.Here are few photos (and they are not professional ones as you will be able to tell) with how our basement is shaping up.    

Living through our second renovation I can sympathize with my clients when they start to get antsy. I know that sometimes clients need to express their frustration with having dust, people, and an unsettledness in their home.  My goal is to alleviate as much stress as possible and ensure that in the end, they are completely satisfied with their final results.

Thinking of an upcoming renovation and don't know where to start?  Contact us today to discuss your next project.