The inspector from the local power utility came to check out my rough-in on Wednesday. My understanding was that there was an initial inspection following rough-in, and then a final inspection after the basement was complete. It turns out that unless the inspector has some concerns, there is only one inspection.
After looking around briefly, and verifying I knew a few basic pieces of information (that I needed an arc fault breaker for the bedroom plugs, and I can have up to 12 devices on a breaker) the inspector made a break for the door. It may have helped that he came at the very end of the day so I could meet him after work, and that there was a pile of snow dumped that afternoon, which he referenced having to go home to shovel. Or maybe I'm just awesome at wiring rough-ins. Either way, mission accomplished!
Today I have Lowes drop 40 sheets of drywall on the driveway. With my commercial account with Lowes, I get delivery for $20. I couldn't drive my truck to the Lowes and back for $20 (even if it had plates on it, and wasn't under three feet of snow.) They were also supposed to drop off the tub/shower, which I got for $200 off, but it wasn't in stock. They will deliver it next week (for free.)
After work, four of us schlepped the drywall into the basement, through the window which is the width of drywall plus 1/4". It was a bit tricky maneuvering the 12' sheets into the opening, with our 6' high fence only being 6' away from the window. However, the majority of the sheets were only 8' long, and went in easily. However, doing this with less than 4 people is not recommended.
The drywall could have been purchased from a local company who delivers right into the basement. However, the cost for this is $4 more per sheet of drywall, plus $75. The price difference of $237 made any of the awkwardness of loading the drywall into the basement seem trivial.
I also picked up a vanity/top at Home Depot which is very similar to our cabinets/vanities upstairs. The quote from the cabinet company for the vanity/countertop was over $550. The Home Depot version, with a slightly different countertop, was $270 tax included. Due to the distance between the vanities, we figure no one will notice the difference. And $280 savings is $280 in savings.
Initially, I got a quote from Lowes for a the majority of the items the reno would require (tub, flooring, drywall, lumber, suspended ceiling, vanity, taps) as any Commercial order over $2500 is eligible for discounts of "up to 20%." When the quote came back, most things were between 5% and 10% off. I only selected the products with 10% or higher discounts for the order, and since then, I have been sale-shopping for the other items. I think the best way to save as much as you can is to have a sense of what you want, and then in the months leading up to a reno, and during the reno, check flyers. For example, the shower faucet I picked from Lowes for $89 went on sale at Co-op for $69. Though it is only $20, over the course of a reno, it will add up. This also helps you spread out the costs over a few months.
So, now I will drywall, and as I do, complete the wiring and plumb in the tub/shower combo. After that is done comes mudding, which is the only job on the reno I plan to hire out. I don't have the patience to mud. Stay tuned for more updates!
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