Always do a project on a holiday when you can be sure stores are not open so you can't get necessary parts; gut everything especially if it's a bathroom. And by luck, the outlets in the living room will quit working.
Someone is down in the basement cutting the drains so while you are cooking dinner to feed everybody. There isn't any hand washing but you are cooking potatoes so they can be mashed but remember, you can't pour water down the drain because they have been cut. So to be helpful your son-in-law takes the pan of potatoes outside to drain and then proceeds to dump them on the ground. No problem you can always feed them beans.
Your daughter is in the living room working on the receptacles to find the problem and calling out for her husband to shut off the breaker. Needless to say he shuts off the wrong breaker and she gets zapped. Now remember you don't have a bathroom and the outlets don't work in the living room and your dinner has been dropped out in the front yard.
Now while all of this chaos is going on someone goes to bathroom in second bathroom and the water from the toilet accidentally goes down the drain. In the meantime one of the dogs craps on the floor and your daughter yells out who crapped on the floor and my grandson is down in the basement and yells upstairs, "it wasn't me, Ma."
In the meantime the outlets get fixed but now the lights won't shut off. Remember she is a Do-it-yourself. Actually, everybody involved is a Do-it-yourself. Oh, and to make it more interesting we are having a blizzard outside. The moral of this story is: Do not let your son-in-law get involved. Just let him sit and watch the football games.
Now it is a few hours later and the bathroom is not done and they only have a few minor leaks, the lights in living room don't shut off, but we did get dinner over with can't do the dishes because there isn't any water. My tip is to hire a licensed plumber, electrician and contractor.
This page contains the following solutions.
Finding a good contractor is important. You want the work that they do to not only look good but be durable and safe. Here are a few tips to finding a good contractor:
We recently went through renovating our kitchen, due to a fire. Here a some great tips I would like to pass along on any room you are renovating, when using a contractor.
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I am single, in my 40s, and disabled. I have a very low income. Does anyone know of a construction company or general contractor that has home building knowledge and experience that would be willing to help me build a small house in Brookings, Oregon at a low cost?
I would contact HUD.org or Habitat for Humanity.
I am assuming you own your own property and would like someone to build you a new home. There are programs that will help with this but you would have to qualify. You say you are disabled with a low income so you may qualify. Are you presently on any government assisted programs? Food stamps? SSI or SSDI? This type of assistance usually means you have a better chance of qualifying.
Habitat may not be in your immediate area but that would not stop them from helping you. Here are a couple of sites that you can complete inquires and someone should contact you if they need further information or maybe call you.
I would just like to add that you can contact the American Hope Resources in your area. They are there to help find you financial resources, assistance programs and other benefits.
Most definitely try HUD, or Habitat for Humanity, or even check your local recources for information and/or recommendation. Yes you may have to prove your low income status, but that is far better than many other options. My brother recently tried to find someone "cheap" using Facebook when needing to remodel after a house fire.
Does anyone know someone in Columbia, SC that does construction work and needs work but will not be a rip off? We have been in our house for 40 plus years and need a lot of work done.
By Brenda from Columbia, SC
You're best bet is to call 'at least' a half dozen 'licensed' company's in the phone book, get written bids from each of them and then check each one out through the licensing board and the better business bureau before deciding who to hire even if someone here at TF or a local neighbor gives you a 'recommendation'! Am speaking from experience!
Try this contractor association. http://www.nari.org
And always get the estimate in writing with a stipulation that there are no extra charges unless you agree to them in writing first. Also, try out a new contractor on a small project first so you see how the relationship goes.
