Make a good plan

I love home improvements. The planning and research are almost as

much fun as the finished product.

I don’t always love the financial part, and I certainly don’t like

the inconvenience, but freshening up the house is high on my list of

priorities. When you buy an older home, you know you’ve signed a

contract for continuous care. If it’s not the water heater, it’s the

paint on the eaves. If it’s not the paint, it’s the plumbing: it’s an

old story, you know how it goes.

Maintenance is one thing. A planned project is another. I’ve

learned the hard way how to budget time and money. I’ve made plenty

of mistakes and been unpleasantly surprised by costs that I didn’t

figure in the original budget. Inevitably, the project takes longer

than expected, the subcontractors have a fluid timeline, and there is

a crisis or two to solve along the way.

Just live by the motto, “no pain, no gain.” If your project is

large, you need to hire an architect and contractor. Good luck. If

you’re working within the lines, meaning that your improvements are

of a cosmetic nature, you can go it alone. Good planning will help

you make it through your project with a modicum of wounds. First on

the list is demolition. Somehow, paying to take something down is not

quite as gratifying as paying to have something built up. Demolition

is labor and equipment intensive. Add to that the cost of having

refuse hauled away or multiple dumpsters... it adds up. But you can’t

have the second without the first, so suck it up and plan for this

first phase on any construction.

Anything custom translates into time and money. I’m not trying to

discourage you from having custom work done. Most of my projects fall

into the “custom” category. Just plan ahead. If new cabinets take

four weeks to build, back that into your timeline. It’s better to

store a few things in the garage than to reschedule your entire

project.

This also holds true with plumbing, light fixtures, tile and

flooring. If the plumber comes and you don’t have the necessary

contraptions (aka stub-outs), he moves on to the next job and you are

in hot water ... or not. The same is true with electrical fixtures.

If you don’t purchase the sconces that will go above the mantle, how

can the electrician possibly pull the wiring through the wall?

Considering the wide variety of available (or custom) lighting, it’s

impossible to hardwire without the fixtures. Do your homework: buy

it, store it.

Drywall is another category that has gotten me into a lot of

trouble. There is no such thing as a big “patch”. I’ve tried it. If

you need to replace part of a damaged wall, move light fixtures, take

out cabinets or need to cut through a wall to replace plumbing,

drywall repair should be added to the list. Now for another

irritating fact about drywall: it’s a multiple day process. Patch,

mud, dry, sand, mud, dry, sand again. That’s the best-case scenario.

It takes a couple of days at best. You don’t want to know the worst

case and I don’t want to be the one to break the news to you. Give

your finish carpenter plenty of notice. Have him buy the materials

ahead of time so there is no question that he will be able to start

measuring twice and cutting once when you are ready.

Paint: you’re closing in on the end. Unfortunately, by the time

you paint, the entire family is exhausted and ready for the project

to be done. You’ve already spent more money than you planned and

paying for a top quality paint contractor seems impossible. All I can

advise you to do is not scrimp on the quality of your finished

product. I think a good paint job is the equivalent of finding the

right shoes to go with an outfit. A good paint job makes it or breaks

it. Pick your color long before you start the project. In other

words, make a plan. How can you pick tile, carpet or fabric if you

don’t have a paint color selected? Go to the paint store and grab a

few color cards. Tape them up around your rooms. Look at them in the

morning, midday and in the evening. Buy a few tester quarts and some

foam brushes and see how you like the color. Be sure to paint a test

patch near the woodwork to see the contrast. Paint a patch in a dark

corner and in the direct light. Live with it for a while. Rome wasn’t

built in a day. The actual painting is the least of a paint

contractor’s job. It’s all about prep. The more prep, the better the

final product will look. What’s another layer of dust at this point

anyway?

Caulk, sand, patch, sand, fill, sand, paint sand, paint sand,

paint. Now you’re done. I’d rather postpone buying furniture. Paint

is the piece de resistance. Now for the cleanup, cleanup and then

some more cleanup. But it’s worth it. Really.

Somehow, after a job is done, the painful memories fade and the

glory of a successful endeavor shines through. Until the dishwasher

floods the kitchen ...

* KAREN WIGHT is a Newport Beach resident. Her column runs

Sundays.