I don’t know which is worse — a root canal or a remodel. At least a root canal’s fairly brief and when it’s done you can go back to your peaceful home and restore your equilibrium. Not so with a remodel. There’s no place to hide from the dust, noise and chaos, which goes on…
The question I get most from readers is: "Can you recommend a contractor?" I’ve got something better than that: A list of general contractors whose projects have been featured in my "Pardon Our Dust" series in the Los Angeles Times. I can’t really recommend a contractor, but the homeowners who hired these companies were so…
Pardon Our Dust Alumni: Designers and Architects Pardon Our Dust Alumni: General Contractors County and City Building Departments Remodeling Industry Associations
I admit it: I get emotionally attached to houses. When they get torn down, or parts of them are demolished during remodeling, I feel a loss. Do you? Here are some ways to allow an old house to live on: • Repurpose the old framing lumber. It’s usually extremely good wood, much better than what…
If so, check out this story, “So you want to be your own contractor,” in this weekend’s San Francisco Chronicle. The subhead is: “Be super-prepared and endlessly patient, say homeowners who’ve taken on the job.” I like this idea in the story: to gain building experience by volunteering for Habitat for Humanity. Also from the…
Here’s the photo, and the captions. Again, you can only vote once, but you can vote for as many as you like. (P.S. I’ve had to take some “gentle edits” to shorten a couple of captions as the polling software only accepts submissions up to 100 characters. Oops.) Good luck!
Got a remodeling question you’d really like to ask a remodeling contractor? On Monday, May 21, Pardon Our Dust Blog begins an occasional series that brings you Southern California remodeling experts willing to answer your questions. As time goes by, I may offer you a window expert, a flooring expert, a green building expert, a…
I’ll admit that my view of remodeling is distorted. I’ve spent the past 17 years interviewing hundreds of homeowners whose remodels turned out great, and hundreds of contractors who are their heroes. Right at this moment, there are three Southern California homeowners looking forward to an interview with me in the next couple of days…
My first suspicion when a magazine publisher puts out a book is: Uh-oh, recycled magazine articles. Even the subtitle of the book — “Easy Projects to Transform Your Home Inside and Out” — made me wary. As any DIY-er can attest, projects in books are rarely as easy and painless as book authors, editors and…
In retrospect, a young couple reported on today in “‘Dream house’ collapses on Sunnyside hill” should have hired experts to shore up the 1910 home’s crumbling foundation. Check out these photos of the collapsed fixer-upper in the San Francisco Chronicle. As one neighbor opined, the couple “may have gotten in over their heads.” Fortunately, no…