The owners of this Newburyport home had a few renovation and remodeling projects they wanted to get underway, but little did they know, there were a couple of unexpected problems that arose during the construction process.
Unfortunately, while replacing the exterior siding and trim work on the right side of the home, the Perry Brothers Construction crew discovered they had to replace a big part of the chimney due to rotting that resulted from substantial water damage over time.
The cause, well, the original homeowner decided to make framing the exhaust system for the fireplace a DIY project, leading to the resulting water damage after the home was already sold to the homeowners.
While most of the home renovations were pre-planned, there were a few overruns, some elective and some unexpected. After being recommended by a neighbor, the homeowners decided to contact Perry Brothers Construction for an assessment and quote on the work they planned to do.
Because of their fifty years of experience and clear communication, the homeowners knew that Perry Brothers Construction could provide their home with the expert home remodeling services they desired.
The Problem: This home in Newburyport needed a complete bathroom remodel, a kitchen renovation, refinished hardwood floors across the first-floor and basement level, a mudroom for the basement, trim work, and painting for the basement stairwell, along with exterior siding and trim work.
Later during the renovation process, they also decided to finally replace their front entrance door, as well as add a few extra outdoor light fixtures. Replacing the chimney exhaust was added later after the water damage was discovered.
The Solution: Perry Brothers Construction examined the entire home and outlined a proposal and budget the homeowners were comfortable proceeding with, which of course, when completed, was completely on target.
Even after the water damage discovery, the management and on-site team’s attitude was that they were here until the job is done and the homeowners are completely satisfied.
“They managed the project end to end extremely well, we’re very pleased with the results.”
– Craig Wilson
The Expected Home Renovations
Originally, the homeowners had a few different remodeling and renovation projects they wanted to move forward with, including a full-scale bathroom remodel, upgrades to their kitchen, brand-new hardwood floors, and among other things, they wanted to replace some outdated exterior siding and trim work.
A Bathroom Remodeling Success Story
The bathroom remodel required the Perry Brothers team to completely gut the walls and remove all the outdated fixtures such as the toilet, vanity, and sink. After selecting their new bathroom fixtures, including new lights, a full-size mirror, and tiles for the walls and floor, the crew could begin the demolition phase of the project.
After their dumpster arrived from Meadows Disposal Company the demolition and disposal crew got to work, removing all the debris, and keeping a clean job site throughout the entire project. Once demolition was completed they began by screwing and gluing a hard backer board to the floor sheathing, assuring the floor will be leveled before installing the new tiles.
Once they had a blank canvas to work with, the construction process began. After leveling and properly installing the toilet and vanity, the project manager brought the tile contractors on board to install the new tiles on the walls and floor. The baseboard and interior trim had to be replaced, along with the bathroom window. After installing the vanity mirror and bathroom light fixtures the final touches were applied as the painters put a new coat of paint on the walls and ceiling.
Time To Renovate The Kitchen
While not a full-scale kitchen remodel, the homeowners wanted a fresh look and experience when making their home-cooked meals for their family. The scope of the work consisted of refinishing the cabinets, replacing the counter-top, stripping the backsplash and tiling, installing a brand-new faucet, sink, and garbage disposal, painting, new light fixtures, along with interior trim work for the window sills and sliding french door.
The kitchen cabinets had all their knobs, hardware, and handles replaced, along with a refinishing of the wood. The countertop was replaced by subcontractors hired and overseen by the project manager. JJ Electric installed the new light fixtures and the plumber replaced the faucet, garbage disposal, and sink. The tile contractors came back to replace and grout the backsplash, while the trim work was handled by our finish carpenters.
Refinishing The Hardwood Floors
Across the first floor, the homeowners wanted to install brand-new oak flooring, which included the kitchen, dining area, living room, and front entrance. The refinishing process began with our team removing all the existing appliances in order to strip the existing flooring down to the sheathing. This also required the team to remove the baseboard and kick-toe on all the kitchen cabinets.
Soon all that was left to do was install the ¾” tongue and groove oak flooring boards. After installation, we sanded and applied two coats of oil poly to the flooring, along with sanding and applying poly to any existing flooring that didn’t need to be replaced. Finally, we replaced the cabinet baseboard and kick-toes that we originally had to remove.
Building A Basement Mudroom
With the basement being a common entrance to the home for the family’s children, the homeowners wanted to make sure there was a place to store shoes and coats before going upstairs and potentially dirtying the main floor of the house.
To accomplish this goal, using ¾” AC paint-grade plywood, we fabricated a wooden bench with open shelving under the seat. We installed trim boards connecting to where the wall joined to create a coat rack above the bench. After painting and polying the bench seat and shelving, the end result was a stunning mudroom that impressed us almost as much as it impressed the homeowners.
Renovating The Basement Stairwell
Connecting from the mudroom to the first floor of the house, there was a stairwell that required some minor renovations. Most of the work consisted of removing and replacing the old skirt board, handrails, and brackets with much thicket stock. After the hardware installation was complete our painters proceeded to add a fresh coat of the homeowner’s desired color to the stairwell.
Replacing The Exterior Siding And Trim Work
Mainly consisting of the left side of the home where the chimney is located, we began by removing and replacing all the corner boards from the ground level to the top of the chimney, along with the trim board on the top section of the chimney.
After installing a tapered roofing system with foam insulation panels, we replaced the old rusted chimney cap with a shiny new white aluminum one. This is around the time when we discovered the chimney exhaust was not framed properly, and the result was an unfortunate amount of water damage to the right side of the home, but more on that later.
We removed and replaced the trim on the left and right sides of two garage doors, as well as installed new weatherstripping, removed the corbels on both doors, replaced some trim on the lower corner of the left front side, and installed a shelving unit hung from the ceiling in the back of the garage. After giving the homeowners an Anderson slider lock set with an exterior keyed cylinder and latch, they were finally ready to enjoy their renovated two-car garage.
There was also a rear patio door that needed to have all the trim removed and replaced. We applied aluminum flashing to the top of the door and secured PVC trim with stainless steel screws to the rest.
Installing The New Asphalt Roof
While this part of the project was delayed until the cooler weather, as Massachusetts summers are just too hot for replacing an entire roofing system, once done the homeowners were more than pleased with the results.
First, we stripped the original roof down to the sheathing before applying GAF Weather Watch Leak Barrier to the eaves, valleys, chimney, and rake boards. We installed an 8” white aluminum drip edge along the perimeter of the roof and covered the roof sheathing with a GAF Armor Roof Deck Protection system, which is a synthetic underlayment that helps protect your home against wind-driven rain and trapped moisture. After counter-flashing all the existing step flashing and applying a GAF Pro Start Starter Strip, we finished by installing the GAF Timberline 50-Year System Plus Warranty asphalt shingles.
Besides the asphalt roofing system, we cut a ridge to install the Cobra ridge vent and installed new flashing boots on all the vent pipes. The homeowners were extremely satisfied with the results, especially knowing that the roof shingles were protected under a fifty-year warranty.
“It was all easier and smoother than I expected”
– Moray Wilson
The Elective Overruns
As the homeowner’s renovation project continued, they decided to add on some work that they’ve been wanting to do but we’re unsure if the timing was right for them. During any home renovation or remodel change orders, whether elective or unexpected, are completely normal and happen all the time.
The first elective overrun was to remove and replace the front door to their home. After being shown their options, the homeowners decided to select a Therma Tru Smooth Star Craftsman Shaker Style Door with satin etched glass and an adjustable bronze composite threshold. The team insulated the perimeter of the door with non-expandable foam, used PVC stock for the exterior trim, and pine stock for the interior trim. After painting the door, the homeowners were delighted by this stunning entrance to their home.
Besides the front entrance door, the homeowners had a few outdoor lighting fixtures they wanted to be installed, which included a white PVC lamp post along the front walkway to the door, along with a few other outdoor lights.
The Unexpected Water Damage Discovery
As mentioned, while removing and replacing the exterior siding and trim on the right side of the house, Perry Brothers Construction discovered that the exhaust system to their chimney was not properly framed and installed, resulting in water damage that required a big part of the chimney to be replaced.
This process began with removing the vent and vinyl siding from the lower section of the chimney and then removing and replacing the rotted plywood. We fabricated a PVC block for the stove vent and flashing then reapplied the vinyl siding. While this problem didn’t take much time to fix, luckily it was caught before the damage could’ve required substantially more expensive work to repair.
Did Perry Brothers Construction Exceed Expectations?
The answer to this question is an overwhelming yes! Perry Brothers Construction exceeded all expectations by committing themselves to the project until all the work was completed and the homeowners were satisfied with the results.
The team’s attitude was that they were here until the job was done, not to mention, they were incredibly friendly and pleasant to have around the house, even going as far as helping the homeowners move heavy furniture and other objects that were on their to-do list.
The Perry Brothers Construction team hired and managed all the subcontractors, handled payments respectively, and always stayed on target with their budget and proposal. These Newburyport Massachusetts homeowners have even gone out of their way to recommend Perry Brothers Construction to their friends and neighbors, and next time they need renovation or remodeling services, they’ll be happy to have us back in their home.
If you want a home renovation or remodeling experience like Craig And Moray feel free to reach out to Perry Brothers Construction through our website or call our office at (781)-233-7511. We’d love to answer your questions and discuss any future projects for your home.
