Cheney Complete: Shifting Attention

We had a great write up in the Berkeley Times about our open house at the Cheney Cottage.  We've posted a copy of it on the Rockhead and Quarry website.  Go to Rockhead and Quarry and scroll to the bottom of the page to download the pdf.

So now that the Cheney Cottage has been officially finished, and we have tenants living in it, we're turning our attention back to the Delaney House.  The Delaney House is not as far from complete as one might imagine. Although much remains to be done, we are not doing the same level of restoration (none of the woodwork needs to be stripped, for example), so mostly the house is pretty straightforward/

Our Delaney House punch list (which is admittedly lacking in detail) goes something like this:

• Install double doors to back yard
• Finish installing trim on front of house (first floor) and finish painting entire house (80% complete)
• Finish installing wiring on first floor (Kitchen, living room and bath)
• Finish rewiring second floor (about 1/2 complete)
• Install hydronic heating loops in floor 
• Pour topping slab for new first floor
• Rough in hot and cold water
• Install plywood subfloor and wood floor for first floor
• Install kitchen cabinets and counters
• Connect plumbing in bathroom, kitchen, upstairs bath
• Install blueboard and plaster all walls
• Refinish floors
• Install missing door trim
• Install finish treads and railings on stairs
• Finish second floor balcony

See what I mean?  Hardly anything.  We expect to have the house done by the summer.  Stay tuned.

Everybody's Waiting

Today, our new tenants moved into the Cheney Cottage.  And we moved out.

Moving out the last of our tools

The punch list of things to get done has shrunk to practically nothing.  Inside, we still are having a problem with the light over the stairs, and the insulation hasn't happened.  And outside, we have to install some vents for the crawl space, run some supports for some of the wires, etc.

But the house is basically done and occupied.

The bathroom, ready to be used

The living room, full of other people's stuff

And more stuff

So who exactly are these people moving into our beautiful house?  Well, one of them is our son, Sabastian, who arrived back in town from San Diego just in time to go to the party last weekend, and then decide he wanted to live on 62nd Street.  The other tenants are friends of his, all of whom have been living together in a mold-infested house in El Cerrito.

Now they'll all be living in a house with heat, light, electricity, and beautiful woodwork and plaster.  They're a group of lucky kids.  And we're glad to have them there.

Sabastian's room

 And so you may ask: now what?  Don't forget, there's another wreck of a house still on the property.  The Delaney House has been waiting for us, and so now we'll turn our full attention to the back of the property.  In the next week, the driveway should be going in, and an electrical sub-panel will be installed in the Delaney House, from which we can run all the wiring inside.  The plumbing is also underway, and the upstairs bathroom has already had the drain lines installed.

Plus, Dan and the crew have been working on the drainage issues on the side, and soon we'll be able to cover up all the ditches and start landscaping the entire property.  Dan will soon turn his attention to finishing the front of the Delaney House (the other three sides are mostly done) and Dale will come back to finish painting.

Unlike the Cheney Cottage, most of the woodwork in the Delaney House is paint-grade, so there is no trim to strip - which is why the Cheney Cottage took us so long to complete.  From here, we're expecting everything to be fairly straightforward: install the heating system, pour the topping slab, install floors, wiring and plumbing, put up the walls, and finish the stairs.  We have two bathrooms to install, plus the kitchen.  And then lots of patching plaster and painting.

Yes, there is still a lot to do.  But tonight, we're feeling that this part of the story is done.  On to Chapter Two!