Remont - lessons learnt when it is over

Having nearly finished the process of furnishing and decorating the flat and having gone through the first (and surely not the last) remont ordeal in my life, before I rest my head, time to share what experience I have gained.

An old German adage says you build your first house for your enemy, the second one for your friend and the third one for yourself. I was doing my best to learn from mistakes made by my parents in their house and to avoid what was done wrong in two rented flats I dwelled in.

My first piece of advice – do not let yourself get carried away by purchase-related euphoria. I plead to have well underestimate the scope of works my flat required. Quickly after the purchase I realised it would not be just a thorough refurbishment and decided nearly everything would be ripped off, as brand new stuff would serve years. Cool down, take a deep breath, since all works need to be well-thought-out!

The second piece of advice – work out layout in advance – it pertains specifically to placing equipment and fixtures which require water and electricity connections (sink, kitchen, dishwasher, etc.) – rewiring and plumbing come first and should match how you want to get your flat arranged, not the other way round.

The third piece of advice – hire an architect if you lack time or idea to design your dwelling. With hindsight I do not regret not taking up one, but I see advantages of having a helping hand of a reasonable, experienced architect.

While being generally very satisfied with the outcome, there are some errors which could have been evaded.

The bathroom light switch location on the hinge side of the door is the paramount glitch and my mistake since I failed to notice importance of door opening direction (and ordered to swap the bathroom and toilet doors just ahead of the assembly). Actually if I am to be the owner of the flat when the next remont is done, light switches of the bathroom and the toilet will be combined and placed between the doors, on handle sides. I thought the solution would be peskier than it really is once I have got used to it.

I have chosen triple-glazed windows to get better insulation and noise protection. The difference in price was marginal but it turned out putting in internal rollers to it would be a problem (since the upper tube hits a wall while a window is being fully opened). Two companies refused to assemble it, the third one did it, after I signed a declaration I would not complain about the outcome. Actually the problem has turned out to be inflated (I had taken measurements before commissioning the assembly), however such buffers (made by my father) had to be stuck to balcony doors (the most frequently opened) and once it gets warmer, I will have to buy a sample of while paint to cover them.

The socket in the kitchen for the dishwasher (separate circuit) was placed before I worked up the layout of the kitchen, including where the dishwasher is placed. The upshot is that an extension cord (meeting safety criteria) had to be used. Just for the record, the previous dishwasher socket was just next to and below water valves!

The unpainted (this still needs to be done) has pipe is another example of minor glitches I have overlooked. In the hall one can spot the old fuse box, if the bespoke shoe cabinet was four centimetres deeper, more shoes boxes would fit it, compartment for ironing board and drying rack in the bedroom wardrobe should have been located on the outer side, and so on and so forth…

All in all, I have not underestimated the expenses (building materials, labour charges and furniture set me back nearly exactly 1,500 PLN per sqm), however grossly underestimated the duration of the venture. Seven months lapsed between the purchase and the moment I moved in. Location and layout of the flat are nearly perfect, the place feels like home, finally!

To celebrate it, I organise Easter this year at my place, a culinary challenge ahead, though at my parents’ insistence, we shared the work.

For the very ending, a series of snaps for the sake of comparison: October 2018 when the remont was at its worst vs. yesterday. Oh, what a makeover!

The flat - half year into...

Yesterday I deliberately (and without regret) missed the opportunity to celebrate half-anniversary of purchasing the flat. Having spent most of the Saturday running errands related to furnishing it, I did not even drop in on there (caught up today). After six months being continuously busy handling the endless restoration, the sound of the word remont makes me feel queasy.

In the purchase-related euphoria I have definitely underestimated the scope of works. Before stepping inside as an owner, I had planned something more than redecoration, with major refurbishments to be done in kitchen, hall, bathroom and toilet. As the day after the purchase I checked the technical condition of windows (and decided to order new ones), the list of things to be done once, but properly and for years began to grow longer and longer. The redecoration turned into a makeover, which actually was indispensable to a neglected 20-year-old dwelling. With hindsight, I believe a few works more could have been done as well.

The time frame for the venture has definitely been underestimated, I missed it by a long shot and my horizon of 3 months was extended to slightly more than 6 months. The major cause was the first crew of builders which had been postponing the onset of their works week by week, until I my father found new craftsmen (fortunately, they came in mere 3 weeks later). The remont has been a valuable lesson of patience.

Budget-wise, I have not summed up all expenses yet, however if I overshoot my target of 1,500 PLN per sqm, the overrun will not break the bank (annual bonus arrives in March).

Actually everyone who has had their dwelling refurbished experienced has learnt that:

- Murphy’s law works well on construction front (for the sake of caring about your mental health, worth distinguishing those mishaps you could have prevented, had you been more familiar with technical issues from those for which you should not blame yourself),

- nearly all builders and other professionals are a different breed (oblivious of concepts such as reliability, diligence, deadline, agreement).

While talking to people who have endured their remont a few years ago, most sympathise with me and recall their traumatic time. Mine actually has not been so ghastly thanks to involvement of my father who has spent hundreds of hours overseeing the process – otherwise I would have to seriously consider hiring somebody who would look after it.

Today, while at the scene, I forgot to take any snaps but:

- kitchen furniture have been partly installed (originally due to be completed by 8 February), besides a table and two chairs are the only missing elements,

- hall awaits wardrobes (due in the first week of March),

- bathroom is generally ready, but lacks a washing machine (a matter of a few days between an order and a delivery so I have been putting this purchase back for a few weeks now) and cabinet (due to arrive on Wednesday),

- toilet also awaits, but a cupboard,

- bedroom furniture to be delivered on Wednesday (hopefully) and the wardrobe to be put in along with the one in the hall,

- living room furniture have been ordered, but should arrive in late March.

Besides, several minor things still need to be done… I due course

Another set of remont musings after I move in. Sick and tired, but elated will I be then, by then just striving to carry it through.

Remont – home straight

A first report from the battlefield in 2019 after weeks of keeping curious readers in suspense. A lot has been done since then (glass half-full), but still a plenty of finishing works ahead (glass half-empty).

The kitchen is ready for assembly of ordered furniture. The initial assembly date was 23 January, but getting behind schedule is inevitable on the front. The dishwasher awaits installation along with kitchen furniture. A fridge and gas oven are due to be delivered the day after tomorrow. This is the only room thoroughly cleaned up.

Walls in the bedroom have been painted and floor panels will be laid next week. Pieces of furniture have been ordered (with lead time of 3-4 weeks they are due to arrive in mid-February). After the flooring panels get into place, wardrobe measurements might be taken.

Condition of the living room is akin to the bedroom, however I have not chosen furniture so far, though the concept has been in my head for a while. Furnishing this room is least urgent to inhabit the flat.

The toilet needs some fittings, including the most crucial ones, i.e. a washbasin and water flushing buttons. Still some work to be put in before the toilet can be used comfortably ;-)

In the bathroom, compared to how it looked out in mid-December, tiles have been laid, however much is to be done – shower booth, washbasin and several minor stuff need to be installed. But everything in due course.

The hall has thus become a clutter room, although the mass of stuff kept in the flat is targeted to be decreased if new pieces of equipment are to be brought in. Measurements of the wardrobe will mobilise to tidy up the place.

With so many tribulations along the way (recently unexpected goings on have been frequent), I don’t feel like envisaging the date of moving in…

Remont – some half way into?

Time to catch up with the first proper photo coverage since construction works kicked off for good. The crew of two builders (uncle and nephew) is diligent and solid, however at the expense of pace. On the other hand, a delay of a few weeks is worth enduring if it saves troubles caused by glitches in the future.

In the kitchen wall and floor tiles have been laid, yet crevices between them have not been filled with joint (the task is quite arduous and time-consuming if to be done properly). Walls and ceiling have been somewhat flattened with gypsum, but the work is not yet completed (green paint still visible). Next Saturday a kitchen-furniture-maker is coming over to take measurements and prepare a visualisation.

In the hall the scope of works is similar to what has been done in the kitchen. The carpenter who will put in wardrobes in the hall and in the bedroom might take measurements once floor panels in the bedroom are laid, which stands no chance to happen this year.

In the bathroom walls had to flattened with kilograms of mortar (why had I thought this blocks of flats had been built so solidly), or rather layers of it. No plumbing works done yet, accumulated stuff has been waiting its turn for two months.

In the toilet the makeshift toilet bowl might not necessarily be replaced by a new one (and this is positive, as the new one is not exposure to the entire construction site dirt and mess) this year. The toilet and the bathroom will be the most man-hour-consuming spaces in the flat.

The living room and the bedroom serve as storage areas. Walls have been flattened with gypsum, but only partly. Today I spent around three yours tidying up the flat (the crew is

generally precise and reliable, but in terms of keeping the place clean they could do with some more respect to what they already have done!),

such activity will be a part of almost each weekend by late January. The Christmas tide ahead does not help see the end of the remont, since the builders will most probably take a two-week break and return to the flat (having sobered up) after 6 January.

Far from the home straight, but not losing faith.

Odds and ends

Early days of November (and the last ones of October) brought over Poland a wave of anomalous warmth (on the same time Western swathes of Europe shivered). On Friday (2 November 2018) November heat record for Warsaw was broken (high of +19.2C vs. +18.9C measured on 1 November 2001); on the next day temperature record for the entire Poland was beaten (+24.6C vs. +23.5C on 2 November 1968). Conceivably some local records might be beaten in next days, as the hot spell, after a short weekend break, is about to continue until Thursday, but I doubt record-high temperatures will be seen, as days are getting shorter and the current of warm air flowing in from over Africa is waning.

Besides, forecasters are getting it wrong in their short-term predictions too often these days. The climax of the “heat wave” in Warsaw was foreseen to fall on 1 November, while the next day was meant to be some 3 degrees colder; eventually it went exactly the other way round. Today was meant to be a sunny and warm Sunday with day-time high of +17C, in fact the capital has not seen a single sunbeam, but it drizzled all day, temperature failed to climb above +12C. I had planned to close the cycling season today (spent Friday in the office so could not make the most the +19.2C), but as it turns out, I probably enjoyed the last ride on 13 October 2018 (which saw the day-time high of +21.6C).

I pedalled from Bielany south along the Vistula. Infrastructure for cyclists on the western bank of the river is well-developed and on most sections pedestrians and cyclists have their areas separated. Plenty of people were out to lap up what seemed to be the last weekend of summer.

It was the second time I crossed Vistula using the cycling precinct built beneath the roads of Most Łazienkowski, the bridge rebuilt and revamped after the blaze in February 2015. Thumbs up for this passage letting the non-motorised cross the river away from the traffic.

On my way north, on the eastern bank I made stopovers on several beaches. It was past four in the afternoon, yet still many folks were hanging around and catching rays of low-shining sun. They knew some six months of sparse sunlight and chill in abundance would have to pass before the comeback of warmth.

Further north the cycling trail swings away from the river and runs on the embankment. It was ten past five and temperature markedly fell. The number of cyclists on that section also declined, though maybe these areas are not as popular, especially in low season.

Heading back to my dwelling (no, not home, home is in Ursynów or at my parents’) I cannot wait to move out of (for some reason I feel the temporary place of residence at best lacks a good energy) – the setting sun shines in my face. Next year I promise to take much more trips by bike north of Warsaw. By early spring the remont will have been over, the flat will have been furnished. Sweet dreams…

On the remont front, the builders have brought their tools yesterday and tomorrow works kick off for good. The living room is now full not only of construction materials but also of tools. As works move on, it will also be full of rubbish and each Saturday will start with clearing up (I prefer to do it myself and have builders focusing on their work).

Traces of rewiring are seen in the empty kitchen. The first works here, after flattening the floors, will be renovations of walls. Then tile laying should ensue thereafter. On Wednesday I found a guy who will do kitchen furniture to me – the last thing to be arranged to ensure things move on smoothly down the line ticked off.

The snap of the toilet and the bathroom taken three weeks ago, but inserted here instead of the one taken today, as today’s pic was too blurred (nothing has changed since then, sadly, but as my friend commented, kibel jest, można mieszkać). Now a bit of patience and it will be lifted from ruins and become a cosy place to live.

Life-wise, I am trying to lift myself from being down in the dumps (this is not the relapse of depression, but a combination of factors that brought together get me down), but circumstances resemble headwinds rather than tailwinds...

The tide must turn one day

Have not kept you posted in the topic of tidings from the remont front. The builders who had promised to set off on 1 October, then on 8 October so when for the third time they explained themselves they were stricken by some setbacks with their previous commitments, my father made a few calls to his friends and found another crew, but they will (hopefully) kick off on 5 November and have estimated all works would last until Christmas. I consider this a miracle since on Friday I read in one of reputable dailies the best crew have backlogs for two years!

The fact the remont has gotten behind schedule should not take me aback, just like being double-crossed by the builders, an experience nearly everyone is familiar with. I have even learnt to live with frustration that so little is going on in my dwelling. My father has nearly finished (taking a break for the grandpa’s funeral period) the rewiring; electricity wires had been in such mess that according to dad it was a miracle a fire had not broken out in the flat; with the seller being accountable for the mess, as the wiring had been totally inconsistent with original documentation of the flat (glad to have hit it off with the property administrator).

Negativity has taken over me in recent days (or weeks). Whatever I get down to, whatever I handle, my head is full of scenarios of what can go wrong. Remont, especially if you do not decide to hire somebody to look after it and take that burden off your back and come up with solutions if things tangle up, is an endless streak of nuisances, a steep ascent uphill, a struggle against unreliable people. To finish this paragraph with a glimmer of hope, there were a few incidences when things went smoothly, to my surprise.

At work it is uphill as well, things to complain about are same as ever: excessive workload, poor organisation and unreliable workmates. Two last months of the year loom particularly ominous, as the imminent handover of client coverage and the merger will increase the work beyond the point in which one can control the whole mass of tasks to be duly done. Relief is said to be brought in 2019 and the prospect of better days is realistic.

Memories of the relationship terminated more than three months ago (in the flat-related haste I still have not fully got over it, rather I have drowned out the waterfall of thoughts in mind head) and family affairs, including the recent departure of my grandpa (which lasted a few days, since his body was emaciated, yet his heart remained strong for long) also do not help me reach the peace of mind.

I long for a blissful feeling of being carefree, a state I last experienced during the holidays in late May. Five months of being restless and restlessness are being transmitted to my body, causing continuous muscle tension, headaches, sleeplessness or constant drowsiness.

I have learnt to cope well with work-related stress. I have picked up a wonderful ability to cut off all affairs after crossing the doorstep of my office. Yet far more challenges need to be tackled outside office (where I spend around 50 hours per week, or 55 hours, if commutes are counted in) and time to handle them is not infinite. If I choose not to let up and deal with all the stuff I need to, little time I left for relax. This month I went out with friends to town twice (counting out two lunches out of office), took a 30-kilometre bike ride two weeks ago, went to the swimming pool five of six times and went to the cinema once. The rest of my time was dedicated to duties.

On top I need to get the grips with the feeling of being unfairly hurt by evil people and evil world which is not shaped the way I would want it to be. This feeling is not entirely new to me, yet the intensity with which it is hitting me and the extent to it is distorting my perception of what goes on around are disproportionate. These days I actually don’t feel like talking to anyone nor meeting anyone, I feel like clamming up and waiting out this sombre phase.

The imbalance in life must be a temporary state. I find consolation in prospects of a better tomorrow. One day the flat is refurbished and furnished, one day workload is within my capabilities, one day I wake up and have the comfort of having only to catch up with all things I lack time to do now, all pleasurable. I foresee that moment comes in four months. By then I have no choice but to grit my teeth and not give up.