This past Summer the owner of Two Sticks Audio approached me with a pretty terrific proposition. ”Save me a couple weeks in August [our busiest time] to do some work at my studio,” he said, “I’ll throw in evenings and weekends for you to record tracks for your next album… and I’ll provide an engineer.” It really didn’t seem like a fair trade so I threw in a concrete counter-top for one of the two bathrooms I was remodeling for him and we had a deal. We hung some doors, trimmed some windows and we cut in a “tunnel” from his drum room into his lounge so he could capture some huge drum sounds by placing a mic in the bigger of the two rooms. Anyhow, before this turns into a musicians geeky tech blog it will suffice to say that we all had an amazing time during those two weeks, using our carpentry skills during the day, and our musical skills during the night (Yes, most of us are carpenter/musicians). We put some great finishing touches on the space, and walked with hours of great sounding music.
We were invited back for another two weeks this last December to add a kitchenette, update a bathroom and cut in one more window (the lounge sounded so good they started recording in there and needed the make a sight-line from the drummer’s seat to the piano in the lounge). All the glass is from McIntosh Glass in Ballard, the cabinets & counter-tops are IKEA, the trim treatment is tight knot cedar from Dunn (formerly Olsen) Lumber, the doors are from Frank Lumber, and the sinks & fixtures are from Aurora Plumbing. We finished this one early and under budget!
Do you remember that crazy 36 hour period from November 30 - December 1st 2007 when heavy snows, turned to a 20 year rainstorm and flooded just about every neighborhood in Seattle? Well, I’ll never forget it, because for that short period I was the proud- but not really proud at all- owner of some prime lake-front property. The good news about that day was that the water stopped rising 2″ from entering my front door. Sadly, others were not as lucky. The other sad thing was that we lost all of the insulation in our crawl space and like most homeowners we didn’t have flood insurance.
Now for those of you who are like me and are always looking for the silver lining, here it is.
Did you know that your local power company offers some serious incentives to help people make their homes more energy efficient? Insulation (50% cash), new windows ($3/sq ft), duct sealing (50% cash), and new smart thermostats (100% cash) are great ways to lower your energy bills. Danny can attest to the thrill of reducing his monthly heating bill by 50%, just by upgrading his insulation. And I can attest to the thrill of 50% off the cost of replacing my damaged insulation and I’ll let you know what monthly savings it amounts to. Every penny counts these days and I hope this can help some of you find some savings upon savings. I’d be happy to help point you in the right direction…. starting with the following links:
http://www.snopud.com/energy/business/retrofit.ashx?p=1885
http://www.pse.com/solutions/foryourhome/Pages/rebatesOnWeatherization.aspx
http://www.pse.com/solutions/forbuilders/Pages/builderRebates.aspx
*Savings quoted in text are from Snohomish County PUD
** Snohomish Co PUD also offers low interest 2.9% loan for energy saving projects as well.
How Solar Hot Water Works.
Have you ever spent a beautiful Seattle summer afternoon baking in the sun, enjoying a territorial view from your roof? Most of us probably have not, and for good reason. I’ve worked up on roofs in the summer long enough to know its not a comfortable place to hang out. Its hot, hot, Hot! But did you know that all that heat can be harnessed and sent into your water system for a nice warm shower for only about $9,500? Did you also know the recent stimulus package established a 30% tax credit for these systems? That amounts to $2,800 off the price of the system. If you’ve ever thought about incorporating solar power into your remodel now is a great time.
These credits also apply to Solar Electric systems too. I know what you’re thinking…. Solar in Seattle? But did you know, “According to solar experts, Seattle gets more sun than the prime solar power sites in Germany, one of the world’s most prolific solar power generators.” The biggest challenge is getting enough people to recognize the potential of Solar Energy, enough for it to gain a foothold and really impact our local energy production and ultimately, the price. Knowing this, Federal and Local government is highly incentivizing the industry; tax credits, rebates, they’ll even pay you for energy you send back into the power grid. The main reason for doing a project like this is to participate in a more sustainable long term system.
France boasts the largest solar panel roof in the world.
Despite credits and rebates, the payback is still between 18-20 years on average. However, adding green elements to your home can increase the resale value up to 15% in Seattle, which can make it a viable longer term investment.
Anyhow, here are some great links if you’d like to learn more:
Seattle Recognized as a Solar City.
Solar Studies in the Pacific Northwest.
Who says winter isn’t a good time to build a deck? Danny and I were pleasantly surprised when we got our materials quote back for this job. Having built a deck very similar in size, scope, and materials last summer (the peak of deck building season), we were expecting a similar total cost for the materials. However, what we got back was, 30% lower across the board. Good to know right?
I think Danny and Chris were feeling so warm inside, being able to save Michael some money, that they didn’t even notice that the average temperature was 32 degrees during construction. Good job guys, that deck looks great.
Realistic Returns for Your Remodeling Dollars.
Gone are the days when you could expect +100% returns on most of your remodel projects, and treat your home like an aggressive stock portfolio. The boom is over, but the value in remodeling your space is far from gone.
Projects like adding a bedroom in expectation of the birth of a child, or revitalizing an impractical kitchen to include a great room are extremely valuable projects when you consider the impact they have on day to day life. Couple that concept with the projects that have returns of 75-90% and you still have a great investment. Here are some of Remodel Magazines top rated projects for Seattle….read more
Top Five Cost -vs- Value Projects for you Home:
1. Deck Addition– 97.1% cost recouped.
2. Minor Kitchen Remodel– 95.5% cost recouped.
3. Window Replacement– 93.9% cost recouped.
4. Basement Remodel– 86.9% cost recouped.
5. Bathroom Remodel– 86.6% cost recouped.
For a full list of Remodel projects, view the Remodeling’s 2008-9 Cost to Value Report.
.... one is silver and the other's gold.
“Make new friends and keep the old, one is silver and the other is gold.” For us, this past year was much like this folk song. We were blessed to get to work with some wonderful clients for their 2nd, 3rd, and in a few cases, 4th projects. Repeat business is extremely important to us and we don’t take it for granted. Our hope has always been, that every satisfied client will eagerly and joyfully recommend us to their friends, family, co-workers and neighbors because they experienced top notch service and excellent quality. It feels really good to look at the data and see that out of a business year where 99% of our work was from referrals…. 76% of it was from repeat customers and client to client referrals. Its nice to see that what we are striving for is translating into visible results. We promise to honor those referrals, and thank you so much for passing them!
We are proud to announce our work will be featured in this years Great Kitchen & Bath Tour. Implementing a design by Jan Setterlund, The Kitchen Witch, we are proud to show off this gem. The design transformed the first floor layout, turning small spaces into efficient, charming work stations that feel spacious and open. Thank you Jan for a great design, Joe at Bothell Hardwoods for the beautiful oak flooring and Brian from Sunbright Electric for the electrical work.
Check out the transformation.
With a small inefficient kitchen, lack of dining space, and the birth of their first child only months away, Matt & Julia decided change was essential for their growing family. They chose to proceed with a design that re-invented the orientation of their kitchen space and converting a small main level bedroom, adjacent to the kitchen, into a dining room.
The project required:
- Complete demolition of the existing kitchen and bedroom space.
- Significant rework of the exterior and interior framing systems to accommodate the interior space, window, and door layout changes.
- Necessary updates and additions to the electrical, plumbing, and HVAC systems.
- Installation of an extensive millwork and casework package that create the visual appeal of this high end kitchen.
- Detailed schedule management and cost control.
We completed this project on time and on budget with only minor scope additions requested by the owner. Thanks to a commitment of our crew and our specialty subcontractors, the completed project was delivered prior to little Marco’s arrival, and achieved the high quality standards our clients expected from us.
Logo Contest Runner Up ;)
We are happy to honor the runner up in the GT Residential Contracting, “Design our Logo” competition. After much deliberation and painstaking debate, we arrived at a winner (what you see on our website and shirts and hats and jackets). However, the classy, edgy, yet sophisticated rendering pictured here was a very close second place. There was some carnage in selecting a winner, we lost two project managers, an office staffer and a laborer, and Danny still won’t let me hold my niece. But, in the end we had to select from two, very excellent designs and the GT with a roof line and a grid eeeked out the top spot. Congratulations, however, is definitely in order for our runner up, I’m sure you’ll find a company to call home someday.
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