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Once
you've made the decision to remodel, there are certain measures
you can take to help make the process easier on you and your family.
Obviously, it's always a good idea to keep a positive relationship
with your contractor. This will help your project run more smoothly
by keeping communication open and friendly. The next—and perhaps
most important—relationship to maintain is that of your neighbors.
Being a nuisance to those around you can cause a good deal of tension.
That is why taking time to nurture the relationships with those
living next door is crucial—screw this one up and it could
make your life miserable for years to come.
The
first thing you'll want to do is let your neighbors in on what you
will be doing, how long you expect it to take, and, most important,
who they can contact if they have any problems or concerns.
Invite
your neighbors to stop by and check on the progress. Houses in any
given neighborhood have similarities. Your neighbors' houses may
have the same space and layout problems as yours, and they're going
to be curious about how you're fixing these problems. An added bonus?
They may take pity on you when they see what you're living through
and invite you over for a hot dinner or to use the shower.
As
the project progresses, there are several things you can do that
will lessen its impact on the neighbors.
- Ask
subs to park on one side of the street only and to disperse their
cars and trucks.
- Limit
the noise of power tools to standard business hours. If you must
work nights and weekends, be considerate: be quiet in the early
morning and late evening.
- Make
sure the radio—whether yours or the subs'—can't ever
be heard beyond the property line. Same thing goes for rowdy conversations.
- Have
materials dropped in the driveway or yard, not the street. This
is particularly important for dirt, gravel, and the like that
can get washed into the street during a hard rain or tossed around
by kids playing in the pile.
- Playing
off that last point, avoid creating attractive nuisances. Keep
an eye out for kids and firmly discourage them from playing in
your work site.
- Dumpsters
are an eyesore. Have dumpsters removed as soon as they are full
and only keep them around when they are truly needed. To earn
good neighbor points, if there's any room left in your last dumpster,
invite the neighbors to dump any scrap construction materials
that have accumulated in their garages before you have the dumpster
removed.
- Keep
the yard cleaned up and as normal looking as possible. Keep an
eye out for any trash that may have blown into neighbors' yards.
Roofing materials are notorious for ending up in the neighbor's
shrubs.
- Call
the local one-call service to locate underground utilities before
you dig. Besides the obvious fact that this could save your life,
it'll keep you from severing your neighbor's power or cable lines.
Finally,
when the project is done it's always fun to throw a party for the
neighbors to thank them for their patience and understanding!
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Reprinted
with permission of Hometime®. For further
information about remodeling and renovation, tune in to Hometime
or visit www.hometime.com. © Hometime 2003, all rights
reserved.
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