Your contractor might be basing his or her estimate on architectural plans. If those plans are inaccurate or incomplete, you’ll spend more money than you expected. Once the contractor is at your home, things can change. For example:

• You need more light switches or outlets than expected.
• You need dimmer switches instead of standard light switches.
• Your network requires Cat-5 cables.
• The windows are too small.
• The doors don’t work with your furniture placement.
• The heater or air conditioning unit the architect suggested won’t keep your home comfortable.

Then there are problems related to fire codes and infrastructure. If, for example, you’re installing new fire-suppression sprinklers, the fire marshal might decide that you need to install a new water meter and pipes. The fire marshal can insist that you widen your driveway and a install new hydrant if the existing one is too far away from the structure. All of these things can quickly send your home-remodeling costs spiraling out of control.

If you’re expanding the size of your home or adding a pool or hot tub, you might need a bigger gas meter, and your contractor may not know all the associated costs and won’t know this until after the initial cost estimate.

ADR recently did a small remodeling job — adding a backyard deck and a large jacuzzi — that was expected to cost $60,000. The company installing the hot tub suggested the owners install a larger gas meter. When gas-company representatives assessed the situation, they determined that the gas lines had been run under an unpermitted permanent structure. They shut the project down until the lines, which had been installed illegally 20 years prior by a different contractor, were reinstalled legally. This unexpected problem tacked an extra $12,000-$15,000 on to the project’s cost.

Some things will be outside of your — and sometimes your contractor’s — control. The best way to prepare for the unexpected is to be diligent: ask as many questions as you can, and hire a contractor with the experience to dodge as many of these bullets as possible.

Author: Dean Jones

Why do contractors accept the work and then disappear?

The most common reasons fall into two categories: management problems and communications problems.

Management:

• The contractor bid too low. Instead of admitting it, he/she simply doesn’t show up for the job. He/she might have needed the work at the time, but now he/she has a more lucrative job lined up and has abandoned the first project.
• The contractor no longer has the resources to do the job. Maybe he/she is short- staffed, for example, when the project is set to start.
• The contractor is overwhelmed with work and can’t take on any new projects. Some contractors manage their time and/or money poorly and are forced to jump from job to job without a clear sense of deadlines.

Communications:

• The client has waited a long time to arrange for the job to start. The contractor might have been available initially, but now he’s/she’s working on another project.
• The contractor made the bid not understanding the client’s expectations. After looking again at the project, he/she doesn’t think he/she can do the work, so he/she abandons it.

The professionals at Authentic Designs and Remodeling, Inc., understand how important your custom home-remodeling project is. We finish the job on time and exceed your expectations by taking the time to understand your needs before we agree to the job, and before we establish a timetable.

No one benefits from a job done poorly — or not at all. ADR won’t waste your valuable time by bidding on a job we can’t do. We’ll listen carefully to your needs and determine whether we have the time and resources to complete your custom remodeling job.

Our commitment to strong communication and focus on the details starts before you hire us. Details are key, and we will work with you to understand exactly what you envision for your home. A floor isn’t just a floor, for example. Depending on the type of wood you want, you can expect to spend from $4 to $10 per square foot for hardwood material. Failing to understand exactly what kind of wood a client wants can inflate a budget by as much as $10,000. If your contractor hasn’t asked you for details, he/she has made a huge mistake.

ADR caters to clients who plan to be in their homes for a long time and expect the kind of high-quality custom remodeling that lasts a lifetime. Call us at (858) 487-1065 to discuss what we can do to turn your home into your dream home.

Author: Dean Jones

When you first design your home theater system, there are several important components to decide up front:

• Will you prefer a drop-down screen or wall mount? There are both cost and functionality differences to each of these options that may impact your decision.

• What projector is the best size and type for your desired screen type and room layout? Projector type, size an manufacturer will determine how far away from your screen the projector will be from the screen.

  When buying a projector, remember you really do “get what you pay for.” Purchase a good name brand. If you choose a cheap projector, the bulbs alone could cost in the thousands of dollars. In the past, it was usually more cost effective to replace the entire projector when a bulb burned out. Today, of course, that’s not the case. But, you still need to be careful by asking the right questions.

• Is wood paneling desired? Maybe upholstery is a better fit to help with noise control and reducing potentially damaging noises from the acoustic quality produced by your speakers.

• How many people do you want to sit in your home theater room? Not only will this decision have an impact on the size of the room to be built, but can have influence on seating type as well. For example, will your audience be more comfortable using family style seating with sofas and recliners? Or is individual seating preferred where each person might have electronically controlled reclining or manual leuvers for seat adjustments?

• Will you want your seating rows to have different elevations? Typically home theaters are “two-elevation,” meaning, two levels from front to back at the difference of 7” so that the person in back is seated higher than the person in front.

• What flooring will you prefer? Home theater floors are almost always carpeted but can also be influenced based on the equipment you intend to use and your budget for the room.

Building your home theater room is one of the most rewarding additions you will add to your home. Take the extra time to consider what you really do want for the room and consult our experienced staff when it’s time to start planning for the design phase of your home theater room.

Author: Dean Jones

Consider these facts about building a guest house:

• The cost to house one parent in a quality commercial facility is a minimum of $4,000 per month.
• That’s $48,000 per year or $240,000 in 5 years.
• Most guest houses will cost between $100K to $200K to build.

In just four years or less, your guest house will become an asset that has paid for itself while enhancing your parent’s quality of life—a win win situation.

Then, when life changes, the guest house provides you with the additional benefit of an increased home and property value.

We encourage families to consider a guest home designed and built by Authentic Designs and Remodeling. We can produce a design that will accommodate family members as they continue to age or design the guest house with the expectation that the person is going to age.

For our family living guest houses, we pay special attention to the details needed by aging parents, including:

• Flooring that’s flat and easy for walking or wheel chair mobility
• Walk-in showers versus traditional
• Larger door openings
• Fans for better air circulation
• Higher heat standard than normal because people get colder with age
• More heavily insulated walls
• Approach to guest house is more level than stairs

All of those things get considered and fitted when planning for a quality guest house. Much more than just a financial investment, a guest house for mom or dad or any other family member is a gift of quality of life that makes financial sense too.

Author: Dean Jones

Wendell EckHolm, president of Artworks San Diego, presented me with a plot plan of an   extravagant Nikki de St. Phalle sculpture in need of relocation and reconstruction to the other side of a private estate in Rancho Santa Fe.

The Gila Monster is a structure made of an iron framework wrapped in mesh and concrete, and covered in hand painted custom ceramic and glass tiles. After assessing the best way to relocate the sculpture, the team at Artworks San Diego and Authentic Designs and Remodeling Inc. began to photograph and document every piece of the sculpture to ensure precise reconstruction and proper positioning.

In less than two weeks, we gently removed each piece of tile with great care and proceeded to jack hammer select bands of concrete. We then cut at each joint with a torch and cradled each piece by crane, ready for the final cuts.

Once the sculpture was relocated to a newly poured, reinforced concrete pad, our team welded each piece back in to their final position.

Finally, we entrusted the application of the mosaic tiles to Nikki de St. Phalle’s original fabricator to meticulously install each new tile by hand. The restoration of this sculpture product was completed in nearly four months.

Authentic Designs and Remodeling, Inc. guarantees precise and quality work regardless of the type of construction with great quality and fine craftsmanship!

Author: Dean Jones

Author: Dean Jones

Clear Your Rain Gutters Before Winter Hits

Check your rain gutters and down spouts to ensure that they are clean and have a clear passageway. If your gutter does not drain smoothly, it can overflow and direct water to unprotected areas of the home. Gutters with water and debris will rot sooner, ultimately resulting in a shorter life span. Also, see that your down spout is located in an area that can handle approximately 50 gallons an hour, depending on the pitch of your roof, that heavy downpours can cause. (The pitch of your roof is approximately how much water can run off in an hour.)

Trim Your Greenery

Trim your shrubs so that they are at least twelve inches away from your house. Also take care to trim the trees that surround your home. While planting trees, ensure that they are at a safe distance from your house. These preventative steps will not only thwart moisture build up on the exterior of your home, it will also reduce the number of bugs and spiders that enter your home.

Rats and other such varmints use overhanging trees and shrubs to reach rooftops and find their way into your attic. By simply cutting them back or installing a copper band around trees such as Canary Island Date Palms, you will be able to eradicate this problem. Small animals find it hard to get a good grip on such metal bands, thereby preventing them from climbing the tree.

Regularly prune your trees and remove heavy branches. This protective measure can help limit the damage that trees can cause during natural calamities. If you are unfamiliar with a particular tree, be sure to ask the advice of a qualified tree arborist before pruning. Depending upon the season, tree type, and your location, improper trimming can send trees into shock.

Check Your Flowerbeds

Your flowerbed should be a minimum of 4 inches below the bottom of your screed, plaster or brick line. Water build up in your flowerbed can overflow over the plate line of your home, which is the two by four or two by six base that your house actually rests upon. This can bring excessive water into the house, which can have disastrous effects upon your interiors. It can ruin wood floors, drywall and cause mold to buildup. If neglected, your plate will eventually rot, causing the structure of your home to sag or collapse.

We once repaired a home where the sill plate near the front door had rotted away and the door would no longer open. After completely stripping the plaster, we realized that both the plate as well as the supporting studs had to be replaced. The project came with an expense of over $6,000. This could very easily have been avoided years ago a mere two hours of digging and removing dirt from the flowerbed.

Clear Your Home’s Outdoor Drains

Some homes have a grill drain in front of the garage door and driveway. Sweep, vacuum or hose the drain till it is clean. Make sure that all your drains are clear and that any existing debris is removed from the drain grates. This is very important, during a heavy rain, clogged drains could flood your garage.

Seal that Woodwork!

Dry Outdoor Patios from Moisture

Dry rot is the decay of timber, typically caused by fungal growth. It is important to take steps to prevent this. Check any areas that are likely to hold stagnant water after a rain. A perfect example is the tops of patio covers, which typically have bolts to support it to the beam. When it rains, a reservoir is often created around the bolt, which is a major cause for dry rot.

Seal Your Home Windows & Doors

Check the flashing at the top of windows and doors and make sure that there is no metal deterioration. Check the caulking around all windows and doors. As a result of regular wear and tear, trims and sidings tend to pull away, exposing cracks of about 1/8 to 1/4 inch. If water continues to penetrate the side of the trim or siding, it will start to rot.

Reseal Thresholds

The threshold is the part that secures the bottom frame of your door jamb. If your threshold is made of wood, it is important to reseal it. Pay close attention to the area where the frame meets the top of the sill. If there is a gap, caulk it with a material like latex or silicon. I once went to a dinner at an associate’s house that was 300 yards from the beach. He had remodeled the home eight years earlier, yet the home seemed immaculate and in great shape. He told me that the secret to his home’s timelessness was his regular preventative maintenance. He routinely checked the caulking around every part of his home, from the windows to the stairs.

Winterize Your Roof

Walk your roof if it is possible. Check the transition areas between the venting pipes for heaters, plumbing, and stove vents. Also look at the points where your chimney exits your roof. Clean any skylights and remove debris. Debris around your skylights can cause corrosion and eventually break down the lens cover and the surrounding metal. Be sure to clean the valleys of your roof – the areas where the two elevations of your roof come together. You would be surprised at the articles that collect on the rooftop, from leaves, seeds, to even animal carcasses. Such debris will increase the rate of deterioration of your roof asphalt shingles. Through such routine examinations, you can prevent leaks before they occur. If you are unable to check your roof, have a qualified roofer check it for you periodically.

Paint Peeling Surfaces

If you see any peeling surfaces in your home, the best thing to do is paint it! First take a careful look to make sure that that termites were not the cause of the peeling. Then scrape the loose paint, prime the area and apply two coats of paint. Keep in mind that it is not advisable to paint after a heavy rain, instead wait a few days for the existing moisture to evaporate from the your wood surfaces.

If you have some trim that needs replacing, it is a good idea to back prime it, as this can double its lifespan. This means to apply a couple of coats of primer on the backside of the trim install it, and then paint the front. Using good quality wood like redwood for the trim can also help extend its lifespan.

When you are using screws to attach your trim, be sure to counter-sink your screws. This refers to the method of pre-drilling your screws such that the head is below the finished surface. Then cover it with a wood filler that is approved for exterior use – we usually use BONDO. Finally sand, prime and paint the trim.

Remember that just a little bit of water can cause disastrous damage, in a relatively short amount of time. Preventative measures will help you preserve your home and keep it in pristine condition.

Author: Dean Jones

Many kitchens use clear lacquer finishes as they can be sprayed on in a relatively quick amount of time, sanded, and re-sprayed until the coat is thick enough. Regular upkeep is important, if these cabinets do not have enough lacquer or coats, the water dripping from the front of the sink or other locations can discolor the wood, even in the first year of construction.

Another finish that will lend you a true, handcrafted look is oil. However when making use of this finish, it is important to have your cabinet maker educate you on how to re-oil your project when the initial luster wears off.

Oil-based Polyurethane such as Minwax provides a tremendous amount of protection, if applied correctly, and can be easily touched up by the homeowner. It takes up to 24 hours to dry, but the drawback of polyurethane is that after each coat, sanding is required for each coat to bond to the next. Another thing to keep in mind is that if used on a lighter wood, it may turn yellow over time. For this reason, we typically only use polyurethane on darker woods like Cherry and Mahogany.

Conversion varnish is one of the most durable finishes available, but can only be done by a professional with plenty of experience using it. A major disadvantage of this finish is that it is nearly impossible for a homeowner to fix any minor damage. If this ever requires repair, the entire cabinet would have to be sanded and repainted, or coated entirely.

Author: Dean Jones

Your custom cabinetmaker will begin working on a design once you have communicated your ideas to him or her. He or she should provide you with a detailed drawing of your design to prevent any miscommunication, this is called an elevation. Your elevation drawing is a frontal view of each wall; specifying minute details like trash can pullouts, special drawer inserts and architectural details. Carefully look over every drawing and sign each one to confirm your approval of the design. Always ask your custom cabinetmaker for mock ups of details such as crown molding, baseboard, custom pillars, or hand carved corbels. This will eliminate surprises and help you be aware at every stage of the design process. If you want your cabinetry to last you a lifetime, ensure that the drawers of your custom cabinetry are constructed with dovetail joinery that is either crafted from hardwood or a nine-ply, plywood.

Some companies will give you perspective CAD drawings of your design. Keep in mind that this is relatively expensive, costing around $70.00 an hour. At Authentic Designs Inc, we provide our clients with clear, full scale drawings on quarter inch white melamine, so that they can easily visualize the scale and approve their design.

A good custom cabinetmaker will listen attentively to his client’s desires. It is also important for you to keep an open mind during the design process. There are many factors that you may not realize, but can have a significant effect upon your design. For example, walnut wood tends to bleach out if in direct sunlight, and soft woods will not be durable in high traffic areas. I have often discussed such scenarios with my customers, explaining to them why certain woods would not be appropriate for their space. Making changes later can become a very costly affair!

The material you choose for creating your custom cabinetry is increasingly important. Your custom cabinetmaker should be able to hand craft your cabinetry from hundreds of different species. The wood used for the boxes of your cabinetry is essential to ensure longevity. These cases can be made of pre-finished plywood like maple or cherry for ultimate strength. The alternative is melamine products like particleboard or MDF, which are cheaper options.

There are many things to keep in mind here – a specialized custom cabinet shop should have plenty of experience in ensuring that the moldings will match the wood you choose. The price difference between some of these molding is significant. In one of our past projects, we have sourced moldings for one customer that was intricately hand carved from solid cherry wood. The molding was approximately $38.00 a lineal foot, while that same molding in a paint grade version was only $9.00 a lineal foot.

Many custom shops offer cabinet detailing in different species of wood than the one your cabinetry is made of, in an attempt to reduce cost. I once came across a distressed customer whose kitchen had high-end cabinetry of stain grade wood. However, the cabinetmaker had employed paint grade embossed moldings and hand carved white wood embellishments to this kitchen. By mixing the species of wood and using the wrong varieties together, the kitchen details were a disaster and failed to blend together seamlessly. Faux finishing is an alternative to this scenario, but this can be expensive. Wood is a natural product and using even the same material will sometimes stain differently, but trying to blend two species of wood like poplar and alder to look the same will create a definite problem.

During the construction of your cabinetry, be sure to visit your cabinet shop and witness the progress. Check the custom details and ensure that they follow the same design that you had decided upon. If you want your solid cabinetry to last you a lifetime, ensure that the drawers of your custom cabinetry are constructed with dovetail joinery that is either crafted from hardwood or a nine-ply, plywood. Most custom cabinetry companies offer self-closing, soft-close drawer slides for their cabinet drawers. These drawers provide a smooth motion and will pull themselves closed once you push them to a specific point. This virtually guarantees that your drawers do not slam shut and extends the life of your cabinetry. The soft-close mechanism for doors can be incorporated into the hinge, clipped onto the hinge, or attached to the cabinet itself.

If you have requested a carved door, be very careful during the project inspection. Woodcarving is open to interpretation and varies from person to person. If you are looking to build radius doors, whether they may be convex or concave, you should be prepared to pay almost double, as this is very labor-intensive. The cabinetmaker has to first build the case, then build a template for the door to be molded to. Working out the swing of the door and the hinge location is an art form and cannot be successfully achieved by an amateur.

Deciding on the size of the kitchen island has typically been a major stumbling block in the design process. While customers love to have the largest possible island, sometimes such large islands can dominate the entire room and occupy precious space. If you are planning to incorporate an island in your kitchen, first visit a home improvement store and buy some tall boxes. Assemble these boxes in the space you wish to create your island, to replicate its potential size. This will give you a clear idea if the scale is right for your home.

Timing of completion can make the difference between a memorable experience and a cabinetry nightmare. At Authentic Designs Inc, we ensure a smooth and on-time project completion. We guarantee to complete your cabinetry on time and even take the extra step to keep it in storage until needed. We offer our clients a time-line clause that states that if we delay production, it actually costs us money. If our work is delayed, we compensate our clients $350 a week. This of course exempts delays caused by unforeseen weather conditions, frequent design changes, or circumstances beyond our control.

As a customer however, you should be prepared to take your time during construction to allow quality work that can last a lifetime. One of my recent custom closets required some simple changes, like changing flat face on shelves to rounded beading. We added special glass, a mirror trimmed with custom molding, custom milled baseboards and even a vintage chandelier and can lighting. Had my customer rushed this project we would have been unable to add these special touches we felt were integral to the design. Often times customers are in a rush to complete their projects, understandably so, yet it is important to find that balance.

Author: Dean Jones

It is important to be well informed when selecting your custom cabinetmaker. Be sure to find out their experience in custom cabinetmaking and the number of years they have been in business. Verify whether the company is licensed and bonded and ask them to provide you with photographs of their most recent work.

Check online to see if they have good reviews from past clients and request for a list of customer references. Call their clients who have had work done several years ago, as this will be a true test of whether the company has the ability to build a product that can last.

Find out if the person you are meeting with is a salesman, or an actual person who is involved with the cabinet making process. The more knowledgeable the face of the company, the better ideas they will be able to provide you with.

It is very important for you to make the time to visit the cabinetmaker’s shop before you entrust them with your project. Look over their facility and visually assess whether they have the capacity to create your desired project. If you require custom cabinetry for a 10,000 square foot home and your cabinetmaker possesses only 500 square feet of working space, chances are he is in over his head.

Once you are satisfied that your cabinetmaker is reliable, capable of producing quality work, and you have received your drawings, you are ready to sign a contract. The California State licensing board states that a deposit of not more than $1000 or 10% of the estimated project cost (whichever is less) should be handed over at the time of signing the contract. Be sure to discuss payment schedules upfront. Certain companies will require a full payment before the final delivery. At this time, you have the option of visiting the shop to see the finished product before you make the final payment.

Author: Dean Jones