Home Renovations

Anyone that has been following this blog for the last 5 years knows that we no longer have a house. And that we willingly offer our skills and labour to our friends and family for work that needs to be done on their homes.

I have often said, since we don’t have a house to work on, we can work on yours.

However, that was put to a lie this week.  This week we undertook kitchen renovations in our own home – our 34’ Airstream trailer.

It started last fall.  The kitchen faucet started leaking from its base and needed to be replaced. Hubby said that he would replace it after the winter, since we were planning on spending the cold months in a house up here in Ontario.

It’s not as if he was taking the winter off – he had another project on the go involving fixing up an older trailer.

Spring came, and as promised, a brand new faucet was purchased and hubby removed the old one. To find that the sink underneath had rusted out after 21 years of life. Yeah, some days, I feel like that, too.

That started the project of finding another sink to fit that space.  It really wasn’t that hard to find, but it was not available anywhere close by, so had to be ordered online. While we were waiting for the sink to arrive, we looked at the condition of the similarly aged countertop. Well, why not? If the sink has to come out anyway….

This time we found a local supplier, but because of the RV dimensions, it needed to be cut to fit. Another two week wait...

Meanwhile, we have been living in this lovely trailer with no kitchen faucet. So washing of vegetables has to be done in the bathroom sink, and hot water for dishes has to be carried back to the kitchen. 

The benefit of a trailer is that the two rooms are only 6 feet apart. I can put up with that for a couple of weeks.

Finally the counter arrives! Out comes the sink. Out comes everything under the sink and several of the cabinet’s drawers. Out comes the stove… oh wait. We don’t have a plug for the propane line feeding the stove. Oh well. Turn off the propane. Surely it will only be a day. Or two. Of course, it also means no hot water for that time as well. Sigh.

We had a nice sunny day to remove the old counter. It meant hubby could use the outside deck as a workshop, putting up sawhorses to hold the countertops. Measurements were taken, and retaken, and then taken again.  Several times we were in and out of that tiny little space that is my kitchen.

Matters were complicated by a guest that stayed with us for a few days. This Australian Shepherd seemed to think that the best place to be was underfoot. And she’s big enough that when she lies down, it means the whole hallway is blocked. That made it interesting when the new countertop was continually in and out of the kitchen for fitting and cutting. 

So the dog and I went for long walks.

By the end of the day, the counter was in and secured, the stove squeezed into its proper place and the propane line hooked up. Yippee, we have hot water at the end of Day one!

Now begins the job of installing the sink. While the actual dimensions around the top of the sink are the same as the old one (don’t forget, we hadn’t originally planned on the new countertop), the new sink bowls are a good 4 inches deeper. This means re-plumbing the drainage lines. It also means visiting hardware stores to get all the parts and pieces necessary. And once out shopping, there are always groceries and other assorted things to pick up.

So ends Day Two.

Back to the hardware store we go the next morning. Seems we missed a vital component the first time. For certain, this will only be a quick trip in and out! Well, okay, maybe one extra stop at Bulk Barn. 

And a drug store. I think hubby is getting a headache.

Things start to look promising. Like the counter, the sink goes in and out of its allotted spot several times over the day. Another emergency trip to the hardware store is taken. This time, hubby hopes to save time by just getting me to go alone. The next half hour is spent trying to explain to me what is required. My “deer in the headlights” look should assure him that I fully understand. He gives up and goes with me. Day Three is finally over.

At least for me it was. I was exhausted. Dear hubby stayed up most of the night working on the plumbing and caulking. When I got up on Day Four, I had a sink installed. It was held down with the heaviest moveable objects he could find to keep the sink anchored until the caulking set.  Minor adjustments to the drain lines and the final caulking were accomplished before breakfast, and cabinets could be restored to their former full status. Tools were put away, and I had a beautiful new kitchen!

I really don’t understand how my hubby can do all the work of a renovation like this, and yet I am the one that is worn-out by the end of it. 

Before

After

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