|
The Home Project gets it done By Jack DeGange
For our family, the seeds of change were planted
last fall by friends from Cape Cod who were visiting
for a Dartmouth football weekend. They described the
major work done on their home to address their
changing needs and to accomodate visiting
grandchildren. What we had in mind wasn’t nearly as
extensive, but we had similar objectives: changing
needs and visiting grandchildren.
Prior to Christmas we met with Jim Forcier, head of
Trumbull-Nelson’s Home Projects Group, and Ed
Friedman, one of T-N’s computer design experts. Our
project involved renovating roughly half of the
second floor. We wanted to create a master bedroom
and bath suite in adjacent rooms separated by a
wall. Next to the existing bathroom, we would
convert a small bedroom into a new bathroom with a
closet. That closet is important. It replaces two
small linen closets so we could have an ample
walk-in closet in the new master bedroom.
All of this sounds fairly straightforward, but we
live in a relatively old farmhouse where the walls
and framing are not as square as they were when they
were built. Plus we had to deal with upgrades to
comply with current plumbing and electrical code
requirements.
Our needs were comparable to a number of residential
projects that Forcier mentioned were in progress for
the Home Projects Group during the past winter. His
experience as an independent builder and past
municipal code officer and building inspector gives
him an invaluable perspective.
“Each project is different,” said Forcier. “We have
a team of experienced craftsmen in the group ranging
from 6 to 20, depending on the season and workload.
Our projects can be fairly extensive, including
residential additions, but during the winter, we
often find ourselves ‘following the plumbers.’ A lot
of our work can involve restoring rooms that have
been damaged by broken water pipes.”
Our project wasn’t an emergency. We shared our ideas
with Forcier and Friedman in a few pre-Christmas
meetings and put a plan in place. We were given a
working estimate for the job that would be billed on
a time-and-materials basis. When work began in
mid-January we found ourselves facing a deadline of
sorts. In mid-February we would have two weekends of
houseguests, including our daughter and
granddaughter seeking a taste of winter from home in
southern California.
“We have a team of experienced
craftsmen in the group ranging from 6 to 20,
depending on the season and workload.”
“Don’t worry,” said Forcier. “We’ll get it done.”
And they did.
Over a period of about three weeks, when he
regularly arrived about
7:30 a.m., it seemed like Scott Bogle, one of T-N’s
master carpenters, became a member of the family. At
times, two equally accomplished craftsmen, Nick
Kanakis and Jeremiah Little, joined Scott to
continue the process of rebuilding walls that had
been torn open. They created pocket doors to
increase usable space in the new master bedroom,
matching new baseboard and window-door trim to
original trim that was carefully removed and stored.
When they spotted a previously hidden space inside
the bedroom wall near a heating duct, Scott
suggested we consider a two-shelf bookcase.
Jeremiah, who has experience as a furniture maker,
spent an afternoon in the millwork shop to build the
unit that now is home to a collection of family
photos. Among numerous other pieces of fine
finishing, Kanakis used his 40 years of experience
to install a vanity in the new bathroom.
During
the past 17 years that we’ve lived in our house
there hasn’t been an inch of pipe or a fixture in
our house hasn’t been installed or upgraded by
Dickinson and Son of Etna, New Hampshire. For this
project Rick Dickinson assigned Phil King and Rick
Rogers, who operated as a team to remove and replace
all of the plumbing lines, and bring them up to
code. Most importantly they acted promptly to
install a new shower and tub before the walls were
closed up, since after the fact they wouldn’t have
fit through the doors.
When we last did major renovations in 1991, Tony
Wheeler was working for Ralph Clough, who has since
retired. Wheeler now works for Tilden Electric of
Post Mills, Vermont. “I’ve been in this house
before,” he reminded me as he began to map out the
new wiring requirements. I could only marvel at his
foresight when he mentioned that, many years ago, he
had installed a couple of extra lines into the attic
that provided a simple solution to our need for
additional lights and an exhaust fan in the new
bathroom. The alternative would have been to open
walls and run new lines more than 100 feet to the
main electrical panel in the farthest corner of the
cellar.
“When we
created the Home Projects Group we struggled with
the name,” said Forcier. “We thought about calling
it ‘Small Projects’ but that didn’t work because for
homeowners this type of work isn’t small. We’re
coming into a home and for our customers we’re doing
finish work that adds value and isn’t inexpensive.”
At our home, this involved dismantling and
rebuilding half of the second floor for over three
weeks. With saws and other equipment creating dust
and disruption, cleaning during the beginning and
end of every day is a further measure of their
attention to detail.
When Trumbull-Nelson’s business was established over
90 years ago, the company’s work focused on building
homes and The Home Projects Group continues this
tradition. A decade ago, after Trumbull-Nelson
completed renovations on our house, I wrote: “As I
craft these words at my desk in the room over the
garage, one fact is obvious: Trumbull-Nelson is big
enough to handle major projects but small enough to
meet the needs of the homeowner.” Some things never
change.
“For our customers we’re doing
finish work that adds value and isn’t inexpensive.”
 |
