I got up and out to the house at 7:30 am this morning, and just got home now (5pm). Dad and I went out there to get as much of the little putz-work done as we could. And boy, we did get a lot accomplished!
1) Cleaned the garage so it looks good -- not like a tornado zone.
2) Cleaned the entire basement. I pulled out 6 full dustpan loads of crap from the floors, and filled the (huge) shop-vac almost 1/3 full -- that's just how much sand, sawdust and other gunk there was in the basement. It looks quite nice now. :-)
3) Got the trimwork done on the floors in the entryway.
4) Got the trimwork done on the floors in the bathroom.
5) Got the trimwork done on the floors in the kitchen, except for the broom closet.
6) Got some sheetrock on top of the closets to finish them off (just for inspection purposes).
7) Got said sheetrock painted with its first coat of paint.
8) Got started on touch-up painting parts of the walls.
9) Got closet shelves and poles installed in the entryway.
10) Got closet shelves and poles installed in the bedroom.
I'll be heading back out to the house tomorrow. Here's the list of what I have to accomplish:
* Put another coat of paint on the sheetrock.
* Get the shelving installed in the pantry.
* Get the shelving installed in the linen closet.
* Get the mouldings installed over the sheetrock in the entryway (just for inspection purposes).
* Finish the touch-up paint on the walls.
* Put the cap on the half-high wall in the dining room.
The parts that are "just for inspection" are kinda quirky. I have to have the house "finished", which means the trimwork has to be done. However, I don't have the right size oak plywood or mouldings for the entryway -- and getting them + installing them so that it looks nice would take a long time. So... I'm just putting up some fuax finish work in the meantime. The sheetrock and mouldings are the cheapest temp solution I can get away with while it still passing inspection. :: grins :: Of course, I doubt the inspector will notice the fact that the sheetrock is held onto the closet by 4 trimwork nails (so it'll come off very easily when I want it to). And if he comments about it being ugly, I'll just act all offended because I happen to "like" the way it looks. :-P
We're also going to BS our way thru why the closet in the office isn't done. "This is my office, and offices don't have closets -- they have storage space. I have metal server racking that goes in here." Ta da, one less closet I have to finish off in a rush.
I'll try to get new pictures posted this weekend at some point. I have a bunch on the camera, but haven't had the chance to sit still long enough to get em online.
My experience with Inspectors is that they can be nice or they can be a devil from hell. I have not built a home, I did have to deal with Building Inspectors when we were during construction for our business, and with County Health Inspectors when our Ice Cream & Coffee shop was going.
To the point...
I know how you feel about closet doors, but I *think* that might be a requirement to pass the inspection. You might want to check on that just in case.
Also, I wouldn't try to take that approach with the office closet unless you absolutely run out of time. The worst case scenario that I can think of is that he calls the office a den... which means you would have a 1 bedroom house plus den (since the basement is unfinished), and might lower the appraisal of the house. Once it is approved as a bedroom, who cares what you do with it.
Hopefully you already have worked with the inspector and have an idea on how he would take it to bending the rules.
You have a broom closet? FANCY!
@Phil -- that's an interesting point about him trying to claim its a den. I'm pretty sure I'll pass inspection without an issue, it's actually the appraiser that I'm slightly worried about. However, I don't think the closet in there will be an issue since I really do have metal server racking (happens to be an entertainment center for me though) and, AFAIK, closets just need to be finished to the point of having a floor, light and switch. Shouldn't be an issue, but I'll keep you posted. :-)
@Jess -- I just get everything. I even have a nook that I'm turning into a large bookcase.
A nook? Damn, you're like rich or something:) Miss ya! I hate being so busy:(
Monday night, we're probably going out. Let me know if you want to go. Possibly bowling or something.