Reno and Renewal – Plan Ahead and Be Prepared!

Those of us who live in Ottawa are breathing a sigh of relief as the weather finally begins to warm up (that is we are about to get temperatures above the freezing mark – a veritable “heat wave”) !

Hooray -spring is coming. It’s that time of year when many of us to think about those reno projects that we swore we would tackle this year. I have just read a very good article in the Ottawa Citizen which outlines some essential strategies for renos. The article by Karen Turner touches on advice from a book by HGTV’s Bryan Baeumler – a sensible guy who fixes up reno messes. Baeumler’s book called Measure Twice is full of DIY no-nos. How to avoid disasters? The first piece of advice in this article – having a plan BEFORE you start – struck me as the most essential and also often the most neglected part of home improvement.

What sort of planning? Before you even think about materials and how things will be done assess what it is that you really want and why you want it. Lots of questions to ask yourself. What will be the function of the space(s) that you want to reno? Do you want more space? Can you “borrow” this space from another room? Do you really need more space anyway? Can you “rejig” the space that you have now so that it can be both more pleasing and nore efficient? Will the renovated space “fit in” with other spaces in your home? How much money can you afford to put into the project (by the way, things always cost more than you originally thought – often up to 50% more)? Are you doing this to please yourself and/or to add value to your home? (Are you really going to add value to your home or do you care anyway?) How can you get the best “bang” for your buck? Go online. Read. Research. Think and think again.

If you are doing a major project you will need appropriate surveys and building permits. You may need an engineer’s advice or the advice of other specialists, detailed drawings etc. This can take weeks and since you don’t want to pay a builder to stand around while the necessary papers are made available you need to know when you can expect to have all of this stuff in your hands.

So, as much as we all like to get things done quickly, the reality is that a good job begins with taking the time to plan properly. Here I’ve mentioned initial planning. There is a lot more that needs to be done…