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Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Mission accomplished.

We laughed, we cried....we kept our local Home Depot in business and our neighbors on their toes - almost EXACTLY three years later - the renovation is complete. We bought an old, run down two family house, and completely renovated both floors:
  • gut rehab of both kitchens (featuring custom concrete counter tops and SS appliances)
  • gut rehab of both bathrooms
  • replaced the roof, windows and siding
  • refinished the hardwood floors
  • painted all rooms, 
  • replaced all doors, 
  • landscaped
  • built a new two-level back porch
  • turned a three season porch into a beautiful outdoor terrace
THEN - we converted them into condos (I'll spare you the boring, legal, mumbo jumbo)...and sold them! BAM - just that easy.

And now, here, for your viewing pleasure - are the before and after photos. Enjoy!


Saturday, March 24, 2012

Concrete Counter Top Tutorial

 Basically, there are seven steps separating you from your very own concrete countertops:
  1. Measure
  2. Build the forms
  3. Reinforce
  4. Mix and pour
  5. Polish
  6. Slurry
  7. Seal/Finish
  8. Install
Step 1: Measure

Steps 1 and 2 are probably the trickiest, and also the easiest to screw up.  If you measure incorrectly you'll end up with one big, heavy problem on your hands. So measure twice, cut once, etc.  The simplest way to explain this is just to tell you to measure all four sides of the counter surface (i.e., the tops of the cabinets).  Don't assume the wall is square.  They're probably not.  Measure all of the sides and write those measurements down, making sure to factor in a 1/2" overhang on the front and sides of the counter surface.  There: you've measured.  That's step 1.


Step 2: Build the forms

You'll be making these forms out of melamine.  The most important thing to note is that you'll be pouring your countertops upside down.  That makes building the forms an exercise in spatial and geometric thinking.  You'll want to take your time here.

So you've got your measurements.  The first cut you'll make is the bottom of your form, which is also the face of your countertop.  This one's easy.  All you have to do is cut the exact dimensions that you'll eventually want your countertop to be.  Once you've made this cut lay it out on top of your cabinet(s) and make sure the measurements look good.  Think of this as a mockup of your countertop.  If it looks right, it's time to make the sides.

To make the sides of your form all you have to do is rip the melamine into 2 3/4" strips.  Since the melamine is 3/4" thick, this will result in a 2" thick countertop.  If you want it thicker, cut the strips wider.  Now cut the sides to length and screw them into the bottom of your form.  Your sheets of melamine should be 3/4" thick, so by screwing the sides in flush with the bottom you should basically have a 2" deep box.  Make sense?

The next step is to caulk all the seams.  Your form has to be water tight, OR ELSE.  The easy way to do this is to use black caulk to make sure you don't miss anything.  I tape off each side of seam with painter's tape to ensure the caulk line is straight and clean.  Any mistake you make caulking will show up in the concrete.  If your countertop has a sink in it, you'll want to make a knockout out of rigid foam insulation.  The only trick here is finishing the sides of the knockout.  This has to be water tight too.  You can use packing tape and a little spray adhesive to get that done.  OK - your form is built.  Let's reinforce that sucker.

waterproofing the sink knockout


Another angle of a finished form.




Step 3: Reinforce that sucker

This one's fairly easy.  You'll need to lay rebar along the outside edge of the form, 2" away from the edge, and then lay remesh in the middle.  These things cost a few bucks at Home Depot, but they can be tricky to mark and cut. What I do is measure the length, and mark with a piece of blue painter's tape.  Then I clamp the rebar down and go wild on it with a sawzall.  Are there better ways to cut rebar?  Maybe.  Do I care to research what they are?  Apparently not.



So I've read a few of these Concrete Countertops bibles, and they usually have a chapter devoted to an elaborate system of wires that suspend the rebar just off the base of the form.  In my experience, that's just not necessary at all.  Just cut the rebar and remesh, make sure it fits in the form and set it aside for pour day.

Step 4: Pour Day


This is where it gets fun.  First, rent a concrete mixer.  Don't try to do this by hand.  It is NOT worth it.  Next, figure out how much pigment you want to include per bag of concrete that you use.  For these counters, we used about 2 tbsp of pigment per bag of concrete.  Some people like to make test batches to see what it will look like.  Maybe that's worth it, but concrete is pretty unpredictable.  So I've never bothered.

Time to mix.  Pour 2 bags into the mixer and toss in your first batch of pigment.  Then add a little water and turn the thing on.  Incrementally add water until the concrete is a thick, soupy consistency.  Think of a good, chunky oatmeal.  Or, if you're unfortunate enough to be from Canada, think of a porridge.  It's a good idea to measure exactly how much water you use the get the concrete to the right consistency, then duplicate that for every batch.


Once you like the consistency, turn the mixer off and let it sit for a minute or two.  Then transfer the concrete to buckets, lug those heavy bastards over to the form and get to pouring.  Nothing's quite so satisfying as pouring the first batch into that form.  Pour some 'crete in and spread it around with a wooden float.  You want the concrete to be about 1" thick around the entire form.  Really work it into the corners with the float and with your hands.  If you don't spend the time to work it into the corners, you're going to end up with honeycombing, which is something we'll get into later.


Once you're comfortable that you've worked it in as good as you can, grab your orbital sander.  This is a little trick I came up with that's worked great for me.  What you do is cover the sander in a thick piece of plastic (I use a torn up contractor's bag) and secure it tight with rubber bands.  You want it to be as close to water tight as you can.  Then turn it on and press it into the wet concrete, working it over the entire surface.  What you're doing is vibrating the concrete, which forces out any air bubbles and leaves an incredibly smooth surface.  The official concrete countertop manuals tell you to use these big, aggressive concrete vibrators.  You don't need that.  This works fine. 

Left unattended, Greeks will eventually find their way to sleeveless shirts and manual labor.



 Time to lay that Rebar in.  Basically all you need to do is lay it over the vibrated concrete.  Keep it at least 1" away from the edge of the form, and make sure it doesn't get within 1/2" of the top of the form (what will be the bottom of the countertop).  Once that's done, go ahead and pour another layer of 'crete over the top.  Float it until you think it's about right. 

 Time to screed.  You'll just need a short, straight length of wood with a clean edge.  I like to use a ripped down piece of melamine.  Work it back and forth in a sawing motion while dragging it across the form.  You should end up with a nice, flat, smooth surface.  Now, grab that orbital sander again.  This time you'll just turn it on and work it around the outside or the "face" of the form.  You're just trying to settle all the concrete against the melamine as nicely as you can.  Once you've done that, you're done pouring.  All you need to do is float the concrete ever 10 - 15 minutes or so until it's firm.  This helps make the bottom of your countertop nice and flat, which you'll appreciate when you go to install it.

beautiful...
Step 5: Polish

The first step here is to wait.  After pouring you need to give the countertops between 20 - 28 days to cure.  The concrete needs to be hard enough to polish, but not too hard to polish.  So once you're done waiting, go ahead and carefully flip over your countertop.  That's going to be an anxious moment, but it's worth the wait.  Again you'll need your trusty orbital sander and some diamond polishing pads.  I get the JX Shine Diamond Polishing Pads from Toolcity (just search "diamond polishing pads" on Amazon), and they've never let me down.

So get a bucket of clean water, a sponge, a squeege, your sander and pads.


The technique here is pretty simple.  I usually start with the 800 grit pad, because I don't want to expose any aggregate (i.e., stone).  Just wet down the concrete with the sponge and kick on the sander.  It's very important that you have the sander plugged into a GFCI.  They're cheap, and they'll keep you from electrocuting yourself to death.  Polish in circles and take  your time.  Once you're satisfied wet the concrete down again, squeegee it off and switch to the next polishing pad (probably the 1000 or 1500).  Repeat this process until you get to the Buff pad.  You'll be able to see and, more importantly, feel the concrete getting smoother.

This one's all polished up and drying.
Step 6: Slurry

This step is boring, but important.  Regardless of how well you vibrated you'll end up with some small holes in your counters.  This is expected.  You'll have to patch these.  Slurry is jut portland cement (available at the Depot), pigment and a little water.  Think of it as grout used to fill those little air bubbles.  Mix the slurry as close to the color of the countertop as you can.  It won't be perfect, but it doesn't have to be.  These minute imperfections give the countertops character.




Step 7: Seal/Finish

Concrete countertops are great.  They look incredible while costing little.  The biggest complaint is that they stain.  The fact is: concrete is porous, and it's designed to soak up moisture.  So what do you think happens when you spill red wine on your countertop?  It gets soaked right up.  This is why the finishing and sealing of your countertops are possibly the most important part of the process. 

We've used a few products, but Counter Hard seems to be the best.  This product comes with instructions, so I won't bore you here.  But to summarize, you heat up the counter to steam off the moisture that's trapped within.  That dries out the concrete, meaning that any moisture that touches it will be drawn right in.  So when you apply the sealant, it's soaked deep into the countertop.  You repeat this process a couple of times and BOOM: your countertops are bulletproof (disclaimer: product does not actually make your countertops bulletproof).

Step 8: Install

Here's something you might not know: concrete is heavy.  This is why I always install a layer of 1/2" plywood over the cabinets.  It helps displace the weight and keep your cabinets in one piece.  Other than that, just run some caulk on the plywood and place the stupid countertops down.  It's easy.  If you've got a sink knockout for an undermount sink (which looks really damn good), place the countertop down and trace the sink cutout before cutting that out with a jigsaw. 

great for placing delicious treats down

this is a sink

all told the countertops cost about $250

this is a cat, in a sink

So this is a basic rundown of how to get sweet new countertops on the cheap.  It's a little daunting at first glance, but I'm no professional concrete worker and we successfully did both kitchens without permanent physical, or psychological damage.  If anybody has feedback, additions, omissions, insults or obscure sports trivia I'd love to hear it.

What you'll need:
  • some melamine (it's plywood, but covered in a thin plastic coating)
  • 1 3/4" drywall screws
  • caulk and painter's tape
  • Quickrete 5000 (it's what your countertops will be made of)
  • rebar/remesh
  • pigment, if you want it
Also you'll need these tools:
  • table saw
  • drill, or a screwdriver and lots of patience
  • hacksaw
  • orbital sander
  • caulk gun
  • diamond polishing pads.  not as expensive as it sounds
  • concrete mixer (rent it)
  • squeegee


    Monday, September 5, 2011

    Summertime- Outside Projects!

    Summer was busy- between everyone traveling and doing....well, summer things. But we made the most of the weekends we did have free, and I'd say we had a pretty productive few months- check it out!

    ~ The biggest exterior transformation yet, NEW SIDING AND WINDOWS!!! Now this, we actually cannot take full credit for, as we (and this was a first) hired someone! Genius, something that would have taken us all summer- took these guys 1 week ~

    Before- This was the house "move-in" weekend, November 2010
    During- the guys did the siding and NEW WINDOWS all in 2 weeks!
    AFTER! 30 brand, spankin' new windows, and shiny new siding- looks like a new house!


    Bri builds a back deck!

    Before
    After....well, still in the process. But look at those steps- sturdy!


    Now, with basics of the deck done...we can finally put Tony Piscitelli's masonry expertise to work! We were lucky enough to receive about 2 truck loads of red brick pavers from Addie Landscaping, which ended up being JUST enough for a pretty sweet back walk way. With some amazing teamwork, and a trip or two to Home depot, we had the patio completed in one Saturday!

    Fist things first- remove the MILLIONS of HUGE rocks we apparently have in our back yard, and dig and prep.
    Tamper time- Tony earned his beers that day!
    After first round of tamping, fill in, stone dust down, leveling
    All level, time to figure the pattern and lay the bricks!
    HEAVE...HO! First the fill, then the stone dust.
    Placing and hammering the edging...why so nervous dad?? I'm great with a hammer, just hold still.
    Polymer sand in the the cracks, and all is done!
    Add caption
    View towards the front yard.












    GREAT JOB GUYS! Finished the job before dark- time for dinner and a few beers, well deserved.

    Friday, July 15, 2011

    Summmer= back to work!!

    Back after a brief hiatus...but got a LOT done since I last updated. Spring and summer have been busy,  almost done with the large interior renovations!

    Part 1: Upstairs Kitchen

    April- demolition begins on upstairs kitchen




    Kitchen before...50s charm?? I think not...
    Late April- Sub-floor down


    Hardwood and paint...

    Took a little break in May...June- Paint and hardwood
    Yup, Bri trusts me with this thing...
    Beautiful bamboo hardwood floors- I thought we should have installed mirrors and kept it a huge dance room. No dice.
    Lets get those cabinets and appliances in!!

    Oh the tedious process of cabinet assembly, not my favorite
    I know you all love your Darius updates....I think here he is....holding down the floor?? Well done D.

    Sunday, February 20, 2011

    Shiney, new bathroom!

    It's been a while, but we have been busy!! Finished the upstairs bathroom in just under a month- and it looks great. And, Three nor'easters in one month- and this house is still standing...nice!!


    Bathroom Renovation
    Bathroom Before....
    Bathroom After!!
    Bathroom Before...
    Bathroom After!!


    Bathroom Before....
    Bathroom After!! This vanity was handmade, from scratch...by Brian, as was all of the bathroom furniture.

    Monday, January 17, 2011

    Concrete counter tops, appliances, bathroom demo- Oh My!

    Well what a productive 2 weeks! Other than Kendall celebrating a milestone birthday...(yeah 30!!) we got a lot done, and the first floor kitchen is damn near done! The counter tops went in, and everything looks great. Just a few finishing touches and it will be all done. Which means, demo started today on the 2nd floor bathroom :-) Talk a look at the last 2 weeks progress:

    The concrete counter tops: Thousands of dollars less than granite, and way more fun to make (just ask bri and dimitri, haha) Here are the finishing touches...
    Dimitri- polishing the concrete
    Bri does a little sanding to the sink piece
    Boys to the rescue! The daunting task of carrying the largest counter upstairs- 500 Lbs.
    
    Good job guys- almost there...
    
    Home stretch...
    And done! largest piece in place- wooo!

    Kitchen area, complete with counter top, sink, appliances and cabinets
    Fridge area, not quite done
    Complete sink area, look at those beautiful counters!
    Complete and functional- all in about 2 months
    Kitchen, doin it's job

    
    Sneaky Dimitri, doing some electrical
    

    And this is what happens when let Bri loose in your bathroom..
    
    Getting right to work on this mess
    
    Yikes- this is what my bathroom currenly looks like, yup.
    Darius, finally lifts a paw to help!

    
    
    Frosting the sliding glass shower doors
    Bri is building all bathroom furniture- shelving unit and vanity...in our guest room
    Bathroom + Kitchen = Bitchen. For the next few weeks, I can apply my makeup while washing my dishes. Hooray

    
    Kitchen #1 Before...

    
    Kitchen #1 After!