Open letter to homeowners:
Kip Carpenter changed our lives. He helped me and my wife create a safe, functional and beautiful home where we can age gracefully. We will never forget this transformation as we enjoy his handiwork daily.
Thirty years can go by quickly and even a well maintained residence can become unsafe and uncomfortable. Things wear out. Codes change. Our bodies deteriorate even faster than our house. Things that once worked suddenly stop functioning. The alternatives are simple—live with it, move, or change it. We wanted to change it but were overwhelmed by the scope. Where do we start? What about our pets? Where do we live? How long will it take?
He did the kitchen first. It was a total rip and replace which took just two weeks. There was a dust wall. The refrigerator was in the living room and we ate out for awhile. The kitties napped in the bedroom. We got a beautiful kitchen that works for us and our lifestyle. The previous kitchen just did not work. We ate and ran. The new kitchen is the most relaxing room in the house and we rarely leave. Everything in the room is outstanding and the new GFCI outlets add a new level of safety.
Next we worked on the bathrooms. Mold is a serious problem and it loves a moist place. Our bathroom fans were original to the house. They just moved everything to the attic. Kip replaced the old rattletraps with new units. The new fans exhaust through the roof and use timers so they continue to pull the moisture out even after you leave the room. I call them Whispersuck 2000s because they are so quiet and powerful.
According to the CDC, people over 65 slip and fall at least once a year. Some of these falls are fatal. Our bathrooms were small and had tubs. We knew that a fall in a steel bathtub would be serious. We just did not know what to do. Kip managed to squeeze in a walk in shower for us. We not only got a shower that is easy to access, it even opened up the room. For us, the project was painless. There was a dust wall. It took three weeks. We slept on the sofabed. The kitties napped in the extra bedroom. I recall hearing loud banging one day. The rest of the time things were quietly moving along.
Kip managed the impossible. He understood us and had a vision of what we needed. He gave us detailed estimates. One project came in quite a few dollars below estimate. One came in a few dollars above. The dollar variance on both projects was less than 2%. That is pretty remarkable for construction projects. I wish I was the same low variance on my information technology projects. These projects were affordable and made our house a place we can live for a very long time. Kip took on all the worries of how to do it and how to correct mistakes. Construction requires that the right people install the right stuff according to schedule. Reality intervenes with rainstorms, delays and incorrect products. We led our lives and our kitties napped while Kip solved all the problems.
By every measure, Kip greatly exceeded our expectations. We expected the projects would be more expensive but they were less expensive. We expected the projects would take a long time, but they were finished quickly. We expected to make a few compromises on finished products but we made none.
Our desire was to stay in our home for a long time. These updates allow us to do just that. We are delighted with the results of Kip’s efforts which have updated our house and made it safe.