Our Remodeled Beach House and Unexpected Surprises

Now that our newly remodeled beach house is almost done, I wanted to share that no remodel ever goes perfectly. Things just happen.

You all know how much I love our newly remodeled beach house. I cannot believe how much better it is than I ever imagined and every time we visit I have to pinch myself. Ninety-nine percent of the remodeling experience was wonderful and I am so thankful for our contractor who helped us complete this project. But sometimes I think bloggers and social media creators forget to mention that nothing is perfect. Especially during a remodel! So let’s share some of the unexpected surprises.

Our Remodeled Beach House Story

Anyone that has remodeled a room or an entire home knows that there are unexpected issues and surprises. That’s why most budgets have a “contingency fund”.

But I rarely read about the issues. Today I am sharing some things that needed creative solutions during the beach house remodel. Why? Because I think sharing the good and bad of a remodel is an important reminder that you have to be flexible and willing to be creative to make a remodel work.

And also to remind us all that in every project there will be unexpected surprises.

The Stairway Debacle

Our extensive beach house renovation included adding a third-floor deck with an outdoor kitchen. The plans included a new stairway to the new third floor. Once the stairway was framed in and drywalled, we discovered we couldn’t close up the wall at the stair landing. Why? Because the walls on either side of the opening were not aligned.

Oops. Of course, it had to be enclosed. But maybe not with a solid wall?

Ok, technically we could have enclosed it entirely but it would have been a big box on top of the wall instead of a seamless wall.

The large opening did allow a lot of light into the space and I decided that I wanted to take advantage of the light.

I suggested we use an old gate that I found on FB Marketplace so my contractor built a frame that was extended out to create an even plane.

Next, we attached a vintage garden gate that we sandblasted and then antiqued in white and gold. My contractor was then able to build a frame for the gate that provided safety (there is less than a 4″ opening in the entire gate) as well as offsetting the misalignment of the walls. The gate is bolted into the frame which is then bolted to the walls.

I think the gate looks like it was planned to be there all along.

The Appliance Mistake

We started the beach house home renovation during the pandemic and the supply chain was a major issue to contend with. Lead times on products like windows and appliances were really, really long and erratic. Product delivery needed to coincide with the building timeline on the construction end, so coordinating the two was quite a dance.

I ordered the appliances for the kitchen in April of 2022. The delivery date for the appliances moved in and out and in and out and most of the appliances were delivered to my contractor’s warehouse in December of 2022. The dishwasher arrived separately (and three months later) and was also stored in my contractor’s warehouse. The appliances sat in the warehouse for months until the kitchen was ready for appliance installation.

We were given a 24-hour window to inspect our appliances and the stove, two refrigerators, and range hood were all inspected for damage.

This is the point where I learned an incredibly valuable lesson that I want to pass on to you all. It is quite common that when you buy appliances, you have a defined window to inspect them. Once your appliances are delivered, you must inspect them and either accept them or return them. Make sure you check with the source that you are ordering yours from on what their policy is.

What I learned, the very hard way, was that I had mistakenly ordered a refrigerator that was not counter-depth. Once it was installed it was immediately visible, but, because the refrigerator sat in a warehouse for a few months, the timeline to return it had passed.

The lesson here is you can’t just inspect the appliances for damage, you need to also make sure they are the right ones you should have ordered. Duh.

The dishwasher delivery was rescheduled three times and unfortunately when it was finally delivered we missed the 24-hour inspection window. And of course, once unpacked, it was damaged. There was a huge dent in the front panel that would potentially affect the control panel. Again, it had been accepted and sat in the warehouse and we didn’t know about the damage until it was installed.

I went back to the retailer and begged. And begged. And even cried. At the least, couldn’t they take back a perfectly good refrigerator? After talking to three managers they all told me no. And the manufacturer (GE) couldn’t help me either.

Lesson learned – don’t ever buy an appliance from a retailer that has a 24-hour window as it is literally almost impossible to time it so that you can install them and make sure they fit and work within one day of delivery!

I was so distraught as it had taken months to get the appliances and now, two of them were unusable. And with the supply chain issues I couldn’t wait another six months for delivery.

But, there is good news. I found my exact dishwasher and refrigerator on Amazon! The next day I ordered a new counter-depth refrigerator and dishwasher which were delivered in under a week, in perfect condition!

I also managed to sell both the refrigerator and the dishwasher at a discount. And yes, the dishwasher price was almost free. But please learn from my mistake and make sure to inspect appliances upon delivery and make sure the inspection delivery is realistic with your situation!

I stressed a lot over these appliances but now that we are enjoying our remodeled kitchen it is all almost forgotten.

On this blog, I may sometimes use affiliate links, which means a small commission is earned if you purchase via the link. The price will be the same whether you use the affiliate link or go directly to the vendor’s website using a non-affiliate link.

The Island That Doesn’t Fit

This is one of those things that looked fine on paper, but in real life, did not work at all. The island that was designed for the kitchen appeared to be the right size on the drawings, but once it was built and in the kitchen, it was waaaaayyy too big.

For example, I couldn’t open the oven door all the way. Yikes!

We went round and round on a solution until we realized that there was a center section of drawers on the island that could be removed. That solved the problem! And, as a benefit, because we had ordered quartz to fit the bigger island that had not yet been fabricated, we had leftover quartz that we were able to use around the fireplace in the living room.

Window Hardware in Three Different Finishes

I am still trying to figure out how this happened, but we have three different finishes of window hardware in our remodeled beach house. The primary bathroom has black hardware. The primary bedroom has white hardware and all of the other windows have chrome hardware.

Interestingly, the order for the windows clearly states that all of the windows were ordered with chrome hardware. I am working with the manufacturer to swap out the black and white hardware for the chrome that was ordered.

The fix remains outstanding, (and it is taking forever) but it is in motion. Thank goodness the hardware can be swapped out after installation!

The Washer/Dryer Vibration Issue

Before the beach house renovation, our old washer and dryer were in the garage. I really wanted to move the washer and dryer inside the house and we found a tight fit under the stairs. Of course, we had to order a new washer and dryer.

This seemed like an easy install. I ordered the washer and dryer and when they arrived, they were installed without issue. They fit perfectly and looked great.

Once I started the machine, I went upstairs and about half an hour later I heard a terrible, and loud noise. It was so loud, I thought maybe we were having an earthquake. I ran downstairs and the washing machine had been so violently shaking, it managed to turn itself completely around.

How is it possible that the machine managed to fil all the way around in this tight space while it was running the spin cycle? Seriously?

The plumber confirmed the washing machine was faulty and said I needed to return the machine.

Of course, they weren’t returnable because they had been sitting in the warehouse for months.

I decided to do a bit of research and I learned another very important lesson that I want to share with you. When a washing machine is shipped, there are shipping bolts installed to keep the machine stable during transport.

If the shipping bolts are not removed, as mine were not when installed, the machine cannot function normally and literally fights against the bolts.

A quick internet search led me to learn that the shipping bolts, if not removed would cause this behavior. I was able to remove them myself!

Luckily, there was no damage to the machine or the laundry space. Long story short, you need to make sure the shipping bolts are removed before you run a load of laundry in your brand-new washing machine!

The Downspout Location

For the beach house remodel, we expanded the front of the house out to the street. The vents on the deck were installed, and four months later and when the downspouts were installed, we discovered one of them led straight to the top of the side garage door.

What the heck?

We got creative and decided to add an awning on top of the door so that the downspout could connect to the awning and drain from there.

We are in the process of moving the downspout now. Just another surprise!

The Door to Third-Floor Deck

While this last surprise is a small one, it did pose a problem. The new stairway to the third-floor deck has newell posts at the bottom, the turn, and the top of the staircase. Each newell post has a cap on top of it. When constructed, it looked beautiful, however, when we got to the top of the staircase to open the door to go out onto the deck, the door could not clear the post cap.

Opening and closing the door is a critical path to using the third-floor deck! Duh.

So, my contractor shaved the newell post cap on the one side just enough so that the door now opens and closes. The cap is a different shape than the other two, but it works! And you can’t see it until you are up there.

Home renovation can be an exciting and rewarding experience, but it can also come with its fair share of problems. From surprises and problem-solving workarounds to unexpected expenses, it’s important to be prepared for the unexpected and to have a plan in place for when things don’t go according to plan. I hope that you have learned from some of my mistakes and that when you start or complete your home renovation, it goes smoothly.

I promise you, it’s all worth it. Even if it may seem at times that you will never finish.

We love our remodeled beach house. We had some surprises but it all worked out just fine.

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