Home renovations and remodeling

Where should a renovation start?

With how you use the space now and what bothers you about it. Most good renovations solve one or two real problems: a kitchen that is too tight, a basement nobody uses, a bathroom that has started to leak. We walk the house with you, write down the scope, and price that first.

If the list is long, we will suggest an order that makes sense, usually structure and anything behind the walls before finishes.

Can you remove a wall?

Often, yes. A non-bearing wall can usually come out with some patching. A load-bearing wall needs a beam and posts sized for the load above it, and sometimes an engineer’s or designer’s sign-off. We will tell you which kind you have before anything is cut.

What if you find problems behind the walls?

Older homes in Nova Scotia often hide rot around old leaks, undersized framing or tired wiring. If we open a wall and find something, we stop, show you, and price the fix in writing before going further. Nothing gets covered up to keep the schedule.

Can we live in the house during the work?

Usually. We seal off the work area with dust walls, protect the floors on the way in and out, and clean up at the end of each day. Kitchen and bathroom work is the hardest to live around, so we plan those to keep the time without a working sink or toilet as short as possible.

What should I know before finishing a basement?

Deal with moisture first. If the foundation leaks or the basement smells damp, finishing it will trap the problem behind new walls. We look at drainage, grading and the foundation before framing anything, and we can fix outside water problems with our own excavation crew.

What affects the price of a renovation?

The size of the space, how much is changing structurally, how much plumbing and electrical moves, and the finishes you choose. Items you have not picked yet are listed as allowances in the quote so you can see where the budget is going.