On our whole house remodeling project we are wrapping up with the cabinet work. One of the nice features we  incorporated into this home is an area for 'cubbies'. Located adjacent to the door from the garage, the cubbies are a place for the children to hang coats and boots. The base of the cubby is a bit deeper than the cubby itself which provides a spot for the child to sit and remove boots or shoes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Each child has a cubby with shelf that can hold school projects, lunches or materials that should be taken along the next day. Having an area like this really helps with keeping a home clean and organized.

Posted by Ray Cox at 8:55 AM | Link

 

With the oak floor installed and the walls and ceiling painted, our next task on this kitchen remodeling project is to install the cabinets. We attended to cabinet installation late last week.

The owner elected to use oak materials for the cabinets, which match the floor and trim work. The upper cabinets are 42" high units that extend to the ceiling. The previous cabinets were 30" high units and butted up against a soffit. We removed the soffit and finished the ceiling. The added 12" of cabinet height provides quite a bit of additional storage.

 

 

Our work includes creating an island in the kitchen, as well as a buffet at the dining room area. These will be welcome additions to the new kitchen and will be put to good use for entertaining.

Posted by Ray Cox at 8:42 AM | Link

 

I'm reminding you that this is the second weekend of the Northfield Builder's Home Tour. Five area builders have 12 homes for viewing and sale. We have our Circle Lake Prairie style home on the tour.

 

If you are in the market for a quality home overlooking a 30 acre wetland with access to Circle Lake, this may be your home. Stop out and visit us between noon and 5:00PM this Saturday and Sunday. And remember, at each home you can register for a 32" LCD high definition television!

Posted by Ray Cox at 1:13 PM | Link

 

On the whole house remodeling we are working on we've come to the point where stair and guard railings are being installed. Most homes use some type of finish wood railings and in fact this home had oak railings initially. The owners wanted something that was not as heavy as a wood rail. We settled on iron railings with a cherry hardwood cap rail.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The iron railings are made out of ?" square tube steel. As you can see in the photo, they are custom made to fit the openings around the stairs in this home. We used a concealed fastening system at the base at the base of the railing to create a 'clean' appearance. Stay tuned for more photos when all the railings at the loft are installed.

Posted by Ray Cox at 6:28 AM | Link

 

We are wrapping up a few final things on the Three Links Care Center reception area remodeling project. This work created a very nice entry area. The entry is very busy at times with family and friends stopping by and residents waiting for people. The rearranged spaces appear to work well for the facility.

I really like the circular lighted ceiling area the architect created. It is painted sky blue and has a very warm feeling to it. Right near by is the main reception desk. We used some low voltage pendant lighting, combined with traditional recessed lights, in this area. Yesterday I met with the architect who wants to modify the pendant lights slightly. We'll get things set just right for everyone.

Our work included creating a new reception desk. This new work station was set up to handle the specific needs of this busy work area and it is meeting those needs very well. The curve in the desk mirrors the curve used in the ceiling.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:24 AM | Link

 

Last week we finished up the demolition and electrical work in the kitchen remodeling job we are working on. We've started to patch and repair the walls and ceilings. On this project we were able to retain much of the wall and ceiling surfaces, opening up only for new electrical work. We installed several recessed ceiling lights. We are able to get at this area from the attic, which allows us to seal up the light openings well.

This project involves installing a new red oak floor in the kitchen. The new floor joins the existing oak floor in the dining area. This is always a tricky situation. It is very difficult to simply 'add on' to the ends of the existing flooring with new hardwood flooring. You can do that in a small patch, such as a door opening, but matching strip flooring across 12 or 15 feet never works properly. New strip flooring is invariably milled slightly smaller than older flooring. Older flooring also often has shrinkage gaps between the boards. Between these two issues the new flooring 'creeps' tighter when installed and within 6 or 7 boards you are already off pattern and fighting to keep things looking good. To avoid this issue we sometimes remove the existing flooring and relay the entire area with new wood. However, that carries some cost and with a nice existing floor is a waste of resources.

I've found a better approach is to trim the ends of the existing boards straight and cut a groove in the ends of the boards to receive the tongue from a strip of wood flooring. We then lay the new flooring tight to this single perpendicular wood strip, locking all the flooring ends properly together. This creates a floor with a joining strip of flooring marking the point where the new and existing floors have been joined.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In this kitchen project we are placing island and wall cabinets over much of the transition strip. Once the flooring is sanded and finished the two floors blend well together and the new and old are hard to differentiate from each other. 

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:53 AM | Link

 

This week we installed appliances in the residential remodeling we are wrapping up. This homeowner selected some very nice appliance units. Appliances are always a bit tricky to install but these all seemed to fit well in the prepared spaces. We started out by installing a double oven in an existing niche in the fireplace. We had to modify the stonework slightly to fit the new oven units, but it was a great way to use the space.

 

 

 

 

The dishwasher has a custom wood panel front that matches the cabinet work. It is hard to  tell it is a dishwasher when the front is closed.

  

We installed a coffee unit.something that I've not done previously. This one is a Miele appliance that holds coffee beans and grinds them as needed. It dumps the used coffee grounds in a container and draws water from its own dedicated water line. It is a handy, quick way to get a perfect cup of coffee. The stone counter projects in a slight radius...just enough area to park a coffee cup.

 

The cooktop is a gas unit that with excellent BTU production on the burners. The exhaust fan for the cooktop is contained behind the unit, and motors up at the touch of a button. The multi-speed fan draws at pan height to pull steam and odors out of the house. We included a small make-up air unit with this unit as when it is on high we needed to provide air to replace the air being removed from the house.

Posted by Ray Cox at 10:43 AM | Link

 

Last week we started another residential kitchen remodeling project. This one does not involve an expansion of the home at all. We are confining our work to the existing spaces, but rearranging the cabinet layout to make things work a bit better.

The existing 1950's cabinets were site built units. Those often end up being destroyed during the demolition process. But this time, through some careful work by the carpenters, the cabinets were salvaged for reuse as storage units in the basement.

Once the kitchen was cleared out the layouts were determined and we are now having new electrical work installed.  Work is progressing well.important when you are dealing with a kitchen!

Posted by Ray Cox at 7:50 AM | Link

 

Last Saturday I participated in the Northfield Home and Garden Show. This was another great show. The weather was bright and sunny, but since soils were cold and wet people were not outside working in their yards and gardens. Instead, many of them elected to attend the show, visit with their friends and neighbors, and see what home and garden products are available.

 

I thought Bridgewater Elementary school worked rather well for the show. When you enter the school the bright rotunda area provided a very nice spot for central seating and snacks. It was also a great spot for the Northfield police department to have a booth outlining their community service work. Jeff Johnson with KYMN radio was there doing live broadcasts with participants.

 

Longtime Northfield Construction Company employee Phil Olson and I worked the show together most of the day. We had new photographs of some of our most recent new home projects as well as the First National Bank-South. Across the aisle from our booth was Kes Equipment, showing their new water treatment systems.

 

 

It was a busy Saturday full of visits with many past customers as well as meeting many new people.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:59 AM | Link

 

Tomorrow is the annual Northfield Home and Garden show. This year it is being held at Bridgewater Elementary school. The school is located at the corner of Jefferson Parkway and State Highway #246. We will be there in booth number 9, along with lots of other exhibitors. Northfield Construction Company will be holding a drawing for a free $25 Chamber Dollars gift certificate. Many other merchants are also holding drawings for gifts or giving away various prizes at their booths.

The weather sounds good so I hope we will have a good crowd. Please stop by if you are out and about in Northfield. Here are a few photos from last year's event..

 

 

Posted by Ray Cox at 1:12 PM | Link

 

A reader sent me an email and wondered what I meant by the statement that the granite 'looks like a map of Minnesota' with all the little lakes. Granite comes in all sorts of patterns and colors. This particular granite has crystalline formations of a lighter blue color and irregular shapes..that look like lakes. The background granite is a brownish color. Between the color shading and shapes it looks like an aerial view of Minnesota! (The white ovals are reflections of the recessed lights)

 

It is quite a job setting granite counters like this. The sizes of the granite range from fairly small pieces used in the coffee nook where a coffee machine will be located, to the large island which is 11' from end to end. It is heavy material to haul into a home and set in place, but the counters are beautiful and will last for decades.

Posted by Ray Cox at 12:10 PM | Link

 

We started setting the stone countertops on the residential remodeling project we are working on. The client selected granite as their choice for the kitchen and dining areas. The stone has soft brown to bluish-green tones with the typical formations found in granite. The job Superintendent commented "the stone looks like a map of Minnesota from the air, with lots of little lakes." This granite is polished, but you can also get a matte finish.

Stone makes an excellent countertop material and one that we are seeing more and more on our projects. Granite comes in lots of colors. Some granite is mined right here in Minnesota, as from Cold Spring Granite near St. Cloud. Other granite is shipped in from around the world. Granite used in kitchen areas needs to be sealed with a clear sealer from time to time to protect the surface from oils and grease. This kitchen incorporated a polished granite in a lighter brown hue.

Another nice stone for countertops is limestone. Limestone isn't the best choice for kitchens, but it works well in bathrooms. We used Mexican limestone in this bathroom vanity. It carries interesting formations and with its less shiny matte surface has a bit more warmth to it.

The majority of the sinks set in granite are mounted from underneath the stone. That creates a smooth surface which is very easy to clean.

Posted by Ray Cox at 5:38 AM | Link