Floor: Done and Done!

At the FD project, the basement floor is installed....and every fiber of my body feels the 1200 sqf of flooring that was put down.  The Pergo Elegant Expression (in Buchanon Maple) was the perfect choice.  The floor certainly lives up to its name.  Unlike many laminate floors that I see, this one does not have the obvious 'pattern' that your eye picks up.  Perhaps it will in the photos, or when I get everything off of it!

Unlike many basements, this basement consists of a great room, a bathroom, and three other separate rooms.  It really feels integral to the house, particularly given that the stairway downstairs is visible and very open.So there were many jambs to cut.  We used the Porter Cable multi-tool which we bought for just that reason.  It has many other uses, to be sure.  However, THIS USE, cutting jambs, is not the best use (in my non-professional view).  For my next project, I'm just going to get a true jamb saw.  It will be more adequately powered and likely will smoke less blades.

The transformation of the basement space is almost complete.  I still need to get Cover Stain on the basement hallway and the remainder rooms and bathrooms, and then final painting.  The house is going to be completely brand new inside.

I learned a trick from a painter of 30 years, and I will be sure to remember it--and wanted to share it.  He counseled

When you run into walls and ceilings that are painted in a semi-gloss (as many older homes are), consider putting a primer (flat) over the walls first.  A primer will

• hide many of the imperfections (thereby reducing work)
• give traction to repairs if still needed (provide a surface for spackling, drywall tape etc to adhere to).

Now if you ask any dentist, doctor, attorney, tradesperson, about any 'particular' thing, you'll get more than one answer.  There's a reason for the aphorism, "there is more than one way to skin a cat".  The 'right' way is often that individual's (no matter what his/her experience and education) preferred way.

The other bit of wisdom the painter gave me was that the best teacher (in determining your preferred way) is trial and error.  Now trial and error for the sake of trial an error is about as productive as packing your parachute without any training/research/practice.  The end result is likely about as satisfying.  But finding our 'preferred' ways of doing 'stuff' is how we amass competency--provided we don't kill ourselves acquiring it!