How it works
A year in six steps
It starts in summer, when you're at the lake, and ends before the next one.
The first walk
We come to the house and the lot. You show us what you love and what bothers you; we look at the frame, the shoreline and the utilities.
Jun-Aug
Design
Sketches, then drawings, over a few weeks of weekends. You decide what goes in and what stays out.
Jun-Sep
The estimate
A written estimate from the finished drawings, with allowances and the weeks the work will take.
Aug-Sep
Permits and orders
Applications go in, and the windows, cabinetry and stone are ordered.
Aug-Nov
The build
The shell first, then the interior. A weekly photo update and a walk on your weekends.
Oct-Apr
Back at the lake
A final walk-through, a short punch list and a clean house.
Apr-May
Dates move with the winter and with your house.
Week one
What happens in the first week of a build
Before the crew arrives you'll have the schedule, the names of the people on site and a phone number for each. On day one we protect the floors and walls we're keeping, set up the temporary heat and lock the site.
Floors, stairs and walls protected
Temporary heat and power set up
A locked site, with keys you know about
A first photo update by the end of the week
Questions
About the schedule
What if the winter is hard?
We close the house in first, so snow and frost slow the exterior and not the interior. The calendar has room for it; we tell you when a date moves.
Can we change something during the build?
Yes, in writing before it's done. We price the change and the weeks it adds, and you approve it.
Do you work in the dead of winter?
Yes. The interior work happens in a heated house, and we plan the exterior for the days that allow it.
How do I see the work?
A weekly photo update, and a walk on any weekend you come up.
Build windows
Ask while you're at the lake
Design takes the summer, and windows and cabinetry take months to arrive. The first conversation is the earliest part of the schedule.