Your “nest” is ready to be populated and adorned with various objects that include doors and windows, molding, cabinets and countertops if your custom house subs taken care of laying the foundations, framing the structure, building the walls, roofing the residence, installing the utility systems, finishing the exterior and “polishing” the interior with neat drywall and properly ventilated fireplaces.
Now that you know how heavy these weigh in the process of completing your journey to having a special place of your own, take your time in choosing the right carpenters to have them put in place for you. Your contractor might already have selected a carpentry team, but if you can choose the related specialists for yourself, prepare to examine their skills and workmanship before making any hires. See as many previous samples as possible of each person’s work and then make a decision regarding to whom to give the job.
In order to make your selection easier, just list the main types of jobs that have to be carried out in this area and then decide what sub is more suited to perform each of them. Here are some suggestive examples in terms of tasks typically completed by finish carpenters:
- hanging exterior and interior doors;
- setting door sills;
- setting windows and window sills;
- installing closet and pantry shelving;
- installing stairway trim and decorative railing;
- installing base and crown molding;
- installing decorative molding such as chair, picture rails and wainscoting.
When charging the bid for getting the work done, carpenters have different criteria on which they calculate it. Some do it by the number of openings cut into the wall (for example, the number of windows and doors) or the number of cuts they have to make. Others use a time basis by the hour or by the day when charging for their services. You can suggest a price for the whole task and negotiate with the workers.
After hiring the proper subs to carry out the carpentry tasks, you need to make sure that you have all the necessary materials ready for the completion of the project and, most of all, that it all comes from the same suppliers. You don’t want to run out of trim, let’s say, during the installing process and then order some more just to have incompatibilities in colors, grain, weight or other aspects of the material. Furthermore, ensure a proper place where you can store and protect it from damage.
Doors and Windows
In order to work properly, doors have to be hung level or plumb, with its trim also level and square. Therefore, the sub designated to deal with this matter has to make sure that the correct clearance at the bottom is created. Otherwise, hardware may not match up and doors can stick, which will later require a lot of effort to fix.
In terms of exterior doors, they are usually decorative, but by all means they have to be solid. This is why weather stripping should be taken into consideration when reaching this point. An essential add-on, weather stripping saves a lot of energy and it is not always provided by the finishing sub. Hence, talk to your contractor about it so that you won’t be deprived of this important feature.
When it comes to interior doors, you can choose from a wide diversity which has price as its main variable. At the low end of the price scale are hollow-core Masonite doors, which have an outer frame endowed with a sheet of masonite on either side. Light and inexpensive, they are easy to hang, but need painting and won’t account for a big aesthetic effect.
Just a little above on the price barrel, there is the alternative of prefabricated hollow-core doors. Although still requiring to be painted, these models are imprinted with three-dimensional patterns and simulated wood grain, which adds a nice decorative flair. Moreover, they are easy to install.
High on top of the option list come the custom doors. Sure, they do boast a beautiful aspect, but they are solid-core, which means that they are heavy and, therefore, need expert hanging. Plus, you need to order them far in advance to make sure they are ready in time for the finishing work. If this is the choice you make for your custom house, take care of it during the architecture phase so that you can allow your contractor and finishing subs to make the necessary arrangements.
To make your life easier, you might consider purchasing prehung door and window frames because they can be easily fit into place. Made from metal, wood or vinyl, today’s window models are self-contained units.
Moldings and Baseboards
Relatively easy to install, baseboards represent the molding that runs along the corner of the wall and floor. To put in place, the finishing carpenter seats the measured and cut boards against the floor and secures them onto the wall with the help of a nail gun. For the final “act”, the worker will miter (cut at angle) the corners of the baseboards so that they fit smoothly and cleanly into place.
While you are at molding, here are two other “sections” asking for your attention:
- crown molding – running along the corner of the ceiling and the wall or sometimes just below the ceiling, it is more difficult to be applied because it sits at an angle to the wall which can make negotiating corners and angles a challenge;
- chair or picture rails – they refer to the decorative molding strips that run horizontally somewhere along the middle of the walls.
Seeing that this type of molding is more exposed to direct sight, it will be subjected to critical scrutiny more often. Therefore, you need a perfect finishing, which, in its turn, requires a skilled hand carving with the coping saw. Another challenge with moldings comes from the possible presence of curved walls. Although expensive, custom warped pieces are available to help you in this respect. Another alternative is to purchase flexible moldings because they can bend around complex curves.
Once the trim is in place, any nail holes are filled with putty. After the putty dries, the carpenter sands and paints the nail holes.
Cabinetry and Countertops
If you are talking about cabinets and counters, then you definitely refer to your kitchen and bathroom. These functional decorative elements can be quite expensive, but indispensable. Therefore, study your options and make a wise decision. Instead of having them custom made, you can buy less expensive prefabricated models. With today’s variety, you are sure to find a pleasing design. However, since you want to obtain a certain look for your home, custom is not out of the question.
Depending on the wall shapes and areas that you want to populate with these cabinets, you have many choices at your disposal before ordering. Shape, color and style are parameters that diversify the range, including models with inserts, pull-out drawers, lazy susans, dish and spice racks, trays, and more. If you decide to acquire prefabricated cabinets and order from one single manufacturer, you can enjoy a substantial discount.
The almost unlimited offer for cabinets is replicated in terms of countertops as well. Thus, the once favored Formica option is now accompanied by alternatives like granite, tile, marble, synthetic Corian and Silestone. The “winner” will be chosen according to your tastes and budget.
After you receive the ordered models, reconfirm the measurements and layout of your kitchen and bathroom with your related sub. The dimensions of the appliances and the placement of the doors and windows are other important factors in installing cabinets and countertops. Consequently, checking this information in the contractor’s presence insures you that everything will fit in all the right places.
Before getting started in this respect, take a look at this list of typical dimensions that work as standard references:
- 36 inches: The countertop height from the floor;
- 32 inches: The optimum height for built-in desks and writing tables;
- 24 inches: The knee space required underneath desks;
- 24 inches: The standard countertop depth;
- 3 to 4 inches: The standard back-splash height behind sinks.
Don’t forget to include the thickness of the drywall and the width of molding in the “equation” concerning the measurements for cabinetry. Also think about the order in which you want to perform the painting and the fitting of these items. Maybe it is better to paint them first so that no hard-to-reach areas remain uncovered or unwanted surfaces get smudged.
When work advances to the bathroom, make sure that cabinetry phase precedes the tile application. This way, it is easier to adjust the two elements in accordance with each other.
Having all the necessary equipment at hand, the carpenter installs the upper cabinets first so that the base ones won’t be in the way. Then he places the latter in place, after which the countertops are cut and fastened securely to their proper positions. Next, the appliance holes are cut and all seams and joints are caulked. Finally, drawers are added and pull knobs attached. With a finishing touch, the carpenter repairs any scratches and marks, leaving you with a freshly furnished kitchen and bathroom.
In the doors and windows, molding, cabinets and countertops lies the abstract IT which makes your home special, even extraordinary.