structural upgrades

[jrb]

Hi,

I am going over the prices for upgrades and i know it is important to do some structural things up front.

Is any one thinking of doing the following:

Rec room ready, w/2 larger windows, rough in bath....$999.00
Water softener rough in...................$788.00
Cold room under pourch...............$2,204.00

Does any one think the above upgrades are worth while........

[dvar]

Depends entirely what's important to you.

The cold dellar would be the most difficult if not impossible to do later. (but like alot of things I have no clue!)

We only did the rec room rough in/larger windows, I couldnt deal with the small windows and I have heard that trying to tie into the main line for drainage is no fun. Our rec room/bathroom rough-in cost us $1200 (3 windows).

I am waiting on the water softener, will see what an after-market unit and install costs and I am comfortable cutting/soldering pipe and running a plug. Mind you, I aint touching the gas line so someone will be getting the call.

A guy I work with just paid $2400 through Culligan for a unit and complete install. My co-workers said he was nuts so I am assuming it should be quite a bit cheaper.
Give a few places a call and get a quote. Maybe ask them the price with and without a rough-in, that should give you a good idea if $788 is good value.

[smartsexystylish]

Hey Jrb,

We got the cold cellar as it's an upfront cost, but requires no other maintanence or fees - Like an extra fridge.
It's basically extra storage for food-type things. We also paid a smaller price to have them extend the cold cellar. I think ours was $2400 to get the inital size and then $1200 for 2/3 extra!! So we have this huge cold cellar. I'm excited lol
In ours we'll have my wine rack (filled of course!) Kevin's extra beer (Whatever isn't in the fridge) Pop, water, canned food, ect Plus I bake (ALOT!!) so extra storage for my baked goods is always a plus!

We also paid for the larger windows and rough in as we plan on turning the basement into a huge living area (Wet bar, entertainment area with huge screen tv) so the larger windows and the ability to have a bathroom down there was a no-brainer for us. (Plus and I hate to say this, but for resale value it's always great to have an extra bathroom in the basement!)

The water softener thing is something we missed out on. We didn't really know we needed one at the time. And now were looking into it. I still don't really get it lol. And I can't offer advice if that is a good price for the rough in itself. Like Dvar said, you'd probably have to call around to see.

Hope this helps?

[justmed]

We did the large window / rough in

if you are even remotely considering finishing your basement at one time or another I'd say this was a must. Having the piping already in place is going to make it so much easier. Its also probably the most reasonably priced of them all.

[DanielleandCody]

We as well went with the rough in with the larger windows and as already said for resale or even if you want to add future bedrooms etc the extra light is always good. As well that it is pretty cost efficient for the rough in as I hear doing it after can be expensive. We thought about the cold cellar but ended up not going with. Good luck choosing!!:)

[Style]

So thats where Kev will keep his beer eh! Ummm Beer! :) Just gotta find a way to build a underground tunnel from my place to your cold cellar!

[jrb]

Thank you all for your input..........................................

I will have to give it a lot of thought...............The prices all add up.....lol

jrb

[smartsexystylish]

So thats where Kev will keep his beer eh! Ummm Beer! :) Just gotta find a way to build a underground tunnel from my place to your cold cellar!


HAHA That shouldn't be too hard since we're pretty much on the same block!
I'll just try and ignore the gaping hole in my concrete :)

[newhomeowner]

most of the people i know living in cambridge do not use a water softener. I think its more of a luxury....I haven't had one in my home for years and the hard water doesn't bother me.

[anxious_f]

most of the people i know living in cambridge do not use a water softener. I think its more of a luxury....I haven't had one in my home for years and the hard water doesn't bother me.

You should, however, be concerned if you intend on being in the house for a while. The water is extremely hard in Cambridge and it can ruin your pipes and fixtures quickly. Keep in mind that they are using IPEX, not copper, for the feed lines in our houses. The crimped joints are not as forgiving with IPEX as it is with copper. You can get a decent water softener for about $900 (completely depends on the size of the house and how many people live in it) and install is likely only a couple of hundred bucks. My stepfather is a plumber, but doesn't usually do much with softeners. The guy that he brings in is named Tom Gowing...great guy and is honest and fair. I'm not sure on his contact info because my stepfather is the one who usually arranges the contact for me. I'm sure that it can easily be looked up in the phone book.

Water softener, I would think, should be a must in that area.

[K.C.]

My husband's cousin moved into Upper Country Club in Cambridge about 5 years ago and she said that she did a load of laundry before she had the water softener installed and all the clothes were ruined. I'm not taking any chances. I'm going to book a guy to come in and install the water softener the first day we are allowed inside the house.

[babymaeby]

You should, however, be concerned if you intend on being in the house for a while. The water is extremely hard in Cambridge and it can ruin your pipes and fixtures quickly. Keep in mind that they are using IPEX, not copper, for the feed lines in our houses. The crimped joints are not as forgiving with IPEX as it is with copper. You can get a decent water softener for about $900 (completely depends on the size of the house and how many people live in it) and install is likely only a couple of hundred bucks. My stepfather is a plumber, but doesn't usually do much with softeners. The guy that he brings in is named Tom Gowing...great guy and is honest and fair. I'm not sure on his contact info because my stepfather is the one who usually arranges the contact for me. I'm sure that it can easily be looked up in the phone book.

Water softener, I would think, should be a must in that area.

I totally agree with you. My husband's sister currently lives in Cambridge and said the extremely hard water nearly ruined their dishwasher. She got a softener about a year ago and said it's worth every penny.

[Joanne]

My sister in law who lives in Cambridge also recommends a softener otherwise the pipes will be ruined in no time. I am also getting this done ASAP when I close.