To think 'how the fuck will we manage'...

[WiddlinDiddlin]

Post relates to Disabled Facilities Grant.

Finally, I have a date for the start of our disabled facilities grant (DFG) funded kitchen and bathroom refurb... i have been waiting almost 7 years for this!

2nd of January.

They want to do both at the same time. The contractors are meant to be managed by someone else... but in reality, we're on site - we have to live here and we can't move out whilst the works are done, oh and I also have to work whilst the work is on-going, from home or I have no income.

Um...

This is going to be hell isn't it?

Practical suggestions - DP, myself and three dogs will be spending all day confined to livingroom and back yard, with contractors having to access upstairs, hall and kitchen via the front of the house.

I have space to have kettle and a tub with basic food stuff in here.

We will apparently have a working toilet by the end of each day.

Realistically... how long would one expect this to take. From childhood I recall a similar size kitchen and bathroom job being done by my two parents and some child labour in around four days each, I expect they'll have more people though.. but then I also suspect it benefits them if it takes longer... and they know that whilst I am the client, I am not the person they directly answer to (something I am not overly happy with but theres nothing I can do). I am worried about piss-taking...

Any ideas whatsoever to reduce stress... stress tends to trigger autonomic dysfunction and I am already pretty much buggered working 3 shifts a week (2 til 10, thats another issue, I sleep til 12, ill have to be up and downstairs by 8.30 I expect at the latest!)...

I wish I had a responsible adult do sort this out for me, I realllllllly do, but the only one there is is... me!

The length of time depends on how much they’re doing. If they’re just replacing fittings, like for like and putting down lino and a coat of paint, it’ll be much faster than moving pipes, tiling and re-wiring for example.

We had work done over January for a few weeks once. The doors were open constantly with work people coming in and out so it was a waste to have heating on - and obviously absolutely freezing as a result. We were working from home so were stuck sitting in the cold. It was a bit shit, but we lived to tell the tale. Plan ways to keep warm whilst holed up in the living room. Working with constant banging, drilling and dust is also tedious.

Get a microwave and easy to cook/dispose of food. You don’t want to be left with loads of washing up. The rubbish food was the worst it of the experience for me - sneak some treats in to cheer you up. Locate your nearest free toilet - supermarket for example and how to get there quickly if you need to go - limit fluids during the day so you’re not constantly needing to go. They’ll leave you a toilet and water supply each evening, so wash and sort yourself out before they arrive each morning.

It will be noisy, at times very noisy and create a lot of dirt.
When our bathroom was done recently it took 2 weeks which could, perhaps, have been shortened to 10 days.
If you can take a bit of time off (not necessarily 2 weeks) it might be helpful. Or make plans to work out if the house.

look up a working hub near you to work from.
some cafes allow this also for a minimum spend but a hub is much nicer.

As PP have said, I’m not sure of the scope of the work but 4 days seems wildly optimistic to do anything! We just had our bathroom done and it was 3 weeks, and they weren’t slacking. Definitely look into airbnbs or respite.

Lucky you getting this funded! How exciting. It will be worth it. You’ll be fine. Go out, to a friend’s, day long dog walks etc.

We haven’t had a kitchen for about 6 weeks and won’t until February. 3 kids. It’s really not that bad. Builders tend to pack up by 3:30ish each day.

We didn't have a kitchen for six months, we did all our cooking between the microwave, hot plate for boiling water and the air fryer. We had a six month old too! It felt never ending but made it through. Get creative and keep the end in sight!
Builders need endless tea and biscuits it felt like a full time job!

@Sweetpea1989 weve had builders in since June and I’ve maybe made 1 cup of tea 😄 they’ve got their own kettle - I literally asked the project manager about this before we started as there’s no way I was spending a year making teas and coffees 😄

Are the contractors working via the DFG or did you get the cash and choose independently? I ask because we had our kitchen done independently and they fannied around but our wet room for our disabled sone was done via a contractor through DFG and they were brilliant, cracked on and essentially turned a walk in wardrobe into a fully functional wet room in five days, it's really important to them to keep their contracts with the grants team and they worked hard, cleanly and were smashing people!

Think a week is wildly optimistic!

It will be tough but very worth it. I agree join a gym if possible for showering etc.

Beg, borrow or steal a camping stove! When my kitchen was being done, I used the camping stove on the dining table for a few days. And the camping water carrier, which has a tap on it, was invaluable for periods when the water was turned off. But I'm sure you'll be fine with microwave meals for a few days.

When my bathroom was done a few years ago, they did the toilet first, and it was surprisingly quick. They did the washbasin last, so we were only without that for a few hours. The bath was done in half a day, but we couldn't use the shower for a few days, because the tiling was the last thing to be done. This might be more of a problem if someone in the household can't manage a bath, which seems likely if the work is funded by a DFG. But overall, it was surprisingly manageable (and my plumber cleared up all the dust etc at the end of every day, and even hoovered the stairs, because it got everywhere).

Could a friend or relative have the dogs for a few days? I'd do that for any of my friends in a heartbeat.

Of course, staying elsewhere is the optimum solution...

We did our house reconfiguration and renovation in 2020 along with WFH and home schooling, it was fucking awful.

Here are my tips.
Book your dogs into doggy day care.
Borrow a microwave with an oven in it so you can have oven chips etc
We washed our plates in the bath, if you won't have this, paper plates for a week?
Ask a neighbour if they can do a load or 2 of washing
Go to family/friends at the weekend

Ours is probably a bigger job (very old house with hidden problems!) but our kitchen and bathroom refurb started in September and still isn't finished.
Things that I've learnt:

• you can't control what they will do and when. They just need to do the work.
• properly seal off as much as you can to stop dust.
• buy a Henry hoover. A Dyson won't cope.
• set up a little kitchen in your living room with a table top hob, microwave and kettle.
• move your fridge into the living room.
• if you don't have access to a sink, get disposable stuff to eat, drink from. Not ideal but it's not forever.
• if you have a project manager, communicate with them about what still needs to be done once a week. That way you're both being kept on track without annoying each other.
• our builders are good at their job but crap communicators. Things have slipped, gone wrong, forgotten, mostly because they don't have a clear plan from their boss and they don't communicate with each other well. It's fucking annoying but need to remember crap disorganisation that wouldn't be acceptable in my organisation isn't the same in the building trade - they just blame each other and roll their eyes. Be really clear what needs to be done. Being polite and friendly will go a long way but also speak up when things aren't right or delayed. You are the client.
• if the plans change, costs can spiral. Check in with extra costs regularly. Have it all in an email chain for reference.
• keep a separate spreadsheet for costs.

It's a stressful pain in the arse but when all done and they're out of the house, it's usually worth it.

Wow, that sounds like ages! My bathroom took them 4 days, including new flooring and tiling. The layout wasn't changed though, so they didn't have to do loads of new pipework.

And my plumber is an absolute grafter, he hardly stopped. He moved earlier this year and extended and renovated the new house in 6 months. I think he might be a workaholic.

We did a kitchen extension a couple of years ago which due to layout also meant as well as no kitchen we couldn't access the back garden to even let the dog out for a wee! so for a couple of months lived in the small front room. Very cramped. Had the fridge freezer in there and a small camping table with the microwave kettle and slow cooker on. Did some nice stews in slow cooker and microwaved veg. Took dog out 5 times a day on his lead for a wee (literally got to point where I didn't care what I looked like so early morning and night would just slip on wellies and coat over my pjs to walk the streets 😆)
We managed. You'll manage. It's a few weeks of pain and afterwards it will be worth it.

My kitchen and bathroom refits took less than 5 days each (and that included moving utilities for appliances in the kitchen). You should be able to move the fridge into the living room and get the microwave, toaster and kettle set up on a table. Put basics (tea, coffee, cereals etc) in a storage box under the table. Accept that you won’t be eating fine dining for the duration! If you ask on a local Facebook group or similar, someone might be able to lend you a two ring electric hob. I would be cautious of using a camping stove indoors but could be done if you’re careful. Also get some big water bottles or a camping water carrier to carry water from whichever taps are working at the time or if they need to turn the water off for a couple of hours.
in my experience they will always leave you with running water and a toilet overnight.
surely if you work 2-10pm you could be in bed by 12 and still get 8hours sleep before the work starts?

My dh did our kitchen in his spare time, it took months and we had a camping stove and a kettle and just pretended we were camping. When we've done bathrooms before I've washed my hair in a bucket. I'm sure yours won't take too long if its just refitting and not building extensions or anything.

I would put the dogs in kennels (for safety if nothing else, tradesmen dont care about leaving doors open......)

Honestly you will be fine if you plan and it will be well worth it after a 7 year wait.

But bottled water for times when you have no water.
When we had our extension We moved our little fridge into the living room and then Moved kettle, air fryer, toaster, microwave in ontop like a mini kitchenette.
Good communication with the workers is key, ask the last day you have access to bath, wash your hair that day, then once a sink is put in place you are good to go again. We do alot of swimming so could shower there.

I would book time off though as it will be noisey knocking units out

You have my sympathy. I can confidently predict the following:

(1) It will take longer than you expected

(2) Now is the time to call in every favour you are owed

(3) Despite (2) above, you will end up spending money to make life tolerable.

But it will come to an end and I hope you will be happy with the results.

DFG- disabled facilities grant.

I think some of these replies are a little ignorant of your situation. It’s a bit absurd to suggest jetting off abroad or renting a holiday cottage when you’ve explained you cannot afford to live with your earnings, and you’re on low income.

Youve had some good practical suggestions.
If you have family or friends who can help you don’t be afraid to ask!

I imagine the renovations are fairly basic- are you getting adaptions for a disability? So may not take as long as you think.

The workman should be out by 5pm each day so a lot of your wfh evening shift will be in relative peace at least.

We've done 2 bathrooms this year, one took 3 weeks, one took 2 weeks, I could see a kitchen taking at least 3 weeks depending on size.

We always had a working toilet and the water shouldn't be off for long periods, but that won't help if you don't have a tap!

You might need to look at a cheap hotel for the odd night when chaos is reigning.

Would they actually do both at the same time and not just one then the other?
We moved the microwave and slow cooker into the living room along with the fridge freezer, it was cramped but I loved reaching into the fridge from the couch 😂

When I lived in a housing association place that had new bathroom and kitchen fitted completed with new floors, re plastering and new ceilings I actually moved into my parents pretty much for a month. They dust sheet covered other doors etc but my fridge, oven etc were all disconnected and moved to another room/hallway.

@WiddlinDiddlin premier inn or travel lodge can be very cheap. Get one every other day so you’ve got somewhere to rest and shower?

It is what it is. We had a DFG extension a few years a go for a disabled DC. We managed living like what felt like Victorian street urchins for a few months 🤣. 2 adults, two birth kids, 2 foster kids and 2 dogs. The low point was when we didn't have electric for a couple of days. Thankfully in the summer. You just have to get creative.