2019 Camp Refresh: The Process

The planning started months in advance.  This photo from January 2019 detailed all of the camp dimensions and was just the beginning.  Using the Homestyler tool online the work of figuring out the logistics of this renovation project began in earnest.  Budgets, product selections, figuring and refiguring a hundred details.  I easily filled half of my notebook before we were through. We had never taken on a project of this size before, or even most of the necessary parts.  But hey, we watch a lot of HGTV and its camp, we can learn as we go...

Step 1: 

Remove the "bathroom" in the middle of the room and say goodbye to the gross composting toilet that we endured for years. 

Step 2:  

Take out the 1000 little nails my grandmother had everywhere, and remove all of the random, patchwork of stray pieces of wall paneling.  

Step 3: 

Remove the old bunk beds and frame up the new bathroom location in their place.  The boxes on the left are where the new Incinolet will eventually live tucked away nicely behind a sliding door.

Step 4:  

Pull out what seemed like a mile of patched together old wiring and mark the locations for junction boxes as reference for the electrician

Step 5:

Windows.  We took out 11 horrible windows had rotting wooden frames and/or had been painted shut 20 times over.  We replaced two with identical sizes, closed up one completely, converted 4 in a corner to 2 picture windows, reframed 2 for smaller sizes, and replaced 3 with a single large window that had sliders on both sides.   

Step 6:

Electrical - the only part of the project we hired out.  The electrical panel had been replaced within the last 2 years, but the actual wiring had long been a fire waiting to happen.  We had the entire camp rewired, new outlets placed throughout, and new lighting added in the kitchen and bathroom.

Step 7:

Insulation.  We went with rock wool batts for the walls and working with them was a much easier process then either of us expected. 

Step 8:

Wall boards.  We had a great plan to chalk the outlet/switch boxes so that cut outs would be a breeze. It worked great, on one outlet.  Unfortunately in all of the others, out electrician had already come through and installed outlets and switches in every junction box preventing us from pressing the wall boards flush against the boxes.  I would estimate that this decision by our electrician quadrupled the time it took us to install the wall boards.  Despite our measure twice, cut once methods, our cut outs ended up being fairly awful.  Most of them are masked somewhat by switch plates 

Step 9:

Caulking the seams and painting the walls.

Step 10:

Install cabinets, counter top, curtains, and the Incinolet.

Step 11:

Deep clean, clear out construction supplies and tools, make the bed, and have a celebratory beer.

Step 12:

Special thanks to Mom & Dad.  By the time we finished Step 11, and the camp was livable again, they had moved to camp for the summer.  After months of working all weekend, we were spent.  If left to us, it might have take years for us to get around to doing the finish work of window trim inside and out.  Fortunately, our helpful retirees offered to take care of cutting, installing and paining ALL of our window trim work!