Finished with tests, onto new tasks at work, tiny Kitchen progress
Worked from home to-day because of an 8 a.m. meeting.
To-morrow I will drive to work and will be there for the rest of this week.
To-day wore pajamas all day so I could get a shower after finishing work.
At work I finished the last of three new tests (well, one was a revision). So to-morrow hope to get into a new task and also write up my goals for this quarter.
I have managed to put away all the last manual cleaned dishes. I *may* do the plastics tonight after I finish my shower.
No Dr. Who last night, but my intent is to watch Dr. Who most nights starting with the Eggleston series (we watched the first episode called "Rose" after the human recruited to join The Doctor. I would call that episode "The Plastic People" because that was the threat for that show.
No progress at the city on my permit. The tree checklist appears to be unmoving. I will have to check whether the correction was filed by Neil Kelly or not.
It has been nice weather: a pity I can't be outside pulling siding tiles!
I also need to be unpacking books. Once I get on top of the kitchen I will begin that.
There is only so much I can do!
I had a rare moment of relaxation yesterday, drinking coffee, with lunch and a donut.
Some guy named David dropped by yesterday from a company that does cheap fixes for a comparably large amount of money (DaBella). They do roofs, siding, windows and bathtub/showers. Don't need a roof. We are set for 50 years there. Siding: we need to remove it, not cover it. Windows: restore, not replace. However, I am willing to be entertained by what they think is a good solution for a bathroom. I believe what we need is a tiled floor that dips down into a basin (no barrier to entry) and a glass door to a shower--we get rid of the current tub.
So expect to get a call on Friday about a Saturday visit...then on Saturday will see someone about the shower replacement on the tub. It is certainly only informational for me. I want to see what they think is affordable so I know the baseline for what we want to do. I doubt what they promise they will do is good enough for what we need:
* remove old tub.
* tile bathroom floor sloping into a wet room with glass enclosure.
* any replacement plumbing should be copper, not plastic.
* possible removal of chimney to provide more room with removal of towel closet (we do something else for linen storage).
* new electrical, alignment of sink to wall, new toilet, wood wall to chair rail, space for clawfoot near window, drain and supply lines plumbed for clawfoot, cut into closet room, insulation of exterior walls, weatherize window, keep sink but new/nice faucet.
Problems solved: worn and dirty shower walls, broken linkage for shower drain, leaky shower head, easier entrance, more electrical outlets, more space in shower.
Interim: massive cleaning of shower walls and tub/bathroom floor, find a way to fix shower drain linkage, remount/tighten shower head.
DaBella is what you would expect--high pressure sales for unremarkable crap. Their bathrooms are acrylic, aka plastic.
They get a lot of 5 star reviews, but I suspect they are not real. There were a few 4 stars, which I guess are more believeable. The rest were 1 stars. When they call on Friday, I have asked Marisa to cancel. Below you will see why!
"Scummy sales tactics, same cut as used car salesmen. Felt like I was held hostage in my living room by their two salespeople, who tried to upsell (offered to replace my brand new gutters, do 4x the work), and talked in circles about everything under the sun. When I said no, they called their office and had a conversation ABOUT ME in front of me. Absolute insanity. Avoid unless lonely."
"I was recently approached by DeBella for a free quote on siding and windows. My experience getting this free quote was one of the worst experiences I’ve had with any company. Don't contract with door to door salespeople. What you get if you even entertain a free quote is a sleazy arrogant sales person like John Mckee that comes into your home, wastes your time, and disrespects you and your family ..."
"the workers dropped something and damaged our aluminum awning. This was done in July 2022 and as of now they still have not fixed it and they won't return my calls. "
"Do not even request a quote from this company. They are the biggest con artists around. I only called to get a quote to fix my leaking patio. Mike came out and did an entire inspection of my roof and showed me pictures of damages and rot, even a split beam in the attic. He was told at the time I did not have the money to replace my roof. He insisted they would wait until I did have the money..."
"The experience was dreadful. It has been 8 months since we signed the contract and after two installations over a 6 month period, the installation is STILL not correct or complete. Note the photo attached...the walls of the shower are supposed to go to the ceiling...NOT 1.5" below the ceiling. And, they never did install the permanent shower curtain rod. DaBella management is non-responsive..."
"The salesman came to grandmothers door early May, promised her the moon, she wrote one check for $13, 000.00 - they asked for more she wrote another for $9000.00. This was for a double wide manufactured home. We are into June and have not seen or heard from anyone since. Have called their office and get the run around. Still waiting on getting a resolution or a refund."
"The previous homeowners of the home I purchased in 2021 had this company install their new roof back in 2018. Unfortunately, a vent flashing was not installed during the new roof installation around one of the vent pipes, allowing rain water to get into the walls every time it rained. This caused water damage in-between the walls on the sheet rock, wood boards, window frames, and mold to develop ..."
"Let me start out by saying, GO WITH ANYONE ELSE. We felt mislead, & just pisst off. Had DaBella come in for a bid on replacing our roof, David had a full presentation, videos and brochures showing how the roof would be done, ALL the products used and how they were applied. David even had an app. on his phone showing our roof and how much material would be needed. The price seemed high,"
"It did not go. We have a rental and need to replace a tub/shower. Each month not rented, we are losing money. The sales person was present and told us there was some surplus material, a 6-8 week timeframe and a discount. We were presently surprised and paid the deposit. We did not hear from them and suddenly received a refund for the deposit, with no explanation."
"9/19/2021 BEWARE: We have been under contract with DeBella to do a shower installation for almost 4 months now. We gave them a deposit of $3,000.00 with the expectation of a September 3rd, 2021 install. The total is supposed to be close to $12,000.00.....just to replace the small walk-in shower. This is not a major job for them."
"My experience with DaBella started with their door to door salesman who after learning that I was interested in getting my gutters replaced told me someone would drop by an estimate the next day. After receiving a call to confirm that I was interested in having an estimate dropped off a time was set-up...the dropping off an estimate turned into 3 hours of pressure sales presentation..."
The Better Business Bureau has more reliable ratings:
"This company is the worst at communicating, if I could give them negative starts I would . No one communicates with you and they sub contracted with a company that left trash all over my yard and neighbors yard . When I asked the general manger this issue he basically told me to have them pick it up and they would clean up the mess at my house. Well here we are 48 hours later and I havent seen a soul. Do not waste youre time and money on this poor excuse of a so called business . "
"Do not use or contact this roofing company. I got a quote from them that was double the cost of any other roofing company. When I told them I have already had the roof taken care of they tried selling me all sorts of other services. I get calls from the sales people at all times of the day or night. Just this morning I got a call at 6:04 AM!! Terrible company.I have ask to be removed from the list multiple times. At this point it is harassment!"
"If you could use "0" stars that is what I would give DaBella! After spending $43,000+ on windows in September 2022, they needed to reorder 2 windows that didn't work, replace some screens and fix the gap problem in the material surrounding the half-round window. We were suppose to get a call from supervisor in October regarding fixing material around 1/2 round window. The 2 replacement windows were supposed to be put on "******************** and should take 4-6 weeks they said. We have heard nothing and have called them repeatedly and told we would get a return call. Called in October, November, December and now January 2023!! What is so hard about giving a customer a return call? Sometimes when calling them get cut off during transfer or are they just hanging up?? Dabella has absolutey the worst customer service we have ever experienced! I certainly wouldn't recommend them to anybody and would warn anybody considering their services to think twice! An unhappy customer here!"
"DaBella salespeople have come to my ********** times in the past seven months, twice to hawk new windows, today asking about the age of my roof. They are always very pushy and obnoxious. We live in an older house that we have recently paid off, proud to do so. Seeing these people canvassing the neighborhood for work when contractors of every stripe are so very busy makes me suspicious. Their pushy ways at my porch was extremely distasteful. Yes, we have plans to replace our aging aluminum windows. Yes, Im aware that my roof is well over its 20 year lifespan. I will not be using a contractor that keeps coming to my door when *** asked them not to. Please come up with a different marketing strategy. When I tell a salesman that Im good, planning on using another contractor, then they show up a couple months later with the same high pressure tactic, makes me wonder"
"Never do business with Dabella! Our 2-4 weeks to install our walking shower took 4 months to get to install and suppose to be a 1 day install. My bathroom has been torn up with holes in the floor. They were suppose to come back today and finish the job, and all day long we have had no installer show up. Going on 3 days for an install and still counting because the installer doesn't know when they will be back to finish!!!! In the meantime, we are in a mess,so very unprofessional "
Done and To do:
[x] clear kitchen sink.
[x] run dishwasher.
[x] put away clean dishes and flatware.
[x] fill dishwasher.
[x] rinse cat food cans.
[x] wash other dishes, utensils, bowls, some plastic items.
[ ] go clockwise to near max on water heater thermostat(s)/ turn off lights in cellar.
[ ] wash plastics.
[ ] wash pots and pans.
[ ] clean cat litter on first floor.
[ ] run dishwasher with next load.
[w] get up to duct and seal.
[ ] remove asbestos siding tiles.
[ ] use drano on bathroom sink
[ ] put books back in dark wood bookcase in hallway.
[ ] reassemble light wood book case to place in the hallway.
[ ] put books back in the light wood book case.
[ ] in cellar find Marisa's small flag box.
[ ] receive short book case and fill with books.
[ ] buy 1/8 inch glass to fit the frame and an acid-free backing and neutral invisible tape and/or neutral adhesive and repair Mimi Joy painting for display.
[ ] buy hardware to use my picture rails.
[ ] fix 2nd floor toilet
[ ] new washers for 2nd floor sink
[ ] fix leak in powderroom sink
To-morrow I will drive to work and will be there for the rest of this week.
To-day wore pajamas all day so I could get a shower after finishing work.
At work I finished the last of three new tests (well, one was a revision). So to-morrow hope to get into a new task and also write up my goals for this quarter.
I have managed to put away all the last manual cleaned dishes. I *may* do the plastics tonight after I finish my shower.
No Dr. Who last night, but my intent is to watch Dr. Who most nights starting with the Eggleston series (we watched the first episode called "Rose" after the human recruited to join The Doctor. I would call that episode "The Plastic People" because that was the threat for that show.
No progress at the city on my permit. The tree checklist appears to be unmoving. I will have to check whether the correction was filed by Neil Kelly or not.
It has been nice weather: a pity I can't be outside pulling siding tiles!
I also need to be unpacking books. Once I get on top of the kitchen I will begin that.
There is only so much I can do!
I had a rare moment of relaxation yesterday, drinking coffee, with lunch and a donut.
Some guy named David dropped by yesterday from a company that does cheap fixes for a comparably large amount of money (DaBella). They do roofs, siding, windows and bathtub/showers. Don't need a roof. We are set for 50 years there. Siding: we need to remove it, not cover it. Windows: restore, not replace. However, I am willing to be entertained by what they think is a good solution for a bathroom. I believe what we need is a tiled floor that dips down into a basin (no barrier to entry) and a glass door to a shower--we get rid of the current tub.
So expect to get a call on Friday about a Saturday visit...then on Saturday will see someone about the shower replacement on the tub. It is certainly only informational for me. I want to see what they think is affordable so I know the baseline for what we want to do. I doubt what they promise they will do is good enough for what we need:
* remove old tub.
* tile bathroom floor sloping into a wet room with glass enclosure.
* any replacement plumbing should be copper, not plastic.
* possible removal of chimney to provide more room with removal of towel closet (we do something else for linen storage).
* new electrical, alignment of sink to wall, new toilet, wood wall to chair rail, space for clawfoot near window, drain and supply lines plumbed for clawfoot, cut into closet room, insulation of exterior walls, weatherize window, keep sink but new/nice faucet.
Problems solved: worn and dirty shower walls, broken linkage for shower drain, leaky shower head, easier entrance, more electrical outlets, more space in shower.
Interim: massive cleaning of shower walls and tub/bathroom floor, find a way to fix shower drain linkage, remount/tighten shower head.
DaBella is what you would expect--high pressure sales for unremarkable crap. Their bathrooms are acrylic, aka plastic.
They get a lot of 5 star reviews, but I suspect they are not real. There were a few 4 stars, which I guess are more believeable. The rest were 1 stars. When they call on Friday, I have asked Marisa to cancel. Below you will see why!
"Scummy sales tactics, same cut as used car salesmen. Felt like I was held hostage in my living room by their two salespeople, who tried to upsell (offered to replace my brand new gutters, do 4x the work), and talked in circles about everything under the sun. When I said no, they called their office and had a conversation ABOUT ME in front of me. Absolute insanity. Avoid unless lonely."
"I was recently approached by DeBella for a free quote on siding and windows. My experience getting this free quote was one of the worst experiences I’ve had with any company. Don't contract with door to door salespeople. What you get if you even entertain a free quote is a sleazy arrogant sales person like John Mckee that comes into your home, wastes your time, and disrespects you and your family ..."
"the workers dropped something and damaged our aluminum awning. This was done in July 2022 and as of now they still have not fixed it and they won't return my calls. "
"Do not even request a quote from this company. They are the biggest con artists around. I only called to get a quote to fix my leaking patio. Mike came out and did an entire inspection of my roof and showed me pictures of damages and rot, even a split beam in the attic. He was told at the time I did not have the money to replace my roof. He insisted they would wait until I did have the money..."
"The experience was dreadful. It has been 8 months since we signed the contract and after two installations over a 6 month period, the installation is STILL not correct or complete. Note the photo attached...the walls of the shower are supposed to go to the ceiling...NOT 1.5" below the ceiling. And, they never did install the permanent shower curtain rod. DaBella management is non-responsive..."
"The salesman came to grandmothers door early May, promised her the moon, she wrote one check for $13, 000.00 - they asked for more she wrote another for $9000.00. This was for a double wide manufactured home. We are into June and have not seen or heard from anyone since. Have called their office and get the run around. Still waiting on getting a resolution or a refund."
"The previous homeowners of the home I purchased in 2021 had this company install their new roof back in 2018. Unfortunately, a vent flashing was not installed during the new roof installation around one of the vent pipes, allowing rain water to get into the walls every time it rained. This caused water damage in-between the walls on the sheet rock, wood boards, window frames, and mold to develop ..."
"Let me start out by saying, GO WITH ANYONE ELSE. We felt mislead, & just pisst off. Had DaBella come in for a bid on replacing our roof, David had a full presentation, videos and brochures showing how the roof would be done, ALL the products used and how they were applied. David even had an app. on his phone showing our roof and how much material would be needed. The price seemed high,"
"It did not go. We have a rental and need to replace a tub/shower. Each month not rented, we are losing money. The sales person was present and told us there was some surplus material, a 6-8 week timeframe and a discount. We were presently surprised and paid the deposit. We did not hear from them and suddenly received a refund for the deposit, with no explanation."
"9/19/2021 BEWARE: We have been under contract with DeBella to do a shower installation for almost 4 months now. We gave them a deposit of $3,000.00 with the expectation of a September 3rd, 2021 install. The total is supposed to be close to $12,000.00.....just to replace the small walk-in shower. This is not a major job for them."
"My experience with DaBella started with their door to door salesman who after learning that I was interested in getting my gutters replaced told me someone would drop by an estimate the next day. After receiving a call to confirm that I was interested in having an estimate dropped off a time was set-up...the dropping off an estimate turned into 3 hours of pressure sales presentation..."
The Better Business Bureau has more reliable ratings:
"This company is the worst at communicating, if I could give them negative starts I would . No one communicates with you and they sub contracted with a company that left trash all over my yard and neighbors yard . When I asked the general manger this issue he basically told me to have them pick it up and they would clean up the mess at my house. Well here we are 48 hours later and I havent seen a soul. Do not waste youre time and money on this poor excuse of a so called business . "
"Do not use or contact this roofing company. I got a quote from them that was double the cost of any other roofing company. When I told them I have already had the roof taken care of they tried selling me all sorts of other services. I get calls from the sales people at all times of the day or night. Just this morning I got a call at 6:04 AM!! Terrible company.I have ask to be removed from the list multiple times. At this point it is harassment!"
"If you could use "0" stars that is what I would give DaBella! After spending $43,000+ on windows in September 2022, they needed to reorder 2 windows that didn't work, replace some screens and fix the gap problem in the material surrounding the half-round window. We were suppose to get a call from supervisor in October regarding fixing material around 1/2 round window. The 2 replacement windows were supposed to be put on "******************** and should take 4-6 weeks they said. We have heard nothing and have called them repeatedly and told we would get a return call. Called in October, November, December and now January 2023!! What is so hard about giving a customer a return call? Sometimes when calling them get cut off during transfer or are they just hanging up?? Dabella has absolutey the worst customer service we have ever experienced! I certainly wouldn't recommend them to anybody and would warn anybody considering their services to think twice! An unhappy customer here!"
"DaBella salespeople have come to my ********** times in the past seven months, twice to hawk new windows, today asking about the age of my roof. They are always very pushy and obnoxious. We live in an older house that we have recently paid off, proud to do so. Seeing these people canvassing the neighborhood for work when contractors of every stripe are so very busy makes me suspicious. Their pushy ways at my porch was extremely distasteful. Yes, we have plans to replace our aging aluminum windows. Yes, Im aware that my roof is well over its 20 year lifespan. I will not be using a contractor that keeps coming to my door when *** asked them not to. Please come up with a different marketing strategy. When I tell a salesman that Im good, planning on using another contractor, then they show up a couple months later with the same high pressure tactic, makes me wonder"
"Never do business with Dabella! Our 2-4 weeks to install our walking shower took 4 months to get to install and suppose to be a 1 day install. My bathroom has been torn up with holes in the floor. They were suppose to come back today and finish the job, and all day long we have had no installer show up. Going on 3 days for an install and still counting because the installer doesn't know when they will be back to finish!!!! In the meantime, we are in a mess,so very unprofessional "
Done and To do:
[x] clear kitchen sink.
[x] run dishwasher.
[x] put away clean dishes and flatware.
[x] fill dishwasher.
[x] rinse cat food cans.
[x] wash other dishes, utensils, bowls, some plastic items.
[ ] go clockwise to near max on water heater thermostat(s)/ turn off lights in cellar.
[ ] wash plastics.
[ ] wash pots and pans.
[ ] clean cat litter on first floor.
[ ] run dishwasher with next load.
[w] get up to duct and seal.
[ ] remove asbestos siding tiles.
[ ] use drano on bathroom sink
[ ] put books back in dark wood bookcase in hallway.
[ ] reassemble light wood book case to place in the hallway.
[ ] put books back in the light wood book case.
[ ] in cellar find Marisa's small flag box.
[ ] receive short book case and fill with books.
[ ] buy 1/8 inch glass to fit the frame and an acid-free backing and neutral invisible tape and/or neutral adhesive and repair Mimi Joy painting for display.
[ ] buy hardware to use my picture rails.
[ ] fix 2nd floor toilet
[ ] new washers for 2nd floor sink
[ ] fix leak in powderroom sink