We are homeowners!
Closing was last week and we took possession on Saturday. Unfortunately, they did not do any cleaning despite assurances that they would do so. In fact, they didn't leave until hours after they were supposed to be gone. Nothing nefarious, they just deeply underestimated how much stuff they had and how long packing would take. I ended up helping them load stuff in their U-Haul for three hours, or they'd probably still be there.
Once they drove off, we opened the doors to find a horrible reek of cat piss. Plus cigarette smoke, but we already knew we were facing that. The cat pee was an unwelcome surprise. While the staining underneath the carpet suggests their cats had been peeing in one room over a long period of time, I suspect the worst of it was deposited when they had the cats locked in that room while the movers were there and for subsequent caging. It really was horrible. I don't know how they masked the odor before, since cat pee is notoriously difficult to mask; I know they were using plug-in air fresheners in every single room and I suspect they hit it heavy with Febreze right before we came over each time.
We ripped the carpet and pad up out of that room last night and tossed it in the rent-a-dumpster. I get paid this Friday, so I'll hit the sales at Home Depot to get some wood laminate flooring. It actually works out well since that will be my craft room and I wanted it as a bare floor in the first place. I could have just done without getting that stench in my nose. :-P
Shannon has been steam cleaning the rest of the carpets while I wash the walls and ceilings with heavy-duty cleaner. They have so much nicotine buildup they're sticky. ~shudder~ After each wall and patch of ceiling, I have to dump the cleaner and mix a new batch because it's brown. Bleearrrgghhh... I hope by this weekend we can start to paint.
Speaking of paint, the previous owners had done every single room in a different color, including ceilings and closets, with matching carpet. The kitchen and one bedroom are yellow. The laundry nook is lilac. The craft room is sort of a salmon-peachy color. The second bathroom is blue. The living and dining rooms are a blue-green. And the master bedroom and bath are pink. I mean they're PINK. Floor-to-ceiling fluorescent Pepto-Bismol pink. When the afternoon sunlight hits it, I swear it glows. See for yourself:
I can't do anything about the other carpets for now, but we'll be repainting the walls a nice off-white ("Queen Anne's lace," it's called now) and the ceilings a flat white. In addition to the circus colors, they also had heavy opera curtains on the windows and glittery geegaws hanging on just about every inch of wall space. Shannon's been pulling all the nails, screws and hooks and has filled a large baggie with them. Let me just say that after seeing their version of decor, I am not at all surprised that she wanted to move to Las Vegas.
They also left behind and threw away an unbelievable amount of stuff. Garbage bags full of brand new clothes, some of them with the tags still attached; men's dress shoes still in the boxes; good boots that look like they were only worn a couple of times; a weight set and other exercise equipment; four unopened cases of quart canning jars; a large barrel composter; a Polaroid camera still in the original box; and the aforementioned carpet steam cleaner. Most of this stuff was actually tossed in the rent-a-dumpster, so it was no mistake. We were floored. Most of it was easily savable, so we retrieved it to give to Goodwill. For instance, there was a brand-new black oilcloth duster with the $125 price tag still attached. How insane is that? Considering most of the thrift stores will come and pick up donations, they really have no excuse for this.
On the plus side - it's so quiet out there you can hear a pin drop. All we usually hear is the wind in the trees and the birds. I haven't had time to explore our woods yet, but a couple of friends did and tell me I have huckleberries, raspberries and wild strawberries out there. I can't wait to explore for myself. More photos are forthcoming.
Once they drove off, we opened the doors to find a horrible reek of cat piss. Plus cigarette smoke, but we already knew we were facing that. The cat pee was an unwelcome surprise. While the staining underneath the carpet suggests their cats had been peeing in one room over a long period of time, I suspect the worst of it was deposited when they had the cats locked in that room while the movers were there and for subsequent caging. It really was horrible. I don't know how they masked the odor before, since cat pee is notoriously difficult to mask; I know they were using plug-in air fresheners in every single room and I suspect they hit it heavy with Febreze right before we came over each time.
We ripped the carpet and pad up out of that room last night and tossed it in the rent-a-dumpster. I get paid this Friday, so I'll hit the sales at Home Depot to get some wood laminate flooring. It actually works out well since that will be my craft room and I wanted it as a bare floor in the first place. I could have just done without getting that stench in my nose. :-P
Shannon has been steam cleaning the rest of the carpets while I wash the walls and ceilings with heavy-duty cleaner. They have so much nicotine buildup they're sticky. ~shudder~ After each wall and patch of ceiling, I have to dump the cleaner and mix a new batch because it's brown. Bleearrrgghhh... I hope by this weekend we can start to paint.
Speaking of paint, the previous owners had done every single room in a different color, including ceilings and closets, with matching carpet. The kitchen and one bedroom are yellow. The laundry nook is lilac. The craft room is sort of a salmon-peachy color. The second bathroom is blue. The living and dining rooms are a blue-green. And the master bedroom and bath are pink. I mean they're PINK. Floor-to-ceiling fluorescent Pepto-Bismol pink. When the afternoon sunlight hits it, I swear it glows. See for yourself:
I can't do anything about the other carpets for now, but we'll be repainting the walls a nice off-white ("Queen Anne's lace," it's called now) and the ceilings a flat white. In addition to the circus colors, they also had heavy opera curtains on the windows and glittery geegaws hanging on just about every inch of wall space. Shannon's been pulling all the nails, screws and hooks and has filled a large baggie with them. Let me just say that after seeing their version of decor, I am not at all surprised that she wanted to move to Las Vegas.
They also left behind and threw away an unbelievable amount of stuff. Garbage bags full of brand new clothes, some of them with the tags still attached; men's dress shoes still in the boxes; good boots that look like they were only worn a couple of times; a weight set and other exercise equipment; four unopened cases of quart canning jars; a large barrel composter; a Polaroid camera still in the original box; and the aforementioned carpet steam cleaner. Most of this stuff was actually tossed in the rent-a-dumpster, so it was no mistake. We were floored. Most of it was easily savable, so we retrieved it to give to Goodwill. For instance, there was a brand-new black oilcloth duster with the $125 price tag still attached. How insane is that? Considering most of the thrift stores will come and pick up donations, they really have no excuse for this.
On the plus side - it's so quiet out there you can hear a pin drop. All we usually hear is the wind in the trees and the birds. I haven't had time to explore our woods yet, but a couple of friends did and tell me I have huckleberries, raspberries and wild strawberries out there. I can't wait to explore for myself. More photos are forthcoming.