The HVAC Dilemma That Almost Ruined My Design Dreams (Seriously!!)

By Mandi | 08/21/2017 | 4 Comments

Hey Hey!!!

Guys. The Merc reno is CRUISING. In my last video+post I mentioned that we had a HVAC saga to discuss. Are you ready to hear how it quite literally almost ruined all of my design plans?!

So lets start at the beginning. What is an HVAC system?! An HVAC system is your heating and air conditioning, it includes the actual units and all of the duct work and vents. Its wicked important (I don’t want to live without an AC do you?!) The Merc currently has a 5 ton gas pack unit installed on both sides of the building. We’re not worrying about unit #2 until phase 2 starts, so this post is all about the dilemma that we ran into with unit #1.

The unit itself is mounted on the roof close to the front of the building. When we bought the Merc, phase 1 had some exposed ductwork running in front of the massive support beam. Don’t get me wrong, I love exposed ducting, and we’re going to use it in phase 2, but for phase 1 we decided to put it up inside the ceiling.

That plan was quickly thwarted when the HVAC guys tried to make it happen. See the roof at the Merc looks a little bit like this:

Read More

Embracing My Fear of Over-Renovating

By Mandi | 08/18/2017 | 19 Comments

Hey guys!! Happy Friday! Things are cruising around here!! The windows for the bedrooms were cut yesterday and the framing and electrical are 95% done! The HVAC system is in and I am just SO happy!!!

Ok so, we all are fully aware that the world we live in celebrates and expects perfection. Right?

Everything has to be new and shiny and completely resistant to any sort of character making defects. My biggest fear with the Merc (besides the one where the walls disintegrate) is that we might over renovate it.

Read More

Want To Be In The Merc’s Time-Capsule!??

By Mandi | 08/16/2017 | 5 Comments

Its pretty early around these parts, 4:03 am to be exact but I just woke up with a very distinct impression that I need to put together a time-capsule for the Merc and you guys need to be part of it!!!

I hadn’t really thought of doing one and there were definitely other places we could’ve stuck it (helloooooo massive trenches in the foundation) but before the walls get closed up I’m going to get 1 or 9, you know, depending on participation enthusiasm, pulled together.

So will you send me something??!?

This is what I want:  Please print off one picture from your life today. It can be a selfie of you, your family, your dog, your house, your city, your favorite DIY project, your favorite meal, really ANYTHING (…well not anything, keep it PG) and write on the back of it:

Your Name
Your Location (doesn’t have to be an address, just the city you’re from)
Your Age
And then write about your life. What do you want someone long in the future to know? I mean, hopefully like reallllly long into the future cause these are going in the walls of my favorite place ever so…to be opened when I’m dead and gone? I feel really strongly that it needs to be about recording the good things that are happening in our lives right now. This world is becoming increasingly darker and who knows what the future is going to hold, but I want our capsule, (whenever its found) to be a giant ray of sunshine!

The deadline for submission is a week from today, August 23rd. So you’re going to have to act really fast, especially those that are international. That is when the sheetrock is scheduled to start and the walls are being sealed. I would love to have a physical picture from you, but if you can’t make that happen with our tight turn around I still want you to be part of it! Shoot an email with the above info to [email protected] with TIME-CAPSULE in the header.

Mail your pictures to:

Mandi Gubler
GENERAL DELIVERY
Santa Clara, UT 84765

Love you all and I can’t wait to have you be part of this!

 

Why Our Framing Bill Keeps Getting Higher and Higher…and Other Budget Updates

By Mandi | 08/15/2017 | 33 Comments

So we’ve come to the conclusion that there is not a single surface in the Merc that is straight. F’real. So many #mercperks.

Our framer had the walls and ceilings in pretty quick (like 4 days!!!) but we keep having him come back for more work. The latest is the ceiling in the kitchen. I was meeting with our AMAZING cabinet guy (can’t wait to tell you all about it!) and we realized that while the new opening into the entryway was level, the ceiling was in fact not, and the whole thing looked a little wonk.

Read More

Let’s Talk Transoms

By Mandi | 08/09/2017 | 38 Comments

Dudes! We’re renovating our dream house, an old mercantile store build in 1928! Follow along from the beginning here!

One of the biggest and most obvious dilemmas that we faced off the bat with the floor plan for the Merc was how to get as much natural light into the center of the space as we could. Having it all on one level is great so so many reasons but the downside is the rooms in the center of the house will have no access to natural light. Of course there is always the option of sky lights or solar tubes but the roof in phase 1 is in good condition (unlike the roof in phase 2 that needs to be totally replaced) so cutting a hole in it was not a can of worms that I was willing to open (at least not right now, who knows what will happen in the future!)

That lead me to transoms. For those that are unfamiliar, a transom is a window that sits above a door.

Read More