The Final Chapter

This has been an interesting journey and it was fun to keep a running log of the renovation process, from beginning to end.  Lots of nice comments along the way and most of you were interested to get a first-hand look at how Bermuda houses and roofs are constructed.


The outside work and major building/renovation has been completed, leaving a bit of plumbing, painting and electrical work to be finished.  Jason and Tina should be moved into the new apartment by the middle of July and, hopefully, will have lots of happy years enjoying their new home.


The Sea Link guys have been working elsewhere, but a couple of them have shown up to do some finishing work over the past few days.  We'll miss having them here, but hope to have them back sometime in the future to fix a large wall that needs attention.


The remaining task for them was to put down some gravel in the parking area and this has now been done.  I was a bit concerned about walking and driving on gravel, but it's starting to become more compacted as we drive over it.

The final load of gravel is delivered

Johnny uses the Bobcat to spread the gravel

Johnny evens out the gravel in the parking area

The parking area is now finished

A few people have told me how much they've enjoyed this blog and asked me to continue blogging.  This blog may have a couple more updates if we're able to get the roof and house painted, as well as getting the wall along the front of the property repaired.  But, if I can find something else interesting to blog about, I'll give it a shot.


Thanks again for riding along with me on this particular journey, and thanks for all the nice comments.  Glad you enjoyed it!

Friday Finale

The guys showed up, unexpectedly, late yesterday (Thursday) afternoon to solidify the parking area walls and prepare the ramp for concreting.  Each of the cells in the wall block was partially filled with fairly large rocks, then loose concrete was poured into the cells.


Strong wire mesh was cut and placed on the ramp, with boards secured at the top and bottom sections.  The rain was on its way soon and it didn't make sense to do too much more.

Filling the block cells with concrete

A closer look at the filled block cells and the ramp preparation

All done for the day

Everyone was here in the morning and things got going right away.  Chris and Tony worked on plastering the parking area walls, while Johnny and Ryan spread out soil at the back of the driveway.  The driveway is going to be transformed into a yard for Jason and Tina, so we'll end up just having a parking area out front when the project is completed.

Tony plasters one of the parking area walls

Ryan evens out the soil for the new apartment yard

Johnny spreads out the soil

A little while later, Barbara and Kari brought down a "Thank You" cake to present to the guys, since everyone was here at that time.  We have really appreciated all the work that Sea Link has done for us and wanted to reward them with a special treat.  This renovation project is coming to an end within the next few days and we'll really miss having the guys around here. Each of them has worked very hard the entire time and the quality of their work speaks for itself.

Johnny, John Sr., Ryan, Chris and Tony - The Sea Link Team!

Kari and Barbara pose with the guys

The cake, baked and decorated by Barbara

Okay guys, break time is over - get back to work!!  Did I sound like a tough construction supervisor?  No?  Oh well, guess I should just concentrate on taking the pictures!


Later in the morning, the truck arrived with a load of concrete for the ramp.  It was a strong mixture and set up very quickly, which was lucky because the rain was threatening.

The cement truck backs into the parking area

Johnny, Tony and Chris move the chute in place

The guys spread out the concrete

Chris and Tony work on the top section of the ramp

Pouring concrete for the lower section of the ramp

Tony and Chris level out the concrete

The ramp is concreted and looking great

The parking area walls have all been plastered

The weather hasn't been too kind this week, but as you can see, the guys still managed to get a lot of things done anyway.  I wasn't at home when they left today, so don't know when they'll return.  But, I don't think anyone will see them until at least Monday, particularly after they polish off that cake tonight!

An afternoon of progress

It's been a cloudy and windy day, but at least there was no rain to keep some work from getting done in the afternoon.  Johnny was the only person here during that time and managed to finish off a few more tasks.


His goal was to build up the parking level a bit more, reduce the incline of the ramp and clear up the driveway area along the side of the house.  All was accomplished!


Each of the Sea Link workers are able to do many different tasks and are able to work on their own, when required.  And, they are all happy to do whatever is needed, without complaint.  If anyone reading this blog ever needs a reputable construction company to work on almost any project, I highly recommend you use Sea Link - you will NOT be disappointed!

Spreading out the sand in the parking area

Johnny is a master at operating this particular piece of equipment

Firming up the loose sand

Reducing the ramp incline

Removing the excess soil from the front yard

The extra soil will be used at the back of the driveway

Johnny evens out the remaining soil

The front yard begins to get back in shape

A look at the ramp, leading down to the parking area

Johnny tidies up the back of the driveway

Another view of the parking area and ramp

When the guys return, they are going to concrete the ramp and make it safer to drive and walk on.  Again, I'm not sure if they'll be here tomorrow, but you'll know when you check the blog the next time!

Monday/Tuesday report

The guys were here on Monday morning to begin building the walls around the parking area, as well as do some plumbing work in the water tank.  Although they were only here for the morning, they managed to get a lot done.


A small trench was dug around the perimeter of the parking area in order to form a concrete footing, upon which to build the walls.  A very strong batch of concrete was made, which set up very quickly.

Johnny digs out the footing trench along the avenue

The guys determine levels for the concrete footing

A closer look at the footing trench

John Sr. dumps sand and screenings into the mixer

John Sr. at the controls!

Chris dumps a load of concrete into the footing trench

Tony levels off the concrete

The concrete footing is complete

John Sr. puts a load of block in place to build the walls

The block is now ready for easy access

Tony works on the second row of block

The first two rows of block have been built for these walls

The weather forecast for today (Tuesday) was for yucky weather, so the guys got back to building the walls right away.  Thankfully, the wet stuff held off for most of the morning, but it got really nasty in the early afternoon and the work eventually had to be stopped.  The good news is that the entire wall was able to be completed before they left.

Chris and Tony get right to work on building the walls

Tony checks the level for one of the side walls of the ramp

Chris drills holes for the metal support rods to be placed inside the block

Chris and Ryan continue to work during the occasional rain showers

The completed walls

A new parking spot for the car!

Johnny spent the morning inside the water tank, putting new access pipes in place.  He was also kind enough to check one side of the tank for a leak, which has caused us to lose a lot of water.  Luckily, Johnny was able to locate a small hole about 8 inches from the tank bottom and repair it.


I didn't get to talk to the guys before they left, so don't know if they'll be back in the morning or will have to go to the new hospital project.  But, I do know they'll be back at some point, so keep checking the blog.