Unexpected Conditions

The most amazing things crop up from behind--your walls, floors, ceilings and soffits. Some of the unexpected conditions that may be found include rotten or uneven subfloor, bad joists or headers, electrical and plumbing in soffits to be removed, asbestos, black mold, termites, etc. If your basement has a finished ceiling (drywall or plaster), upgrading electrical or plumbing will require that the ceiling be taken down and that can be a time consuming and costly endeavor.

Depending upon the age of your home, the electrical and plumbing codes/requirements may have changed. You must upgrade these elements to meet today's codes. The electrical upgrade will probably have the biggest impact as a budget buster, i.e. a breaker box to correct or handle additional electrical needs may cost $600.00 or more. In addition, if your plumbing is old, it is probably galvanized piping and will have to be updated to copper piping to avoid rust which is a health concern and is especially damaging to dishwashers.