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The first 2 weeks were tiring to say the least! Hubby and I clocked almost 300 hours just trying to make this place livable while we do the work.

I’m almost embarrassed to show you these before pictures, but it is what it is and the after pictures will be so good.

This is the master bedroom after 8 hours, but before vacuuming.

The master bedroom needs EVERYTHING! The paint on the walls is flat and at least 20 years old.  There are cigarette burns everywhere in the carpet and the electrical is all original except for the jerry rigging everywhere else. I’ve already blown out 2 plugs just plugging in the vacuum. I am cleaning the nicotine layer off the head board and able to salvage it for a spare bedroom.  It is my grandparent’s from the early 1930’s.

I use a Rainbow vacuum (water canister based) and after pouring off the water this colander holds the debris from the floor of the bedroom.

This room doesn’t look too bad – until you look super close.  I won’t even tell you what all was found in this room.

There was “STUFF” everywhere.  How any one person could stuff so much into one home is beyond me. After 12 days I still have more to send to donation and have used 78, yes I said 78 thirty gallon trash bags. It also has cost me $45 in beer and soda to get the trash men to take a little extra each time.  Fortunately they come twice a week.

The kitchen is usually my favorite room of the house…until now!  The kitchen also needs EVERYTHING!  The cabinets are coated in nicotine and food, and are also dry rotted, the floor is chipped and peeling.  No appliance is in the least bit salvageable including the kitchen sink.

There were fire ants all through the pantry and the refrigerator had become an overgrown science project.  The construction dumpster gets here Thursday and EVERYTHING goes!

The water heater and AC are all that can be saved.