This May Get Ugly

What to Expect During a Landscape Project

I recently read a blog post written by Dave Marciniak the owner of Revolutionary Gardens, a small landscape design firm serving northern Virginia, D.C., and Maryland. He offered some much needed advice to homeowners embarking on a landscape construction project that I felt was worth sharing. The original link can be found at the bottom of the post. If you want to see what the process can look like, check out some of the in-progress albums on our facebook page. While we pride ourselves on keeping a clean job site I think it is important for clients to be aware of the disturbance construction can cause. (PS - It's worth it!)

"It’s easy for me to remain calm throughout a project because I know what the outcome will be, I know what the next steps are, and let’s be honest – I live with construction-based chaos every week. My landscape design clients? Not so much. They may get it – intellectually – that things will have to look worse before they look better, but seeing a swath of destruction where just last week the kids were playing soccer can be a little jarring. Having helped lots of folks through the process, I came up with a few ways to make getting from demolition to amazing finished product a little less painful.

1- Have a plan

Yes, a designer is telling you to have a design. Shocking. The thing is, that drawing is the only way that you can be certain that what you want, and what your installer thinks you want, are the same thing. I’m amazed when I hear people say things like “I signed a contract for $20,000 worth of work. I really hope I like it.” What?!

2- Hire people you’re comfortable with

This sounds so perfectly logical that it seems stupid to even say it, and yet we ignore our gut instincts way too often. Part of being comfortable with someone is a personality fit, but doing your homework will also make you more comfortable. Trust, but verify. On a large project you’ll be seeing these people for months.

3- Define a realistic communications process

Especially on a bigger project, questions will arise. If we need to ask you something, how readily available are you? Along the same lines, find out who your point of contact is on the job. Is it the foreman, the contractor, or the designer? Who’s the backup? What’s a reasonable time frame to hear back?

4- Be an active participant

Ask questions. If something isn’t what you expected, let’s talk about it. If you can be there when everything is being laid out with string lines and marking paint, that’s a great time to get clarification. After the concrete is poured is NOT a great time. It’s your house – never, ever be shy about asking a question.

5- Keep track of changes

Ideally, you started with a detailed plan and a solid contract that spelled out the details. If you have the contractor make changes along the way, make sure you know what the changes add to your price. I know of one carpenter (who will never be allowed on one of my jobs) who happily makes all kinds of changes throughout the course of the job and whenever he’s asked how much that adds to the cost, says “it ain’t that much, we’ll just settle up on everything at the end.” The final bill comes in, and it’s 20-30% more than the original contract. Not cool. Change orders protect both parties.

6- Keep a photo journal

First, it gives you a record of what’s been done. Second, it lets you go back and see that, ok, a lot of progress really has been made. And finally, if you always take your pictures from the same spot you can create a really cool time-lapse slideshow. Neat.

7- Give yourself an alternate space to use while we’re working

If you’re living in your house during a kitchen remodel, you probably have a fridge, microwave, and hotplate set up in the dining room as a temporary kitchen. Treat the outside the same way. If it’s going to be a long, protracted process, make sure you have somewhere for the kids to play, for you to grill, or even just to grow some herbs. Whatever you love about being in the yard, try to keep a piece of that available."

http://revolutionarygardens.com/2011/05/18/7-tips-for-getting-through-the-landscape-construction-process/