He's just going to think that you are a crazy cat lady. If he does a good job I'd be okay with that.

When we were doing our renos my inner voice motto (and sometimes my outside voice) was "my money, my reno, my way". Unless there was some technical reason why something couldn't be done I wanted it done my way and correctly. But, I know myself and I warned the CG's that we interviewed what I was like, - the KD and the CG that we went with were the ones that confidently said "no problem".

What is this motion sensor faucet for kitties you speak of??? If I had one of those, my cats probably would not be paddling in the water bowls, flinging water all over the floor! Details please!!

Yup. My KD is sort of annoyed that I make my own plans and then send them to him. He then tells me what is wrong with them (i.e. you need spacer here, etc) - fine, that's his job and why he's getting paid for this. But he often uses a certain tone and has even said "well, you would know this if you actually did this for a living like me".

Yeah, not your kitchen, not your money, I am certain you don't care as much as I do. So I'll spend my time with graph paper designing what I want if I choose.

Oh cottonpenny! I'm with you. I have drawn out 3 of our room remodels with 2 being bathrooms.

Our first GC was fine with my work and all went well. The second GC didn't pay too much attention to my drawings and, as a result, messed up our bathroom by shorting the doorway.

Ugh... it's frustrating. I draw well, I measure 1000 times, I have my reasons for placing things in certain places, but I'm also female. I don't think they take me seriously.

Even my husband will now say to the GC, "you better listen to her.." LOL.... glad to know he has my back. Then again, he's the hubby who buys me my tools and once on mothers day I got a nice tool chest from my boys. :)

Oh I get it! I just finished a on-site meeting with my cabinet guys to clarify all the things arising out my very specific needs and wants and yes.. desires and clearly show the wierdness of the space. I think you need to push to work with people who will actually listen to you and make it happen or explain why not *after* thoughtful and through consideration. A lot of contractors seem to work in a fast food model (Combo # 1, # 2 etc..). If you do not fit in the box, they really resist the work to understand and deliver the requirement. Also watch out for the passive "I'll just let it slide for now and say no on the install day". My lesson learned, ask nicely but insist that they show how they will do it and commit in writing. Get confirmation before. Fortunately for me, the owner of the cabinet company is very creative and was able to step in and clarify how to accomplish what I wanted. So we are all set..but I did have to push for this on-site meeting. I also think for non-standard homes, it is really important to make sure that the contractors have a clear mental picture of the space.. A lot of people think visually and a picture is indeed worth a 1000 words. So net-net.. you want my business, you will have to listen to me and come and see for yourself..

Yes! I so agree with Lalitha & others. While our kitchen update went off with only minimal hitches, our current bath reno has not. BUT, having a CG who is willing to listen AND read has been a godsend.

If he is not familiar with something we've requested, he actually reads the installation manuals in advance -- and on occasions has called the mfg to be sure he understands first, before installation. What a novelty! His modus operandi has even influenced the plumber to request installation instructions. This, in our experience, is a real novelty. (No disrespect intended to any plumbers on this forum.)

At the end of each day, he checks in with a quick review plus a preview of what's intended for the next day. He always concludes, "Any questions? Any concerns?" And he means it. Today he ripped out and replaced some casing and redid some drywall work because of these sorts of discussions.

Of course, this approach is psychologically smart. Each time we say, "No questions; everything looks good," we are making a positive verbal commitment. I think he knows just what he is doing. But he also backs it up with good work.

Christine, isn't it measure twice, cut once?

Oh and please spill about that faucet for the cats . . . is this for the kitchen or bath? I don't allow my cats on the kitchen counter but that doesn't mean they listen to me and they do go everywhere else. We would never get a pot filler in the kitchen primarily because it's small enough to stand in once place and reach everything without moving our feet but we actually talked about installing a faucet thingy (DH does not know about pot fillers) on the dining room above the water bowl for ease in refilling!

Will your cats actually know to turn it on and the force of the water won't be too much? We used to leave the bathroom tap on a slow stream because so many of them ended up in the sink even though we had a fountain but that got to be too messy.

Thanks!

Okay, I'll bite. Why *are* you putting in 3 faucets instead of 2? Inquiring minds want to know. I get that the motion sensor faucet is for the cats, but why can't the humans use it too?

I'm getting hilarious visions in my head of 2 people and the cat all getting ready in the bathroom at the same time, each with their individual faucets, lol.

But then, hey, if the cats get their own faucet why don't they get a separate sink? ... Or do they? :)

You guys are creative. :)

My bathroom vanity is 78" long. (The marble will cover the remaining 18", under which I might install an instahot.)

I will have one Kohler round sink on the left with one, Kohler 'Alterna' faucet.

The 2nd sink on the right, to accommodate the cats, is square. It will have on one corner another Kohler 'Alterna' faucet and an American Standard commercial, motion sensing faucet in the other corner.

See, my boys jump up into every sink I walk by. They lounge in the sink and meow until I turn on the water. But if I leave the room, they're with me.

My plan is to set the motion sensor on at a trickle for about 5 minutes. So when they jump up there, not only will they still have their own sink (which they do now) but I won't have to worry about turning the water off. Which I forget periodically.

There is only one human. :)

I gotta tell you, just because of the question, I'm already doubting this guy. The 1st plumber just nodded and asked, "Can I see it?"

I've had these faucets and sinks sine we bought stuff after our fire in 2005. I am making the plan happen. Hear me roar.

Only bad thing about cats self-serving themselves with water is that you don't get a chance to monitor their daily fluid intake. I know when one of my cats is getting ill, it changes noticeably.

Now I have ten cats who all share multiple sources of water, so I still don't know which has caused the change, but at least extra empty, or full, water bowls sends a me message to pay more attention until I figure it out.

L.

Not many of us perform this work for a living and have the wealth of experience our Contractors do. Many of us do know what we want and have thought it through but you can bet that in many instances or Contractors have been asked to do things and then undo them when they didn't work (just as they advised the customer at the outset). Usually I want what I want but I'll concede on occasion I have wanted something only because I didn't know better. I've railed against folks and gotten my way in the end but I've also been set straight a few times so while I resent it I think a bit of pushback is good and I'm not fond of yes men\women in any context including my home renovations. What's the harm in a question or two? At least you know they are listening.

caryscott, you have very valid points.

I am winging it.
Having been married to a GC for 18 years, I've heard a lot of crazy stuff -- and crazy stuff that turned out really cool.

I am ab.so.lute.ly open to constructive suggestions and clarification questions. But in this instance? No.

If he'd have asked, "For your cats? They can't use the regular faucet?" I'd have a different attitude. But he didn't.

Words and wording is important. How one asks, IOW.

I've been lucky. The only thing I've had to backtrack on is lighting. I want a couple moved a bit, and I've deleted some. I lived without electricity in a room without light for several years and wanted lights everywhere. In the couple of years since the windows are in, I've come to realize I don't need to be lit up like a cathedral.

I guess I'm also changing the location of some of my cabinets, but I put them in, and it's as I find my actual patterns would be better served. Has nothing to do with someone not listening.

liriodendren, I only have four. At the moment. I can tell someone's not well by the litter boxes. Gross, but I can tell. Water intake has always been hard to track, as you mentioned, but I guess the big bowl would be a good indicator. Luckily and knock on wood, everyone's healthy right now! :)

He's late.

this made me smile this morning :) My DH also told each sub that you will have to talk to her... so annoying when you tell a sales person what you want and they look at you and tell you "are you sure you want wood floors in your laundry room?" or "Ok, I have never done it that way before" or "you don't want that" the worst "can't be done!" and while they are making these statements they look at my husband not me, he tells them shes the one in charge, I just do it the way she tells me to. Love him

I loved my painter, drywall and framer subs, they all said "No problem, we will make it work!" Our trim carpenter did amazing work but questioned some of my decisions along the way. I would take out my computer show him my inspiration pictures and graph paper drawings to make it clear that it had been done that way before and I had thought carefully about my decision.

CEFreeman - I love my dog and cat and if you want a faucet for yours to enjoy then "NO problem!" : )

I recently had a mural painted on my daycare play room wall that had to include a picture of my dog and cat of course!

I think it's ok for contractors ask questions about why you're doing something. It shows they're engaged and might have suggestions for doing something better or cheaper than you originally thought of. As long as they don't actually fight you and get on board once the final decision has been made, I think that type of contractor is better than the type that doesn't ask any questions and just dives in.