If you have the option of any of these--a short-term rental, hotel, visiting with friends or family, residing in your second home, house sitting, or taking a vacation--you are well-advised to take it. If not, you may have to consider living on the site during at least part of the renovation. However, if you work at home or spend much of your day there, this situation will likely be both intolerable and unhealthy; and I would rule it out entirely. Here are 3 things to think about as the bare minimum to subsist at home, keeping in mind that it will get worse before it gets better: 1) A clean place to sleep and a usable bathroom  If your bedroom is not part of the renovation, this room will become your oasis. Buy some blue painter's tape about 2-3" wide and tape your bedroom door shut to keep out the dust when you leave in the morning. If your bedroom is part of the renovation, arrange with your contractor to do it separately, either first or last. It will be inefficient for him, but it will make you far more comfortable. If your bathrooms are being renovated, demolish and complete one bath at a time. If it is a single bath residence, can you leave early to use the facilities at your building's gym or laundry room, your office gym or bath, or a neighbor's bathroom (though, understandably, few will welcome you)? Otherwise, the requirements of personal hygiene will be impossible. Bathrooms take awhile to renovate, so this will be a considerable inconvenience to you. 2) A reasonable place to pile boxes and storage Look into hiring an affordable moving/storage company that will pack and store everything for a month or more.  Otherwise, start packing well in advance, keeping in mind that boxes remaining on the premises will need to be placed in a space that is out of the way of construction activity and equipment. Furniture, covered or not, will accumulate some dust. Good advice is to pack a little at a time. I don't know anyone who enjoys this task, but it does have a bright side. It gives you an opportunity to toss and donate things that have outlasted their usefulness to you. Choose a charity that will pick up and give you a donation form. Keep track of the items you donate. The form will come in handy on April 15. 3) A tolerance for some dust and disorder Ask your contractor to provide zippered plastic enclosures to curtain off areas not designated for renovation. However, the need for workers to go in and out through these partitions generally defeats this plan to some extent. Buy plastic drop cloths to supplement your contractor's, and require a reasonable cleanup at the end of the day and a thorough one at the end of the week. An orderly workplace is one measure of a good contractor. And keep a supply of lightweight masks to wear when you are on the site. Living at home is usually challenging during demo, for health and safety reasons. After debris is removed, the construction phase will start; and you can take up residence again. While it is an advantage to see your work daily so you can "catch" problems at an early stage, the disorder and dust can be daunting. So good advice is to consult with your contractor and think it through before you make a decision to live on site. Remember, you can always opt out if the going gets rough.

Tip: Do We Have to Move Out?

Friends, family, hotels, rentals--none are ideal because of the cost of relationships or the cost in money. Unless you are renovating due to damage by flood or similar, you will be paying for accommodations, and it can mount up, especially if there are delays or other issues. Be prepared to move out for demo and cleanup. But under some circumstances, with careful planning, you can live at home.

© Malorie Currier, Page1Design, Inc., 2018

© Malorie Currier, Page1Design, Inc., 2018

© Malorie Currier, Page1Design, Inc., 2018