Residential Remodels During a Pandemic

BY CARISSA ANDREWS

Navigating the COVID-19 pandemic has been a scary venture for many people. Businesses took a hit and construction companies in the lakes area were no exception.

They’ve seen a host of changes from everything coming to a screeching halt to a boom in home remodels geared toward healthier home transformations.

For the teams at construction companies like Hy-Tec, employees were concerned at first when the panic set in and projects were put on hold. That concern was for good reason, too, since half of them never continued to completion.

PHOTO COURTESY OF HY-TEC CONSTRUCTION

However, as people shifted to remote work and schooling, residential remodels rose exponentially. In fact, according to Mitch Feierabend at Hy-Tec, in the past year, they’ve had more residential calls than they did in the past three. He also mentioned one of the biggest trends was the addition of the healthy home office.

“A lot of people from the Twin Cities came up, looking to find a way to ‘office’ up here in the lakes area,” he said.

Not only that, but people were realizing that if they could work remotely, why not live where they also play? With that, they saw an uptick of family cabin renovations to make staying in the area feel more like home. So, new transformations were implemented to convert cabins to homes or update them, so they have a more modern vibe.

In addition to home offices, construction companies also saw an uptick in home gym renovations, as well as student spaces designed specifically for kids who were distance learning. More often than not, these types of renovations were relatively easy, so homeowners were able to accomplish much of those on their own with the occasional help from construction crews.

PHOTO COURTESY OF NOR-SON CUSTOM BUILDERS

Regardless, many home renovations included ways to ensure the inhabitants were living healthier. This included additions of things like water filtration and air quality.

“We’ve had lots of conversations about how people can protect themselves against COVID. Reverse osmosis water systems have been a huge draw for people this past year,” Feierabend said. “Generally, we hook them up with Culligan or one of the other water specialists in town. We’ve also seen air quality concerns be a major player. This includes everything from customers wanting to know who to hire to clean their ductwork, to adding ultraviolet lights inside them, to other specialized systems put in their furnace.”

This sentiment was echoed by the owners of JIBEC Heating and Cooling.

PHOTO COURTESY OF HY-TEC CONSTRUCTION

“Indoor air quality is a hot commodity right now,” said Jenny Niggeler. “We’ve seen a lot of air purification systems going in and the demand is just going up. Our biggest seller right now is the PlasmaPURE air purifier by PlasmaAir.”

According to PlasmaAir’s website, the PlasmaPURE is a continuous air purifier for the whole home that works using bipolar ionization technology. Jenny also mentioned one of the nice benefits from something like this product is the self-cleaning aspect because it doesn’t require yearly maintenance or replacement parts. “We’ve also seen a lot of UV light systems going into ductwork, but with those, you see yearly replacements for the bulbs. So, if you’re looking for better filtration without continuous cost, the PlasmaPURE might be right for you,” she said.

While they do offer both, it’s important to note over the past year it’s become increasingly more difficult to get the systems on a readily available basis. If you’ve been considering adding one, you’ll want to make the call sooner rather than later because it could be a few months before they get the product in and install it.

Another thing homeowners have been doing is putting better filter systems on their furnaces. JIBEC has been contracted numerous times to put in different size filter systems that can work with better, or even provide larger furnace filters than what may currently be installed on a furnace. The Brainerd lakes area is a beautiful location, so it’s no wonder people are choosing to remodel beloved cabins or add more functional rooms into their homes here. One thing’s for sure, transformation has been the buzzword for the past year. The pandemic has shaken everything from the ground up. It’s made us all evolve our work habits and take a closer look at where we live — and how we want to live.

To learn more about Hy-Tec Construction, check out hytecconstruction.com. To learn more about JIBEC Heating and Cooling, visit: jibechvac.com. To see a video of Jake Niggeler from JIBEC talk about the PlasmaPURE system, visit: facebook.com/JibecHVAC/videos/292165265088357.