HS Espoo | Timo Luotonen dodged a collapsing wall on the site of his dream home It was the tip of the iceberg for the nasty surprises that began to…

Timo and Christina Luotonen started building their second house at retirement age. Now they share what they have learned from a project that many acquaintances have wondered about.

White the sturdy red exterior door of the stone house opens into the hallway, from where stairs lead upstairs to the spacious living room. Both the east and west walls of the house are bordered by a large balcony.

We are in Mankka, where Timo, 67, and Christina Luotonen, 69, the house project started in 2018 is nearing completion.

As the entrant steps onto either of the balconies, the eyes are nailed to the house next door. Luoto also feels like his own pockets: the couple built it and managed to live in it for 27 years.

They are often asked: why on earth do you start building a new house in retirement?

The couple has come across skeptics and wonderers many times over the years. Now the question is already a bit amusing.

Thought a new house was born five years ago. The old detached house, completed in 1988, had raised two daughters, but the large house with its yards began to feel laborious. The couple decided to put the house up for sale.

The detached house in Mankka was of interest to many, but there were 78 square meters of building rights left on the plot and an opportunity to take advantage of the old town plan opportunity in the above-ground basement. According to the couples estimates, they would have been sold in the store at a trail price.

Why the building right could not be exploited by themselves, they wonder.

This was done: a buyer was found for the old house, and Luotoet temporarily moved into a terraced house in Laajalahti. They then did the floor design of the new house using a program found online.

When the end result seemed as desired, a qualified architect was hired to help.

Timo Luotonen looks at an old checkered window, behind which he peeks at a teddy bear. Installing the window was a suggested insight from the city.Picture: Kimmo Penttinen

Decision to give up ready-made house packages gave the opportunity to fulfill their own wishes.

These include a Caribbean-inspired high-ceilinged living room ceiling and a sliding door-built pantry built into the kitchen. Loosets use the English name for the closet pantry.

You can conveniently hide the microwave and other small kitchen appliances here, as well as all dry food and canned food, says Timo Luotonen.

Above the pantry is a hundred-year-old checkered window to the attic. From there, the kitchen is guarded by a huge plush. It expects to be able to meet the couples Toronto-based daughters family, which grandparents last saw due to the pandemic at the turn of the year.

The idea of an attic space actually came from the citys building permit handlers vacation substitute. He suggested that the space above the pantry and bathroom could be used as storage space without being out of the living quarters.

Urakan at the beginning, the couple set goals for the project, such as a budget of 250,000 to 300,000 euros and a condition that the house be completed by the end of 2018.

Neither came true. The trip came to bends.

With the permit plans, we had to row and felt with the citys building authorities on both sides.

The contractors were able to start their work almost three months late. Then the summer vacation season began. Some of the contractors stayed on summer vacation, and renting an excavator in July, for example, proved difficult. In addition, the couple found that even though their second house was already under construction, many things had become complicated in 30 years.

At one time, there was a corresponding master on the construction site who was responsible for everything and made sure the building complied with the necessary regulations. In addition, there must now be separate people responsible for air conditioning, sewerage and electricity, says Timo Luotonen.

All of this has its advantages, Luotes thought: More is required of buildings and they make them safe and durable.

Timo and Christina Luotonen were amazed by the confusing pile of electrical wires waiting in the basement of the house when the electrical work had been installed.Picture: Kimmo Penttinen

Then the situation became even more complicated.

The bullets marveled at the electrical wiring pulled into some rooms, where the wires cruising over, under, and around each other resembled a tangled wire basket.

Looking at the installation commissioning inspection papers, Luotoet noticed that the report was signed by a person who had not been seen on site.

According to the credits, this is strange, as the building regulations oblige the person building the detached house to hire separate foremen to supervise the installation of water and sewerage works as well as heating and ventilation. Alongside this, checking the electrical work seemed like a sneak to them.

The creatively drawn electrical wires have amazed Luoto.Picture: Kimmo Penttinen

If there is a fault in the air conditioning installation, the air will stop. If a mistake is made in the drainage, the house will stink. If a fault is made in the electrical work, the fault can be life-threatening at worst.

Eventually, they asked another electrician to inspect the electrical installations.

Building blogs as they read, Luoto was excited about smart homes. Everyday life would be made easier if, for example, lighting and heating could be adjusted with a mobile phone. However, the electrical contractor forgot to install the right parts.

Another strange case was when Luoto found that the Plastic Covers of LED strips mounted on the ceiling of a living room more than five meters high began to fall. According to them, the contractor who installed the LEDs no longer responded to the contacts.

One of the bends is reminiscent of Timo Luotonens second knee, on which an artificial joint was installed last winter. The knee was already worn out, but the last rivet was when Luotonen was injured in an accident at a construction site.

One of the block walls built in violation of the contractors regulations collapsed while Luotonen was working on the site. He dodged narrowly, but hurt his knee badly.

Originally, the intention was to do as much as possible myself. It was made more difficult by the knee and it still hurts.

The new house of the credits is being built next to their old house.Picture: Kimmo Penttinen

House is due to be completed by the turn of the year. The final inspection is not expected until next summer.

A buyer candidate for the house has already appeared, but for now, the couple plans to live in the house themselves. If they sell the house, the couple estimates the sale price to cover the cost of the project well.

This is a good solution for investment, if you do it on a hobby basis, says Timo Luotonen.

But it would be easier to weave socks even if you want to see the trace of your work faster, Christina Luotonen answers with a smile.

Luotoet maintains a construction blog called Pension Pension Espoo on ET magazines website. ET and Helsingin Sanomat belong to the same Sanoma Group.

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HS Espoo | Timo Luotonen dodged a collapsing wall on the site of his dream home It was the tip of the iceberg for the nasty surprises that began to...