Original subtitles

and may contain mature subject matter.

Viewer discretion is advised.

and may contain mature subject matter.

We're taking down the wall today.

Bam!

Probably that's the last changes?

I hope so, but you'll never know!

(laughing)

News to me too!

(Nikki): This is all gonna crumble, boys!

(Randy): Just look at it!

All you can do is look at it!

The snow came, and we're working in the cold, the ice.

Randy!

Do I hear something?

(Melissa): What do you think?

It's pretty cool, hey?

Wow.

Let's dig in.

(upbeat folk music)

(Randy): I'm Randy Spracklin,

third generation builder,

proud Newfoundlander.

My team and I are building on one giant cliff

in the Atlantic Ocean.

They don't call it a rock for nothing!

We fight the elements year-round to get the job done.

It might be tough for some, but not for us.

(upbeat folk music)

Because when this is your view, it's worth it.

(upbeat folk music)

(Randy): My construction company started with my old ma,

and his father, and my uncle.

About 10 years ago, father kind of stepped back a little bit,

so they just let me run with i,

and I'm still doing good and going strong.

(Randy): What's it like working together?

I got my way, he got his way.

Usually mine's the right way.

(Randy): I also got a family.

So, it's me, Melissa,

and we got two beautiful, wonderful kids:

a three-year-old named Grady,

and a five-month-old named Rhiannon.

So hopefully Rhiannon or Grady

will be standing in my shoes.

(saw whirring)

(Randy): Today we're gonna be building something

for my daughter, Rhiannon,

and Grady's gonna be helping me.

Rhiannon's still gonna try to learn her colours,

so I'm building little block houses.

So not only is she learning her colours,

but she knows the style of a Newfoundland house.

(Grady): Is it ready yet?

-It's not ready yet. -Okay.

He gets really excited when he comes to the shop.

He loves in here trying to, you know, take the wood,

do something with it and, you know,

once I pours out some paint, he'll be...

all over the place with it. (laughing)

You know daddy's renovating one like this?

Why, yes!

You and Mommy walked by it the other day.

Kinda brings me back in time when me and my father

built little projects.

What kind of house is this?

Cape Cod!

There you go.

-Yeah, hey! -Woo-hoo!

So, this is kinda getting Grady into it,

and it's just a way we can

come in the shop and build something cool.

That's a salt box.

That's the Cape Cod, and that's a...?

Biscuit!

(Randy): A biscuit! Right on, buddy!

(upbeat music)

(Randy): It's great spending time with the family,

'cause it recharges me when I've got so much on the go.

And we got two big projects moving right now.

We just started a new renovatin in the centre of Brigus,

the Earles' 200-year-old house.

It's getting a modern upgrade with a big addition on the bac.

We started the demo on the inside,

but there's a whole lot to do!

(Randy): Ah! A spider!

(all laughing)

(upbeat music)

(Randy): The other project is a huge renovation

on top of the hill.

The Mitchells' project keeps growing and growing.

(machinery whirring)

It started with us renovating the garage,

and then we added on to the house,

and then we renovated that too.

A lot bigger project than we thought.

So far, we've built two additions onto the house,

and we added structural support beams.

But wouldn't you know, Dave got another set of plans,

and I'm meeting him today to go over 'em.

Who knows? We might be ripping down half the house

before we're all done.

-Hi, Deana. Hi, Dave. -Hi, Randy.

-How are you? -Oh, not too bad.

-How about yourselves? -How you doing, bud?

We got the updated plans, so...

(Randy): The Mitchells have lived here for a few years.

But now they're moved out 'til the job's done.

And I think it's the first time Deana's been back since they left.

Yeah, my happy place is stressing me out right now.

It's gonna be happy in the end!

Okay.

Let's go have a look in the inside.

I trust you.

(Randy): We're building two additions to the main house,

and one of them is gonna be a large kitchen

with a large island in the middle,

and lots of space for dining.

The view in this kitchen is the best in Brigus.

We're knocking down walls on the inside

to create an open concept with loads of light.

The colour is awesome.

Hey! I picked out the colour!

(Randy): The second addition is gonna be a mudroom.

Lots of windows, lots of light,

a custom front door,

plus a nice archway with French doors.

Yeah, I think that's about it...

for now, anyway.

(Deana): Hmm.

(Dave): So what do you think?

Messy.

(laughing)

Gotta get worse before it gets better.

It's messy.

So when we came to look at this house,

it was around this time of year.

(Dave): It just felt so right for us.

(Deana): It feels like home.

It certainly is a special place.

So, uh, no changes, or...?

Randy, the only thing I'm really interested in

is what are we gonna do with this fireplace?

(Dave): I want this to be like, full width all the way up.

So the fireplace itself will be changed too, the actual unit?

Okay, so that's a change, see?

See, there you go. But...

News to me too.

(Dave): Listen, you're a contractor. You love changes.

-I just love changes. -You love changes.

When he keeps adding stuff, uh...

we still gotta, like, the deadline don't change,

but the work just keeps piling up.

So, we'll go to the kitchen. Let's have a look in here.

(Randy): Yes, have a look at that.

Wow, you've been doing a lot of work here, Randy.

(laughing) (Randy): Not much yet.

(Dave): No?

Yeah, so we're gonna be removing

your existing kitchen,

and kinda make your kitchen a lot bigger.

And brighter, I hope.

And a lot brighter, yes.

Just, so we'll move over here, Deana, because this here,

this whole wall here will be gone.

The wall here that goes into the seating area,

-that wall will be gone. -Excellent.

(Dave): This will be completely open, here.

(Deana): Love it.

(Dave): ...all the way through from the kitchen,

all the way in through the living room.

(Randy): So the space is gonna open up

to a new wrap-around deck,

and a beautiful view of the ocean.

Of course, Dave made big changes there as well.

So, I also see you're doing an outside bar area there now too?

Yeah, that's outside here,

because one thing we need here

is a covered section for barbecuing.

But even for sitting out.

Like I'm not much of a sun seeker.

Yes.

(Deana): So, when that gets su,

there's no shade.

And we've tried umbrellas, but with the wind...

Yeah.

The umbrellas don't work.

No. And this'll definitely give you

a little bit of shade when the sun comes around to this side.

(Deana): So that's a super ide.

Probably that's the last change? All the changes?

(Dave): Well...

I hope so. But you know,

as these projects go, you'll never know that.

(laughing)

The biggest problem with a renovation

is knowing when to say, "That's it. No more changes."

And that's my job!

I think I thought

that this was not as big a project as it is.

I thought it was just the kitchen,

and we were just adding on, and you weren't gonna

do anything in here, I think.

(Randy): Surprise.

That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

(Randy): This is gonna be a showstopper custom home,

and we got a budget of $450,000.

The next big step is get the roof trusses on the additions.

Being on top of the hill brings a lot of wind,

so the challenge is gonna be the weather.

On a calm day, it's windy up there,

so we're kinda fighting against that.

(Randy): Weather in Newfoundlad is everything.

In one day, you can get snow...

...then you'll get rain, then a gale of wind will come in...

...then you'll get fog, then you'll get sun.

Everything in one day.

It's a constant battle to build anything.

Winter is almost here, so we're gonna be up against

Mother Nature big time.

(upbeat folk music)

(Randy): So wouldn't you know, we're hit with the first snowfall.

(seal calling)

Before we get back to the Mitchells',

me and Nikki's heading to the Earles'

in the centre of Brigus.

(Randy): So the snow came, and we're working in the cold,

the ice, the slipperiness.

(Nikki): Gotta love Newfoundland!

I'm loosening it. Here.

Yes, you are.

(Nikki): My role here with the company

is basically the rookie.

I'm the fresh out of the pot one.

How do I use that?

The one they gotta have the most patience with,

because I never swung a hammer

until I came to work here,

so every day is a learning curve.

Now what do you tie this to? That or this?

Hmm?

-That? -Oh, yeah, wrap it around.

(Randy): For this project, we're putting a new addition

on the back of the house, and a new deck.

Inside, we're taking down the walls

to create an open-concept kitchen and living space.

But there's one big thing standing in our way.

(Randy): This is the original chimbley that was in the house.

So we gotta open up this wall.

This is where they want to put an island.

So we gotta take it down.

So we gotta start from the top,

work our way down right through, right here to the bottom.

Hook me on there.

So we're gonna use the lift to go up first.

Clip this on that, and then clip this on me.

I got this done wrong. This is rookie totally!

(laughing) Come on!

I don't know how to do it!

Help me. We got two hours with this lift,

-don't waste time! -I know!

This is my first time taking down a chimney.

(Randy): It was supposed to be just her today.

But he's afraid I'd tore the whole house down!

(laughing)

(Randy): Alright. See how easy that is?

(Nikki): Aw, I should have took the hammer.

Ah. Come on!

I got one!

You're just... you're just throwing it over?

(Randy): Yeah. (struggling grunts)

(Nikki): Being the rookie, you're the one who's got the jb

nobody wants to do.

-Whoa! -Whoa-ho!

-Ugh! -Hey, hey!

Where's your hammer?

On the ground.

Who's the rookie now, huh? Who's the rookie now?

(Randy): Hey, Al!

Wanna get me my hammer?

Wah, wah!

(Randy): Almost!

(Nikki): Aw! Hahaha!

(Nikki): This is awesome!

(laughing) Love it!

(Nikki): Working outside is a challenge.

You gotta be meant for it.

And it's something I'm still trying to adjust to,

because I finds it very hard,

especially with our climate.

Don't drop the hammer.

Ha...

It's crumbling.

On the inside it's crumbling way worse.

Oh, it's gone.

We'll get you in the attic, and I'll be up here.

I'll get into this hole right now.

But my butt won't get past this to get down on the truss.

(Nikki): For me, the physical labour side of it

is probably the hardest thing.

There she goes!

And the height. My height don't help either.

Five apples high.

Rookie gotta do the worst job all the time!

My grandmother always said that.

You know, five apples high.

Uh, we're in the attic here no.

So now I gotta try to make my way down

into the second floor so we can continue

getting the chimney down.

The good thing about being inside,

I don't have to go back up and fix the roof.

The only way out for me is down!

Randy is my...

right-hand nuisance.

(light playful music)

(Randy laughing)

Randy!

He can take a joke.

He can give a joke,

because he certainly likes to clown around.

(Randy): Nikki, what happened to you?

I'm losing reach, Spracklin, I'm losing reach.

(Randy): Don't lose yourself down the hole.

(Nikki): Are you gonna patch that roof,

or are you gonna talk all day?

(Randy): Ooh!

I look up to Randy.

He's got experience, knowledge,

and it's kind of motivating to see how positive he is,

especially when the world's crumbling behind us.

Randy!

As a boss,

you're not getting no better.

Come on!

Do I hear something?

(Nikki): Yes, I'm up here waitin' for you!

You gonna take all day?!

It's like I hear something,

but I don't know what it is.

(Randy laughing)

(Nikki): Brick coming down!

(Randy): Me, Nikki and Al are at the Earles' house in Brigus.

(Nikki): Put your head in there when I'm dropping the brick!

Yeah right!

(Randy): We got the original chimbley off the roof,

and we're working our way down.

(Nikki): Brick coming down!

(Randy): The only way to take it apart

is brick by brick,

from the top of the roofline, right to the ground.

So I'm gonna loosen some stuff up with the sledgehammer.

Hopefully I'll make it go a little bit faster.

(Nikki): Hey! There's two brics above that one!

So am I loosening them up, though?

(Nikki): Oh yes, he's almost out!

Well see, that's what I want!

(Nikki): Give it to her!

(laughing)

(Nikki): This is all gonna crumble, boys!

Brick coming down.

I'd say I'm gonna come down. You cleared that hole.

This is all crumbling now.

(Randy): Okay.

(Nikki): When we started, I didn't think I was gonna be

in the chimney at all, so...

tight squeeze, but I made it!

Imagine how Santa feels!

I know!

(upbeat music)

(Nikki): Good job, Al.

(Nikki): Oh yeah, we got this!

It's nice to see the chimney gone!

Yeah.

It opens up the space big time too,

now that you can actually see from the living room to the kitchen.

(Randy): And that's where the new island's gonna go.

Yeah, it went pretty smooth.

We almost lost Nikki in the hole a couple of times,

but, you know, that's no biggie.

We had her tied on.

You've got me. He wouldn't leave me there.

He might think he'd leave me there, but he wouldn't leave me there.

One smack.

(Nikki): I bet you lunch on Friday

you don't get it in one smack.

Deal?

-Yeah! -Woo-hoo!

(Nikki): Oh, yeah!

Lunch on Friday!

(upbeat folk music)

(Randy): We've made great progress on the demo at Earles,

so it's time for me to get started on a new project

for a special client.

In Brigus, we've got water vies looking out over the ocean.

Inland, we're surrounded by trees.

And this is where we're building next.

My client is gonna be my mom.

She recently sold her house,

so my father and I are gonna build her a new home,

but I'm gonna look after the design.

The stakes are high, because I wanna make Mom happy.

(Randy): All them trees?

I've done a lot of builds with Randy from the ground up,

but uh, in the beginning it was me taking the lead

and telling him what to do.

So I guess we'll start knockin' in down this way

and clean over that side.

The tides have turned.

He tells me what to do.

(upbeat folk music)

(Randy): We don't have the building permits from the town yet,

but we can still clear the lot.

(upbeat folk music)

(Randy): I want the house to have a modern look,

with still some Newfoundland touches.

So it's gonna be a two-bedroom house

with a special room for the grandkids

when they go over,

which is gonna be a lot, I hope.

In the living room, we're doing a bump out

with a custom fireplace,

storage underneath, and floating shelves.

Open concept. A lot of light.

To make it extra special,

there's a lot of woodworking touches

that we're gonna put in.

Yeah, we're gonna be building it from scratch,

so every piece that you put into it

means something a little bit more, right?

(Scott): Working together on nights and weekends

is how we're gonna save some money on this build.

I don't know!

Watch your noggins!

(upbeat music)

(Randy): With my mom's place around the corner from my plac,

it's perfect. Free babysitting.

I'm also getting free wood for the winter!

Now to unload everything.

Oh! I hear shorty!

(Randy): What's up, buddy?

(Scott): You gonna help Dad unload?

Here you go, buddy.

(Randy): This is gonna be the last one.

Because now we gotta go in, we gotta get some dinner.

Let's go.

(Scott): All right.

(upbeat music)

(Randy): Across town, up on the hill,

the Mitchell project is back online.

I have Harvey, Al, and Paul

all on site to help me get this job back on track.

Today we're putting on the roof trusses,

and there's a lot of them.

Each one is built to spec,

trucked in from St. John's,

which is on the other side of the bay.

The weather conditions today are really windy,

like almost blowing you over and, uh...

that's the way it is. You know?

We either got sun and wind, or rain and snow,

so who knows?

But we gotta work with it.

We only got a short time to get it done.

You know, wind is one thing, but snow is another.

(Randy): Paul's my foreman, and knows this job inside and out.

(Paul): I do a little bit of everything.

I'm the guy who Randy turns to

when he wants to get something done.

I help manage the guys.

Whatever he wants, I'll get it done.

(Randy): The framing will go pretty fast,

and even the sheeting won't go too bad either.

The boys will be able to shingle it in about a day,

and then we're on the inside.

(Randy): So another six inches gotta be added on.

Is it all of them? Yeah.

It's this span across here.

(Paul): So it's, uh, five trusses.

(Randy): It looks like these trusses are too short,

so we might have to modify

or send them back.

There's no other way to make it work.

(suspenseful music)

(Randy): It's a blustery day here at the Mitchells'.

We're installing the roof on the additions,

and these trusses are too short.

So I need to find out who gotta eat the cost.

It's either gonna be us or them.

So, the truss plant, they got it all engineered

for weight load, and that kind of stuff.

So, Paul's gonna give 'em a call,

and we're gonna see what happens.

(Paul): Well, the exact truss which I got the problem with

is J-3-B.

There's a quantity of five of those.

(man): That's the one...?

(Paul): There seems to be some mix-up in the measurements,

he had and the measurements on the structural steel plan.

Yeah, let me or Derek know.

(man): All right.

Okay, thank you.

(Paul): It's always frustrating

when we got mistakes.

We can't finish the roof.

We gotta wait for it to go through the plant.

You know, it's a delay in our schedule,

and we only got so much good weather,

and we just gotta get this done, and we need it now.

(Randy): I wouldn't say this jb is cursed yet,

but we had some delays. With the beams, the weather,

now the roof trusses.

When we can't more forward,

that's time and money down the drain.

And I just said this was the easy part!

(laughing) Well...

It'll definitely be a couple days' time,

which sucks.

Another day that we don't get to finish the trusses.

Yay.

(upbeat folk music)

Last year, me and my old man renovated my own place,

and we were on a time crunch.

I only had nine months, because my daughter was coming.

Unfortunately, the thing is, I never got it all done.

I know Melissa wants everything finished,

definitely before I start my mom's new house.

This is gonna be like, a craft room.

You know, she's been working hard,

looking after the kids,

so I figured I'd make a space for her.

Plus, it's a little place for the kids to come too.

So that's gonna be box shelves.

Shelving on the bottom.

We're gonna have lots of shelving, little nooks.

I got my dad working in the shop

on all kinds of little details.

I'm thinking about six paint colours.

...four, five, six.

I didn't make it easy. (laughing)

Newfoundland is definitely full of colours,

so why not have this room represent Newfoundland

and bring all the colour in here?

This is like a half-subtle of a peach colour.

This is gonna be, kind of, my base coat,

and then I'll start putting on darker colours from this.

With six colours and so many different layers I got going o,

you gotta start with one, and then build up.

So you try to go with the lighter colour

so it's not so hard to actually cover over the light paint.

But I definitely want to paint before the floor goes down.

If you can get away with putting flooring down

after the painting, it's the way to go.

Ten times easier! Then you can be a messy painter.

So, I gotta get it done right away,

because I don't want Melissa to peek before it's finished.

I've been feeding Grady with ice cream

just to keep it secret.

(laughing)

(upbeat folk music)

(Randy): Now that the Mitchell' roofing is delayed,

it gives us a great opportunity to frame up the Earles'

with the whole crew.

Don't shoot me fingers.

Don't worry, I ain't giving no special treatment.

(laughing)

(Randy): This new addition adds 340 square feet

to the footprint of the house.

Floor-to-ceiling windows, with a vaulted ceiling

will bring in a lot of light.

On the inside, we're creating an open concept kitchen

with a custom island and a large living room.

(upbeat twangy music)

(Randy): I'm like Billy the Ki, the sharp shooter, right?

Quick on the draw!

Billy the Kid?

(laughing)

(Randy): Ready? Go!

Framing is definitely something the whole team loves to do,

because as each wall goes up,

you're starting to see the whole place come together,

and it's a great motivator.

Okay. Ready when you are.

(Nikki): One, two...

All right. Hold on. Ho-ho-ho!

Go. Go ahead. Go ahead. (struggling grunts)

Hang on boys, I'm jamming up!

(Nikki): Okay. I'm there.

Just look at it.

All you can do is look at it!

So Nikki, you never did the nail competition yet.

Move over, Earl. Papi.

It's kinda really like bragging rights.

Whoever can hit the nail the quickest, and get it in the quickest.

Okay, ready? Go.

(Paul): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6...

(Nikki): I missed too many!

...9, 10, 11.

(laughing)

I never wins it. (laughing.

Ever.

Another ten years.

(Randy): We're moving along really fast,

getting it all sheeted up.

So now we're starting some roof trusses.

Gotta make hay while the sun shine,

or at least no rain or wind, right?

We're using 2 by 10

for the vaulted ceiling, and they're gonna be spaced out

one foot on centres.

We're cutting every truss to fit the existing house,

and then we're cutting like, a little Bird's Mouth,

which is a little slot for the new addition.

Every single one of these beams had to be cut to fit.

Every single one of 'em.

So that's 32 two cuts times two.

Hey, Randy!

What's up?

(Nikki): We got a problem.

We expected the sill plate to be along this area here.

We discovered it's up here.

That means they're longer, though.

Yeah, well, it's about 6 inches higher.

(Randy): Nothin's ever easy.

We were assuming the top plate,

like, if you look at the eave line,

sometimes that's where the top plate like, kinda lays.

So when Harv cut into it,

he found out that the top plate is way higher than that.

With us finding that a lot higher,

brings our roof trusses up more,

means we gotta have longer roof trusses.

So everything that we just figured out this morning

is not the case.

I should never assume anything, I suppose.

(Randy): At the Earles' propery in Brigus,

we're cutting and installing the roof trusses

for the new addition on the back...

Or we're trying to.

Wasn't expecting that at all.

'Cause we have roof trusses that are too short.

I hope he never cut too many.

(Randy): Hey, Paul?

Yo.

We're gonna have to recut them again.

(Nikki): Lots of rookies here today!

The trusses are killing me.

I got about half of them cut

and trying to get one step ahead

so that they're not waiting on me,

and now I'm one step back,

'cause I got to recut it all again.

Can't win!

(Randy): We have to attach the roof trusses to the existing top plate.

Because the top plate is six inches higher than we expected,

every truss that we got cut is too short.

Measure three times, cut once.

It's a hundred-year-old house, it's not like a brand new one.

You cut it 'til it fits.

(Randy): The lumber from the roof trusses is 16 feet.

It turns out we only need 15 feet, so we're good to go.

(Paul): Can I cut another one?

Hold on.

(Randy): When we can control a product

or a big piece of the build...

Woo-hoo!

...it saves us time,

and it keeps us on time and on budget.

We got the cuts all figured out there now,

so basically it's just like an assembly line.

Paul will cut, and Al will hand it.

Nikki's gonna be cutting the eaves, and me and Harv's

gonna be nailing 'em on.

(upbeat music)

(Randy): The dead of winter is coming.

Hopefully, we're gonna be ahead enough

where we can get the roof on,

so the snow won't fall inside.

I'm pushed out a bit there now.

We jinxed ourself when we said we'd have it done!

(upbeat music)

(Randy): Back at my mom's new house up in the woods,

my dad's helping me move things ahead.

Yeah, we've been working nights and weekends

trying to get all the trees down.

This is just the limbs that we cut off,

and yeah, the excavator will take care of that.

The good news is that we got approved by the town,

so we can start building, moving forward.

Okay, all those in favour?

Against?

Motion carried.

The bad news is we can't start digging today.

The excavator was supposed to come but they broke a track.

They're off trying to fix that,

and it's probably not gonna happen today.

The snow is here, and you never know

if this is the snowfall that's gonna stay.

So every day that goes by

that we don't have a hole, it's...

we don't wanna wait 'til spring.

The ground freezes four feet deep,

and it's impossible to dig, so we wouldn't be able

to start a foundation.

And you can't build anything without a foundation.

I was talking to the old man this morning,

and he thinks the excavator is still on the way.

So I haven't told him yet that the excavator is not coming.

(phone ringing) That's probably him now again.

Oh! It's Melissa with the coffee! Mint!

(laughing)

We can deal with a lot of challenges here in Newfoundland,

but broken machinery can happen to anyone,

and it sucks.

What's up, buddy?

We were supposed to have the excavator today

to dig out Pop's house.

And it ain't comin!

(Melissa): It's broken.

(Randy): What's Dad gonna do now?

(laughing)

(Randy): You gonna help?

All right, buddy.

I won't.

So, I guess where he figured there's no excavator,

he said, "Get a shovel and start digging." So...

Yeah, he likes manual labour.

(Randy laughing)

That's probably gonna be Monday now before this is done.

So that sucks.

(upbeat folk music)

(Randy): Another day, another change in the weather.

That's Newfoundland.

We're here at the Mitchells' residence there now.

We gotta try to get this roof sheeted before the weather comes.

As you look behind us,

the fog is rolling in, raining.

So, these trusses here came in about six inches too short.

Turned out the plans were revised,

and we never got the update. So that's what delayed us.

We got 'em remade. They're all good, fitting perfect.

Started to sheet over that part.

We still got this section though, of trusses to go up.

We got about another 7, 8,

then we're done with the trusses.

Bring on the shingles and watertight,

then we're on the inside.

(upbeat music)

Even though the weather is miserable,

our crew just punches through

when most crews give up.

Yeah, so we're all good. We got the trusses up, no troubles.

Uh, looking pretty good.

Just more now we gotta sheet it over, and then done deal.

(upbeat folk music)

(Randy): Back at my house,

the work continues at the craft room.

We gotta be very quiet.

Rhiannon's sleeping in the other room.

So are you gonna help me?

This is gonna be a bright, fun, colourful room for the kids.

What colour you think this is gonna be?

Blue.

(Randy): It's also for their mom, Melissa.

I hope she likes it when it's all done.

Shh. Shh.

Now put her on the wall.

We got a whole lot of painting going on the walls,

six paint colours.

So, that's a lot of painting.

And it's just not gonna be like, one colour, one wall.

This is gonna be different colours, stripes...

No, keep her down there.

Newfoundland is all about its colourful homes,

so I want this room to match.

Yeah, he's doing pretty good. He'll be a real pro.

Start on the job sites next week.

He already got the shirt.

This is probably gonna be the craziest colour scheme that I did yet.

My daughter just woke up! (baby babbling)

Oh!

(Randy): Hi! Is Mom hiding behind the door?

Because this is a surprise, buddy!

(Randy): So, shh! Don't tell Mom our colours.

Can you keep a secret?

Can sissy keep a secret?

Can you keep a secret? Yeah!

(Melissa): Don't worry, I won't look!

(upbeat music)

(Randy): I don't know why. I always love to try to...

up the ante and do something totally different.

(upbeat music)

(Randy): Today, we're at the Mitchells' residence,

and our game plan is to take down that wall.

-Thank you. -Easy!

(Randy): This wall was the old exterior wall in the kitchen.

It's part of the new kitchen design

to really open the space for a large custom island

and a dining area.

On the outside, we're doing a huge wrap-around deck

with a prime view of the ocean.

This is a big project,

and our deadline is four months away,

and all the delays put us behind.

Now we're starting on the inside,

and the plan is to make up some time.

(Nikki): What's the verdict?

(Randy): The verdict is we're gonna cut it off, cut down...

(Paul speaking indistinctly)

Just like cutting down a tree. Whew!

We hope.

Can I be on this side when you does your timber?

No! You're gonna stand in the doorway so it just...

Woop! (laughing)

(Nikki): So, today we're tearig down walls,

which is my favourite.

Thank you!

'Cause now, you're gonna see

the full effect of this add-on.

And bam, when a frickin wall hits the floor,

there's no better feeling.

(Randy): So, that's ready to go.

(Nikki): Paul, if you're doing timber, I want to be there!

Josh, you coming out for timbers?

I suppose.

This is the fun part! You gotta come around for this.

(upbeat music)

This is the real fun part!

(indistinct chattering)

Bam!

Open! (laughing)

This is what the Mitchells are looking for,

big kitchen, big open space,

lots of light! So, uh...

Well, soon to be, when we get a window in.

(laughing)

(Randy): So we're at the Mitchells' house today.

It's gonna be like, really open here now,

and we're putting a big ol' island,

so this open space,

it's a lot of light gonna come down on it.

What better place to be?

Beside the new kitchen and dining room,

we've built a bump-out for the new entrance and mudroom.

So that's the new sunroom area.

So, we're taking down that wall and opening up,

so, uh, two walls coming down today!

(Nikki): Today I'm getting an opportunity to be in charge

of demoing the second wall,

which is awesome.

Getting to do demo is a blast as it is,

but getting trusted to do the demo is even better.

So, basically just gotta prep it, cut a few nails,

and she's gonna fall right down.

The angle on that.

(Nikki): Who cut it like that? Who cut it like that?!

God bless the rookies. Now we gotta cut it again!

Come on! Tune in later! Tune in later!

Instead of cutting it so it falls without jamming,

I cut it so it's gonna jam up when we go to make the drop.

So we just gotta make a little tweak, and we're good to go again.

(Randy): Yeah, it's a little, uh, rookie mistake.

We're clear, Josh.

Ah!

They made it happen.

She's gonna have to make a snow angel later

to pay up for it.

Yeah, but you gotta do it too.

I didn't cut it wrong!

Yeah, this is what you gotta do.

(Randy): This is what happens when you're cutting stuff wron.

The Nikki Angel.

Gotta love Newfoundland weather!

There's nothing better than moving ahead on a job.

It boosts morale and everybody's happy.

(laughing)

(upbeat music)

(Randy): Back at my house,

the craft room is really coming along.

So, I got most of the painting done.

I started on the flooring.

And this is an engineered product so, uh,

it stands up to a lotta wear and tear.

Especially when you got kids.

Melissa's definitely curious what I'm doing,

'cause I brought up a whole lot of paint colours.

Now I'm bringing up flooring.

Trying to keep her out of it,

but she's occupied with the kids, so...

I can actually sneak in here and get this done.

This room been a long time coming.

So I really hope Melissa and the kids love it.

(upbeat music)

(Randy): We're at the 200-year-old house today,

and we're getting ready to take down the wall.

Now that the addition has taken shape,

it's time to take down the old exterior wall on the inside

and make for an open concept and a new design.

So, we've got to get all this snow out the way

before we tears down the wall.

And all the snow has blown in

the little bit of opening that's here.

And we gotta...

(Paul): Gotta get it done. Hopefully now after today now,

we don't get no more snow in here.

So, this is the total reason why we try to get all this

fully weather tight and closed before winter,

because it makes for twice as much work.

(upbeat music)

(Randy): It's a 200-year-old house,

and it's fighting back. The wall don't wanna come down.

The way they framed it up years ago,

they just used like, wooden logs.

So, from the ground right to the ceiling,

so that two-storey, it's one continuous log.

And the way they did it, the floor joists

just joined into the side of it, so...

Us cutting them off... It's supporting the whole hous.

The best-case scenario, the wall falls down,

and everything is pretty.

Worst case scenario, we're in building a new house

'cause it all fell down. (laughing)

(Paul): You got any more blades, Nikki?

(Nikki): Yeah. On the stairs!

(Randy): The blade actually got jammed up,

because that stud settled

and pinched it together,

so that means something dropped.

We're a little bit worried.

(Randy): Over at the Earles' house, cutting down this the 200-year-old wall

is gettin' a little dicey.

One wrong cut, and the ceiling will fall down.

We got every precaution that we think we can do

to kinda make the second level stay up.

We got a temporary wall.

We got a header across the back all bolted in,

but, uh, you still... you never know, right?

There's still a lot of weight up above,

so when you get pinching like that, is not a good sign.

It's a structural wall, so we have to be careful.

(upbeat music)

(laughing)

(Nikki): Good job guys!

Now we're open!

(Nikki): We're open.

(Randy): The house didn't fall down!

Yet.

-Victory! -There you go.

(Randy): Now that we got the wall down,

we ended up being best case scenario.

The wall fell over, and...

the roof stayed on, so we're all good!

That's fine carpentry, there.

So, years ago, they did a lot of work.

No nails.

That's more than 10, there.

They kind of notched the logs,

and that's how they actually hold up the walls.

(Paul): Because of the mortices in the bottom,

is how come it was so hard to push over.

Okay. I never seen it like that before.

That's pretty cool.

(laughing)

(upbeat music)

(Randy): Over at my mom's new lot,

we caught two big breaks.

The excavator is fixed...

Fun stuff!

And the ground ain't froze yet,

so it's time to start digging for the foundation.

(Randy): The weather is a big factor.

You never know what it's gonna bring.

Other projects is just like delays all over the place.

But, hey! We're here now,

we're trying to get this in before the end of the week.

This might sound obvious,

but every house gotta start from the ground up.

The ground gotta be level.

If not, the floor is gonna be crooked!

(upbeat music)

You want about 6 inches above that ground height right here.

And then the basement gotta go 8 feet down in the ground, so...

Plus she's funny.

This is where the foundation's gonna start,

so we gotta dig into that bank,

haul all the fill back,

scrape off this, make sure there's no top soil there,

it's all solid ground,

and then we're good for a foundation.

(upbeat music)

We had a lot of rain

the past couple of days.

You know, it's all wet there now. When that freezes u,

it's just like one big icicle.

So, uh, it makes working in this condition really bad.

The race is on, and the weather is high-tailing right behind u.

We got another system coming tomorrow,

so if we don't get this dug out now,

we're probably not gonna be dug out.

We could get frost,

and then we got no basement,

then we gotta wait 'til spring.

(upbeat folk music)

(Randy): Back at my place to get the craft room finished,

I called in a favour from Mom.

It's nice to be doing all the finishing touches on it now.

(Randy): My mom, Betty, loves painting

and putting things together. It's a huge help!

(bright music)

(Betty): Randy is a wonderful dad for doing this.

Whenever I can, I'm here to help him.

Anything he needs done, day or night,

I'm available.

I've been with Melissa 20 years,

and I think I know her tastes,

but sometimes I still get it wrong.

Done!

No pressure on me.

(Randy): Let's go have a look.

(Melissa): Oh, wow!

What do you think? (child babbling)

It's pretty cool, hey?

Yeah?

Holy mackerel!

And look, the blocks that you and daddy made are there!

And lots of fabric for me!

And the colours I just love,

'cause I like colour, and Randy likes white,

so this is a very "me" room!

(Randy): So I figured you love,

you know, quilting, so a lot of fabric.

Hang all your tools up. - We got a "me" section

-and a kids' section! -I know!

(Randy): And a "me" section. We got everybody a section in here!

So we figured two kids' chairs, two chairs for us.

(Melissa): Oh, Grady, look how cool it is!

They're high!

Whadda you think?

It's perfect!

(Randy): So we ended up doing some floating shelves

to lay out all the crayons,

and all the stuff to actually make something.

(Melissa): The messy. Yeah.

(Randy): And then boxes.

And then actually,

a place to actually hang artwork!

(Melissa): No, that's nice!

So all the banging, and all the painting,

and everything else coming in here.

(Melissa): Yeah.

And did you help Daddy paint this room?

Did ya?

This is a dream space for me with two small children.

It's very important to have a room

where you can keep the mess hidden,

and a dedicated space for it,

so it's pretty awesome that I have somewhere

I can just shut the door, and deal with it later.

Yeah, it's awesome.

My favourite part is it's finished!

Isn't it? All done, come in, enjoy!

(Melissa): Finally!

(Randy): Guaranteed, Melissa got other projects.

Now that this one was filled out...

That's why I took so long, I didn't wanna fill it out,

'cause I knew I'd get a new one.

(Melissa): Oh, I always find projects for Randy!

(laughing) I told him the other day

I had a list started again. Never ending!

(Melissa): I love it.

Now, I just gotta find some time to get in here

and get crafting.

Not gonna get to do anything right at this minute.

I have to go down and finish making dinner.

I got Jiggs cooking.

And then Randy's on cleanup,

and I'm coming up here and starting something!

(laughing)

(upbeat folk music)

(Randy): I think it's 20?

(Melissa): Sixteen when I counted.

(Randy): Yeah. I'll do a few more, 'cause I think I got 20.

Whether it's finishing a room for Melissa and the kids

or building a house for my mom,

working for family and friends,

that's the perks about being a builder.

(Nikki): That's okay. I gotta o cream and some butter.

(Randy): None of that is possible without my crew.

I don't know if you like lots or not.

They're my work family.

You want more?

(Randy): Both families always to get together for a feed,

and that's what's happening tonight.

Thank you.

(Randy): Everybody comes together when you need something done,

and that's the way Newfoundland is,

and that's in our personality.

So, after everybody gets together,

lends a hand, you got your Jiggs dinner.

You want a drink, Al? Beer?

(Al): I'll have a beer.

(Randy): To make the Jiggs,

you got a bunch of vegetables

you all put in a pot,

a little meat to go with it.

You ready?

I'm ready for you, yep.

(Randy): And you got duff.

This is a blueberry duff.

You can eat it as a dessert,

or we eat it with a meal.

(Grady): I want some.

I believe it's too hot. It's too hot? No.

Everything's ready. Suppertime! Let's have a feed!

(Scott): I'll grab a couple potatoes, and I gotta go mash 'em,

and then I gotta go and get gravy on it.

(Randy): Jiggs is a thing we usually have every Sunday.

And we kinda got it off our parents

and our grandparents.

So, me and Melissa, we're trying to...

keep that little thing alive and pass it on to our kids.

(Nikki): Delicious, Melissa.

(Melissa): Thanks!

It's a perfect meal after a long day's work.

(Randy): Next week on Rock Solid Builds...

You may begin the build.

(Nikki): Boo, yeah!

Tell me how close, so I can go that way.

Easy!

(Nikki): Do you want me to kick ya, and push you through?

(Nikki): Oh, my gosh.

(Randy): This is a fun washroom to do whatever we want.

Hey, hey!

(laughing) Oh, my God!

(man): Oh my. What a transformation.

This is outstanding in all of Brigus.

(woman): I can't believe it!

Subtitling: difuze