Today was a wild one. There’s a job site up in Fort Collins giving away QUARTZ countertops… but they have to be picked up today. So my dad and I hook up the trailer, build a quick A-frame rack, and drive 4–5 hours to snag a bunch of free slabs for the abandoned house renovation.

We’ll show how we built the rack on site using an inverter and compressor in the truck, how we strapped the slabs for the long drive, and how we unloaded everything back at the meth house with the forklift (in one sketchy pick 😅).

After that, I finally tackle something that’s been stressing me out: cleaning this wreck of a house and basement. A cleaner space instantly drops my stress and lets us focus on actual progress.

Then we knock out a bunch of punch-list items: buttoning up framing, starting on the HVAC trunks with my dad (I’m learning as we go), messing with the ejector pit, sheeting a new storage loft, and patching subfloor the right way so it’s safe and solid again.

If you’re into real-world renovation, learning trades on the fly, and seeing an abandoned foreclosure slowly turn into a home, you’re in the right place.

👉 New here? I’m Jarod, a framer and contractor documenting the full renovation of this abandoned “meth house” from trashed to livable.

Subscribe to follow the full series and see how this place turns out.

Chapters:

• 0:00 – The Road Trip for Free Countertops
• 0:54 – Building the A-Frame Rack & Loading the Slabs
• 3:27 – The Sketchy Drive Home & Forklift Unloading
• 7:20 – Cleaning the Disaster House (Finally)
• 8:44 – Framing Touch-Ups & Starting HVAC
• 14:46 – Loft Storage & Subfloor Repairs