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Kitchen Remodel Thread

wct097

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So here is the before:



And a sketch of the layout that I'm using to determine material needs.


Haven't decided on the exact route yet, but I know three things are true. First, the floor needs to be completely demoed and the underlayment replaced. Second, the cooktop, dishwasher, oven, and sink need to be replaced. Third, the counters need to be replaced.

Currently up in the air: What to do about cabinets.

I'm leaning towards replacing the cabinets as well, which would mean the entire kitchen is gutted and replaced. The benefit here is that demo goes faster, everything is new, and I can replace the wall oven/microwave combo with a single wall oven which will save me about a grand on the appliance side of things.

I'm not trying to break the bank here. The kitchen needs updating to help the house sell, but I'm not going to be trying to impress the Waznys. It needs to be updated as cheaply as possible while not looking like complete shit.

I think that if I have a contractor perform the remodel, that I'm probably looking at $25-30k for the job, which is outside of my budget to accomplish in Spring 2014.

If I do it myself, I'll still have to farm out the counters..... but this is what I'm thinking in terms of costs.

Appliances:
Cooktop: ~$1200
Oven: ~$1100
Dishwasher: ~$750
Sink: ~$250
Range Hood: ~$250

Cabinets:
Base: ~$2500
Wall: ~$1500

Counters:
Island: ~$2500
Counter: ~$3600

Floors:
Tile: ~$1250
Materials: ~$500

So, by my estimates, doing it myself and farming out counters will cost about $15.5k, saving roughly $10-15k. Not sure if it's worth the headache or not.
 
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John

Transplant
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What kind of cheap ass cabinets are you planning on buying for $4k? You'd be better off putting a dark stain on those with new hardware. Then new countertops, backsplash, flooring, and appliances.
 

kthrash

I have Automotive A.D.D.
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leave the cabinets buy new doors and hardware... save you a good bit of money.. unless the cabinets are particle board.
 

wct097

NPD Club President 2021-2022
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Cabinets are wood and have a baked on finish. Would need a ton of sanding to stain. Paint would be a better option. If I reface the cabinets, I'll probably be using a router to change the edge to an inside radius rather than the outside radius it has now.

The downside to keeping the cabinets is that they have to be removed and re-installed. My experience doing that and keeping things in one piece has not been super positive.

What kind of cheap ass cabinets are you planning on buying for $4k? You'd be better off putting a dark stain on those with new hardware. Then new countertops, backsplash, flooring, and appliances.
A builder on this board told me that they estimate about $70/linear foot for cabinets. Remember, this price is for the materials, with me installing. Clearly having cabinets installed would cost more. Also, remember that the stated goal here is not to break the bank on costs. It just has to not stick out as being super cheap or low quality to the untrained buyer's eye. Trust me when I say that there are many more problems with this house that make a cheaper remodel a small issue.
 
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kthrash

I have Automotive A.D.D.
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well if you have to remove them, have a carpenter come in and make new cabinets on site..
 

wct097

NPD Club President 2021-2022
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well if you have to remove them, have a carpenter come in and make new cabinets on site..
A viable alternative. I'd rather have a contractor do everything, but I'll also entertain farming out various things (or everything). Hell, I may even do demo and have Lowes install the tile.

I'm fawking sick of working on this house...... no more fixers for me. Fingers crossed that it's worth the effort, but damn this gets old.


They do have to come out, however. The tile is laid under the cabinets and the underlayment for the tile is 1/4" plywood which is the reason the tile needs to be replaced.
 
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SAD

Wants $4.50 Gas
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well if you have to remove them, have a carpenter come in and make new cabinets on site..
My last home had all custom wood work... When it was time from cabinets/trim... He locked the house up - had the place to himself.... Loaded his tools and a pile of wood into my garage.... And about two weeks later (if i recall correctly)... I had all job-site built cabinets, trim, crown, etc....

He truly was an artisan.. Lost art for sure.
 

wct097

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My last home had all custom wood work... When it was time from cabinets/trim... He locked the house up - had the place to himself.... Loaded his tools and a pile of wood into my garage.... And about two weeks later (if i recall correctly)... I had all job-site built cabinets, trim, crown, etc....

He truly was an artisan.. Lost art for sure.
That's what I'd want if I were doing this in a house I intended to keep for myself. The reason people go cheap these days is pretty simple. Unless you're planning to stay long-term, you simply don't get the return on investment.

When we build, we're planning for long term. For this place? I'd like to put it on the market in Spring of 2015 after the pool is open.
 

abqtj

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If you're leaving in a year, I'd leave the floor alone, replace the counter tops, paint cabinets/new hardware, and do appliances/sink
 

John

Transplant
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Why do you need to remove the cabinets? Can't you at least leave the uppers. IMO, those are way more of a PITA to install. I see what you are saying about the weird, dated looking edge on them, but I would still lean towards saving them and replace the doors. Paint isn't all bad, a lot of women like a white kitchen. Just use dark counter tops and stainless appliances and it will look good.
 

wct097

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Why do you need to remove the cabinets? Can't you at least leave the uppers. IMO, those are way more of a PITA to install. I see what you are saying about the weird, dated looking edge on them, but I would still lean towards saving them and replace the doors. Paint isn't all bad, a lot of women like a white kitchen. Just use dark counter tops and stainless appliances and it will look good.
Tile absolutely has to be replaced, along with the underlayment (plywood rather than backer board). Both run under the cabinets. Upper stuff can stay in, with the exception of the part with the oven in it (actually just a tall base cabinet). As soon as it warms up a bit, I'm borrowing a router from a co-worker and trying to route the edge on a spare cabinet door that I have.

If you're leaving in a year, I'd leave the floor alone, replace the counter tops, paint cabinets/new hardware, and do appliances/sink
Tile is loose, broken, and missing around the refrigerator due to it leaking out and the plywood underlayment shifting. Absolutely no point in doing anything to the kitchen if the tile isn't fixed.
 

abqtj

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Tile is loose, broken, and missing around the refrigerator due to it leaking out and the plywood underlayment shifting. Absolutely no point in doing anything to the kitchen if the tile isn't fixed.
AH, makes sense :beerchug:
 

tink

My Fawking leg hurts
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My last home had all custom wood work... When it was time from cabinets/trim... He locked the house up - had the place to himself.... Loaded his tools and a pile of wood into my garage.... And about two weeks later (if i recall correctly)... I had all job-site built cabinets, trim, crown, etc....

He truly was an artisan.. Lost art for sure.
sounds like my brother before he got sick, the man is truly an artist with wood, he has stuff in multi million dollar homes all over texas and in the Capitol building.
 
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miwico

Stalker of Brock
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Most kitchens I see now a days look totally over done. Just keep it very simple with good quality items.
 

wct097

NPD Club President 2021-2022
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Here is what the tile looks like in front of the refrigerator:



Here is the underlayment under a loose tile near the threshold going into the hall.

 
Backer board is not structural. The structure comes from the joists (vertical movement) and the tongue/groove 3/4" plywood (lateral movement) that should be there. The backer board provides no structural support aside from giving a nice substrate for the thinset to adhere to.
 
Also, you will spend far less time buying new doors than you will trying to rout an edge on those, then prepping and painting them. Just buy some shaker replacements, paint them white, and be done with it. Clean, simple, and will look good.
 
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