Have you finally had it with that old Formica countertop or do your cabinets scream 1970s? Is it time to finally remodel that kitchen? Then you’ve come to the right place! Read on and we’ll talk a bit about the kitchen remodel process. Then you can decide if it is a job you want to undertake or not. If so, you also need to decided, do you want to save on the labor costs and “Do It Yourself”, or do you want to hire a General Contractor.
To begin the project, you have to decide what you want to keep, if anything. Maybe the appliances are fine, and you want to put all of your money into counter tops and cabinets. Maybe the floor is horrendous but the cabinets can be re-finished instead of completely replaced. If you are hiring a contractor they can help you a bit with these decisions, but in the end, only you can decide what you want your final kitchen to look like, while also considering what you can afford.
After you have a plan, and know what projects will be completed, its time to get moving. We are going to assume that the plan is to totally scrap our kitchen. So, we are going to begin by removing the cabinets. We are going to replace them with a new set of custom built cabinets. They came un-finished so we’ll finish them before we install them to make it a bit easier. While the cabinets are still down, is a great time to paint. Since we also want to replace the flooring, we will remove the baseboard trim before painting as well. Having less to go around when painting makes the job so much easier.
Once the painting gets done, we move on to taking up the old flooring, and laying down the new. We are choosing a beautiful reclaimed wood for our flooring. Wood is a great floor for a kitchen. It’s easy to maintain, and is so warm and inviting, just they way you want a kitchen to feel. You don’t have to choose wood of course; tiled kitchen floors also look wonderful, as do stained concrete. There is also always the old standby of linoleum if you are trying to really pinch pennies.
The next step in the kitchen remodel process is to put those fantastic new cabinets back in. Then come the countertops. We chose granite for its seamless and durable surface. It’s perfect for a kitchen. Tile is another option that makes a great kitchen countertop. There are also some natural countertops on the market to choose from made with recycled paper or glass.
Along with the countertops, we also replaced the sink during this stage with a nice stainless steel under mount kitchen sink. Last but not least we finish off with the new lighting, and the new, energy efficient appliances.
The kitchen is a room that many of us spend a lot of time in. If you’ve been thinking about remodeling your kitchen, maybe now is the time. If you live in the Rockville or Silver Spring areas in Maryland, be sure to give Don Hartman of D.R. Hartman Construction a call.
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