Kitchen remodeling is one of the most difficult renovation projects you will ever tackle in your home. This shouldn’t be surprising since this is one of the rooms that is used the most in your home! When you decide to start making changes to your kitchen, you will need to make quite a few decisions that will determine the outcome of your kitchen renovation.
8 Steps to Take During Your Kitchen Renovation
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Hire a Contractor
One of the first tasks of kitchen remodeling is hiring a contractor to do the work. It is best to meet a couple different contractors, so you can determine which one will be a good fit with you and the job you are requesting.
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Design Your New Kitchen
Once you have your contractor, they can work on designing your new kitchen. They will ask you many questions, so they know where you want everything located in this space. You will have the option of moving your sink and appliances to new spaces, as well as adding new countertops and even an island if you have the room.
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Pick Out Your Materials
The materials you use during your kitchen remodeling project will need to be picked out before the work begins. This will ensure that you have everything, so there are no delays along the way. Not choosing your materials in advance, or switching them halfway through the project, can create more problems than you are going to want to deal with.
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Demo Day
After you have hired your contractor, designed your new kitchen, and cleared out everything from this space, it will be time for your contractor to do a little demo work. The amount of demo required will be dependent on how large of a kitchen remodeling project you are doing. New cabinets, countertops, floors, and appliances will require more demolition that a kitchen renovation that focuses on re-doing cabinets and floors.
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Install New Materials
As soon as everything that you no longer want is out of your kitchen, the installation of all your new materials can begin. Your contractor will most likely begin with the cabinets and countertops before moving down to the flooring. It is usually best to work from the top down, so nothing gets damaged during the kitchen remodeling.
Of course, if something happened where the cabinets were not in yet, and you really didn’t want your kitchen renovation to come to a standstill, the flooring can be installed first. However, your contractor will probably have your contract amended so they are not responsible for any damage that occurs with this change. They will cover the new floors and do their best to avoid creating any damage, but these are all things you will need to consider as you are having the work done.
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Add a Coat of Paint
No kitchen renovation is complete until you add a coat or two of new paint to the walls. This will have this space looking bright and airy, while pulling it all together into one cohesive look. You will want to choose a color that matches all the other design elements you chose for this space. If you are having a difficult time, you can ask your contractor to assist you with choosing the color. While they won’t be able to make the final decision for you, they can at least give you a few options to choose from.
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Install New Hardware and Fixtures
As the paint is drying on the walls, your contractor will begin to install the new hardware and light fixtures in your kitchen. While you can use all your old fixtures and hardware, sometimes newer ones can add extra visual appeal to your kitchen renovation. It is best if everything has the same finish, because it will create a cohesive look in this space. However, you can choose to mix and match a little. We recommend choosing all your hardware and fixtures in the beginning when you are choosing your materials, because the ones you choose may have you choosing a slightly different material than you originally planned on.
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Inspection
The last step of your kitchen remodeling project will be you going through your kitchen with the contractor and making sure everything is done the way you wanted it. This is the time to notice any scratches, missed spots from painting, and items that may be missing. This will also be the first time you are seeing your brand-new kitchen, so embrace this moment and enjoy it!
These eight steps will ensure you have the best results when it comes to your kitchen remodeling project. You technically do not have to follow them in this order, but we have discovered by doing kitchen renovations in this way, everything does turn out better in the end.
