KaM's kitchen make-over
KaM's kitchen make-over
so i haven't been on much lately since i have been keeping busy at home.
here is what the kitchen looked like when i first bought the house in '08... the community i live in are all similarly built (split level house) but this kitchen was an extension built by the previous owner... they put alot of money into it and even dug out the basement underneath... all my neighbors only have a kitchen half the size of mine and eat in the dining room... i was sold on the kitchen and two double ovens...
OMG wallpaper!!!
before moving in, i did some work to remove the wallpaper and take out the built in bench
cut a hole in the wall between the dining room to let some natural light in.
lived with the kitchen since '09, it was completely functional and worked well... it was just ugly...
here is what the kitchen looked like when i first bought the house in '08... the community i live in are all similarly built (split level house) but this kitchen was an extension built by the previous owner... they put alot of money into it and even dug out the basement underneath... all my neighbors only have a kitchen half the size of mine and eat in the dining room... i was sold on the kitchen and two double ovens...
OMG wallpaper!!!
before moving in, i did some work to remove the wallpaper and take out the built in bench
cut a hole in the wall between the dining room to let some natural light in.
lived with the kitchen since '09, it was completely functional and worked well... it was just ugly...
Last edited by KaMLuNg; Dec 13, 2012 at 08:49 AM.
fast forward to October 31, 2012 (Hurricane Sandy came to town 
) 
actually since work was closed for a week, i started my demo...
started to remove the cabinet doors
however, after we lost power, i put everything on hold until we got back to normal... i took a week off from work to really get started on the project...
Day 1 - DEMO!!! i enlisted the help of 3 of my friends and we banged out the demo in one day... it was about 9 hrs of work... ripped out the rest of the cabinets, took off the backsplash and peeled up the floor... the four of us with hammers and chisels... there was no way i could have done it without their help... here was now my clean slate...
here is the new kitchen cabinets waiting to go in... they were sitting in my garage since May... it will be nice to finally park my car in the garage again...
Day 2 - we were all pretty wrecked from the demo the previous day, so i gave two of the guys the day off... since we couldn't really lift much, i used the day for planning... some of the electrical wasn't going to be used anymore, had to move the line for the island since the new island had a smaller footprint... think about the plumbing and rework the gas line... (old setup had 3 gas outlets-2 ovens and 1 cooktop. new oven is electric, so only need 1 gas outlet for the cooktop)... oh yea and run the 8g line for the double oven...
that was a f'in bear...
Day 3 - we started to bring in all the cabinets and i started to set and level the one side of the wall...
the longest part was trying to figure out where i wanted to place each cabinet...
Day 4 - did i also mention that i was at Home Deopt and Lowes almost every day... i never realized how much time that wastes...
nonetheless, in the morning we went to buy the sheetrock... this was the end of the day...
Day 5 - more home depot, but i didn't get to do much work because i had to pack to go on a business trip for a week... it wasn't ideal, but luckily my dad had some homework to do... while i was away, he tiled the floor and compounded the ceiling...
) actually since work was closed for a week, i started my demo...
started to remove the cabinet doors
however, after we lost power, i put everything on hold until we got back to normal... i took a week off from work to really get started on the project...
Day 1 - DEMO!!! i enlisted the help of 3 of my friends and we banged out the demo in one day... it was about 9 hrs of work... ripped out the rest of the cabinets, took off the backsplash and peeled up the floor... the four of us with hammers and chisels... there was no way i could have done it without their help... here was now my clean slate...
here is the new kitchen cabinets waiting to go in... they were sitting in my garage since May... it will be nice to finally park my car in the garage again...
Day 2 - we were all pretty wrecked from the demo the previous day, so i gave two of the guys the day off... since we couldn't really lift much, i used the day for planning... some of the electrical wasn't going to be used anymore, had to move the line for the island since the new island had a smaller footprint... think about the plumbing and rework the gas line... (old setup had 3 gas outlets-2 ovens and 1 cooktop. new oven is electric, so only need 1 gas outlet for the cooktop)... oh yea and run the 8g line for the double oven...
that was a f'in bear... Day 3 - we started to bring in all the cabinets and i started to set and level the one side of the wall...
the longest part was trying to figure out where i wanted to place each cabinet...
Day 4 - did i also mention that i was at Home Deopt and Lowes almost every day... i never realized how much time that wastes...
nonetheless, in the morning we went to buy the sheetrock... this was the end of the day... Day 5 - more home depot, but i didn't get to do much work because i had to pack to go on a business trip for a week... it wasn't ideal, but luckily my dad had some homework to do... while i was away, he tiled the floor and compounded the ceiling...
so a week later, i came home and my dad finished the floor...
since the old light fixtures were 4 sets of double flourescents, it really lighted up the room and my wife loved the brightness... i switched to recessed highhats to keep the look clean but i was concerned they wouldn't be as bright... so we picked a light color floor tile to brighten up the room and i plan to run LEDs in the fixtures...
i was jetlagged as a mofo coming back from Asia so i didn't do much work the first few days... we went shopping, came home with a few samples, and ended up with
then i started to install the upper cabinets
lights and ceiling fan in
finished painting the ceiling and walls...
after deciding on the granite, they came to template the countertops the next day... we finalized everything and within 3 days (Monday) they came and installed the tile... Monday was my 30th... so Happy Birthday to them courtesy of my wallet...
they did an okay job with the seam... it is only one seam at the sink as opposed to two (another at the cooktop) but i can't complain...
because the run was so long against the right wall, we ended up needing two slabs... so we did the best we could to match the pattern where the two met at the seam... if anyone in the tri-state area plans on redoing their countertops, i highly recommend these guys marble.com... they are very professional and the prices are competitive... their warehouse was huge, i was like a kid in a candy store looking at the huge saws while my wife was gwaking at their marble selection which we couldn't afford... oh yea, the undermount sink was included free with the countertop too which was a bonus...
since the old light fixtures were 4 sets of double flourescents, it really lighted up the room and my wife loved the brightness... i switched to recessed highhats to keep the look clean but i was concerned they wouldn't be as bright... so we picked a light color floor tile to brighten up the room and i plan to run LEDs in the fixtures...
i was jetlagged as a mofo coming back from Asia so i didn't do much work the first few days... we went shopping, came home with a few samples, and ended up with
then i started to install the upper cabinets
lights and ceiling fan in
finished painting the ceiling and walls...
after deciding on the granite, they came to template the countertops the next day... we finalized everything and within 3 days (Monday) they came and installed the tile... Monday was my 30th... so Happy Birthday to them courtesy of my wallet...
they did an okay job with the seam... it is only one seam at the sink as opposed to two (another at the cooktop) but i can't complain...
because the run was so long against the right wall, we ended up needing two slabs... so we did the best we could to match the pattern where the two met at the seam... if anyone in the tri-state area plans on redoing their countertops, i highly recommend these guys marble.com... they are very professional and the prices are competitive... their warehouse was huge, i was like a kid in a candy store looking at the huge saws while my wife was gwaking at their marble selection which we couldn't afford... oh yea, the undermount sink was included free with the countertop too which was a bonus...
i'll get some more updated pics up soon... since the countertops were installed, i gave it a day to settle and the silicone to dry...
on Tuesday night, i set the double oven into place... that was a heavy mofo... had to end up taking it out cause the plug was hitting the back of the unit... flipped the outlet 90* and fits like a glove... installed the cabinet over the cooktop and put in the microwave...
last night i connected the cooktop... had to get a new gas line since the old one was too short... checked for leaks, etc, etc... oh yea, my daily trips to home depot still haven't stopped...
i'll be at work late tonight so nothing much will happen... fridge gets delivered tomorrow so while i'm waiting between 9am-5pm for them to show up, i'll do the plumbing... finish up the water connection for the fridge, install the drains for the sink and put the tap in... i already sweated the supply line connections so just have to screw everything together...
plan for the weekend will be backsplash and hopefully grout... still not finalized what we will do yet... we bought some tile which we like, but not sure if we want to keep it simple or go all out... i mean this whole reno was meant to be budget anyway... we don't plan on living in this house very long anyway...
i'm exhausted... my wife says she doesn't want to ever have to go thru not having a kitchen again, luckily my parents live close by...
on Tuesday night, i set the double oven into place... that was a heavy mofo... had to end up taking it out cause the plug was hitting the back of the unit... flipped the outlet 90* and fits like a glove... installed the cabinet over the cooktop and put in the microwave...
last night i connected the cooktop... had to get a new gas line since the old one was too short... checked for leaks, etc, etc... oh yea, my daily trips to home depot still haven't stopped...
i'll be at work late tonight so nothing much will happen... fridge gets delivered tomorrow so while i'm waiting between 9am-5pm for them to show up, i'll do the plumbing... finish up the water connection for the fridge, install the drains for the sink and put the tap in... i already sweated the supply line connections so just have to screw everything together...
plan for the weekend will be backsplash and hopefully grout... still not finalized what we will do yet... we bought some tile which we like, but not sure if we want to keep it simple or go all out... i mean this whole reno was meant to be budget anyway... we don't plan on living in this house very long anyway...
i'm exhausted... my wife says she doesn't want to ever have to go thru not having a kitchen again, luckily my parents live close by...
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yea it was the same tile they had on the floor... i mean 30 years ago, that kitchen was in... i was holding out to see if the retro look would come back... that tile was imported Porclein from Italy, so it wasn't cheap... but in today's age, its old and ugly...
Earth-bound misfit
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 31,704
Likes: 608
THANKS!!! the 17th will mark a month of full work... tbh it isn't a long time for a full kitchen renovation between me and my dad doing most the work... my best friend hired professionals to do his kitchen and it took them 6 wks... granted his kitchen was bigger than mine, but they are pros... i do this on the weekends and for an hour every night after work...
Senior Moderator
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 15,295
Likes: 131
From: IL
Holy 4 ovens! You could open a twinkie factory up in there.
Love the new reno progress! I'm glad you tore out the ugly stuff! You probably know the aisle of HD and Lowes like the back of your hand now. Not a fan of the seam at the sink though. Because of that seam, I would have opted for farmhouse style sink:
Love the new reno progress! I'm glad you tore out the ugly stuff! You probably know the aisle of HD and Lowes like the back of your hand now. Not a fan of the seam at the sink though. Because of that seam, I would have opted for farmhouse style sink:
Truly, a month is fast. My ex and I redid the kitchen in our old house and it took the better part of a year. Mostly because he was doing most of the work (I stained cabinets, painted, and did some of the tiling and grouting but didn't know how to build the cabinets) and it wasn't a priority for him. Drove me crazy to have the dust and debris floating around the house that long.
thanks buddy... luckily i didn't encounter any
when i tore everything down... thanks mate!!!
and it would have required us to get another cabinet for the sink... this was a package deal for the cabinet and appliances...
maybe in the next house...
thanks gents!!!
the end of last week, i set the rest of the appliances... that double oven is a heavy @$$ sunova...
putting the faucet in... had to make a few trips to home depot AGAIN to get the drain supplies... so far so good no leaks..
over the weekend we installed the backsplash... and let it dry 24 hrs... yesterday grouted the tiles... now just to wait 72 hrs before sealing... almost there...
ran the dishwasher for the first time last night... no leaks, everything looks good... the mrs. has started to wipe down all the cabinets... we should be moving stuff in the rest of this week... i'll get some final pics up soon...
there always seems to be one slight miscalculation in every project... quite a schoolboy error on my part, but when we went shopping for the fridge, i didn't consider the standard vs counter depth... i was also being a cheapskate and didn't want to spend more for less fridge space... so i went with standard, the fridge fits, but is a monster and eats up alot of the walkway on one side of the island... lets put it this way, with the door open, i have an inch to the island top... doh!!! not a big deal since everyone in my family is petite... but i don't forsee fat people comfortably squeezing themselves through there... they will have to use the other side... all well, when i sell the house, i'll take the fridge with me anyway and the new owner can get one that sits very pretty in the space...
putting the faucet in... had to make a few trips to home depot AGAIN to get the drain supplies... so far so good no leaks..
over the weekend we installed the backsplash... and let it dry 24 hrs... yesterday grouted the tiles... now just to wait 72 hrs before sealing... almost there...
ran the dishwasher for the first time last night... no leaks, everything looks good... the mrs. has started to wipe down all the cabinets... we should be moving stuff in the rest of this week... i'll get some final pics up soon...
there always seems to be one slight miscalculation in every project... quite a schoolboy error on my part, but when we went shopping for the fridge, i didn't consider the standard vs counter depth... i was also being a cheapskate and didn't want to spend more for less fridge space... so i went with standard, the fridge fits, but is a monster and eats up alot of the walkway on one side of the island... lets put it this way, with the door open, i have an inch to the island top... doh!!! not a big deal since everyone in my family is petite... but i don't forsee fat people comfortably squeezing themselves through there... they will have to use the other side... all well, when i sell the house, i'll take the fridge with me anyway and the new owner can get one that sits very pretty in the space...
all joking aside, i grew up with my parents owning a rental property... it is definitely worthwhile knowledge to have since we all know how much it costs to call someone out to your house... unfortunately sometimes even i don't have the time to do it all myself and have to call out a pro...
one things for sure, working a 8-5 then doing this at night... i'm bloody wrecked...
This kitchen is amazing!
What's the deal with the double oven??
running it down into the basement was obviously easy, even across the finished basement ceiling wasn't bad, but through the studs, my god i could have used some lube... that wire was a bear, and especially at the tail end of 15-20ft, i was done... nowcame the chore of putting the massive plug on the oven... and i n00b'd the electrical box an inch too low... after setting the oven in, the back of the unit hit the bottom of the plug
had to pull the oven backout, i flipped the box 90* and the plug now cleared... no offense taken... i bought it like that...
the previous family was Italian and the mother loved cooking... hence why they built the extension specifically for the kitchen... installed the double double ovens, had the huge island and bench seating... it was a big family... it was a good skeleton...
1919
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 21,467
Likes: 162
Yeah, 8 is fun to work with. Even the individual wires are a PITA...always hated wiring stove plugs, and to a lesser extent dryer plugs since the wires flex easier. Have to be extra careful not to slice the insulation on the metal boxes. I had to run a 6 once for a hot tub under similar circumstances, through studs and whatnot 
Keep up the good work and post pics when you can
Keep up the good work and post pics when you can
here are some final pics... been busy cleaning and moving back everything into the kitchen...
i still need to finish off this corner... i'm going to do some shelving to connect the two upper cabinets.. could be used to put cook books or even display some china or whatever...
happy to answer any questions for anyone looking to tackle this kind of project...
i still need to finish off this corner... i'm going to do some shelving to connect the two upper cabinets.. could be used to put cook books or even display some china or whatever...
happy to answer any questions for anyone looking to tackle this kind of project...
