Kitchen Remodel

[Newman]

Thanks for the feed back. Sorry for the delayed response but I've been swamped at work and the last thing I want to go is look at a computer when I get home. So I'm posting this at work. SSSHHHH.

I've linked a ROUGH blueprint of the house. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/106488396/HOUSE.pdf Nothing is to scale and the sizes are guesses. I noted the wall I'm talking about removing. I would end up adding an island to the space as well. I can do the floors myself and I have a few sources to get clearanced tile. I can also do the drywall, electrical and plumbing work. What concerns me is the cabinets. Those of you that have made them do you have a rough percentage you saved and can you please share details? I looked at Home Depot last night the two samples I liked were +$11K for the 10x10 example. I really liked natural hickory and antiqued white ones. Once again I appreciate the comments!

270-da-lover - Nice job on your kitchen. I would be ecstatic to have something that looked that nice.

Islandhopper - Well, in my defense I'd rather cook than eat out. If there was more than me there I would cook everyday. I use my current kitchen quite a bit.

kilroy / zz13 - I was talking about laminates. I don't know why I typed composite. I know quartz is expensive and I don't want the maintence involve in concrete.

Jim - The wow factor I'm shooting for is size and function. While I would LOVE to add more natural light it isn't easily done. The house is brick and the windows are new. I may end up adding a skylight later when everything is done. Additional lighting is planned as there are two things I hate about the current setup: Lack of light and the floors.

Jim - I've been doing that with the rest of the house. I've basically lived in a constantly changing construction site for the past 4 years. I will keep that option open but I'm not sure I could mentally handle the kitchen being in flux for more than a few months.

Henry - I'll post a pic of the cabinets tonight and get yours (and everyone else's) opinion on them. I'm guessing they are EOL. Good point on the ventilation. My dream would be a real stove hood. Currently I have a window fan.

I think I answered all the question... I'd read through again later when I have more time. Thanks again.

 

[sdarc]

I'm going to guess that the covered porch Is actually a family room? If so, I'd also take the next wall on the other side of the table out too. This opens up the whole space allowing you to expand the kitchen area even further. As for cabinets, look into "Cabinets to Go". They are like Lumber Liquidators for kitchens. There are also many places online that you buy just the boxes one place and doors and drawers at another. The cabinet business has gotten very specialized.

 

[kilroy]

Definitely in favor of removing both walls, assuming they aren't bearing. Will your island take (some of) the space the kitchen table now uses? You'll be able to sit at it I would guess? NEC code will require at least one 20-amp GFCI or AFCI receptacle (I put one on each end). Seems like you might be able to fit in some cabinets on the 'bottom' of the kitchen (where the table is against the wall in your drawing). As to laminates, some of the new ones are worth considering, in my opinion. Much has been done to improve the look over the years. As to cabinets, I have about 40 lineal feet. I used 3/4-inch melamine for the 'guts' and straight-grain bookmatched walnut for all exposed surfaces. Soft-close hinges, stainless pulls, concealed drawer slides, custom dividers in all drawers, slideouts in all cabinets that don't have drawers. I would estimate I built them for about 20 percent of what they would sell for retail. In fact, the whole kitchen project cost about 20-25 percent of what a contractor had estimated. If you have the time and the tools, it may be worth it to you to build. For me it was a no-brainer, since that's what I do in my spare time anyway. As to lighting, make sure you add undercabinet lighting throughout. It will be worth every minute and dime you spend on it. I'll post pics later when I'm finished hanging all the doors.

 

[Newman]

Baahhh. Yes, "covered porch" is a family room. Or living room. I can't keep them straight. Here is a fixed pdf. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/106488396/house_fixed.pdf I never thought about removing the second wall. They are not load bearing. The ceiling rafters run north/south (on the plan) so the middle wall that runs the length of the house is the bearing wall.

Yes, the island would end up taking up some of the space where the current kitchen table is. I was thinking that it would be big enough for 2 or 3 seats. If going this route I would love to move the cooktop to the island and do a built in oven. That's definitely a budget oriented move as it would require a new oven. I know where I can get a cook top at cost.

 

[kilroy]

I agree about removing the next wall over (looking at the image on my phone is a bit small). And you should easily be able to put an island big enough for three. All you'd need is about 5-6 feet in length and 3 feet wide at minimum. Make sure you leave at least 42 inches all the way around it, though, and it looks like you'll have that no problem. It's all do-able; it just depends on how much you really want to get into it and how long you plan to stay. For me, it was always part of the plan because the old kitchen was so dated and the appliances were starting to die off.

 

[1990-270-da-lover]

If the roof is stick framed ie; not manufactured trusses, you may still be able to remove a section of the center wall by installing an LVL or Microlam header from the exterior wall to the wall that separates the diningroom from the familyroom to open the space, you could minimize the appearance of the beam by installing down lighting over your island. also you could run base cabinetry closer to your exterior egress, making the counter space by the range larger. The same goes for the wall at the diningroom, I did just that and snuck the base units 10.5" into the dining area, and you would'nt know by looking, and the space feels bigger because the walls are gone. Not sure how far it is from the exterior wall to the diningroom wall, but I'm sure you could find an appropriate size beam to span the distance, even if you had to upset it a bit, or enitrely if you didn't want to have it protrude down from the ceiling. (I'm assuming this is a single story home, or in that area at least.) Also something for consideration is what if anything is below the diningroom wall, as you will need to add bearing for the header beam to rest on.