Home Improvements: Kitchen Update

New Countertop and sink.

Last blog post I mentioned that I would not be blogging on the denim rug project this time.  I wanted to update family and friends on the latest in our home improvement projects.  Over the last few years I have blogged about renovating the downstairs here at the house and our cabin up in the mountains.  Now we are starting on the upstairs of the house again.  Hopefully, some of our insights on the work will be of use to my readers.

Cabinets were refinished top and bottom.

Eighteen years ago we renovated the kitchen.   That renovation was triggered when the stove started having problems.  We put in a Formica countertop, new sink, stove, under the counter water filtration system, wall paper, bead board, and chair rail, and flooring.  Eighteen years later, the stove was in poor shape, the cabinets looked worn, and the Formica counter top was worn in an area in front of the sink.  Time to renovate the kitchen again.

The grain of the countertop.

Over the years, tastes have changed and home owner and purchaser expectations have changed.  It used to be that people expected to buy a home and then renovate it to make it into their own tastes.  Then television channels dedicated to home improvement appeared.  After that, people began wanting and expecting homes that were move in ready and that they would not have to do any improvements to it once they moved into the home.  It has made it more difficult to sell a home without updating it.  So while we were about it we decided on some upgrades that might be useful in the future as well as something that we want.

The new stove.

One of the things that home buyers want is granite countertops. They are pretty, and people are wanting them when they look to purchase a home.  However, they are really expensive.  There are some different options out there that are also an upgrade from Formica that are worthwhile and even have some advantages over granite.  One of them is a composite countertop.   The composite countertop is a mixture of stone dust, gravel, marble, granite, and resins.  They come in a variety of finishes and color.  Even better, the composite material does not need to be sealed every year.  We decided to go with that rather than granite.  That choice saved us a couple thousand dollars.  It looks like marble.  Most people do not know it is not real stone material.

Since we were replacing the countertop, we decided to investigate having the cabinets refaced.  Cabinet refacing is when they replace the doors and put new veneer (or paint) on the box part of the cabinets.  It is so over the top expensive that you might as well move if you have to reface the cabinets.  The salesman came out, and showed us options.  The first time through, with new doors, soft close drawers,  pull outs in the cabinets, and new veneer, etc. came to twenty-three thousand dollars.  The second pass through we chose less ornate doors and ditched some of the nice to have accessories and the price was down to nineteen thousand dollars.  Ultimately, we decided that overall the whole process was way to expensive. 

Rather than have the cabinets done by a company, we decided to refinish the cabinets ourselves.  This was not the first time we had refinished the cabinets.  We did it on the last remodel and once in between also.  So we removed the doors and began a marathon refinishing job to get the cabinets refinished before the new countertop arrived.  They look great.  Maybe there are a few dings in the cabinets here and there where the veneer had to be repaired, but for the most part they look brand new.  The best part is it only cost about fifty dollars.

We also scrubbed the hardware and returned the tarnished handles and hinges back to their copper finish.  They are electroplated copper on steel.  In some places, the copper has worn off and the steel is showing through.  My husband is researching the pieces trying to find new ones.  Those handles are still available in copper, but the size might have changed slightly.  We are going to order some to see if they are the same.  If not, we might consider sending out the handles to be electroplated.  (After all, we saved so much money on the cabinets.)

If you do choose to refinish your cabinets you will need a place to work that it well ventilated and free from dust or blowing dirt.  Don't try to refinish them outside.  We were lucky that the weather cooperated with us.  It was warm enough that we were able to open the door and windows.  The doors will have some place to rest while the stain dries.  When you take the cabinet doors off, number them on the back and also number the place on the cabinet itself so that the cabinet doors will go back in the same spot. 

I guess one surprise that we had was just how much stone dust was going to be generated when the crew came in to put in the new sink.  We had just refinished cabinets and now were going to have to clean all the surfaces all over again.  There was so much dust that I had to was the floor twice before it was clear of footprints. 

I could go on, but this blog post is getting a bit long.  In a couple of weeks, I will come back to this subject.  Home improvement is a big project and there can be pitfalls and unintended consequences to the choices made.  There are some things you might want to know about sinks and stoves. Sometimes it is worthwhile to have some insight into projects before getting started.  Check back on this blog for future information on our home improvements.