Kitchen renovation by hook or crook

We had a small fire in our kitchen a couple of weeks back - no one hurt and smoke detectors and a fire extinguisher saved the day. If you do not have an extinguisher guys please get one and keep it handy as it saved the day and prevented more damage.

Anyway we went from replacing some appliances and some cabinets to a complete gut job in the middle of a pandemic (hopefully closer to the end of the pandemic). 3 days of demolition and the ceiling is down outside walls down to the studs, ceramic pounded out, two walls and a beam are completely removed opening the kitchen to the dining room and living room. I need to rough in the wiring this weekend as the drywallers are coming Thursday. Next is the new floor and then 10 week wait for cabinets - patience is not my strong suit.

Any flooring guys on here?

https://i.imgur.com/I436i9n.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/dLQAroc.jpg

I think you forgot some thing in the ceiling when you removed the beam, you need to carry the load with an LVL.

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Originally Posted by WillieBeno

I think you forgot some thing in the ceiling when you removed the beam, you need to carry the load with an LVL.

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Good catch!

No we did that.....hard to see but we did it on each side of the beam and spread the load over 4 LVL's and 2 beams.

I did a second floor renovation about 10 years back and they strung new LVL's and beams supporting the stair case the width of the room to support the second floor. The existing 2x6 ceiling is just supporting the drywall now.



https://i.imgur.com/bTxc2Mb.jpg

I did the cottage kitchen last summer, as long as you pick a good padding and the floor is fairly level the vinyl laminates are fairly easy to fit for a DIY and look pretty good with a variety of colours.

While it is open, take good pictures so you know what is behind, take measurements and add a few extra plugs or potlights. Pictures showing the measurements help too.

Don’t cheap out if going vinyl. I’ve heard stories of joint separation with some cheaper stuff. I have no first hand experience though. I went ceramic tile when I did my kitchen years ago...

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Originally Posted by rick_iles

Don’t cheap out if going vinyl. I’ve heard stories of joint separation with some cheaper stuff. I have no first hand experience though. I went ceramic tile when I did my kitchen years ago...

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The cheap stuff is usually UGLY, don't use that, for a bit more you can get some that has tight seams, comfortable to the feet and once locked in last for years.

Ceramic floor I have done too, it looked OK but every mistake I could see for years after and was annoyed... get someone else to do it! Ceramic tile in the kitchen is unforgiving though, hardwood or laminate will still break a glass usually but not always like on ceramic and the wood/laminate don't shatter if you drop a cast iron fry pan or meat tenderizer or something steel and heavy on them. Hardwoods will shrink a bit too and you can end up with end or edge gaps

We did our kitchen and bathrooms 5 years ago with porcelain tile. It's beautiful stuff and easy to work with. The under lay floor was beefed up with 3/4" plywood,under cloth,then,tiles were set in thin set. Grouting was a breeze. The downside is that it's unforgiving like concrete. Drop anything glass or ceramic and kiss it good-bye. It even dented a skillet I dropped. There's no second bounce. If you slip and fall on it,it's gonna hurt. If I had it to do over,I would stick with wood flooring. It's flexible,softer to walk on and much warmer on bare feet.

If it’s in the budget get in floor heating under the tile. The stuff we used was like a thin mat we rolled out over the thin set. Then tile over. Makes a big difference in the cooler months. Especially when most of the time is spent in the kitchen and dining area.

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Originally Posted by Birdbuff

If it’s in the budget get in floor heating under the tile. The stuff we used was like a thin mat we rolled out over the thin set. Then tile over. Makes a big difference in the cooler months. Especially when most of the time is spent in the kitchen and dining area.

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20/20 hindsight for sure. I wish I'd done that,at least,in the on-suite bathroom.

If going with a vinyl style floor I would use the tarkett fibrefloor. Well, to be honest, I wouldn't use vinyl when tile can be had for near the same.

I spent the start of the winter piling in 18 hour days in our place, trim, drywall, 2nd bath, custom pine floor upstairs, ash floor downstairs and tile in the bathrooms. Sold it yesterday...... ahaaaa

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Originally Posted by 410001661

Any flooring guys on here?

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We put 3/4 inch white birch in the kitchen 27 years ago. 27 years, four kids and now grand kids and it is just getting to the stage where it looks like it could use re-finishing - probably wait a few years yet as our 4 year grand daughter is living with us until my daughter finishes her nursing degree in 2 years.

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Originally Posted by Birdbuff

If it’s in the budget get in floor heating under the tile. The stuff we used was like a thin mat we rolled out over the thin set. Then tile over. Makes a big difference in the cooler months. Especially when most of the time is spent in the kitchen and dining area.

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Sorry for the delay I have been swamped - the drywallers have an opening and are starting on Wednesday so I have been roughing in all the electrical!

I have heated floors on all 3 bathrooms and they are a MUST have - well with the money and nothing you can do afterwards. Whenever I am doing wirk for someone I almost insist on a heated floors in the bathroom(s). I once installed one at a guys's back patio door because that is where his dog slept - my kinda guy! My quote is buy once cry once.......I have NEVER heard of anyone regret putting in a heated floor.

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Originally Posted by Species8472

We put 3/4 inch white birch in the kitchen 27 years ago. 27 years, four kids and now grand kids and it is just getting to the stage where it looks like it could use re-finishing - probably wait a few years yet as our 4 year grand daughter is living with us until my daughter finishes her nursing degree in 2 years.

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My main floor is 3/4" maple with the exception of the 180 Sq Feet of ceramic in the space that was once was my kitchen. If I had to do it again I would not use Maple as it is on the softer side of hard woods and the dog had reeked havoc on it. Now that there is no walls, or beam and it is one big open 34' x 23' room my wife likes the look of wood throughout the entire level but I am skeptical of having hardwood in the kitchen (water and the odd dropped knife and pot). I have a guy coming in to see if he can match the width of my existing hardwood and then refinish the entire main floor to match.

Let's see what happens. Cabinets are 10 weeks out so I have nothing but time. I am just glad the drywallers will have it sealed in time for turkey opener. All I have to do is prime it and then the dust will die down - until the flooring guy starts.

Renovations are so much more exciting when it is at someone else's house and you are using someone else's money. But I am glad I get to call in all those favors I have done over the years!!

1 thing I have started doing with renos in my own home is after sanding drywall I prime the subfloor as well as the walls and ceiling as well, it really helps to seal the dust issue as I HATE having that fine dust show up months after the job is done and it adds nothing to the overall costs or time needed to do the job.
John

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Originally Posted by 410001661

My main floor is 3/4" maple with the exception of the 180 Sq Feet of ceramic in the space that was once was my kitchen. If I had to do it again I would not use Maple as it is on the softer side of hard woods and the dog had reeked havoc on it. Now that there is no walls, or beam and it is one big open 34' x 23' room my wife likes the look of wood throughout the entire level but I am skeptical of having hardwood in the kitchen (water and the odd dropped knife and pot). I have a guy coming in to see if he can match the width of my existing hardwood and then refinish the entire main floor to match.

Let's see what happens. Cabinets are 10 weeks out so I have nothing but time. I am just glad the drywallers will have it sealed in time for turkey opener. All I have to do is prime it and then the dust will die down - until the flooring guy starts.

Renovations are so much more exciting when it is at someone else's house and you are using someone else's money. But I am glad I get to call in all those favors I have done over the years!!

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We never had any problems with the wood in the kitchen. Just clean up the spills right away. The one place where we find it wears the fastest is around the kitchen table. The constant movement of chairs in and out at the table seems to do the most damage - more than our dogs and there has been 4 of them. Not enormous dogs but decent size - 2 labs, a walker and a malamute. Also should edit to add our floors are actually yellow birch not white.

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Originally Posted by johnjyb

1 thing I have started doing with home renos is after sanding drywall I prime the subfloor as well as the walls and ceiling as well, it really helps to seal the dust issue as I HATE having that fine dust show up months after the job is done and it adds nothing to the overall costs or time needed to do the job.
John

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If theres one thing that most people should do is spring for a pro to do their finishing work on drywall. Used to be a time when I'd put on 40 pounds of mud and sand off 35 pounds. I've gotten a lot better over time but am still amazed to watch a pro sand an entire room and end up with less than a cup of dust.

Wow, you can gain probably 7 to 8" of ceiling height if you remove the 2x6 (the 2x6 looks like it has a few inches gap above it) and put in some 1x1 strapping ... lots of work, probably not worth it, but now is the time to think about it.

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Originally Posted by sawbill

If theres one thing that most people should do is spring for a pro to do their finishing work on drywall. Used to be a time when I'd put on 40 pounds of mud and sand off 35 pounds. I've gotten a lot better over time but am still amazed to watch a pro sand an entire room and end up with less than a cup of dust.

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Couldn’t agree more. I’m as handy as the next guy, but I lack the finesse of a pro mudder.

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Originally Posted by MarkB

Wow, you can gain probably 7 to 8" of ceiling height if you remove the 2x6 (the 2x6 looks like it has a few inches gap above it) and put in some 1x1 strapping ... lots of work, probably not worth it, but now is the time to think about it.

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I can but there is another 27' of ceiling to the front of my house and I want everything to tie in and that would mean removing the whole thing and I know for a fact my plumber snuck our master bathroom drain down between two of the engineered beams down to a wall and then down so I would have to re-configure that if I went up to the bottom of the engineered beams. That would be a whole other reno if I did that - plus I would have to patch that gap on the walls to get me under the beams.

I am handy but know my limitations. I will hire drywallers and flooring professionals for my main floor - well worth the money. I can work a couple of side jobs doing electrical and then pay them to do what they do best.

We had porcelain in the kitchen and with a reno the wife wanted slate.
Well, with uneven surface and rocking chairs I took a hammer to it and ripped it all out.
Currently have wide plank 5" oak but when a pot or a pan is dropped well, you end up with a ding in the floor.
I hear that distressed wood is the style these days...lol

Just curious, why was your accidental fire not an insurance job?

I installed this stuff at a friends kitchen reno and its held up amazing... we did alot of homework before installing and each place I called to source the flooring said Superior is the best stuff you can find. 1) its not cheap 2) its made right here in ontario 3) it is amazing stuff, highly recommend checking it out. We went with a hand scraped finish which makes it look a touch like its rough sawn and the look is awesome and highly durable.
One other route you may want to look is the LVT stuff that looks like wood but really isnt, apparently its very good too...just my 0.02 from my first hand experience.

https://www.superiorflooring.ca/prod...ior-engineered

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Originally Posted by impact

We had porcelain in the kitchen and with a reno the wife wanted slate.
Well, with uneven surface and rocking chairs I took a hammer to it and ripped it all out.
Currently have wide plank 5" oak but when a pot or a pan is dropped well, you end up with a ding in the floor.
I hear that distressed wood is the style these days...lol

Just curious, why was your accidental fire not an insurance job?

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LOL if it was a insurance job I would have let it burn a little longer......it is easy to see why the fire itself causes the least amount of damage and the smoke and soot are the real culprit. Insurance will put your kitchen back the way you had it - no changes other than colour. They will pay the cost to replace cabinets, fridge, stove, vent hood and microwave - no counter (not damaged), and some drywall and paint to the ceiling. By the time it is all is said and done the insurance cheque 'might' cover my new appliances but I am on the hook for demolition, drywall (ceiling and walls), cabinets, counter, flooring and lighting - which is fine because I made the decision to change the design and open things up.

Well it has been a LOOOONG and bumpy ride but the kitchen is 99% done. I would highly recommend NOT embarking on a kitchen renovation during a pandemic. I am happy, but more importantly my wife is very happy with the final product. I am still waiting on chairs (3 island stools and 6 chairs for our dining room table) and as of yesterday I am only 6 weeks into my 16 to 18 week lead time. Looks like this is going to be the new norm for a bit.

Buch better than the 6 months we had living with a hot plate and a BBQ - LOL. My wife is a saint!!

https://i.imgur.com/R7kylqT.jpg

^^^very nice, glad your still married lol


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