Like most kitchen renovation projects, this one in Middletown was broken down into several stages.  There were a total 6 stages to this project over the course of 10 full working days, from the careful demo work in the beginning, to rehanging the doors and installing the new handles . Most kitchen renovation projects require more than one contractor due to all the different disciplines involved. However, when you hire The Handsome Handyman for your project you get one contractor who knows the details of your project and has thorough knowledge of all the disciplines required to complete it without having to “sub”, or subcontract parts of the project to other tradespeople. That means that your project will go smoother, from beginning to end. Not only will it go smoother but it also creates less down time and avoids delays due to scheduling conflicts when involving multiple contractors. Ultimately hiring The Handsome Handyman to be your one and only contractor for your kitchen renovation project saves you time and money, as well as the stress and hassle of managing the project yourself.

In this section you can see the how the project moved through the different stages of construction. With each major phase or ” STEP” I like to include a gallery, as well as some description of the processes and challenges in that particular part of project.

The first step of course is to demolish the existing building components that are going to be upgraded. In this case the client wanted to remove a faux brick backsplash and the old counter tops with sink and faucet. The client also wanted to add a few more outlets around the countertop area, and as we discussed with them from the start, the time to do that would be while the wall was open in preparation for the tile backsplash.

Removing the faux brick was fairly easy, it looked as though the previous owner  had glued it to the drywall with construction adhesive. Once the faux brick and the drywall were full removed, there was an additional layer of soundproofing homeolite. This is commonly found in area condominiums built in the late 1970’s through the early 1990’s (the clients property is a condo unit built in that time period). Because we took an additional layer of the wall away to get to the stud we will have to put an additional layer back to make sure the wall thickness is uniform in the backsplash area.

When removing the old counter top and sink the main consideration for the client was how to function without a kitchen sink or counter until the new counters were fabricated. This is a common dilemma for kitchen renovation projects. When replacing a countertop with new solid surface, such as granite, or corian, fabrication only happens after the old tops are removed and the fabricator can take exact laser measurements of the existing cabinets. This typically results in a client without a countertop for 1-2 weeks while the new is being cut to their exact dimensions. Of course, The Handsome Handyman had a workaround for this client. One of the pieces of the existing laminate was salvaged and could be placed over the cabinets and moved from place to place as needed, if you look closely at our pictures in this gallery you will see we used it for our tools!

After disconnecting the sink drain and supply lines, and removing the connections from the top of the dishwasher to the bottom of the counter top I was able to quickly pop the laminate up off the base cabinets. However, because the counter was in a dead end joint with walls locking it in place on 3 sides I had to make a shallow cut and snap it near the sink joint. This allowed me to remove the laminate in pieces with minimal damage to the walls.

Lastly, there was a cabinet over the fridge that the client wanted to make deeper either by extending the existing or ordering a new one. Either was it meant cutting the crown, and removing the cabinet. In the end we had to cut the cabinet in half as the enclosure was not square and the cabinet was to tightly fit.

For the electrical portion of the project, the client wanted more plugs around the kitchen and specifically an outlet with built-in USB  charging ports. To acomplish this for the client it required making two of the existing single outlets into duplex, or double outlets.  As well as adding a whole new bank of duplex outlets on the other side of the stove. As you can see in the pictures, if you look closely, there was an outlet behind the stove

For this step in our kitchen renovation project, we are installing a simple but elegant 4 x 8 subway tile in white, with a light grey grout to tie in with the new countertops and the silver metal hardware upgrade. But first we need to replace the 3/4 in  soundproofing, since soundproofing materials are costly and not readily available without a special order the client opted for a 3/4 piece of birch plywood, which I had plans to use the rest of the sheet to build the extension on the cabinet over the fridge. (Again, this is another example of how we save clients time and money, when your tile and cabinet guy… are the same guy!)

After replacing the 3/4 soundproofing, we attached our cement board for our tile install. Some contractors would say that its fine to install over plywood or even wetrated drywall with redguard, however we believe that in order to get the longest life out of a tile installation, especially in a true wet location like a kitchen you should use cement board of some type. The reason being is that cement board is designed to go through the wet/dry cycle without damaging the integrity of the material or shortening its useful lifespan. So if there are any tiny imperfections in our waterproof membrane, or it somehow degrades or is damaged, our substrate is designed to get wet and hold up for 50 years!

An additional consideration I provided for the client was that we had the opportunity to install the waterproof substrate BEFORE the countertops went in. This ensures our waterproof protection extends below the joint where the solid counter meets the wall. Again, this step provides insurance that this project will remain functional for years to come. It also meant that our first wave of construction steps was over. The rest of the tile install and grouting was not going to take place until the new counters had been delivered and installed. (This is always going to be the case for a solid surface installation, the sink cut, measuring, and installation should all be included in the cost of the countertop, and performed by the countertop fabricators contractor. We don’t consider this a sub-contractor in the traditional sense.) After the counters were in we were able to proceed with the backsplash installation and included a one-course backsplash along the existing wall as a decorative feature for the client.

After the backsplash was done, it was time to make the plumbing connections and get this kitchen back to fully functional. Because the client purchased a solid surface counter and an undermount sink, the sink was bonded to the counter by the fabricators installer. However, that is all they do! So you still need to connect the drain lines and garbage disposal, as well as install the new faucet. We also had to re-connect the dishwasher and permanently re-mount it to the counter top. For a solid surface dishwasher install you have two options, attached the washbasin to the side of the cabinets through the faceframe, or bond a thin piece of wood to the underside of the counter and attach the dishwasher with a couple shallow wood screws. Since we had a framed wall on one side of the dishwasher the side method was not on option. Once the dishwasher was installed using the wood bonded to the underside, the client was not happy that the strip of wood was visible from certain low angles. So we proposed a piece of wood trim stock, a base cap to be precise, flipped upside down and run lengthwise down the entire underside of the counter to the client… who loved the idea! It turned out great, and even covered some minor irregularities in the cabinets where they met the bottom of the counter.

Now that we were done moving appliances around and all demo and reconstruction of walls, cabinets, etc. was completed it was time to tackle the floors. The client had a carpeted entry hallway and coat closet that they wanted to match with the kitchen floor. They had already picked out a laminate plank floor that they wanted to go throughout both areas. So we demoed the carpeting and pad and found that the sub floor was a half inch below the floor in the kitchen. This meant that we would have to build up the subfloor to make the new planks “float” properly from one room to the next.

The client wanted to the original oak wall base to remain as it was less work for me to trim the floor with quarter round, instead of removing and replacing the wall base. Whenever I talk to clients about flooring installations, this is an option I give them to save some cost. It looks clean and seamless when done professionally, as you can see it still needs the final coat of trim paint… to be applied by the client.

Lastly, our final stage before completion was to address the cabinet doors and drawer fronts. The client wanted to re-paint them, remove the old hinges and replace them with hidden ones, as well as add handles and pulls to the drawers. Additionally, the doors were never properly hung and so they never lined up across the horizontal plane! So the client was adamant that they be properly re-hung this time. Earlier in the project we had removed all the existing doors so the client could paint them before we changed the hardware. So all the doors had been numbered and set aside and it was time to wait for the client this time before we could come back and finish up the final work.

Once they were painted and sealed to the clients liking, I set up with the hinge routing jig and installed all new European style soft close hinges on all the doors and mounted them all on the face frames so they line up perfectly now. We also put all new handles on every door and drawer. Don’t forget about the cabinet over the fridge, which we custom built to be nearly 24 in deep, 36 in wide, and 24 in tall! This extra deep cabinet for storage over the fridge needed to be mounted, and trimmed to tie into the existing crown moulding on the back wall of the kitchen.