Kitchen upgrades. What should I do first? - XDTalk Forums - Your HS2000/SA-XD Information Source!

fastboy · 06-07-2008, 07:45 AM

Wife and I have been talking about giving our kitchen a few upgrades: countertops, cabinets, and floor.

For countertops we want to upgrade from laminate to granite.
For cabinets we want to upgrade from current beige color stained maple to medium brown oak.
For floor we want to upgrade from vinyl floor to hardwood.

Here comes the hard part: which do we do first? Obviously we are not ready to get the entire kitchen gutted and have all three things replaced at once now, so we are thinking about one thing at a time. From logistic point of view, which upgrade should we go with first that will not be impacted by the subsequent upgrades?

Also the cabinets, though cheap looking, are still in good shape so we may end up just re-surfacing instead of replacing.

**Ed Ely** · 06-07-2008, 07:57 AM

Kitchen restoration can cost some $$$.

Sounds like you might be budget mined.

My take: resurface the cabinets, new
counter top(s) w/new sink and faucets,
then onto the hardwood floor covering.

Comments about the latter. If you are
planning on putting in the ready made
type of modern hardwood flooring, please
take note that they are quite difficult to
take care of. By this I mean, you may
wet mop - but use of water very spareingly
and of course the waxing, that never ends.

The real hardwood planking, much more
expensive, would be my suggestion. It lasts
forever, takes a licking with dents and bangs.
It also can be refinished very easily and nicely
in the future if you desire to do so.

Good luck with your project.

Ed

Joeywhat · 06-07-2008, 08:25 AM

What Ed said. Get the real hardwood floor if that's that you're going with.

Lucky7 · 06-07-2008, 08:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed Ely

Kitchen restoration can cost some $$$.

Sounds like you might be budget mined.

My take: resurface the cabinets, new
counter top(s) w/new sink and faucets,
then onto the hardwood floor covering.

Comments about the latter. If you are
planning on putting in the ready made
type of modern hardwood flooring, please
take note that they are quite difficult to
take care of. By this I mean, you may
wet mop - but use of water very spareingly
and of course the waxing, that never ends.

The real hardwood planking, much more
expensive, would be my suggestion. It lasts
forever, takes a licking with dents and bangs.
It also can be refinished very easily and nicely
in the future if you desire to do so.

Good luck with your project.

Ed

I would also recommend going with the floor covering LAST. I own a flooring company that specalizes in design/build projects, middle of the road to very high end. Through the sales process I encourage my sales staff to educate the client on the pro's and con's of every type of floor covering that we display in our showrooms. The "ready made" type of hardwood is a FAR SUPERIOR product to the old school "sand & finish" products of yesteryear. I am not talking about immitation hardwood known as laminate..most people call it "Pergo" shearly off of brand recognition.

Any reputable manufacturer of pre-finished hardwood flooring should carry a minnimum of a 15 year warranty..most carrying a 25 year warranty. They usually have 10 coats of polyurethane with aluminum oxide in the top coat which will prevent finish chipping. These floors do not have to be waxed....ever.

With a "sand & finish" floor, we generally install the raw wood. The wood is then sanded so that the edges of the wood are even. If the client wants a stain color applied, the guys apply the stain followed by (3) coats of oil based polyurethane.

If you have any questions what so ever concerning flooring please feel free to shoot me an email at steve@dynamicflooringSJ.com

fastboy · 06-07-2008, 09:15 AM

Thanks guys!

So it seem I should go with the order of cabinets, countertops, and floor. If we upgrade our countertops to granite now, would it create more work down the road when we decide it's time for the cabinets to be re-surfaced or even replaced? We are shopping for these things now and come across countertops with good price; seems logical to take advantage of the countertops sale now....

Another question on the floor. We have been debating whether to wood floor the kitchen only now, or to wait to do the whole floor including living room and family room all together. Our kitchen is vinyl floor now and the rest of floor carpeted. Again we can live with the carpet now but ultimately we would like to get rid of it. Would it make a different price wise or work wise to do the flooring by stage or all at once?

Greatly appreciate your expertise on all these questions, guys. Oh and a big thanks from the Ms., too! (she makes me ask!)

Lucky7 · 06-07-2008, 09:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fastboy

Thanks guys!

So it seem I should go with the order of cabinets, countertops, and floor. If we upgrade our countertops to granite now, would it create more work down the road when we decide it's time for the cabinets to be re-surfaced or even replaced? We are shopping for these things now and come across countertops with good price; seems logical to take advantage of the countertops sale now....

Another question on the floor. We have been debating whether to wood floor the kitchen only now, or to wait to do the whole floor including living room and family room all together. Our kitchen is vinyl floor now and the rest of floor carpeted. Again we can live with the carpet now but ultimately we would like to get rid of it. Would it make a different price wise or work wise to do the flooring by stage or all at once?

Greatly appreciate your expertise on all these questions, guys. Oh and a big thanks from the Ms., too! (she makes me ask!)

Hey Fast,

Reface the cabinets BEFORE the granite. When re-surfacing cabinets it makes it much easier, and the end product generally looks 100% flawless when you get all of your cabinet work done first.

Do all of the flooring at one time if you can live with what you have for a bit! You will be able to save a few bucks if purchasing a larger amount of square footage! When the time comes, shoot me an email and I'll make sure you're being treated fairly on the flooring. Good luck...let the FUN begin!

fastboy · 06-07-2008, 10:09 AM

Thanks Lucky!!

In your view, is laminated "fake wood" worth the saving as compared to the real wood floor?

Lucky7 · 06-07-2008, 10:30 AM

Absolutely NOT! Laminate flooring is nothing more than compressed sawdust and glue with a picture of a floor on the top. For the price of a quality laminate, you are not far out of the reach of real hardwood. Though laminate does have applications where it serves its purpose, it really doesn't have the longevity of true hardwood.

ducttape2 · 06-07-2008, 11:35 AM

I use the laminate floor in my rental units. It is durable, looks good and doesn't stain like carpet. Real wood does require more care and depending on the wood can damage easier. The pre-finished hardwoods are about as easy to install as the laminates. You generally can't refinish laminates.

If you don't have a good compound miter, get one. I have a 12" and that has been a life saver.

I remodeled my kitchen a year ago. I litterally moved the entire kitchen forward in the house by moving walls etc.

For sequence I would:

1) Cabinets, refinish or new. I would recommend new, there are some really cool features out there (autoclose, spice racks, builtin trash / recycle, etc). I don't know how that would compare to the refinish.

2) Counter tops. Find a shop that will do the work on site. I think it is cheaper and they tend to do a better job.

3) Floor. I recommend tile for a kitchen. If you have a solid floor underneath, you can do some real nice tile for the cost of hardwoods (look up floor deflection calcuator to learn more). If you want the floor to be the same in all of the rooms mentioned, I would do it at the same time. That way the finish wear and transitions can be done all at once.

That is my 2cents. Have fun with the project.

Captain Jack · 06-07-2008, 02:16 PM

Rip everything out and do the floor first. There are always unexpected surprises when you rip out a floor. We did it first, and discovered the floor was not level, and some parts needed fixing underneath and where the counter cabinets would go. Make the floor level, and you'll have an easier time leveling your counter. We did the whole kitchen floor from wall to wall, so there are no inconsistancies.

Also do NOT go with hardwood floors. They will only get beat up with time becase the kitchen is the most used room in the house. And wood floors are high maintainane for kitchens. Pots and pans will be dropped, along with any other heavy item. You never know. And you don't want a nasty ding or scratch ruining you kitchen.

Pergo or some sort of flooring designed for the kitchen (There are some really nice tiles out there) are good choices that will last, and are more durable. The new stuff is so good, it's really hard to tell the difference if you don't tell your neighbors. Everyone thinks its real tile for mine. They also cost less than hardwood, and is easier and faster to install. They are multi-layered too, which gives it its strength and longevity. Easy to clean too. At least take a look at them before you decide.

Do not go with vinyl or some other kind of linolium. They are a NIGHTMARE to remove, and god forbit it bubbles up on you, or cracks.

Counter tops are always LAST. Actualy, the sink is, but you know what I mean.

06-07-2008, 07:45 AM	#1
fastboy XDTalk 1K Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: MI Posts: 1,409	Kitchen upgrades. What should I do first? Wife and I have been talking about giving our kitchen a few upgrades: countertops, cabinets, and floor. For countertops we want to upgrade from laminate to granite. For cabinets we want to upgrade from current beige color stained maple to medium brown oak. For floor we want to upgrade from vinyl floor to hardwood. Here comes the hard part: which do we do first? Obviously we are not ready to get the entire kitchen gutted and have all three things replaced at once now, so we are thinking about one thing at a time. From logistic point of view, which upgrade should we go with first that will not be impacted by the subsequent upgrades? Also the cabinets, though cheap looking, are still in good shape so we may end up just re-surfacing instead of replacing.

06-07-2008, 08:25 AM	#3
Joeywhat XDTalk 2K Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Dearborn Heights, MI Posts: 2,550	What Ed said. Get the real hardwood floor if that's that you're going with. __________________ XD45 Compact GLOCK 20 RRA AR 15 - Build in progress Stag AR 15 - Build in progress Mosin Nagant M44

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06-07-2008, 07:57 AM	#2
Ed Ely XDTalk 5K Member Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: 37.65N -84.76W (Elev. 932 ft) Posts: 7,833 Blog Entries: 1	Kitchen restoration can cost some $$$. Sounds like you might be budget mined. My take: resurface the cabinets, new counter top(s) w/new sink and faucets, then onto the hardwood floor covering. Comments about the latter. If you are planning on putting in the ready made type of modern hardwood flooring, please take note that they are quite difficult to take care of. By this I mean, you may wet mop - but use of water very spareingly and of course the waxing, that never ends. The real hardwood planking, much more expensive, would be my suggestion. It lasts forever, takes a licking with dents and bangs. It also can be refinished very easily and nicely in the future if you desire to do so. Good luck with your project. Ed

06-07-2008, 09:15 AM	#5
fastboy XDTalk 1K Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: MI Posts: 1,409	Thanks guys! So it seem I should go with the order of cabinets, countertops, and floor. If we upgrade our countertops to granite now, would it create more work down the road when we decide it's time for the cabinets to be re-surfaced or even replaced? We are shopping for these things now and come across countertops with good price; seems logical to take advantage of the countertops sale now.... Another question on the floor. We have been debating whether to wood floor the kitchen only now, or to wait to do the whole floor including living room and family room all together. Our kitchen is vinyl floor now and the rest of floor carpeted. Again we can live with the carpet now but ultimately we would like to get rid of it. Would it make a different price wise or work wise to do the flooring by stage or all at once? Greatly appreciate your expertise on all these questions, guys. Oh and a big thanks from the Ms., too! (she makes me ask!)

06-07-2008, 10:09 AM	#7
fastboy XDTalk 1K Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: MI Posts: 1,409	Thanks Lucky!! In your view, is laminated "fake wood" worth the saving as compared to the real wood floor?

06-07-2008, 10:30 AM	#8
Lucky7 XDTalk 100 Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 228	Absolutely NOT! Laminate flooring is nothing more than compressed sawdust and glue with a picture of a floor on the top. For the price of a quality laminate, you are not far out of the reach of real hardwood. Though laminate does have applications where it serves its purpose, it really doesn't have the longevity of true hardwood.

06-07-2008, 11:35 AM	#9
ducttape2 XDTalk 100 Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Seattlestan Posts: 438	I use the laminate floor in my rental units. It is durable, looks good and doesn't stain like carpet. Real wood does require more care and depending on the wood can damage easier. The pre-finished hardwoods are about as easy to install as the laminates. You generally can't refinish laminates. If you don't have a good compound miter, get one. I have a 12" and that has been a life saver. I remodeled my kitchen a year ago. I litterally moved the entire kitchen forward in the house by moving walls etc. For sequence I would: 1) Cabinets, refinish or new. I would recommend new, there are some really cool features out there (autoclose, spice racks, builtin trash / recycle, etc). I don't know how that would compare to the refinish. 2) Counter tops. Find a shop that will do the work on site. I think it is cheaper and they tend to do a better job. 3) Floor. I recommend tile for a kitchen. If you have a solid floor underneath, you can do some real nice tile for the cost of hardwoods (look up floor deflection calcuator to learn more). If you want the floor to be the same in all of the rooms mentioned, I would do it at the same time. That way the finish wear and transitions can be done all at once. That is my 2cents. Have fun with the project.

06-07-2008, 02:16 PM	#10
Captain Jack XDTalk 1K Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 1,776	Rip everything out and do the floor first. There are always unexpected surprises when you rip out a floor. We did it first, and discovered the floor was not level, and some parts needed fixing underneath and where the counter cabinets would go. Make the floor level, and you'll have an easier time leveling your counter. We did the whole kitchen floor from wall to wall, so there are no inconsistancies. Also do NOT go with hardwood floors. They will only get beat up with time becase the kitchen is the most used room in the house. And wood floors are high maintainane for kitchens. Pots and pans will be dropped, along with any other heavy item. You never know. And you don't want a nasty ding or scratch ruining you kitchen. Pergo or some sort of flooring designed for the kitchen (There are some really nice tiles out there) are good choices that will last, and are more durable. The new stuff is so good, it's really hard to tell the difference if you don't tell your neighbors. Everyone thinks its real tile for mine. They also cost less than hardwood, and is easier and faster to install. They are multi-layered too, which gives it its strength and longevity. Easy to clean too. At least take a look at them before you decide. Do not go with vinyl or some other kind of linolium. They are a NIGHTMARE to remove, and god forbit it bubbles up on you, or cracks. Counter tops are always LAST. Actualy, the sink is, but you know what I mean.