How to Remodel Your Kitchen – A Simple Step-By-Step Guide

How to Remodel Your Kitchen – A Simple Step-By-Step Guide

Your kitchen starts looking dated or stops looking fresh eventually. Which compels you to think about kitchen renovation so that you can inject fresh life into your old and tired kitchen. If you’re among those who want to renovate their kitchen but don’t know where to start or how to go about it. Then here is a handy step-by-step guide that will help you to renovate your kitchen the way you want it. How to remodel your kitchen – a simple step-by-step guide.

Planning & Budget

The first step is planning for your kitchen renovation and how much budget you can afford to complete it. Before starting your kitchen renovation, you’ll have to shift your essential kitchen items (to prepare food, etc.) to a different part of your home.

Prepare Your Kitchen before it’s Dismantled

Check and ensure the following is done before you dismantle your kitchen:

• Switch OFF your gas connection from the mains
• Switch OFF electricity connection from the breaker box
• Turn OFF your water connection from the mains
• Remove all your appliances from the kitchen
• Empty all your cabinets
• To discard trash, have a container ready

Dismantle Your Kitchen

Once you have prepared your kitchen, you can now begin removing your items one by one.

• Remove your cabinets along with drawers and doors.
• Remove the garbage disposal system
• Take out the sink
• Remove benchtop
• Pull out splashback
• Take out the dishwasher
• Remove light fixtures
• Take away small appliances
• Finally, remove the drywall and flooring

Replace Old & Outdated Kitchen Plumbing with New Ones

Now that the walls are open, you can easily remove your old and dated plumbing and install new ones. Bear in mind that old plumbing fixtures might break so keep buckets within easy reach to catch the leftover water. You might need to change your shutoff valves as well.

If you had an electric stove earlier, then you might have to get a new gas line and install a shut-off valve box for your refrigerator. If the plumbing under the sink is galvanised, then you’ll have to completely replace them.

Upgrade Your Kitchen Wiring

Upgrading electrical wiring in your kitchen typically involve the following electrical jobs:

• Under-cabinet wiring for lights.
• Overhead wiring for lighting including recessed fixtures.
• Depending on whether it’s gas or electric, a 120-volt or 220-volt receptacle for the range and oven would be needed.
• Creating an option for wiring the dishwasher either directly or by plugging into a receptacle.
• Wiring needed for the range hood.
• Separate receptacle for refrigerator and microwave.
• Creating an option for wiring the garbage disposal either directly or by plugging into a receptacle.
• It’s recommended to install additional receptacles over the benchtop.
• You may also think about adding dimmer switches for some or all of your kitchen lighting.

Hang the Drywall

Once the plumber and electrician have completed their jobs, it’s time to hang the drywall. Once you hang the drywall, hire a professional to do the mudding for you.

Paint the Kitchen

Before installing the cabinets, paint the kitchen walls and ceiling or get them painted by professional. Select light colour such as white or off-white and buy quality paint of reputed brand; semi-gloss paint is preferable for walls and ceiling, as it’s easy to wipe clean and it doesn’t hold moisture.

Install Flooring & Baseboards for Your Kitchen

For kitchen flooring, you can select from various environmentally-friendly natural options such as bamboo, wood, linoleum, cork, and recycled carpeting.

Install Kitchen Cabinetry

You can select ready-made or custom-made cabinets for your kitchen cabinetry. If you want to get the most out of your limited storage space, then custom-made cabinets are the way to go. You can contact the company that provides custom-made cabinets, and they will come to your house and measure all the cabinet storage space and accordingly will custom make your cabinets. Once your cabinets are ready, they will deliver your kitchen cabinetry to your place. Some companies also install them for you; however, if they don’t, you can hire a professional cabinet fitter for accurate installation.

Order & Install Kitchen Benchtop & Splashback

You’ll have to order kitchen benchtop and splashback with the colour you prefer. The company will send their agents who will measure space both for benchtop and splashback installation in your kitchen and accordingly they will make your benchtop and splashback ready.

Some suppliers facilitate both (i.e. benchtop and splashback), if they don’t, then you’ll have to contact different suppliers for ordering benchtop and splashback separately. Once your benchtop and splashback are ready, they will deliver it to your place and also install them for you.

Installing the Right Hardware

Kitchen hardware includes handles and knobs — they can make or break your kitchen cabinets. It’s imperative to select a style and finish that gels not only with your kitchen cabinets but with the age of your home. Avoid the temptation to pick fashionable finishes because they will become dated in a few years.

Final Touches for Electrical & Plumbing Work

Now that everything is done, call in the plumber and electrician back for final touches:

• The plumber will complete the fitting of the sink if it has to be done after installing benchtop, as well as, install the taps and check if there are any leaks.
• The electrician will complete the pending installation by adding receptacle plates and pulling your receptacles forward to gel with your splashback. Besides, an electrician will make sure every appliance is connected and working well and that all the additional receptacles are working fine.

Final Thoughts

Though you can DIY (Do-It-Yourself) few jobs, hiring professional tradesman or even better is a kitchen renovation specialist who will have expert kitchen designers and a team of professionals to complete your kitchen renovation in Melbourne. This way, you’ll not only get a highly functional and aesthetically beautiful neat kitchen but also you can remain free from all worries.