Food for Thought: 5 Kitchen Remodeling Mistakes to Avoid
Think of all of the things you do in your kitchen: you eat there, you entertain there, you store your favorite snacks there – chances are, if it’s happening in your house, it’s happening in your kitchen. Because it’s a room you use everyday, a lack of functionality or an outdated look is something you can only ignore for so long before you start avoiding the space altogether. The solution is clear: a kitchen remodel is exactly what you need to start enjoying your space again and get the most out of it. However, unlike the remodels we see on TV, the process isn’t always a walk in the park, and today we’re going to examine five of the most common mistakes that are made when remodeling a kitchen, and show you the best ways to avoid them, get the most for your money, and most importantly, get the kitchen you’ve always wanted.
5. Forgetting to Breathe (figuratively, of course)
Okay, our nervous systems don’t really allow us to forget to breathe, but when it comes to coming up with a design for a kitchen, it’s easy to forget one of the most important aspects: air ventilation. Your kitchen, more than any other room, deals with plenty of smells, temperature changes, and large pieces of equipment that need to be properly ventilated. If you don’t consider how air can come in, circulate, and exit your newly remodeled kitchen at every stage of the process, you may find yourself smack-dab in the middle of a nonfunctional money pit – AKA the remodelers worst nightmare. Proper ventilation and installation experience can be your greatest ally in the pursuit of your new kitchen, and will save you the headache, and heartache, of a disappointing outcome.
4. Letting Style Run Wild
Although we’d all like to think we have a pretty good handle on what’s tasteful and what isn’t, the truth is, an overall vision for any room, especially a kitchen, is not an easy thing to grasp. Colors, textures, reflections, positioning – these are all things that impact the way your kitchen looks and operates, and are sure to be factors in your finished design. The same principles extend to the appliances you incorporate; the super-cool latest modern gadget may seem like a good idea at the time of design, but could end up backfiring by quickly dating your kitchen, taking up valuable real estate, and ruining the functionality of a room you’ll use everyday.
A great rule of thumb is to simplify and strategize: what do I need, what do I want, and where does that list overlap?
The eye of an experienced designer can give you a perspective that can’t come from any book or design guide, and will be an invaluable resource throughout every step of your remodeling project. Not sure where to start or what colors look best together? The answer is right in front of you: ask for help from someone who’s qualified; don’t rely solely on your own tastes.
3. Misusing The Space
You may want a brand new double oven, a monster fridge and stand alone freezer, six burner gas range and vent hood, double dishwasher, island with reinforced cement sink, breakfast bar, small dining table with chairs, walk-in pantry, floor-to-ceiling cabinets, recessed lighting, picture window, built in garbage can, and more in your fabulous new kitchen, but, unfortunately, your space may not quite allow for all of those things.
Before you get ahead of yourself and start making purchases and scouting appliances, make sure you take the proper precautions of measuring, and measuring again. Here’s another detail we bet you’ve never thought about: not only do you have to measure your soon-to-be-redone kitchen space, you also have to measure the most direct doorways to that kitchen to make sure your new appliances and accoutrements will fit through. Nothing feels worse than trying to fit your brand new refrigerator into the kitchen and realizing it won’t fit through any door but the garage. Though the whole premise of misusing, and misestimating the space seems rather ridiculous to the serious remodeler, it’ a more common tale of woe than you can even imagine.
One of our favorite things is making the most out of the space! Check out this kitchen remodel and learn how we utilized a very small space to give the owner a dream kitchen!
2. Letting the Budget Get Out of Hand
Appliances, tile, countertops, cabinets – sure, these are the big ticket items that often capture our attention when we’re thinking of a kitchen remodel, and they alone can easily creep into the tens-of-thousands-of-dollars range. Unfortunately, what is often overlooked are the additional costs associated with a remodel like dumpster rental, basic construction materials, various cleaning products, construction permits, and a variety of other hidden expenses that don’t get mentioned in the exciting lead-up of the project.
When people attempt the remodeling process themselves, they often get knee deep in a kitchen remodel and find themselves, and their bank accounts, completely drained with no end in sight, leaving them with a half-destroyed kitchen, several boxes of tiles, and an immeasurable amount of regret. Discussing your budget, and weighing it against your list of must-haves in your kitchen, will help a qualified professional like the ones at ReBath and 5 Day Kitchens help you deduce exactly what’s possible in your space, and keep your expectations, and your finances, on the right track.
What we quote you is what you pay. Therefore you do not have to worry about surprise costs! Check out additional tips on staying in budget!
We’ve arrived at the top mistake people make when remodeling their kitchen:
1. Not hiring a professional.
Let’s face it: in a world where YouTube tutorials, DIY guides, and handmade products being all-the-rage, remodeling your own kitchen seems like a project you may want to take on. When you realize the amount of work that goes into such a project, and the amount of money you’ll spend on a potentially flawed final product, hiring a properly trained professional is clearly the best choice you can make for your new kitchen.
A kitchen remodel, unlike most of the other rooms in your house, requires intimate knowledge of plumbing, electrical, appliances, flooring, as well as other things you may not consider like fire code and safety regulation. While all of this information and knowledge is available out there in the ethos, the years of practice and instruction it will take to learn everything you’ll need to know will leave you constructing your own new kitchen in 2025.
When you utilize the expert designers and installers of ReBath and 5 Day Kitchens, not only will you get the kitchen of your dreams installed properly, you’ll also get it done in a timely fashion – allowing you to host parties, prepare elegant meals, and utilize your new favorite room faster than you can say “DIY backsplash.” Don’t make the same mistakes others have made time and time again, go with over 30 years of experience you can trust: ReBath and 5 Day Kitchens.
Contact ReBath and Kitchens for your FREE, no obligation, in-home consultation.
