September 2019 - Kitchen Remodel
We decided in late 2018 that it was finally time to remodel our kitchen, laundry room, and 3rd bath (the wing of the house off the garage).
We started by asking friends/colleagues about contractors they would recommend. Our first contractor was recommended by a work friend. Contractor #1 met with us and discussed our desires. He left after measuring and stated he would get us a quote soon. A few weeks went by (this is around December 2018) and no work. We reached out but could not get in touch. We then started looking at some of the larger kitchen/bath remodel companies in the greater Sacramento area. We engaged two separate companies. One got back to us quickly but the price was very (VERY) high, in our opinion. The 2nd never finished giving us a quote for the entire job. This was in late-January 2018, early February 2019. Contractor #1 got back to us at this time, stating he had been sick. So - we continued working to get a quote. By March, nothing. We were very frustrated and on a whim, we stopped by The Home Depot and found they had the same quality of cabinets we had been looking for. The designer had many awards so we thought "Why not try them?". We also stopped by Lowe's just or comparison. Both of these box stores created similar quotes, but Home Depot had access to a contractor and Lowe's said we had to find our own. We went with Home Depot.
The design process went very well. However, we found that the price was going to be close to the very high quote we had received from the other remodel company. We then understood that the quality of cabinets, finishes, and appliances desired would be a higher cost than we anticipated. We met with the contractor and the designer on multiple occasions to finalize the design and by May 2019 we ordered our cabinets.
In mid-July, the cabinets arrived and took up our entire garage space. The contractor came by and inspected, finding that a few cabinets needed to be replaced before we started. This took a while and we didn't actually start the demolition until the first week of September. With our older home (circa 1962) we expected the job would require electrical and plumbing updates. Ultimately, the construction needed to take the space down to the studs. The construction was substantially completed in mid-November, but not finished. Throughout the construction, we had to order replacement cabinet pieces and our refrigerator cabinet facing was the longest delay. When we took over the space mid-November we still had a few panels that were ordered. The replacements came in late December, checked in early January - and were not correct. Needed to be re-ordered. The correct pieces finally came in late February and were installed in early March.
The process from inception to finish took more than a year and was not without hiccups. However - the finished product is very pleasing and we are glad we went with high-end finishes and appliances. Below is a slideshow of our construction progress from pre-construction to completion.