Who I used for our kitchen remodel

I have people ask me who I am using for various aspects of the kitchen remodel. I will put them in a blog post for people who might be interested: 1. General/ Contractor: Tim Madsen. I don't know what to really call him because he is just our "everything guy". He has done several things on our house - remodels, repairs, water damage, plumbing, electrical, etc. You name it, he has probably done it. He does an excellent job. Once he starts the job, he sticks with it until it is done. He pays close attention to detail. We have known him for years and he takes really good care of us. He is a big reason why this job went so fast. 2. Appliances - Mountainland Design. These guys were great. We worked with Kirk and Dave (though everyone there has been very nice) They carry really super high end stuff - like Thermador and Wolf - but they also carry appliances for "normal" people like us - Whirlpool, Kitchenaid, GE, etc. They also said they can often order something if you are looking for a specific model. They only sell products they back. They only work with companies that they feel are reliable who back their products. And, if you end up with a lemon (because they do exist) they will get the problem fixed or give you a new one. They have excellent customer service, had better prices than anyone on the appliances we got (saved us 25% overall above the best prices I could find elsewhere), and were not high-pressure on the sales. FYI - they sold us our appliances at "builder prices" because it was a remodel. I asked if someone could just come buy a single appliance and they said yes, and that if you say I sent you, they could give you a good deal on it. They also have a working showroom where you can try several of the appliances yourself, which was really nice. They have big demos, etc (though I never went to one of those). 3. Cabinets - Chateau Cabinetry - Again - these guys were great. They do custom cabinetry which just means they design it to fit your kitchen and you can basically do anything (within the size you have to work with). Rick is the designer and installer, Kyle is the office manager, I guess. Rick came to our house and came up with the brilliant new design of my kitchen. I felt my brain shift as he gave me new ideas. He had lots of ideas and suggestions that were better than anything I could have come up with. He designed my pantry too. They do bathrooms and entertainment centers, and really any type of cabinetry. They had the cabinets ready on time, installed them well, and when there were any issues, they immediately resolved it (things like a scratch on a door, needing additional shelves, wanting a handle instead of a knob, etc). Their prices were the best of the ones I got bids from, and it includes an allowance for handles, (most didn't) and a lot of things come standard - like full extension drawers. 4. Countertops - Tim Lunt of Lunt Kitchen and Bath - He was recommended by Chateau, and, because they work together a lot, I figured I might as well. Tim was helpful, gave me some good suggestions, explained the difference between the granite and quartz, suggested a sink that I LOVE, and he was on time, thorough, did a great job, and I have no complaints. 5. Appliance Installation - Klint Smith. Mountainland suggested him. It turns out he is the brother of Kirk at Mountainland. When he came out to install our dryer, he was so incredibly nice and so helpful. He could tell I was getting a little upset about the fact that I had just bought a dryer for nothing, and he was just really nice about the whole deal and he even came out the next day, unscheduled, to see if he could help fix the problem. And, he did a great job installing my other appliances too. His company is actually called San Pitch. 6.Flooring - I looked at some local places and I almost bought my flooring from Lumber Liquidators, who offered me a good price. I just wasn't 100% committed to the floor I was looking at there. Then, Tim told me that he was working on a job at the time who used builddirect.com and really liked their floor. So, I went on their site. They send you 5 samples for free. I got the samples and narrowed it down to two, but wanted to see more of that same wood since it had variety in the color and grain. I called them and they sent me 3 more of each kind - for free. I was willing to pay for them. And, the guy in charge of my order, Gary, kept in good contact with me about the status of my order, answered several questions for me, and was very helpful. They held the order for me because I wasn't ready for them to ship it yet (what do you do with 41 boxes of wood if you aren't ready to install it?). The only glitch was that he had put in a tentative order shipment date and went ahead and shipped it before I was ready for it. But, it really was only off by about a week, and it worked out fine because it gave us time to let the wood acclimate before installation. So, it ended up not being a big deal. Plus, Gary apologized over and over for that. He also followed up afterward to make sure we were happy with it and there weren't any problems. A couple of boxes were damaged, and he offered to replace them, or refund that part of our money if we needed him too. But, in the end, only a few boards were damaged, so we didn't bother. Their prices were VERY good, (It was $3-4 less per square foot than similar wood I had seen elsewhere) the order got here in 4 days from the time it was shipped. The quality is excellent, and the floor is beautiful. I had looked at another website (iFloor) and the quality was HORRIBLE. This acacia I bought is really hard wood, and iFloor's sample was lighter than pine and you could scratch the finish with your fingernails. A tip about floor samples - take them and try to beat up on them, drop your keys on them, if you have time, put them in a window with a post it note covering part of it to see if it fades. It helps you know what kind of durability your floor will have. 7. Tile - Dan Bishop - he is someone Tim knows. His company name is something like "Bishop Tile and Stone" Tile was one of the last things I picked, and my heart just wasn't really in it because I was SO tired of making decisions. But, Dan came out and helped me decide what I wanted to do and even offered a suggestion on how to lay it out that I hadn't thought of. They installed it with no problems, and it looks great.

The finished product

I just realized I never posted the final Before and After photos of the kitchen. I posted them on Facebook and then forgot to get on here and post. So, here you go:

I left that last post hanging a little - about our house having a curse on it. In the end, things got all worked out of course. It was a tough week. But, we love our kitchen now. It is a happy, comfortable room, and I am very grateful for the chance we had to do this.

There is a curse on this house

I have to say first of all, things have gone really smoothly with this remodel, for the most part. The dryer was a problem, but that was only sort of connected to the remodel. And then, yesterday, it all decided to freak out on us. We got the countertops installed with no problems. They are beautiful. It turns out they cut the hole a little too big for the cooktop, but he made it work anyway. They pointed out that the drawers under the cooktop needed to be cut smaller, yet again, and that, with the sink installed, our little pull out trays by the sink wouldn't close all the way. So, when the cabinet guy came out with the front to our compactor, we told him about it. He said the trays couldn't be fixed, but he did take the drawers and took care of that. And, he went to put the panel on the compactor and they had been told the wrong size, so it doesn't' fit. So, we have to have the panel remade. The counter install went so smoothly that Tim called the tile guy to have him come and just get the tile done. I was excited - it was going to be done early! Well, the guy never showed because his car broke down. Then, Tim went to install the sink and the plumbing was all wrong. It was too high coming out of the wall, and he didn't know the sink would be so deep (who knew - I never thought to tell him), so he had to tear into the wall behind the sink, the compactor, and then (gasp) cut into the cabinet base in order to access the pipe and lower it 4 1/2 inches so that water would drain from our sink properly. It was a mess. It was not a good situation. He was here until 7:30 trying to get us a sink that would work so we could finally have running water in the kitchen. This is what my kitchen looked like at about 5:30 p.m.:

And then, as Tim was finishing up that project, (he did get us a working sink and dishwasher, by the way), we found out that there was a problem with the lights that had been installed over by the stairs. They had worked fine and then suddenly they weren't working. By the end of the day we had all had it with this job. Today started out much better. Tim came and fixed the light and patched up drywall under the sink. The tile guy came and got the tile installed and it looks great. The appliance guy came and installed our microwave and cooktop. Everything went pretty well. Tim wrapped up some loose ends, the tile guys will come grout the tile in the morning tomorrow, and Tim plans to be back on Monday to finish the last little bit and make sure all is well. After Tim left, one of our new lights started freaking out on me. He came back and checked it out and couldn't find anything wrong, and it stopped flickering, so we will keep an eye on it. But it must have been a warning. I was excited to try my new cooktop, so I planned out a recipe, thawed some chicken, put a skillet on my cooktop, and turned it on. Or, I tried to turn it on. No power. I checked the breaker (I am getting really good at this whole breaker thing) and I turned it off and back on, just to be sure. No power. I checked the instruction manual. No, I am not an idiot and I really was doing it right. Then I called Klint (the installer). He has no idea what happened. He will come tomorrow to figure it out. In the mean time, I had raw chicken and no way to cook the rest of my recipe. So, we had hot dogs and brats. Not what I planned on, but it was all I could come up with quickly before Jeff had to leave for a meeting. So, I think there is a curse on this house. Why can't the cooktop just work? Why does everything in the past week or so seem to be falling apart? I just wanted to cry. I am SO close to being done with this kitchen. I just want it to be done so I can do something besides sit at home all day and wait for various people to show up at my house. I really have been good about not complaining through this process (except for the dryer), but now I am tired, and it is wearing on me. I hope we can finally get this all sorted out and that I can have some peace soon. I love my kitchen and I am grateful for it - don't get me wrong. I can't believe it is really in my house. And, I guess it wouldn't be a remodel if something didn't go wrong.

Everything but the kitchen sink

That phrase has a whole new meaning to me. We have almost everything done, except for the kitchen sink. As I type, they are installing my countertops and sink. All of the little details are taken care of. The appliance installer (Klint - see previous post) is coming this afternoon to put in my microwave and cook top. But, my sink has to dry, so I can't have running water until tomorrow. Bummer. I was really looking forward to washing dishes tonight (There is a statement you may never hear me say ever again, but it is true for tonight). Tomorrow we will get the plumbing all hooked up, the dishwasher going, the waterline to the fridge working, and the tile will be installed. And then, I think we will be officially done with the remodel. I still have to pick a rug and curtains, and hang pictures, but I won't have people coming to my house every day. Yesterday was the first day since Oct 6th that I didn't have someone come here to demolish, repair, build, troubleshoot, paint, install, or offer a bid. It was nice. But I spent the whole day running errands because I actually could for once. I must say though, this has gone very fast. The total time from start to finish, if you include M's room, was 4 1/2 weeks. 3 1/2 if you take her room out. The total number of working days on the kitchen alone was 17, though some of those were half days (especially recently while we were waiting for the countertop). I went less than 3 weeks without an oven, and a little less than 4 without the rest (cooktop, dishwasher, sink). We had a microwave and fridge the whole time, which helped. It has been fun, frustrating (mostly with the stupid dryer, which has nothing to do with remodeling a kitchen), exhausting, noisy, messy, and sometimes like Christmas each day as it evolved. Just don't ask me to make any decisions for awhile. Really. I don't think my brain can handle it. :)

A Tale of Two Dryers

Warning: This is a long post. I put it here mostly for me. You are welcome to read it, but feel free to skip it if it gets too boring. On a Monday, we took out our washer and dryer in order to put in the new floor. On thursday, it was back in, and I ran a small load of laundry. It was fine. On Friday I threw a load in but forgot to dry it, so I tossed it in the dryer Saturday, but it didn't dry. And didn't dry. I hung that up to dry (it was blankets) and tossed in the next load of clothes. It didn't dry. It wasn't even warm. And, it was Saturday. Why do things always break on Saturday? On Monday, we called a new appliance repair guy (ours apparently no longer services this area) and he came out. He couldn't figure out what would be wrong with the dryer, but thought it might be the element. He said we were only getting half the power, thus it wouldn't heat. So, he ordered a new element, and in the mean time, we couldn't do laundry because the dryer didn't work. The part came in and he came Thursday. He put it in. Same problem. So, he came to the conclusion that the only other thing it could be is the control panel. And, that would be over $400, even if he gave discounts on it. Well, that is when you say, "I guess it is time for a new dryer" because, really, who wants to pay for a part that costs as much as a new dryer. I was getting desperate to do laundry, so I went out that day and bought a new dryer.(As if buying 6 appliances for the kitchen wasn't enough!!) I got it from the people who sold us our kitchen appliances. They were great, sold me a floor model, it was just what I needed, and I saved a few hundred dollars, and I could take it home that day. Awesome. That night, our appliance installer (Klint) called to see if he could come that evening, so I said sure, and could he please also install our new dryer. He came, installed the dryer, turned it on, and guess what. No heat. Really? At this point, I could almost see the realization form before my eyes: "I didn't need to buy a new dryer. It was never the dryer in the first place" I wanted to cry. Or throw up. The appliance repair guy had never checked the outlet to see if that was the problem, despite knowing we had been remodeling. It turns out - it was the breaker. It was only sending half the power. Klint tried to fix it, but the breaker was bad, and the wiring was really all messed up, and loose. So, I called Tim. Tim came the next morning (this was Halloween), and sure enough, it was the breaker. We think it got bumped when he was putting in a new breaker for our cooktop, and because the wires were loose, it messed it up somehow. He put in a new one, tested the power at the breaker, tested the power at the outlet, tested the power running through the cord (because they had gotten the cord from our old dryer). All was well. We turned the dryer on. No heat. At this point, I was really ready to lose it. I had already missed the school Halloween parade because of this, and now I was wondering if I could even go to O's party to help. I called Klint from the night before. He came out to take a look at it and couldn't figure it out. He checked the power sources too. They were fine. Tim and I had already messed with it. I called the people I bought the dryer from, and they called their appliance repair guy to come out, but told me it would be Monday. I wanted to cry. It had been almost 2 weeks since we did laundry. We had run an emergency load at my in-laws, but that was it. Well, the appliance repair people called to confirm Monday's appointment and I told them I had gone so long without a dryer and they said, "Oh, well, let's see what we can do" This company is called Doyle's, by the way, in case you live around here and want a good appliance repair service. I got home from helping at O's party just as Doyle's called and asked if they could come. The guy checked the dryer and said, yet again, that it was only getting half the power. He checked the breaker, and showed me that instead of 220 volts, it was reading 8-9 volts. It makes no sense at all because it had been fine the day before. He pulled the breaker out, put it in a different slot, and it worked (which also makes no sense). Finally, the dryer worked. On Friday and Saturday, as part of the 10 loads of laundry I ran, the dryer tripped the breaker 4 times. We could just reset it and keep going, but it still meant that we had a problem. So, yet again, Tim came out (this was Monday this week) and took a look at the breaker. And, we finally figured out the problem. Six or seven years ago, we had a projector installed in our downstairs. The people who set it up said we didn't have enough breakers, so they took the breaker attached to the A/C and doubled it up with the dryer's breaker, and made a new one for the projector. They apparently didn't attach it well, and you really shouldn't double up breakers, but I guess people do it. So, Tim rearranged the breaker box, moving things so there would be a spot for a new breaker, and now the A/C and dryer are separate again. And, knock on wood, I now have a working dryer. So, it took two dryers, 10 days, 7 service calls, 4 repair guys, 2 breakers, and a lot of frustration from the time it broke to the time it was fixed. It is a bummer I had gone out to buy a new dryer. Being a floor model, I couldn't return it. Plus, after all that work installing it and getting it working, I was really afraid to move anything back or touch anything once it got working properly. So, we found a good home for the old dryer, and are getting used to the new one. I just never realized how grateful I am for a dryer. It is such a first world problem - I sometimes felt like a big baby complaining about having no dryer when people wash their clothes in a stream, and hang them to dry. In the end, it has worked out okay. Not my favorite situation, but it is over. I hope. I really really hope.

Day 16 - Appliances and we finally have a dining table and chairs

Yay! No more card table in the living room- we have a table and chairs to sit at now. It is amazing how much you can appreciate small things, especially when you have to go without for awhile. I have a photo of the table and chairs but the one I took of the appliances won't move over to my photo stream today and I don't feel like messing with it. I feel like my house is conspiring against me and things are breaking down all around me, including my computer/ internet abilities. I don't know what happened. Anyway…the dining set:

It is nice that the table leaves fit so perfectly in the cupboard right by the table. We picked the cupboard size before we picked the table. Our old table leaf would not have fit. I probably won't have a lot of posts between now and next week when it will all (hopefully) be finished. I am to the point where I think it would be fun to do "the big reveal" where I post before and after photos. I may post here and there, but I really do need to get caught up on the rest of my life. This kitchen has kind of taken over everything I do.

Day 13, 14, 15- now it is down to details

I haven't posted for the past few days for two reasons. Reason #1 is because I have been crazy busy trying to live normal life AND unpack many boxes and figure out where those things will go in my new kitchen. It is harder than I thought. Some things are the same, but for the most part, the cupboards are different. They are different heights and widths and are placed differently so I have to rethink where I want things. Reason #2 is because I have a lovely cold that is making me rather tired and miserable. Plus, it was just a busy weekend. Now that the cabinets are installed, Tim just has to work on the little details- outlet covers, putting framing around the pantry door, touching up scrapes on the floor and walls from installation, and so forth. For now, I will post some photos of the fun little details that I love in the new kitchen. Cabinet handles: (The dark island has brushed nickel, the hickory has these)

Custom drawer dividers for silverware and other utensils:

Pull-outs on the lower cabinets:

Built in magnet board:

Crown moulding and trim:

And better organization (cookie sheet dividers - my old one was the width of a single one of those spaces) And a full circle lazy susan that doesn't slide down like my old one did.

I need to take more photos now that it has been cleaned up and the details are more in place. I also will post about my pantry that I LOVE! Tomorrow the appliances come, and so do the table, chairs, and barstools. We are so close!!!

Day 12 - Cabinets!!!

Today was so fun for me. As they were installing the cabinets, I just kept walking in and staring at them. And touching them. And looking at the intricate patterns of grain in the wood. This whole thing just seems so surreal to me. I walk in there and say, "is this really in my house?" I love this kitchen so much and it isn't done yet. Here are some shots from today. I think I need to get my real camera out (not my phone) and take better photos. These make my island look black, and it is really a beautiful dark brown color. And, it makes the hickory look very striped, but is isn't as striped as these photos make it out to be. But, the kids were very excited to go around opening and closing the drawers and doors, and they show up in a few of these photos.

Tomorrow they will finish the installation (the pantry, plus little details like the crown moulding and the shelves, some handles, etc) and Tim will do some finish work - putting in baseboards, putting in my door to my pantry, and touching up paint here and there. The countertop guy came out and measured and said he will have those ready in a week to ten days. Until then, we just wait. And, I can get some of the mess out of my living room. Right now we are living like this: (The entertainment center goes back tomorrow, I hope, the couch is currently our pantry (it is more organized than it looks) and that should go into the real pantry tomorrow too. The card table will still be there until we have a surface to eat on that is in our kitchen. It is messy and crazy, but I really have no complaints. It has gone very well. :) Especially if you consider that this is only the seventh work day for this kitchen.

Day 11 - floor is finished

There isn't much to say, except that the floor is done and the cabinets come tomorrow. I got to go to the cabinet shop and see some of them all ready to go. So exciting!! Here are a few shots of the floor now that it is done:

I also got my laundry room back and have a door on it again. I only had to go 2 1/2 days without a washer and dryer. No complaints here.

Day 10 - Oh how I love my new floor

Is that selfish or prideful for me to say? I don't know. I just love this wood. I was hoping it might be half as pretty as it really turned out to be, so it was a happy find for me. (You just never know when you base things off of a few samples). Today they laid at least 2/3 of the floor. Tomorrow they will finish the rest so we can be ready for cabinets on Thursday. Laying floor is noisy, by the way. I was here most of the day too, so I think my ears are ringing. The pictures just don't do it justice - it really is one of those things you have to see to really appreciate the colors. But, I guess this will do for now.

As for how it has been without a kitchen - really, it hasn't been too bad. I have only been without a kitchen for about 5-6 days, really, because we were gone for Fall Break. We eat on a card table in the living room, surrounded by bins of everything that was in the pantry, and an extra couch and entertainment center. It is tight. We cook in the garage, or downstairs (M has her room back now, which opened up some space down there). Tonight a very kind neighbor is bringing dinner. Other nights we eat out or cook something simple. It hasn't been bad. In two days I will have cabinets, so some of my stuff can go back - the pantry and upper cabinets. In another week +, I will have a counter top and sink, and in about 2 weeks from now, I will have my appliances. It really is moving along quite quickly. And, I can't complain. I has been quite fun to watch the kitchen evolve.

Day 9 - prep for the floor, and other random things

Today was another one of those days where the photos don't really show what was done. Tim and Mark only worked half a day. They tore out the laundry room and they put in some kind of filler that levels the floor (looks kind of like cement)They also tore out the laundry room door (it had to be taken out for the floor anyway).

They did other prep in the room, more painting (they painted my horrible door to the garage - it looks so nice now!), and did more electrical things. Again, photos don't really show the progress very well. They also switched out our canned lighting and put LED lights in instead - they are supposed to last 25 years, instead of a couple of months like my other bulbs were doing. Let's hope… I am tired of changing out lightbulbs. New lights:

Here is what the room looks like now:

Day 8 - paint and more paint

Today was paint day. The walls are prepped, sanded, mudded, sanded, textured, primed, and now painted. I also got to meet with our cabinet guy - Rick - from Chateau cabinets. He is awesome! They started building the cabinets today (I thought they had been built, but they actually had another person with the same last name whose cabinets were finished a few weeks ago). I mentioned in here that we decided to tear out the pantry and rebuild. We called Rick to see if he had any ideas for us. Well, Rick had a great idea for the pantry and I love it. It is so much better than anything I could have come up with. It is going to make the storage much more efficient, with adjustable shelves, a few drawers, and two lazy Susans. (Why are they called that anyway - it really is a strange name if you think about it). And the great thing is that, because our cabinets are starting production today, they can just throw the pantry shelves in too, and have those ready and installed along with everything else next Thursday. Here are some shots of what the kitchen looks like mid-day today (Later, I may not have time to post, but I don't think it will look much different from this - just more coats of paint.)

As for what is next, Tim will take a few days off for Fall Break. He will be back on Monday, ready to get going on the floor. I can't wait to see how it looks in there. I think the wood is going to go very well with the blue.