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DrPizza remodels his kitchen

DrPizza

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
End of July update (not worth it for me to bump it) - floor is finally done, started on the trim work, but just puttering along with it. Floor tiles are identical to the backsplash tiles, also set at a 45 degree angle, except they're 12" tiles. Everything's all grouted. Everything lines up better now too (fridge height, stove height). "Major" blunder #1 of the job. When I attached the anti-tilt bracket for the stove, I put in two 4" screws angled down at about a 45 degree angle through the wall. I wanted to make sure they were in solid. They were. They went right through the power line for the microwave. Had to pull new cable; set me back a little less than an hour; I got lucky that the fix was very simple.

--

July 2 update: Been a while since I updated the progress. Got the microwave installed today. Only took about 5 minutes. Of course, that's after I redid the tile on the wall. Idiots at GE can't tell the difference between eighths and sixteenths of an inch. (Specs list 3/16, it's actually 3/8) That left my tile extending too high on the wall.

Remaining to do: mix up a bunch of thinset and set the backer board on the floor. Mix up more thinset & tile the floor (fridge & stove will be on the new flooring, hence they're a little low at the moment) Grout all the tiles. Lots of wood trim - doorway, around window, cove molding on ceiling. 1/4" oak plywood for the ends of the cabinets, caulk under the sink edge, a couple of doorknobs. Put the outlets in and connect the remaining 4 circuits in the breaker box.

http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/drpizza/almostdone1.JPG
http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/drpizza/almostdone2.JPG
http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/drpizza/almostdone3.JPG
http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/drpizza/almostdone4.JPG

(oh, and the fan wouldn't normally be there; I had to exhaust all the dust due to having to stick a diamond blade in my circular saw & cut the tile on the wall dry. LOTS of dust (and plenty of sparks.)
-----------------------

March 15
Woohoo! Skylights are installed, new window is installed, most of the electric is done (just have to run a quick circuit for the dishwasher, a quick circuit for the microwave, and pick up some wire and put in a circuit for the ovens. I'm about an hour or so of effort away from sheet rocking (although I'm leaning toward a tongue and groove wood ceiling.)

my mess is bigger than Vi Edit's mess
I can turn off the kitchen lights and see the stars! The wife absolutely loves the skylights. Sunlight has reached our kitchen for the first time ever. And, we don't need the lights on during the day now.

No pictures of the electric wiring or window that I've done... yet.


--------------------------

Our kitchen is/was the worst room in this house, very tiny - just a little over 9x9. Cabinets were "built in place", but the backs of the cabinets were nothing more than wallboard - unfinished in spots, and 1960's wallpaper in other spots. Basement staircase was wide though. Its elimination is gaining me slightly more than 4 feet of kitchen space. I also hated the 7' ceilings. The cupboard on one wall is just under 6" deep thanks to idiotic placement of the kitchen window. That's all changing.

Hmm... I can make my kitchen taller
removing the ceiling and wall
goodbye ceiling
goodbye basement wall and stairs
more wall destruction
wall debris
ceiling cat is wondering wtf is going on; framing
all the heat went to the attic, causing the washing machine to freeze
Just for insulation & supporting sheetrock
ceiling cat says "die evil human, die bring back my ceiling"
framing for skylights
electric time
goodbye ugly cabinets with water damage under the sink
time for a new window
state of progress March 1
state of progress March 1

It's been fun so far. I had to stop for the night; I don't have either son here to help me if I need some help aligning the window while I work from outside the house. Plus, it's only 14 degrees outside. Hopefully the existing window doesn't fall out; I only finger tightened 1 screw to hold it in place. And yes, for the ultra-observant, I need to repair the cord on my sawzall. It's seen a lot of work lately.

 
I've had plenty of surprises along the way: light switch to a light above the sink had reverse polarity (neutral wire was switched rather than the hot.) Wires were live when I pulled the light down. BZZZPPPPT. Another box had 2 light switches in it. All the neutrals were wire nutted together, so I assumed that when I killed power to the light that was still connected (via the breaker), it was dead. Nope, there were actually two circuits there. Just a little surprise when the tip of my screwdriver got zapped. Overhead light in the ceiling wasn't supposed to have insulation around it... the wires inside were completely bare as the plastic insulation had melted off. The 2x6 it was attached to was scorched pretty badly. The rest of the kitchen was on the same circuit with the bathroom and a bedroom, so I had to rewire the bathroom one day, and take care of the bedroom another day. They're each wired properly now.
 
Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
I bet your wife hates you right now.
Click to expand...

Are you kidding? She absolutely hated the old kitchen. She's had a ball picking out the flooring, counter tops, paint color, and changing her mind... 30 or 40 times. But, she hasn't changed her mind in about 2 weeks now... as much of a pita as it is going to be to treat & retreat & use care with, I'm going with a green marble countertop, a tan ceramic floor, and a backsplash that matches the floor. Cabinets are in the garage. Walls will be painted the color of a brown egg that happened to be sitting on the dining room table that we realized complimented the countertop sample, floor sample, and cabinets perfectly. The only thing I'm uncertain of is the ceiling - plain white ceiling, or tongue and groove? Still trying to make up our minds on that one.
 
Originally posted by: DrPizza
Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
I bet your wife hates you right now.
Click to expand...

Are you kidding? She absolutely hated the old kitchen. She's had a ball picking out the flooring, counter tops, paint color, and changing her mind... 30 or 40 times. But, she hasn't changed her mind in about 2 weeks now... as much of a pita as it is going to be to treat & retreat & use care with, I'm going with a green marble countertop, a tan ceramic floor, and a backsplash that matches the floor. Cabinets are in the garage. Walls will be painted the color of a brown egg that happened to be sitting on the dining room table that we realized complimented the countertop sample, floor sample, and cabinets perfectly. The only thing I'm uncertain of is the ceiling - plain white ceiling, or tongue and groove? Still trying to make up our minds on that one.
Click to expand...

My wife would be out of her mind. :laugh: You've been at this a while haven't you?

I bet it looks fantastic when it's done though. :thumbsup:
 
I wish I was that handy (I might actually be, since I have done some minor things around the house, I am just not that adventurous).

Good job.

Please keep us updated!

MotionMan
 
Originally posted by: MotionMan
I wish I was that handy (I might actually be, since I have done some minor things around the house, I am just not that adventurous).

MotionMan
Click to expand...

Same here! 😱
 
make sure you sing the pink panther song as you hang the insulation.
Its mandatory or the insulation will feel insulted and refuse to keep out the cold..
😛
 
wow, that looks like an old house. The plank roof and wall paper on the wall before you tore it down look ancient.

Is this a old home/cabin you are renovating? This definitely does not look like your primary residence.

Also, since you are ripping out everything, go the extra 9 and upgrade your electric
 
Originally posted by: ed21x
need more pictures of the livestock. preferably cute cuddley ones.
Click to expand...

I'll update that thread later... just came back in from the barn. QUADRUPLETS! That makes it about 30 babies born in the past couple weeks. I've lost count.
 
Originally posted by: mozirry
wow, that looks like an old house. The plank roof and wall paper on the wall before you tore it down look ancient.

Is this a old home/cabin you are renovating? This definitely does not look like your primary residence.

Also, since you are ripping out everything, go the extra 9 and upgrade your electric
Click to expand...

It's our current residence, 50-some years old. The electric was upgraded at some point in the past to 150A breaker box. However, virtually none of the wiring was updated - just a few feet from the panel to a bunch of junction boxes. So far, I've rewired the living room, dining room, bathroom, and 1 bedroom. The other two bedrooms have relatively new wiring, but the polarity is reversed in a few outlets. I'll get around to rewiring them some rainy day during the summer. The biggest re-wiring job was unwiring all the circuits in the basement. I ripped out hundreds of feet of wiring and just took it to the scrap yard. When I'm done, the kitchen will have 9 circuits. (2 GFI countertop, lights, 18" from floor on 3 walls, fridge, stove, microwave, dishwasher.)

Some of the wallpaper is just from lower layers. Over the top of a lot of the layers was that wallpaper board (whatever it's called, about 1/16" thick) - we ripped a bunch of that out just to get our appliances to fit when we moved in.
 
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