As promised, this post will describe our efforts to select a contractor for our kitchen project. We are retired, living a comparatively comfortable life after 49 years of working and saving and raising a family. We built our present home way back in 1972, when my husband had just been accepted into the electricians union apprenticeship. We used the Owner Completion Plan, and in doing so, we saved a ton of money and learned a great deal about home construction. When we started the kitchen project, we really thought we knew what we were getting into. Nothing could be further from the truth!
Once we had decided we would do this, I developed a floor plan and laid out the appliances and cabinets. I knew exactly what I wanted and where in the room it would be. We attended a Home Improvement Show in Orland Park, Illinois that February. We set up appointments with 3 home remodeling contractors.
On the appointed days, a representative from each company came to our home and measured all the spaces. When we sat down to discuss my wants and needs, I basically had the air shot out of my balloon. None of them would make my kitchen how I wanted it. Because all of them used off-the-shelf cabinets. If a space had a 27" cabinet requirement, I was told, no, it has to be 24" and we'll put a blind spacer in the void. Dead air! Wasted space! Also, there were accessories I wanted installed, like a mixer lift and a laundry chute. Nope! Can't do it.
We then decided to go to the custom cabinetry company that originally built our kitchen cabinets in 1972. We met and spoke with a salesman there, he came to the house, measured everything and sat down with us to discuss what we wanted and needed. There wasn't a single thing he said no to.
During the process, we asked him if he knew any remodelers he would recommend for the demolition and refinishing of the room. We wanted someone experienced and dependable. He told us he works on such projects and has 28 years experience renovating kitchens and baths. We got his estimate and proceeded to finalize the project. After selecting the wood, stain, hardware, and the counters, we paid a portion of the cabinetry cost and waited. It was going to take approximately 6 weeks to get the cabinets finished and Doug would set up the demolition in about 4 weeks. He expected it would take 2 weeks to finish the room and prepare it for the cabinet installation.
Next time: I will tell you all about our actual demolition and renovation project.
