What to expect when cabinet installers come? Ripping out? putting new in?

Question

I'm getting new kitchen cabinets, they are coming in tomorrow to rip them out and the next day to put new ones in, i won't get my granite countertops for a few more weeks, will it be really dusty? do they put plywood on top of the cabinets for a makeshift countertop?

Answer 1

it depends on the contractor. you tell him what you would like done. this should have been discussed before he started. i would hope he would install a dust shield between the kitchen and any other open rooms. usually all the cabinets are removed at the same time. that means no sink, dishwasher, stove etc, im surprised they arnt waiting to the counter tops are in before demo. good luck

Answer 2

EMPTY THE ROOM,

EMPTY A GOOD PATH FROM THE ROOM,

EMPTY A PLACE IN THE YARD / DRIVEWAY,,,,

Yes, it can get dusty, depending on the work.  Be prepared for dust with plastic that can be taped over doorways.  Clean up every day, yourself.  Sweep, toss, etc.  

Be prepared to replace your HVAC filter once they are done, and again a couple of weeks later.

You may have some time without water.  No big deal.

You probably will not have a sink, until you have a counter top.

Be prepared to eat out, alot.

Be prepared to have every room in the house in some form of mess, because stuff from the kitchen will end up everywhere.

Make a path to the bathroom, and clear it of stuff you hold dear.

Put away anything that you hold dear, anywhere in the house.  

If they start scratching their heads, and saying,,,, "Come look at this.",,,, it's going to cost more time and/or money.   Have a ready reserve of cash for the extras that always come up.

Set up your coffee pot somewhere, and make sure they can get to it.  Yeah, it costs money for coffee, but nothing like a caffinated, motivated, happy crew to get the job done.  

Have disposable cups, napkins, paper towels, etc. where they can get to them.  It's a nice touch.

Good luck on the temporary counter top.  Even if they put one in, you don't want to move stuff to it, because you will have to move it to make room for the granite guy.  

Likewise, you will not be able to organize your new cabinets, because you want to keep stuff out of the kitchen until the granite guy is finished, and then the regular crew has to come in and punch list what is left.

Work down your fridge.  You can't cook anyway, and it will get moved.

Good time to clean the fridge, behind the dishwasher, etc.  

The rest you can figure out, and will,,,

Enjoy your new kitchen.  

Answer 3

Removal tends to be a messy business - less so if they're just taking the doors off, more if they're taking out the basic framing as well.

It tends to get dusty and messy no matter what.  If weather permits, as much as possible should be done outside; and you might want to invest in some fans to keep most of it blowing out instead of into the rest of the house.

Temporary wooden counter tops are one option; I've also seen cheap temporary formica tops (usually salvaged from a previous job).  Ask the contractor to be sure.

You can save some time and mess by unscrewing the parts that will come off that way - otherwise these folks have a nasty habit of ripping them off with crowbars.

Answer 4

If it is coming from a Lowe's or Home Depot contractor you won't get makeshift counter tops. And the reason is that they measure after cabinets are in to measure properly for new counter tops. My sister got new kitchen and it was almost 3 weeks from cabinets to counter tops. She microwaved a lot and was creative in her cooking.

I would suggest getting large cutting board or two to put on top a single cabinet area to work with.  

Answer 5

This depends on your contractor. We typically ask the homeowner to empty out all cabinets, remove curtains,draperies on kitchen sink window. Take everything off of counter.

We then cover path into kitchen with clear plastic over carpets,etc.,

We always try to dismantle (unscrew) cabinets from walls vs. busting up with a sledge hammer as they do on the DIY shows on TV.

Once we get them out of the house we load them on a flatbed truck to go to the landfill. Sometimes we need to cut the countertops in pcs. with a sawzall. Appliances will need to be moved into another room close by. We usually move the refrigerator and plug it right back in, we will set the microwave up somewhere, and have even moved the stove and had electrician temp a plug for it.

If we see we are going to be more than 2-3 days we will temp. make a makeshift platform and hook up the kitchen sink. We never start a kitchen remodel close to the weekend where the kitchen is tore up all weekend long. We start them on a Mon-tues.

We usually are also installing a new floor at the same time, so we need to put down either new underlayment or cement board, this should run under all cabinets. We then cover it to protect it while installing the new cabinets.

Allow 1/2 day for demolition of cabinets,tops and haul away, the other 1/2 day for shop vac area and checking floor level laying out walls for cabinets, if you have electrical work such as outlets in the backsplash area lighting allow 1 day to get this roughed in.

You will need to have a place to unload the cabinets (lots of boxes).

First inspect one cabinet with door to insure the color and style are correct. Usually the wall cabinets go up first , this keeps installer from leaning over base cabinets to put up wall cabinets which could get the base cabinets scratched up.

Base cabinets are next, average kitchen 1 full day to install both, add 1/2 day for intricate layout pantry units. Wall oven cabinets are a pain. They always have to be cut out to fit the ovens and this can take a lot of time.

Next the counter tops need to be measured and ordered. I always like to make templates of 1/4" luan underlayment, however with granite or other solid surface tops the installers will need to measure themselves.

If you have a gas stove make sure you know where the shutoff is to it, the same for an icemaker on the fridge. Is your range hood vented? If so block the pipe off or you could get wasps,bugs,etc coming down the pipe from the attic.

* Save a couple labels off the cabinet boxes to check and make sure these are the exact brand/style you paid for.

Dishwasher may need to come out if you are getting a new floor or if it's location is being changed.

Standard distance between counter top and bottom of wall cabinets is

18" or 19-1/2" from the top of the base cabinets to the bottom of the wall cabinets.

Shelves come with the wall and base cabinets,have them put them in at the spacing you want, hardware (handles and pulls) are usually extra, they should be mounted in the center of drawers both ways, and at the top corners of base cabinets and bottom corners of wall cabinets.

Don't pay final invoice until everything is taken care of. Be Fair but remember you have the check.

Answer 6

Taking the old ones out will be really dusty and dirty, even in the cleanest kitchen , you will be horribly surprised at what is lurking there. Once you got that messy bit out of the way, the rest is a doddle.

It depends where they will be cutting the worktops, if it is inside then yes more dust everywhere, is outside suitable?

I dont know what makeshift worktops they will supply, if any