Home remodeling

[make_your_move]

Has anyone here on my list done their own home remodeling. A kitchen, in particular. Was it worth the price you saved going to a contractor? Tell me all the gory details.

Comments

Been there... done that...

[webqatch.livejournal.com]

My opinion is that if you have the time and effort to devote to a project like this, it's well worth the savings. If you can't/won't devote the (considerable) time and energy -- or if you're afraid of the fact that you're likely to end up "without" a kitchen for a week+ more than you intended because Murphy came to visit... then go with a contractor and hope that the contractor doesn't have the same Murphy visit. For more info on what Murphy can do, see this post

My job, while not as well planned out as it could/should have been, really wasn't that bad. Then again, I had several weeks to work on it between the time I bought the house and the time I moved in. Most people don't have that luxury. My kitchen replacement involved the following (and more!):

• move stove to dining room
• remove all old cabinets, other appliances, old tile floor, wallpaper
• mud, sand, mud, sand, mud, sand, paint, paint
• replace all power outlets & switches (old ones had been painted over and/or other grossness
• re-run the sink drain from being "over and then down" to "down and then over"
• replace the (explative deleted) old subfloor with a pergo subfloor
• replace the tile floor with a rolled vinyl floor
• replace all of the appliances except the (gas) stove - including installing the icemaker line
• build & install new cabinets
• cut & install new coutertop
• cut "fifth hole" in new (deeeeeep) sink and install

You're welcome to come up anytime to see what it is that I did... and whether you do or not, I'll be happy to share prices, problems, and such with you, Q, or anyone else.

Re: Been there... done that...

[webqatch.livejournal.com]

If you want to see other details on the kitchen/etc replacement, check this link instead -- it's my "repairs" tag for the house