Preparing for a Kitchen Remodel

If you’ve been hesitant to start a kitchen remodel due to the stress and uncertainty it brings, it’s about time you put those worries to rest. No one said a kitchen renovation would be a walk in the park, but with the right amount of patience, planning, flexibility, and attention to detail, you can comfortably navigate through your home improvement journey without losing your sanity.

A proper kitchen remodel takes months of planning and research. While shopping for new appliances, cabinet fixtures, countertops, and different-colored tile for your backsplash are all exciting, the challenge comes once it’s time to make do without a fully functional kitchen.

There is no escaping the dread and inconvenience of maneuvering through your day-to-day life without a fully equipped kitchen space, but don’t let it wreak havoc in your home. Follow these tips to prepare for a smooth and easy transition into your kitchen remodel.

The Big Picture

There are a few big-picture aspects to preparing for a kitchen remodel that appear obvious: Establishing your budget, deciding on your appliances, and making sure your space is functional for you and the construction crew are all important steps to take.

Your price range can go a long way if you plan accordingly, and you can certainly increase the value of your home if you budget correctly. Consider what your cooking space has to gain from traditional cooking appliances versus smart appliances. Are you envisioning an ultra-sleek, high-tech cooking zone or a traditionally stylish kitchen space? Consider the features you need in your new kitchen and make a separate list of the features you want. This will help you establish a realistic price range and determine what’s in the cards for your kitchen remodel.

Take a step back and determine what you like and dislike about your current kitchen layout. This allows you to decide what you hope to update and what elements you plan on keeping. This can include flooring, lighting, countertops, appliances, cabinetry, window treatments, kitchen islands, tile, paint color, décor, or anything else to enhance the form and function of your kitchen.

And speaking of appliances, this might be the most important decision you make. This all depends on how often you cook and how you utilize your cooking space, but consider if you want to install individual cooking appliances, a suite of products in a kitchen appliance package, or a set of luxury kitchen appliances to match your high-end taste.

An appliance bundle is a great way to reduce the cost of your appliances and create a cohesive and uniform design. It's ultimately a cheaper option than buying each appliance individually, and a kitchen suite is designed to create a consistent, streamlined, and visually appealing look that ensures an accurate and proper fit between cabinets, countertops, and floorboards.

However, if you happened to read our luxury appliance guide, you’ll remember that these luxury brands are a surefire way to turn heads and make a statement in your kitchen. High-end, modern brands like Sub-Zero, Thermador, Miele, Wolf, Liebherr, and Fisher & Paykel become the focal point of any home design and create a space where people want to gather, entertain, and celebrate.

The Little Things

It's easy to focus all your attention toward the high-dollar, big-ticket items, but sometimes, it’s the little things that make the biggest impact on the success of your kitchen renovation. This can include cleaning your space before demolition or construction begins, packing up valuables, and finding a way to prepare meals for the duration of the remodel. Let’s further examine some of these focal areas:

1. Clear the Clutter: Tidy up and decide what you can part with before starting the renovation. Separate your belongings into individual sections for donations, sale items, and keepers.
2. Establish Storage Space: The items you plan to pack away for the duration of the remodel need a safe place for storage. This could be the garage, spare bedroom, or basement.
3. Use What you Have: Reduce the amount you need to pack and use what you can in advance. Consider it a pantry purge—this prevents you from wasting food and money, and you’ll have less to deal with when it comes time to pack up your kitchen.
4. Keep Your Living Spaces Clean: Roll up and put away area rugs to prevent boot prints from clinging to the fabric, cover furniture with fitted bed sheets or tablecloths, place layers of plastic sheeting over your cabinetry to avoid a buildup of dust, and keep doors to other rooms closed.
5. Simplicity at its Finest: Preparing ambitious meals will be a challenge—keep things simple and pare down your menu and your kitchen tools. Keep the essential items close-by and store away the specialty items. Sorry, waffle maker.
6. Soak it all in: Don’t forget to stop, take a deep breath, and smile. This is an exciting time.

Make Kitchen Arrangements

You’re eager to unveil your brand-new kitchen, but what are you supposed to do about cooking and cleaning while your current kitchen is out of commission?  It’s key to make proper arrangements and have a safe and functional plan for a stand-in kitchen.

Depending on the length of your remodel, this can be a multi-step process that takes a bit of planning beforehand. To help ease that process, follow these steps:

1. Keep it Cool: Opt for a compact refrigerator and a chest freezer for the duration of your remodel so you can keep simple necessity items properly chilled. Be sure any appliance you use is suitable for an ordinary 120v outlet.
2. Create a Food-Prep Station: Eating out is tiresome and expensive. Create a makeshift food station away from the high-traffic construction zones for coffee, mid-day snacks, or dinner. You can utilize foldable tables, standalone shelving units, folding chairs, and storage bins to mimic a temporary dining room.
3. Utilize Small Appliances: Plan your meals around smaller appliances like microwaves, pressure cookers, toaster ovens, griddles, tea kettles, skillets, and coffee makers to get through each day.
4. Sanitation Matters: Remember to keep things sanitary. Utilize a separate sink in the bathroom or laundry if you’re unable to access your kitchen sink.
5. Keep the Pantry Stocked: It’s a good idea to have nonperishable goods like peanut butter, crackers, trail mix, fruit snacks, and canned goods on hand, but this applies to more than food. Keep plenty of recyclable napkins, paper plates, cups, and utensils available so you don’t have to stress about a pile of dirty dishes.  
6. Grill-n-Chill: If the weather cooperates, don’t be afraid to fire up the grill. A barbecue grill is versatile enough to roast meats, veggies, and foil-packed desserts like peach cobbler and s’mores.
7. Get Out While You Can: If scheduling allows for it, get out of the house for a few days and enjoy a little escape. It can be a stressful time, so if you’re comfortable with the work continuing in your absence, stay with relatives for a few home-cooked meals or plan a little road trip away.  
8. The Big Picture: It can be overwhelming witnessing a kitchen remodel, but years of culinary bliss is worth a few weeks of inconvenience. Think small and keep things in perspective. It's an adventure—the hassle is temporary, but your glistening new kitchen is there to stay.

What’s Missing?

You want to be confident in your remodel, but you also want to be confident in your remodel team. You're forced to put a lot of trust in the designers and contractors assigned to facilitate your kitchen renovation, so read reviews, make a few phone calls, and ensure you’re hiring the right individuals for the job. You want to find dependable workers who will do the job the right way and reinvent your kitchen exactly how you visioned it.

Once you’ve got your construction crew solidified, make sure it’s a smooth transition and everything remains organized. Exchange emails, phone numbers, and agree on a working schedule to ensure the job gets done on time.  

We’re Here to Help

Before you take a sledgehammer to your kitchen’s foundation, shop smart and shop with Albert Lee. Explore our wide collection of brands to help narrow your search in the hunt for new kitchen appliances. Find the exact features and style options you’re envisioning for the kitchen of your dreams. For a truly unique kitchen remodel, start your journey with us—pick up the phone or visit one of our stores today.