How To Prepare For Your First Home Remodel – Part 1

Gina Bonura is a Kitchen and Bath Designer at Alure Home Improvements

So you finally made the decision do a kitchen and bathroom remodeling.  You’ve chosen your contractor and all your materials and are ready to go.  You’ve thought of everything.

But have you really?

That’s the perpetual fear we face when embarking on such a large project.  Let’s face it: when you are in the throes of a remodel it’s not fun, but it doesn’t have to be horrible.

Here are some things you can do prior to the actual start date to have a less stressed experience.

Clean your Space in Increments

Whether you have a kitchen or bath project, you will need to prepare the space for demolition.  You can start weeks before by removing items from cabinets a little at a time.  It can be overwhelming to think about cleaning out a kitchen full of clutter you’ve accumulated over the years.  Now’s a good time to throw out the 37 bottles of paprika lurking in your spice cabinet.

If you empty a cabinet every couple of days into labeled boxes, you will find it is not such a difficult task, (especially when you have to put everything back).  Throw out or give away what you don’t need until you weed down to just the essentials you will be using right before the remodel.  You will also need to clean out the refrigerator.  Keep just the bare necessities.

Prepare a Staging Area for Storing Items

You may want to start making space in your garage or other area suitable as a staging area for your contractor.  There will be short term storage of items (think tub, plumbing supplies, cabinetry and sheetrock, etc.)  Our company organizes a staggered delivery so that they receive the items they will need as they use them to cut down the amount of space that is needed for this purpose.  Ask your contractor to help you coordinate this.  Don’t wait until the last minute.

Anticipate your Cooking Needs

A kitchen remodel may take several weeks.  The novelty of eating out gets old (and expensive) pretty quickly.  Several weeks before the project starts, it is a good idea to cook a little extra and freeze it so you can quickly microwave homemade dinners later on.  During the actual remodel, it’s a good idea to have a makeshift kitchen consisting of a table, a microwave and/or toaster oven, and a coffee pot.  Keep your old refrigerator nearby until the new one is in place.

Try to anticipate what non-perishable items you will need and keep them in a large plastic container nearby.  There will be residual dust from the remodel so it is important to keep your food items, paper plates, cups and other necessities covered.

These are just a few tips to get started. I’ll be back on Friday to finish the list and provide some more important steps to follow prior to a starting a remodeling project.