The "Simple" kitchen spruce up?

[Billdogg]

My wife has wanted granite counter tops for many years. We were finally at a point financially that we could do it, so a couple months ago I caved. Just counter tops she said.

Yeah - sure.

Of course we just had to have a back splash as well. Ok, fine. Lets go to HD/Lowes and find something that matches the shiny new granite that will also go well with the cabinets. Perfect! Only $7.99/sf, so very affordable. But wait - don't you think we should look around some more just to make sure we've made the right choice? Do I really have a choice???

So off we go to Hamilton Parker. We (she?) finds the perfect backsplash and accent pieces. Great! But not $7.99/sf. Not even close. I had a good idea of what the price would be, and my guess was close. A little over, actually. I thought my wife, however, was going to faint. A little over 2/3's the price of the granite. Oh well, it's only money?

As we were leaving, she said "I had no idea it would cost so much!" I replied "When the pretty young girl behind the expansive slab of granite greets you as you first walk in and asks if you'd like something to drink or maybe a doughnut or bagel while you are looking, it means $$$"

It is going to be real nice however.

But wait - there's MORE!!!

Monday I was running the vacuum and popped a circuit breaker, so I went down to flip it back on and did a double take. 6 2x4 ceiling tiles were sagging to the point of falling out. CRAP! WATER! And there is no plumbing on that side of the house. My first thought was that the roofers had messed up and water was running down the sheathing inside the siding. Nope. Perhaps it's the electric meter that is trying to detach from the side of the house? Nope. Monday night I discovered the problem when I went to the kitchen and noticed some spots of water on the floor. Probably jsut some errant ice cube pieces, so I get a paper towel. As I wipe the first one up, more water pushes up from under the laminate flooring. NOT GOOD! I pull out the refrigerator and find the source of the water. The freaking fridge is spewing water all over the floor.

So Monday night, instead of going to bed, I'm pulling up laminate. Luckily, the old linoleum was still there, so the subfloor, at least, is still ok. Water had managed to wick itself halfway across the kitchen, destroying the floor.

So for July the 4th, we celebrated by buying a new refrigerator and dishwasher. We'll be going new floor shopping this weekend, and in a couple more weeks I'll think about installing it. First, the bases of a couple cabinets need to dry out, so fans are blowing 24/7.

What was supposed to be an affordable kitchen face lift has become a rather unexpectedly expensive PIMA!

Oh well - it's only money.


RIGHT?????

 

[TexasTodd]

Insurance should cover SOME of the water damage.
I feel ya, we're in the middle of redoing our master bath right now. We wanted to do the kitchen, but then found water leaking through three walls to a closet from our shower. Remodel costs about three full blown large reef setups.

 

[Billdogg]

The deductible is high enough that it is hardly worth the effort of filling a claim. That, and we just had our roof replaced due to hail/wind damage. It seems to be just about under control. I'll be ordering the new floor today.

 

[TheEngineer]

No good deed goes unpunished :) It’s like saying I just need to run to Home Depot for one thing. Maybe after the third trip you have what you need to start :)

 

[Billdogg]

It's a running joke with my wife and I. Just 3 runs to HD/Lowes and it's an easy project. I have accumulated a vast array of pieces parts, however, so sometimes I get by with only 2 trips!

 

[Ron Reefman]

Hi Bill,

We had a very similar situation a couple of years ago. We had a very small plumbing leak in the wall behind the sink and a set of drawers. It's an outside wall, so cement block, firring strips and drywall. The cabinet under the sink starts to show it's wicking up water and deteriorating from the floor up. I track the leak to the wall behind the drawer cabinet. But with the drawers removed there are still horizontal stiles that keep me from being able to reach the drywall! Now they were 20 year old cheap cabinets and there could be no replacing it with anything that looked the same. So I ripped out the stiles, then the drywall to find a 90 degree bend in the polybutylene pipe coming down from the attic and turning toward the sink. The hot water line is dripping a single drip every 30 to 60 seconds. So I pull the 'U' clamps at either end of the 90 degree bend and pull it away from the wall. Simple right? Well being pressed against the wall held back the leak and now I had a serious stream flowing about a gallon every couple of minutes. Crap!

Long story made short, I fixed the leak. Over the next few weeks we picked out all new cabinets and granite countertops. I did the demolition and backsplash myself. Lucky for me, we already had tile floors on a cement slab (like 98% of the housed down here).

Our old kitchen , notice the empty space to the right of the under sink cabinet...
018 by Ron Lindensmith, on Flickr


The new granite is called 'Planetarium'. The close up is one of the geodes in the granite.
053 by Ron Lindensmith, on Flickr

098 by Ron Lindensmith, on Flickr


And the new kitchen.
094 by Ron Lindensmith, on Flickr

 

[Jl330]

I know this feeling. I had an extensive remodel planned and one thing always leads to another. Next thing you know, you're 30 grand in. Just don't do what I did and move as soon as you're done to a new house where you get to start all over.

I got a 3 car garage now though so I guess I'll live with it.