How to Survive a Kitchen Renovation

Your dream is to remodel your kitchen so that your space is convenient and beautiful. However, you have to first survive a very inconvenient temporary kitchen and an ugly construction site. Surviving a kitchen renovation is difficult, but it can be bearable if you plan ahead financially and create a place to satisfy the basic needs of you and your family.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Contractor
• Timeline
• Temporary kitchen
• Disposable kitchen items

1. Estimate your kitchen remodeling costs and create a renovation budget. This is the time to make decisions about color, appliances, lighting and any other details that will be purchased and installed by your contractor.

2. Work with your contractor to create a timeline. Take into account any unforeseen issues that might arise, and add a cushion to your timeline.

3. Instruct your contractor to seal doorways around the kitchen to stop the dust and debris from traveling throughout the rest of your home.

4. Create a temporary kitchen near a bathroom or laundry room with a sink. You will want to include a microwave, coffee maker, and toaster oven in your temporary kitchen. Also, talk to your contractor about moving your existing refrigerator to this location.

5. Buy disposable plates, cups, cutlery and paper towels to cut down on the amount of dishes you will need to wash.

6. Try out new restaurants in your town or fire up the grill for a barbecue. Getting out of the house at least one or two nights is essential to surviving a kitchen renovation.

7. Communicate with your contractor and be aware of any glitches or hold-ups in the timeline. Have a friend or family member on call in case you and your family need a night or two away from the kitchen remodeling chaos.

Tips & Warnings

• Adding a cushion of 10 to 25 percent into your kitchen remodeling budget will allow for any upgrades or changes you need to make during the renovation process.
• Take digital pictures of your kitchen before you remodel, throughout the remodeling, and after the project is complete. This is a good way to keep your spirits high during the renovation, and a great way to show off your new kitchen after the remodeling is complete.
• If you have children, make sure that the contractor and his crew are aware of this and talk to them about cleaning up tools and debris at the end of the day.