Nine weeks after placing the order, our InnerMost cabinets were scheduled for delivery. My husband was home and accepted 47 packages from the truck.

Our Crew2 installers came the next day to open the packages and inspect. They brought the cabinets into the dining room and kitchen. We learned from a QA guy that came another day that they were checking only for major damage. Any dings in the door faces are checked and replaced after the cabinets are installed. Now the ball is finally rolling on our project. The next step was waiting for the permits to clear so the drywall can be installed. After we passed the insulation inspection, we moved the cabinets from the kitchen into the porch. 

We realized the poor condition of the kitchen floor once we got the old cupboards out. The Armstrong vinyl tiles are cracked where the sub-floor has heaved as well as dents and broken tiles. We have the original layer of rolled congloleum flooring and two layers of stick-on vinyl tiles. All flooring prior to the 1970's is suspect for asbestos and removal is not recommended. We went to Home Depot to check out our options. I wanted a sturdy floor that would handle heavy use from pets, kids and foot traffic. We settled on Allure Ultra resilient plank flooring. It is 100% waterproof and has a lifetime warranty for as long as we live in this home. It is a floating floor, meaning no glues are required. The estimate from the Crew2 team is $1300.00 to repair the damaged areas, install a new layer of sub-floor and lay the Resilient plank flooring after the cupboards are in. The new floor will be 1/2 inch taller than what is there now, but fortunately all our doors have enough clearance. 
We picked a red cherry wood-look that cost about $3.50 a square foot, coming to $770.00 for the kitchen, a coat closet and entry. We forgot to add the baseboard trim in the estimate, but will negotiate that into the contract. This kitchen is going to look awesome!

Kitchen Remodel - Floor Underlayment
Kitchen Remodel - Allure Ultra Flooring Installed

When we started planning our project, the home stores were out of Bagsters as it wasn't full swing remodeling season yet. Amazon sells them so we ordered one from them. The bagster holds 3 cubic yards and costs $29.95  to buy. Pick-up costs $99.00 for the first one and $89.00 for additional ones. I also have a coupon for $20.00 off pick up from the Amazon site. After we started our demolition, it became clear we needed a second one and I was able to get one at home depot. We saved money buying the bagster instead of having Crew2 contract a large metal dumpster for us as metal dumpsters are rented by the week. There is enough room left for the construction workers drywall scraps. Bye bye old kitchen!

We knew we had to move a gas line over four inches. We discovered by reading the city permit pages a licensed plumber is required to work on gas lines. We are also moving the new sink five inches to the left and the dishwasher to the right of the sink. Chuck decided he wanted the plumber to fix up the old copper water lines as they were awkwardly placed and the shut offs were corroded. The installation looked like a home-owner special, probably original to this 1961 house.  Look what we found when we removed the old pipe to complete our insulation project.

We cleaned out the part in the wall and threw away the rest as we want to replace it with modern PVC pipes. We called out our plumber for an estimate and he started talking about all sorts of water lines that were not to code for the dishwasher and soft copper water lines. He cautioned us that once a builders permit is taken out the inspectors will look at all the aspects of the kitchen project. His estimate was about $1000.00 to move the gas line, rework the kitchen sink lines and install the dishwasher to code. We felt overwhelmed with the information to bring the project to code and gladly hired him to do the work. He pulled his permit that afternoon and came back the next day. He wanted to cut off the old water lines in the basement below and cap them until the cabinets were in. That way he could drill new holes instead of the cabinet installers trying to navigate the old pipes. 

The original soft copper pipes curved up and went up through the holes where the yellow foam insulation is. He was shocked to discover that they had broken down and the wall of the pipe was ready to burst. When he removed the pipe a small portion about the size of a dime caved in. Chuck's work bench for his Retro Game Cave is right below these pipes.  This was a water accident waiting to happen and preventing this disaster was worth the cost of the plumper right there. 
The plumber removed all the old dishwasher water lines that had been tapped into the water heater. There will be a T-connector under the sink for the dishwasher which meets current code.

Friday afternoon I went to Mendards to buy fiberglass for insulating the wall and attic space above the kitchen. The clerk at the construction desk asked me what I wanted to insulate and we discussed my 2x4 walls with 16- inch-on-center studs and R-values. He sent me home with one roll unfaced and two rolls of faced fiberglass. This cost about $65.00 and included a rebate coupon for each roll. We wanted to be ready to go early Saturday morning. It was already hot - about 80 degrees when we started at 9:00 A.M on Saturday.  None-the-less, we donned long pants, long sleeves, gloves and face masks for the task ahead. The previous insulation was blown-in cellulose and it had been falling like snow all week as we worked. We started by folding the un-faced roll of fiberglass into the attic space. We sprang open the faced roll and immediately realized they had sold me the wrong size. It was for 2X6 walls! There was no way it would fit. Chuck was covered in cellulose, so I jumped in the car and took the two rolls back. I waited in line at the return desk, then was told to take the return to the gate keeper in the lumber yard. That gentleman had me fill out some paper work and said a yard worker would meet me in the fiberglass area for the exchange. I busied myself by reading all the signs and determining for myself what type of insulation would work best for us, and after ten plus minutes of waiting I started searching for this elusive yard worker.  I spotted a bored young man lounging in the shade. He signed off on my exchange and informed me I had to go back inside the store to pay. While they didn't question my exchange, no one apologized for their original help desk mistake. I must say my opinion of Menards has really soured during this transaction. The product I picked out after reading all the specs on the warehouse signs was pre-cut unfaced sheets made just for our application: eight-foot high ceilings, 2x4 construction with standard 16-inch on-center studs. This product was about half the cost as well. The bats were very easy to install and before lunch we had stapled the 6-mil plastic vapor barrier over the insulation. We both took a shower and started taping after lunch.

The 6-mill plastic was overlapped by about 12-inches in the corners. We cut an X over the electrical boxes and tucked the flaps back. The tape is very sticky, yet you can re-position it right away if needed. Getting it stuck tight yet leaving room for the dry wall thickness was kind of tricky, especially around the window. I'm sure the professionals have some tricks to speed up the process. We found folding the tape in a V, sticking one edge to the window sill, then using the edge of a retractable blade to press it against the side of the window frame worked pretty well. I have to say, while I understand this is current code, it seems rather overboard when the rest of the house has insignificant vapor barrier. But we did our best to follow the current code.  By Sunday we were done with our tasks for the week and Chuck was ready to go back to his job on Monday morning. Up next: plumbing

The first order of business was to undo the web of 1960's conduit in the old soffit. All wiring must be inside a wall to pass current national electric code. Chuck spent Monday tracing wires, drilling holes in the studs and figuring out where he could put connections to modern romax in place of the old steel clad cabling. 

On Tuesday, the Crew2 project manager checked in and said we needed to sign off on the building permit to allow for the dry wall. At that moment, we realized we needed to have an electrical permit as well. I checked our city website and the dire warnings about acquiring a permit before beginning work and the fines involved caused our hair to stand on end. So on our way to the home store to buy parts, we stopped by city hall and acquired a home-owner electrical permit for $16.00. The clerk asked if we want to schedule our rough-in inspection today. We said we hadn't started yet, and she laughed and complemented us, saying most homeowners don't realize they need the permit until they are already done. We scheduled an appointment for Friday. 
My Dad is a retired EE and former electrician. Chuck called him for advice frequently, as well as asking the helpful electrical department employees at Home Depot for information on current codes. A very new NEC (national electrical code) calls for tamper resistant, GFCI outlets in kitchens, and each must be accessible within 24 inches on a counter-top. Additionally, all counter top circuits must be 20 amp. Fortunately, we had updated our main electrical breakers six years ago and were able to accommodate these requirements. I must say, having a plug-in every three to four feet sounds awesome! We had relied on power strips to electrify our 1961 kitchen until now.
Chuck worked through the week and by Thursday night felt ready for the inspection, although worried a bit from a negative past experience with a over-zealous and controlling inspector.  We had studied the city handout well and installed nail plates and made sure the Romax was 1.5 inches inside the studs.  The inspector passed the rough in (RI) with a couple of minor suggestions to be fixed. Romax wires should be stacked in-side the staples instead of placed side by side and one minor re-wire between boxes. So Chuck rewarded himself on Friday by seeing the opening of the Prometheus movie while I chaperoned the last field trip of the year for our third grade daughter. The required electrical changes were completed by Friday Evening. Next project; insulating the outside walls.

My husband had to put in two weeks notice for time off. The delivery on the cabinets was delayed by a week, but we were just fine with having extra time to do our part of the work. During the last week before go-day, I finished packing up kitchen items we would not be using into bins and boxes. Handling the baking sheets and cake pans, I pondered all the birthday and holiday dinners prepared in this 51-year old kitchen, especially in the 43 years before it became mine. I wondered who had laid the shelf paper and about the children growing up reaching for a glass in these cupboards. 

I had two onions, a bell pepper and some fresh garlic left in the pantry, so I bought three more pounds of hamburger and fried it up on Thursday night, the last meal I cooked in the old kitchen. On Friday night, we took out the stove and dishwasher and put them in the garage under a blanket. I took off all the cabinet knobs and set them aside. I don't know what I will do with them, but I know they cost a couple of dollars each to buy. They will most likely be donated to a charity. 

Saturday morning, we started the tear out. We needed to be extra careful cutting around the old soffit to protect the ceiling. My dear husband Chuck was the cut-out and destroyer, while I had the job to clean-up,  haul-it to-the-dumpster and go-to-the-home store, as well as taking care of the kids and meals.  Tools included face masks, hammer, pry bar, skill saw and physical (Grunt) muscle pull. By Sunday night, the kitchen gutting was complete after two nine-hour days. Chuck had the upcoming week off to complete the wiring. We treated ourselves to a pizza, took some aspirin for our aches and went to bed early.

We are expecting the remodel to last eight to twelve weeks. With our microwave, toaster oven and an electric skillet we can cook many foods. Ten bags of cooked hamburger, five bags of chili casserole, four bags of cooked pasta and eight bags of cooked rice are in the freezer.  I thought up several options and posted a menu list to help with that "whats for dinner" after working all day. My kids are on a gluten and dairy free diet (GF), so we rarely go out to eat.

Hot dogs and Beans
Hamburger and Rice
Hamburger, Spaghetti sauce and pasta
Rice and stir fried vegetables
Frozen soups/cassaroles
Ramen noodle soup and canned chicken
Canned chicken and instant mashed potatoes
Chef Salad
Eggs and toast
Grilled rice-cheese and ham sandwich
GF English Muffin Pizza
Thaw and eat shrimp: salad, stir fry or sushi
Rotisserie chicken
Re-fried Beans with GF tortilla or chips
Fried Potatoes and veggies
Baked Potato with ham and rice-cheese
GF Fish sticks

We knew our kitchen would be out of service for two or three months. Each week I cooked extra food to put into the freezer. I bought three pound packages of hamburger once a week and fried it up with bell peppers and onion. I froze bags of white rice and extra chili and casseroles. We planned to plug the fridge in with an extension cord and move the microwave and toaster oven to the porch. I bought an electric skillet at a garage sale and stocked up on paper plates, plastic service-ware and cups. As I packed up our stuff, I kept the strainers, microwave dishes and glass measuring cups. We are currently on day 10 and it has been the easiest camping I've ever done. We are lucky to have a nice space on our porch for the table and are washing dishes in the main floor bathroom sink.

At the first meeting, the designer and I came up with a ball-park figure of about $15,000.00 for the kitchen. This was with-in our budget and so I paid the $50.00 refundable fee for the measuring crew to visit our home. The designer and I spent about ten hours over several appointments choosing the cabinets for our space. I am very happy with the helpfulness and commitment to my project satisfaction from the Home Depot design team. We wanted 42-inch cabinets but had to settle on 36-inch uppers due to our eight foot ceilings. This is still 9 inches taller than the current cabinets. Crew-two, the installer for Home Depot, came out twice to double check our measurements and write up the contract. We agreed to tear out the old cabinets, do the electrical, plumbing, and insulate the outside facing wall to code. We have to move a gas line four inches to accommodate ten inches of new counter space by the stove. They will do the drywall, fix the floor-board molding, install the counter tops and box off the soffit where it was cut for the new cupboards. The final bid came in around $18,000. The moldings added expenses not in the original ballpark estimate, as did details like a valance over the sink and the matching shelf I wanted over a doorway to connect the built-in sideboard to the kitchen area. There was a promotion going on for buying the counter-top and cabinets together and we saved several thousand dollars. The sink was included but we have to pay for install. 
We chose not to box in the refrigerator with a side panel. Besides functioning as the showcase magnet board for the kids artwork, it would have create problems moving our over-sized fridge for cleaning or replacement. We also put off adding a pantry cupboard in a unused built-in grill. This would cost about $1500.00 and can be done another year. 
We choose granite counter tops on the advice of our experienced designer. Due to the promotions that month, it only cost a couple of hundred more than a high-end laminate. Most of my neighbors had remodeled their kitchens in the last decade and the complaint I heard the most from them was they wish they had sprung for the granite. So my husband and I decided to do it right the first time. I brought my husband into the design area and he chose the same granite style I did. How cool is that! We put our order in the first week of April with expected delivery in 6 to 8 weeks.