6 Tips to Survive Your Kitchen Renovation
No matter how minor your kitchen remodeling project is, there’s always a level of inconvenience and upheaval to overcome.
But with a major kitchen renovation, every moment can feel like ages. It’s only during a renovation you realize how central your kitchen is to your lifestyle (you probably already knew how important the bathroom is).
That’s why you get 1-day installation from our team. To keep the disruption to your daily life low.
- Your custom countertop arrives early, cut and ready to install.
- Your floors are protected to keep any mess contained.
- After installation, your floors are vacuumed and we take away anything we brought in.
But even with a quick installation your renovation can be disruptive. After all, a countertop isn’t your entire reno.
Here’s what you can do to survive the rest of your renovation.
Create a temporary kitchen
As tempting and easy it is to just get takeout for a week, or two, during your reno, it can become:
- Expensive.
- A chore.
- Addictive (will the kids ONLY want takeout from now on?).
You still need space to make school lunches, eat breakfast and brew that all-important morning coffee.
Most homes don’t have multiple kitchens, although if you do, well done.
The majority of us should designate a spot in a spare main floor room as a short-term location for your simple cooking needs.
2. Don’t get too elaborate
If you like cooking exciting meals on your kitchen countertops, you may have to go more basic for a while.
Even mixing bowls take up a lot of valuable space in your temporary kitchen, so choose what you cook wisely.
Cold pasta salads and sandwiches are pretty standard during renovations.
3. Plan and prep before day 1
Make a bunch of soups in the week leading up to your renovation and keep them in the freezer.
- There’s no reason you can’t move the fridge to your temporary kitchen.
- There’s also no reason you can’t bring a few small appliances, like the toaster or slow cooker.
There’s also the mini fridge option. Buy one for your renovation and keep it in the office or another common room stocked with drinks.
4. Stock up on disposable things
Your sink, dishwasher, backsplash and drawers may be off limits while your kitchen is all disassembled, but you still need:
- Plates
- Utensils
- Cups
- Bowls
- Napkins
Recyclable or biodegradable items gives you solid, reliable, easy-to-get-to “dinnerware.”
It’s also much easier (and less stressful) to clean them up than to try to wash your good dishes in the bathtub, laundry room sink or outside with the hose, and it’s not practical to sneak into your renovation space to wash them in the good sink.
5. Go heavy on the snacks
When you’re hungry but don’t have the time or energy to prepare a full meal, snacks are your best friend.
Before your kitchen renovation starts, make sure to stock up your pantry with grab-and-go items like:
- Crackers
- Fruit
- Beef jerky
- Cereal
- Granola bars
- Muffins
They don’t replace a full meal, but they certainly satisfy the hunger in a pinch.
6. Take a deep breath
You may get frustrated or impatient with what seems to be an ongoing kitchen renovation.
But remember the short term pain will give you long-term gain in a variety of ways:
- You’ll finally get the kitchen you always wanted
- You’ll dramatically increase the value of your home
- You’ll have a more functional space to cook in
The more you use and enjoy your kitchen, the more the temporary annoyances will fade from your memory.
Take a look at the stone countertops you could get for your new kitchen and contact us to talk about your kitchen renovation and the potential for some really great designs.
