Make It Right: Kitchens and Bathrooms

Make It Right®

KITCHENS AND

BATHROOMS

MIKE HOLMES

To the next generation of skilled trades workers—

you will continue to make it right.

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Introduction

Chapter 1—Getting Started

Chapter 2—The World Behind the Walls

Chapter 3—Hiring Right and Working with Your Contractor

Chapter 4—Greening Your Renovation

Chapter 5—Cooking Up a Kitchen That Works

Chapter 6—Creating the Just-Right Bathroom

Chapter 7—Built to Last

Glossary

Acknowledgements

Copyright

About the Publisher

INTRODUCTION

A homeowner recently told me about his new kitchen cabinets. They stink. They’re off-gassing like crazy. He can’t live in his condo because everyone notices the smell—except, of course, the company that supplied the cabinets—and now he has to replace them. In hindsight, he wishes he’d chosen low-VOC cabinets that don’t off-gas as much, but he didn’t know at the time that they were an option.

It’s too bad, because not many renovation projects can give you as much satisfaction as a new kitchen or bathroom. But I’m willing to bet no other renovation project will bring up more choices than a kitchen or bathroom. What do you do first? How do you find the best people to work for you? What about tile, countertops, cabinetry, flooring, appliances? The list goes on and on.

The fact is lots of choices can be good choices. There isn’t one right answer that works for everyone, because people have different budgets, different needs, different ideas, different things they’re looking for. What matters is figuring out what’s important to you and why. Are you looking for the best quality? The lowest cost? The kind of products that will last a lifetime? And what about the environmental impact?

Maybe you feel overwhelmed by how much there is to know. Believe me, I’m still learning all the time too. There are new products and materials on the market every day, and new techniques and tools being introduced, and it can be a lot of work to stay on top of it all.

In the pages that follow, I’ll explain why the real part of any renovation happens behind the walls, and tell you what you need to know about that world behind the walls, including the structure, the plumbing, and the electrical. You might not have thought much about these things yet, but believe me, they’re important and they have to be done right if you want to spend your money right. You have to look at your kitchen or bathroom as if it’s just a small part of a whole system that works together. To do a kitchen or bathroom right, you have to understand the system, you have to understand your whole house and how it works. I spend a lot of time in this book leading you through all the different components that make up your house because they will have a direct effect on how successful your kitchen or bathroom renovation is going to be. So many bad renos happen because the homeowners and the contractors don’t want to spend the time or the effort making things right behind the walls first—they just want to jump right into choosing counters and faucets and fancy finishes. That’s putting the cart before the horse.

I’m going to take you through the stages of the renovation process, letting you in on some of what I’ve learned in nearly 30 years in this business. That’s what good contractors do: They grab the homeowner and say, Hey, here’s what you need to know. Here’s what you need to do to make it right. I’ll also tell you how to hire the right contractor, and to do a truly green renovation.

Renovating doesn’t have to be a nightmare. When you’ve got the facts and you know what to expect, there’s no reason you can’t end up with a great reno that adds real value to your home. When it seems like there are too many details, and too much to know, remember that you can always go back to the basics: Slow down. Educate yourself. Check out your contractor. Make smarter choices.

CHAPTER 1

Getting Started

Many homeowners start a renovation by looking at pictures of totally finished rooms—showrooms, really. That’s what I call eye candy. This can be a good way to get ideas, but to be honest, that’s not what renovations are all about. A good renovation is about what’s under the surface and behind the walls. That’s my world.

I’ve often found that homeowners don’t notice there’s something wrong with their renovation unless the finishes look bad. It’s true that bad finishes are a sign that something is wrong, but it usually goes a lot deeper than the surface. Bad finishes—like sloppy trim, cracking grout, or cabinet doors that don’t shut properly—are signs of bad workmanship, not enough effort, or just plain ignorance on the part of the contractor or subcontractors. You can bet on one thing: if the finish is bad, the start was probably wrong too.

That’s why it’s important to take the time to understand your house better. To see that it’s not just the finish—the lipstick and mascara—that matters, it’s everything that’s underneath and behind the finish as well. A house has to be built from the outside in, not from the inside out. You might find it hard to believe, but a successful kitchen or bathroom renovation has more to do with carpentry, HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning), electrical, and plumbing than tile or paint colours.

So, before we move on to questions like what kind of countertop you should put in the kitchen, we need to look at the bigger picture. You need to understand what this renovation project is going to involve.

Let’s start with the questions that most homeowners start with—how much it’s going to cost, and how to get more usable space in your kitchen or bathroom without having to add on. In the next chapter, I’ll go behind the walls—your house’s existing structure, plumbing and drainage, electrical, HVAC, insulation, and windows. You need to get the facts on all of these things if you’re going to do the job right.

Money, Money, Money: How Much Can You Spend?

Your budget is totally up to you. It’s based on your income and how much you’ve saved or how much a bank will lend you—and how much you’re comfortable borrowing. How long do you plan to stay in your house? If you plan to grow old in it and you’re still young, you might want to spend more than if you plan to move in a few years. You should also factor in the value of housing in your neighbourhood, and figure out whether your investment will over-improve the house—that is, make it worth more than any other house in your area. That can be a bad idea, especially if your plan is to get most of your investment back (or even make a profit) by selling within just a few years.

Your budget will also be based on how much that kitchen or bath of your dreams is going to cost. But how do you know how much it will cost? Lots of contractors will be able to give you a ballpark number for your renovation plans. It’s not the same thing as a quote, but it could help you figure out if you’re being realistic or just dreaming. And keep in mind that if a ballpark estimate is off, it’s probably an underestimate rather than an overestimate, so it’s a good idea to add at least 10% to any projected budget. That way, you’ll be covered if any surprises come up—or if you change your mind along the way and decide to add a few upgrades. Remember: The less you change your mind during the renovation process, the better chance you have of staying on budget and on time. Plan ahead!

Using the services of professionals like designers, architects, and engineers will also add to the cost, and that may not be something you’re entirely familiar with at the beginning. By the time you get to the contract stage, you should have a firm number that everybody agrees on, not a hazy more or less figure. The only way to get to that firm number is to plan all the details of the reno, including the materials you want, so that your contractor can do exact calculations.

If that first ballpark figure from a contractor comes as a shock, consider your options. You could wait another year or two and continue saving towards your goal. You could make some concessions in your plans to cut costs (going with stock cabinetry rather than custom, for example, or getting mid-range appliances rather than top-of-the-line). Your contractor might have some ideas to help you save or about how to do the reno in stages. Maybe the major stuff gets started this year, but isn’t complete until next year.

You may be tempted to save money by acting as your own general contractor or doing the renovation yourself. Renovations are always more complex than you might expect and you could be getting in over your head, risking time and money. A good contractor knows how to get the job done right and knows the subcontractors (electricians, carpenters, plumbers) who will also do the job right. Hire right and let the pros do their job. It’s the secret to a successful reno.

You could also borrow more money than you’d planned, but keep in mind that there’s always a cost to borrowing money, and the longer it takes to pay off the principal, the more you’ll spend on interest. Interest rates have been low for years now, which has made borrowing pretty cheap, but rates could jump at any time, which would increase your payments a whole lot. Those interest rate hikes would affect not only your home improvement loan, but also any other loans you have, such as a car loan and maybe even your mortgage. The extra costs to service your debt could get really big, really fast.

Maybe you’re thinking, Hey, this guy’s a contractor, not a financial planner, so why is he giving me advice about money? The answer is that I want you to be realistic about money so you can be responsible to the people you hire. I’m always standing up for homeowners who’ve been taken advantage of by lousy contractors, but the flip side is the homeowner who takes advantage of a contractor by not having the money to pay when the work is done. Don’t be that kind of homeowner. Be realistic about what your reno will cost so that you can hold up your end of the bargain.

What You Can Expect to Spend When You’re Renovating a Kitchen

The sky’s the limit when it comes to some people’s kitchen renovations. I’ve seen renos that cost over $100,000 and nice renos for much less. The quality of the existing plumbing, electrical, and structure will have an impact on the total cost, but the biggest factor has to do with the choices you make. Laminate counters or granite? Standard range hood or designer? Vinyl floor, ceramic, or natural stone? Stock cabinets or custom?

What you can predict fairly accurately is what proportion each part of the renovation should cost. In the following list, you’ll see how the costs break down, based on North American averages:

icon Cabinets: 48%

icon Labour/installation: 16%

icon Countertops: 13%

icon Appliances: 8%

icon Flooring: 4%

icon Sinks and faucets: 4%

icon Miscellaneous: 7%

Source: National Kitchen and Bath Association.

These figures can give you some idea of how to budget. Even if you go with a bare-bones renovation starting at about $15,000, you can expect to pay about half of that on cabinets. As you continue to plan your reno, don’t skimp on the stuff you don’t see. Expensive tiles are crap if they’re not installed correctly on the right subfloor.

Labels (top to bottom):

You see a beautiful butcher block. I see a red flag. My first question about countertops is how porous is the material? Wood is generally a bad idea near a sink.

You’re impressed by a sink in the island, but I’d want to see that the plumbing is correct and that the sink is properly vented.

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I like the look of this range hood too. The size is good. It’s useless, though, if it’s not vented outside. You also want an 8" vent, minimum.

You see lots of cupboards. I see a lot of display space but very little storage for a big kitchen, and not much counterspace either.

Many homeowners like the look of hardwood, but wood floors aren’t the best choice for kitchens or other potentially wet areas.

What You Can Expect to Spend When You’re Renovating a Bathroom

With bathrooms, you’re going to find that labour makes up a big part of the total cost—probably about half. You won’t have as much cabinetry as in the kitchen—where cabinets can cost close to 50% of the total—so even if you go custom those cabinets aren’t going to account for so much of the cost. If you change the layout of your bathroom fixtures, or add more fixtures (such as a separate shower or a bidet), that’s going to cost you more in labour because it’s going to take your plumber and carpenter more time than if you’d kept everything in the same place. Once your walls and floors are opened up, you probably want to take the opportunity to upgrade your plumbing, especially if the existing plumbing is on its last legs and could eventually damage your new renovation.

Just like with kitchens, if you want high-end fixtures and products, that’s going to cost more. Do you want marble counters on custom cabinets? A separate bathtub and shower, with tempered-glass doors custom-fitted for the shower? Two sinks plus dual-flush toilet and bidet? Tumbled marble tile throughout the bathroom? All that is obviously going to cost a whole lot more than standard fixtures and lower-end tile. An easy rule of thumb is to take the cost of your fixtures and accessories, then add that amount again for labour. That will give you an approximate cost for the whole thing.

Space: How Much Do You Have—and Can You Find More?

The decision to renovate a kitchen or bathroom is often made because you’re frustrated by not having enough space. Not enough space for two people to work in the kitchen or get ready in the morning, not enough space for storage—you know what I’m talking about.

Sometimes issues of space can be dealt with through better organization of what you already have, and that can be the best and least expensive option. But if that’s not possible, you need to look at how a new design can solve those everyday frustrations. A better layout of fixtures, appliances, cabinets, and even passageways to and from the room could be the solution.

When planning your renovation, pay attention to traffic flow. If your kitchen is the entrance-way to another room, you don’t want an open refrigerator door to get in the way.

To get that new-and-improved layout, it’s worth looking at whether there’s any floor space in nearby rooms that could be stolen and used as part of the kitchen or bathroom. For example, if there’s a bedroom next to the bathroom, does it have any space to spare? Sometimes a bedroom closet can be closed off and easily incorporated into a room on the other side of the wall. This can work if the bedroom is large enough that it already has enough alternative storage space, or more could be built.

Before you plan to take down a wall to get more space for your kitchen or bathroom, you have to be sure the wall is not supporting the structure of the house! Structural support is also an issue if you’re planning to move or enlarge a doorway, move or enlarge a window, or move or add a bathtub. A contractor may have an opinion (even a really good one) about whether the wall is structural, but it will require a structural engineer to actually stamp (approve) the change. Even if you find out that it’s safe to take down a wall, be aware that any changes that affect structure can be made only after you submit a permit application (with a plan drawing) to your local building department, and receive a building permit.

Even if the wall is safe to take down, some older houses may have walls with asbestos or mould which are serious health hazards. Pros should weigh in and determine if extra precautions or demolition measures are necessary.

Other places you can look for extra space are under stairs (for storage, especially) and in hallways. Sometimes a hallway that’s bounded by walls on both sides can be opened up and made into part of a kitchen. By doing this, you might get enough room for an informal eating area, cabinetry for storing small appliances or dishes you hardly ever use, or a larger island.

Just remember that a hallway determines how traffic flows through your house, and if you incorporate an existing hallway into your design, you’ll still need to allow that traffic to pass through or find a way to redirect the traffic route. In fact, traffic routes should be part of your overall design strategy. Sometimes it makes sense to move or eliminate a doorway, for instance, to achieve a more efficient flow.

I’ve seen a lot of houses where homeowners have taken over an entire bedroom to create a larger bathroom, or maybe to add a master bathroom to their floor plan. No doubt about it: