Whether or not you’re planning on selling your home in the near future, changes to your kitchen will retain 80% of their value upon resale. As far as investments go, it’s one of the most practical changes you can make to your home. Getting new countertops installed as part of your kitchen remodeling project will add both aesthetic and financial value to your house.
Some homeowners spend years putting off necessary changes to their homes, even when the returns are as high as new countertops are. Broken or cracked countertops could lead to water damage to your cabinets our walls. Delaying to repairs to some elements of our kitchens could lead to bigger costs down the road.
If you’re interested in having new countertops installed, a few simple tips could help save money and add value. Follow these 6 tips to ensure you’re prepared for the process.
1. Choose The Right Designer
There are lots of great design professionals available across the state of Florida. Talented designers could be found anywhere from the biggest of the big-box department stores to storefront design boutiques. Even lumberyards have experienced designers who can ensure you’re very happy with your next countertops.
When you’re looking to get countertops installed, make sure you build a rapport with the designer providing the new countertops. You should feel like they understand you and communicate clearly about your design wants and needs. Make sure you’re comfortable before you start writing your check.
A great designer will make sure your project starts off on the right foot and stays on track.
2. Ask Questions and Do Your Research
Get to know about the different kinds countertops and materials available before you move to have your countertops installed. Marble is one of the most reliable and longest lasting materials for countertops, but it might not be right for you. No matter what your budget, you should be able to find the right material.
Discuss possibilities with your designer. Bring photographs of your kitchen so that you can start talking about tones and colors. While you can always repaint your walls, getting something that matches your current cabinet and appliance style is important.
A kitchen can be more than just a place to cook a meal. Some families congregate in their kitchen to play games, hang out, and even to do some reading. Make a list of the kinds of things you do in your kitchen so that the style of your new countertops matches your family’s style.
3. Avoid Major Holidays
The busiest and most stressful times of year are usually the worst time to get countertops installed. With all of the running around you’re doing on Thanksgiving and Christmas, being in the middle of a major remodeling could drive you up the wall. Imagine needing to cook a big meal and having no place to prep or to place your dishes.
While you might be planning to show off your new countertops to friends and family when they visit, you’re not the only one. That makes the holiday season one of the worst times to schedule a countertop installation. While your designer will surely work with your schedule, you’re going to pay more for labor and any snags could be made bigger by the time of year.
4. Match Your Fixtures
When people are deciding on what they want and when they want their countertops installed, sinks, fixtures, and faucets might be the last thing they think about. This means that you could end up ordering a sink that’s not compatible with the base cabinet or the sink you really like.
Your designer will walk you through all of these steps and ensure you’re happy with every element. But as you focus on one piece of the puzzle, don’t forget about your sink and faucet. Imagine showing off your countertops but having nowhere to wash off your dishes.
5. Be Home During the Template Process
Your designer will come to your home to make final measurements and start building a template for your countertops. The pattern that they use to build your countertops will have to account for all of the particularities and quirks of your kitchen. Once the templates are made, the design aspect of the countertop process is complete.
Be sure you’re around to add feedback when you’re having your space templated. By overlooking and making notes about what you want from your countertops will make sure that you get everything you need from this remodeling job.
If you’re planning on moving some things around or restructuring your kitchen, let the designers know in advance.
6. Keep Appliances On Site
Knowing how your appliances will fit into your kitchen could cause a delay in the fabrication of your new countertops. While you might have the measurements ready for your appliances, there are lots of elements like bevels, hinges, and door handles that could get in the way.
Make sure your new stove, refrigerator, or dishwasher are all on site when your designers arrive to make the template. If everything is in place before they arrive, you’ll be sure that your countertops fit perfectly when they’re installed. Otherwise, you could end up paying double for a countertop that doesn’t fit or was cut to the wrong specifications.
Get Your Countertops Installed Quickly
If you’ve made all of the preparations in advance, you’ll have your countertops installed quickly and painlessly. Even if you need a rush job, you might be able to get it done without any major snags if you’ve followed the steps laid out above. You’ll be preparing food and relaxing with friends and family in just a matter of days.
If you’re ready to have new countertops put in, contact us for tips on how to make sure you pick the perfect match for your home.
