Set aside an hour and a half for finalizing cabinet choices once the initial plan is in place.
Set aside enough coins in the parking meter outside, or you'll get a ticket like we did this morning. Didn't think we'd be in there that long.
We're getting our cabinets through Reico (the Bethesda location). Some knowledgeable folks in there.
Cabinets by Castpointe (maple/honey finish, nothing like that photo there).
Castpointe is the semi-custom line from WoodHarbor. Typically a cabinetmaker carries a basic line, a semi-custom and a custom line, each bumping up about 20% in price. Contruction features and options improve with price. To get some of the top-of-the line features (half wood/half glass doors) without paying for a full custom installation we're tacking a few WoodHarbor doors on the Castpointe boxes. Everybody wins. I think.
The original plan allotted 42 inches for the kitchen sink. The 30-inch sink in the showroom blew us away (compared to what we're used to) so we're getting some of that space back. We also learned that the plans hid the trash bin in one of the cabinets. News to us.
Okay the thing's not final until we decide on appliances. We thought we could put off that work. Aha! My weekend plans are here.
We finally signed the contract yesterday.
We need to sit down with the cabinet store designer to get measurements down to the quarter-inch or so. The cabinets will take seven or eight weeks to arrive; the builder will back the schedule in to demolish the kitchen about four weeks before that. The week before demolition the plumbers will come through. Ouch. Three weeks from now we'll be cooking in the dining room.
We need to box up everything in the kitchen and back room.
Melanie found some nice lights for the peninsula - $225 a piece. We need three.
In a few weeks this is all going to hit like a ton of bricks. Our builder wants the repiping to be done first, and the plumber wants to detonate the kitchen to route the gas lines and rework the sink vent. So as soon as we say 'go' we'll immediately be without a kitchen for weeks.
I think I sat bolt upright in bed at some point last night.
The repiping should take four or five days. The plumber promised us one toilet, one sink and one shower at the end of each workday. No predicting which ones.
Lots of love in dishwasher-land. Pages and pages of 5-star reviews, typically one review per model.
By manufacturer:
Bosch
Kenmore
Maytag
KitchenAid
Whirlpool
GE
This could get tricky. The range needs to integrate well with the peninsula.
Maybe I better sleep on this.
Jenn-Air
amana
maytag
KitchenAid
Can't spell range without 'GE'.
Top Freezer.
Bottom Freezer.
Waitaminit. Did that say $4039?
Side by Side.
I forget which kind we want. Probably not the $4039 kind.
By manufacturer:
Maytag
Frigidaire
Kenmore
I can't pull out GE results because you can't spell refrigerator without 'ge'.
It's a good time to borrow money. We (okay the missus) set up a home equity line that, combined with the cash we took out from the refi, will cover the job. Or buy us a really fast boat. We took some vague advice and did the equity loan through our new mortgage lender; sure enough a lot of the fees were waived since they had all the paperwork already. I think the rate is around 4%.
Tomorrow I have a plumber coming by to size up the repiping job. On Thursday the builder comes by with his own plumber and electrician - or maybe an HVAC guy, can't remember - and we'll work on hammering out the contract.
Tonight: convection microwaves. I think I'll be hitting Epinions a lot, at least until I can figure out our Consumer Reports online password.