Where to start renovating a kitchen: common mistakes and recommendations
The kitchen plays a special role in any home. This is a multifunctional room where food is prepared and the family gathers for dinner. Therefore, kitchen renovations are thought through from start to detail. It’s worth taking a closer look at where to start to make the room comfortable and stylish.
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Contents
Main stages of kitchen renovation
To facilitate the repair process, it is carried out in stages. Start with the main idea. It is important to clearly think about how the room should turn out. This is the design, arrangement of equipment, furniture and other things. You need to have a good idea of what your future kitchen should look like.
Development helps a lot design project. On paper or electronically it is much easier to imagine how to use the available square meters. This is the repair stage with the identification of errors and pitfalls. Some decisions change, some ideas have to be abandoned.
When all problems are resolved, the final stage begins. This is the direct implementation of the project. Repairs are carried out independently or with the help of hired workers. But there are still many tasks to be solved to make the kitchen in the apartment multifunctional and comfortable.
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Preparation
Repair work consists of preparatory and main stages. In the first case, most of the time is spent on project development. This is especially true for small kitchens, where you need to comfortably place all the items. At the same stage, suitable furniture and other details for the room are selected.
The kitchen is a space with high humidity levels. When choosing furniture, make sure that the material from which it is made is moisture-resistant and easy to clean.
The set occupies the main place in the kitchen. It is usually made to order. It is important that by the time the headset is delivered, the space is prepared for installation. It is not worth taking measurements yourself if the room is small or has a complex configuration. High risk of making mistakes.
When it was possible to determine everything that will be present in the kitchen, the information received is reflected in the project. They mark where the equipment will be installed, indicate its exact dimensions, marks with the location of sockets, switches and other elements.
A list of household appliances is necessary to immediately understand how and where they will be connected. This will allow for more efficient placement of sockets. Before installing furniture and finishing the surface, rough work is carried out. This includes wiring, installation of sockets and switches. First, their locations are determined, then the type of these elements. The number of outlets should not be neglected. The quantity should be sufficient to fully service kitchen appliances.
Before the cladding begins, the walls are repaired. Remove the old coating and level the surface. You can do this yourself or contact a specialist, which also applies to gender. It must also be level.
In the kitchen, many smells mix when preparing dishes. Therefore, the hood is one of the mandatory elements for placement. It is necessary to figure out exactly how the ventilation hole will connect to the equipment. Corrugations and plastic pipes are striking and distract attention. It is important to hide this area so that it looks beautiful without losing its effectiveness.
To solve the problem, a special box is used that hides the entire structure behind it. It can be built after installing the headset. Or place the hood and tiles under the ventilation hole. But this needs to be thought through at the stage of developing the kitchen design.
They think about installing the apron in advance. The process depends on the selected material. If the apron is made of expensive raw materials, then it should be installed after collecting and installing the headset. When standard options are used, installation occurs after the headset, provided that it is planned to make this area the key one in the room. This also applies to the use of a corner kitchen. If the set is made in one line, you can install the apron both before and after assembly.
Main stage
When everything has been thought through, the furniture has been selected, and the surfaces have been prepared, you can begin the main work. The walls, ceiling and floor are being lined in the kitchen. It is necessary to competently approach the choice of materials for them.
If you plan to replace windows and doors, then start with them. It is not worth carrying out such work on your own. It’s better to turn to professionals.
The ceiling is often chosen as a suspended one. Available in various designs. For high ceilings, options with several tiers are suitable. Each of them is highlighted separately. Therefore, they receive regular lighting and dim lighting to create a calm, cozy atmosphere.
Food is prepared regularly in the kitchen. Therefore, there is an increased load on the floor surface. It must be durable and withstand various mechanical impacts. Popular finishing options include:
- Tile. It can be ceramic. This is the standard option that many people prefer for the kitchen due to its durability. But the product must have a special rough layer to reduce slipping. You can also opt for quartz-vinyl tiles;
- Porcelain tiles. Durable material that will last a long time due to its high level of wear resistance;
- Epoxy self-leveling coating. Also a durable option, suitable for placement in challenging environments. It is important that it is easy to care for. It tolerates daily washing well without losing its properties.
Porcelain tiles and tiles are durable coatings, but some are quite cold. Therefore, many people prefer to install heated floors. It is important to consider the location of the heating system so that pieces of furniture do not heat up from it.
The walls also get dirty quickly. And tiles are often chosen for their cladding. The main part of the open area between the elements of the headset is covered with an apron. Its material should be durable and easy to clean. Available in marble and granite. The rest of the kitchen is tiled in any desired way.
An important issue is the organization of lighting. The kitchen is divided into several zones. They cook and dine on it, and each segment is provided with specific lighting. For low ceilings, only spotlights are suitable. They will save space. In addition to general lighting, lighting is added to the work area to make cooking more convenient. The dining segment is complemented by sconces. Lamp placement points are thought out in advance, at the stage of developing an idea and project.
Focus on details
In addition to cladding and lighting, details that many people forget about when renovating are important. It was noted that one should not skimp on sockets. It is important to organize their placement correctly. For example, a socket for a refrigerator should belong to a separate circuit breaker, independent of the input one. Several connectors are also placed next to the sink, but they must be moisture-proof.
When designing a kitchen, you should remember to create a triangle. This is a work area that allows you to minimize movement around the room. The triangle includes a refrigerator, sink and stove. The distance between objects should be a maximum of 2.3 meters. The area should be such that it is convenient and free to move around.
When deciding where to install equipment, it is necessary to take into account the height of the residents and their path. It is important to create the simplest and most comfortable access to electrical appliances. This parameter is also taken into account when selecting the height of the lower part of the headset.
The standard height is 85 cm excluding the tabletop. But if a person is tall or short, it will be inconvenient for him to use such a headset. To choose the appropriate height, you must adhere to the rule that there should be a distance of about 15 cm between the person’s elbow and the table top.
The choice of countertop material is taken seriously. Of the many options, it is worth choosing granite or marble. They are easy to clean, withstand high humidity and do not absorb dirt.
Useful tips for kitchen renovations
In addition to the project, you should think over a clear action plan. It will avoid unnecessary costs and inconvenience during repair work. If you carefully think through each step, the process will be completed faster and with better quality.
They don’t skimp on lighting either. The kitchen should not be dark, especially in the work area. The room is characterized by an increased level of pollution. Spots appear almost daily. Therefore, all cladding materials must be easy to clean and withstand exposure to water.
The kitchen is built not only to suit the available space, but also to suit its owners. Therefore, in addition to square meters and layout features, the lifestyle and height of the owners should be taken into account.
When planning a renovation, the first thing you should consider is safety. Be sure to use fire-resistant materials, ensure that the ventilation grille is always open, etc.
Mistakes when renovating an apartment
For a repair to be successful, common mistakes must be avoided. One of these is purchasing building materials in advance. Until the project is completely ready and tested, nothing should be purchased. First you need to figure it out so that all the equipment is located correctly and conveniently, and think through everything to the smallest detail. Only after this they begin to select and purchase building materials.
Other errors include:
- Self-repair without experience or knowledge. Only a professional can build a kitchen competently and efficiently from scratch. In other cases, a beginner can only do harm, ruin everything and have to be redone;
- Illiterate search for masters. You should not contact the first specialist you find. A professional must meet a number of requirements in order to complete the job efficiently;
- Installation of bulky air ducts. They require a lot of space, and it will be more difficult to hide such a structure;
- Non-specific calculations. There is no need to indicate approximate data, especially regarding the location and dimensions of the equipment.
Apartment renovation in the kitchen requires careful preparation. They start with a plan, without which it will be difficult to correctly arrange all the elements. When looking for ideas and inspiration, you can study some photos with examples. The main thing is to try not to make mistakes when implementing your ideas. This is especially true for spontaneous purchases made before carefully thinking through the design.
