Kitchen Remodeling

Most of Manatee County filled in between the 1950s and the 1970s, and almost every house from that era was drawn with the kitchen closed off from the rest of the home. It made sense when the plans were drawn and it makes very little sense now. The job we are asked for more than any other is not new cabinets. It is taking that wall out and getting the kitchen, the dining room and the living room to read as one space.

Here is the part homeowners are rarely told before a price lands in front of them. Almost everything here is concrete block on a slab, which means the wall you want gone is not a stud wall somebody opens in an afternoon. It may be carrying the tie beam and the roof above it, and removing it properly means an engineered beam, a permit and an inspection. That is a real job with a real number. We work out which walls are structural and tell you before we quote, rather than finding out on demolition day and handing you a change order.

Cabinets get specified differently on this coast too. A kitchen here sits in high humidity for most of the year, and a particleboard cabinet box in that climate swells at the toe kick and the sink base long before the doors ever wear out. We spec plywood boxes and finishes that tolerate the moisture, because the cheapest kitchen is the one you are not rebuilding in seven years. On the islands, where a lot of these homes are seasonal or rented out, we also plan the schedule around the calendar so the kitchen is finished and back in service before the guests arrive.