Kitchen Build-Out Additions: Tips and Tricks

Tips For Kitchen Build-Out Additions

Do you feel as if your family has outgrown your kitchen? Does it feel cramped or outdated, not having really been touched since you moved in? Sounds like it’s time to start investing in possible kitchen build-out additions for your home!

At Westshore Construction, we have more than a few specialties, and this has been one of them for many years. As the leading kitchen remodeling company in sunny Florida since 1985, we know a thing or two about bringing your dream kitchen to life. Our team is made up of highly trained professionals that are experts in their field and don’t waste your time with shifting deadlines. We offer professionalism, attention to detail, the craftsmanship that will exceed your expectations, and quality product that are both durable and beautiful.

Are you ready to update your kitchen and bring it back to pace with your current lifestyle? This post will go into depth about essential tips to follow when extending your kitchen and how to know when it’s time to take that first step.

Signs It’s Time to Invest in A Build Out Addition

The kitchen is one of the most essential rooms in any household. It’s where loved ones gather for home-cooked meals, and lifetime memories are created. This means your kitchen should be a warm and inviting place, be fitted to your needs, and flow with the rest of your home. In other words, your kitchen should add to your quality of life, not subtract from it.

However, when this space becomes cramped, it can be difficult to enjoy and basic cooking or entertaining challenging.

Other signs that it may be time to upgrade your kitchen include the following:

Lack of storage space
Insufficient counter or prep space
Addition of kids or an empty nest
Worn-out or energy-inefficient appliances
Poor lighting or layout
Worn surfaces
Unappealing aesthetics

When investing in your kitchen, it’s best to stay away from surface-level upgrades but instead addresses functionality as well as aesthetics. Even if doing so costs more, your wallet will be thanking you in the future as you’re likely to see as high as a 60% return.

This is a huge asset if you ever choose to sell your home, as the cooking area is usually one of the main deciding factors for homebuyers. When renovated properly, with practical needs, durability, and beauty in mind, it greatly increases your chances of selling your home for its highest probable sale price.

Basics of Kitchen Build-Out Additions

Kitchen build-outs can be a true game-changer when it comes to your quality of living by working on expanding a room without qualifying as a room itself.

However, before taking on such a momentous yet rewarding project, it’s important to do your research. For instance, the process will require permitting, foundation work, as well as work in your existing kitchen to match your new space to create a streamlined appearance.

You may also want to research some aesthetic desires, such as different brands, features, warranties, costs, and more. This ensures that the products you choose are as beautiful as they are durable.

Keep reading for more tips and tricks when starting your kitchen build-out project!

Define Your Needs

The first and most basic tip that can be given when investing in kitchen build-out additions is to define your needs. In other words, before starting, assess your kitchen and decide what elements work, what ones don’t work, and what might be functionally missing to make your kitchen match your current lifestyle. You can write this out in list format, then highlight your top 3 or 4 most important priorities or goals while keeping in mind your budget and your ultimate vision for the space.

Doing this helps get your kitchen renovation done right the first time. This is extremely beneficial as going back and trying to re-do previous work can be both time-consuming and expensive.

Some questions you should ask yourself before renovating include the following:

What does my current kitchen lack?
How do I want my new kitchen to fulfill unmet needs?
What can be added or changed?
How do I use my kitchen? (hanging out, cooking, consuming meals vs. using separate dining area)

Of course, you also want to do your research. This means exploring floor plans, designs, brands, and overall finding inspiration. You can do this by searching for ideas online or in home and garden magazines.

Your contractor can better understand your needs, wants, and ultimate idea for the space when you have this information ready.

Structural Considerations For Kitchen Build-Out Additions

Kitchen build-out additions can and often do require considerable architectural changes. For instance, all exterior walls are load-bearing. Meaning they’re holding up thousands of pounds of house and cannot be removed without being replaced in some way. Incorporating beams, columns, or a combination of the two is the best way to accomplish this. When establishing design plans for your new space, it’s a good idea to keep this in mind.

Another structural element you may need to be aware of is your heating and cooling. Depending on how large you make your kitchen, you may need to install additional heating or cooling to make up for the extra space. You can do this by adding permanent heaters, baseboard heaters, or window unit air conditioners.

Choosing Materials For Kitchen Build-Out Additions

Selecting your materials can be tricky and a little overwhelming, with hundreds of options to choose from.

To make things a little easier, here are the three main things you want to look for when considering your options:

Aesthetic
Durability
Function

It’s better to invest in quality materials that offer these different elements rather than cheap ones when expanding your kitchen. Even though they might cost more, it’ll be worth it in the end when your cabinets are still looking bright shiny new 20 years after installation.

In order to properly unite the new space with the old, it’s also a good idea to select transitional-style furniture for a beautiful, streamlined appearance.

Invest Your Time and Money

Every project’s cost differs and is defined by the quality of materials you choose, the cost of labor, and both the size and scope of the project. Consequently, a good tip to follow is, during your research, to focus on the potential expense of each need.

This includes exploring the price tag on various project areas such as:

wall tear-downs
electrical and plumbing work
cabinet type and installation
appliances

In addition, it’s best to seek out estimates that include a detailed list of all materials and labor. Having a list makes it easier to visually see what expenses can be removed if, down the line, you need to cut costs.

However, when cutting costs, be careful not to do so in the wrong areas. For instance, some aspects of the project can be extremely dangerous if not performed by licensed professionals. You want to invest the time and money for proper permits and licenses.

Keep reading to find out what these vital areas are and why it’s important to invest in them for your kitchen build-out additions!

Plumbing Permit

A permit is needed to alter or touch any type of plumbing, especially if it resides behind a wall. Plumbing work also requires a close inspection before being sealed up again. Unpermitted plumbing can cause potentially dangerous and costly complications that can lead to severe property damage.

Electrical Permit

This is an especially important part of your project to make sure is done right and definitely not cut corners around. Unlicensed electrical work can electrocute you and lead to fires putting your and your family’s safety at risk.

Building Permit

This is required any time you open walls which is a big part of constructing kitchen build-out additions. It ensures that your remodel can compensate for the weight that the wall was holding. Without a building permit, your home has the potential to collapse from a lack of proper structural planning.

Inspections

The cost of your permits usually includes inspections by city officials and ensures all work was performed to code. In other words, you won’t have to correct dangerous or poorly done work in the future. Having to re-do shoddy work usually costs much more than if it had been done right the first time.

Project Length

When installing kitchen build-out additions, planning truly is everything. This is possibly the most important tip you will hear, and when done right can save you a lot of headaches.

Remodeling is almost never simple but instead is full of complicated dependencies. This means that, as in most construction, certain phases cannot begin until previous ones are complete. In other words, having a daily or weekly schedule for the installation of your addition can be extremely helpful and assist in catalyzing your project to a speedy and fluid end.

Contact Westshore Construction for Your Kitchen Build Out Additions Today!

Do you want a contractor that cares about your home and comfort as if it were their own? Do you need ideas and want to work with experienced professionals that are both eager to help and proud of what they do?

Then contact Westshore Construction today to bring your kitchen dreams to life! We offer free estimates that will tell you the total cost, when the project will begin, and when it will end.

Don’t wait to start improving your quality of life.

Author: Ariana Borges

Attribute: https://www.contentbyariana.com/