Kitchen (and Granite Backsplash Drama) Update

[dr.girlfriend]

On the bright side, the contractor is all done with his stuff, and everything looks great.  He fixed absolutely everything I had even the slightest qualm about.  I 100% recommend him if anyone is in the Philly area.  Here are some photos of the almost-done kitchen (not terribly different from the last time I showed it to you, except that everything's painted:








On the negative side, to recap, there was supposed to be a granite riser between my sink base cabinet and the higher cabinets, both of which have granite tops.  Here's a pic:



The granite guy was all nonchalant and didn't take a template even when I asked him if he should, and he mismeasured -- the riser was a half inch too short (e.g., there was a big gap all along the top).  He said he would recut the backplash from the remnant, I asked him if he was sure there was enough, he said he would check.  Later he said there wasn't enough, but I sent the lot number of my slab to him and he said he'd try to "color match" it from the stone distributor.  I told him if it wasn't going to be a good match to let me know and I'd do something else instead.

Today his guys showed up, cut it in my driveway, and it was a horrible match -- my granite is almost all cream and sand color, and this one was cream with big splashes of chocolate brown in it.  It was crazy-noticeable, especially because it's sandwiched between two slabs of the correct granite.  I sent them away, and had a big text fight with George the Granite Guy.  I was arguing that he should reimburse me at least $300 for the granite I didn't get, which will barely cover the cost of tile + installation.  He was arguing that he sent his guys out and tried to make me happy.  In the end he agreed to have a tile guy he knows do the installation if I pay $100 "for gas."  Kind of ridiculous, but if it gets done it's probably the easiest solution, so I agreed.  Hope he doesn't flake on that agreement.

[pitterwoo]

sorry about that debacle with the granite! tile will look fine too, and I hope they come through for you quick. what an idiot he is for not being careful.

[r]

The kitchen looks amazing!! I am glad you stood up for what you wanted versus letting the granite people install something you would forever hate. I hope everything works out for you. I am kitchen jealous right now.

[whitemerlot]

It looks awesome! I would be annoyed about that granite piece. I think the tile will look nice.

[my4girls]

It looks awesome!

[mrsd2006]

It looks amazing

[kaylie]

Just to clarify, I like the pictures not the granite drama! It looks awesome and I love the backsplash. If that's what you're putting in the space that was intended for the granite it will look great.

[adhdfashion]

Pretty kitchen!

[cjeanette]

Looks good! Love the light granite.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using proboards

[dr.girlfriend]

Aug 18, 2014 21:24:16 GMT -5 @simpledog said:

Looks great! I'm local to you - would you mind PMing me your contractor rec?

Absolutely.  This is how great he is...he'll be back in the house for the last time tomorrow for the last building inspection.  He said if I could get the tiles in time for tomorrow he'd do the backsplash himself.  Of course I can't, but it's so nice of him to offer.

[dr.girlfriend]

Aug 18, 2014 21:28:31 GMT -5 @bluesky said:

such a great use of space! and absolutely beautiful!!

So you're officially in first place now?!!

Not until the final backsplash is done!  You could still pull out a win!  ;-)

[demandypants]

it looks fantastic, and I actually think the backspash tile will look great between the two slabs of granite. Even so, it sucks that there was an issue in the first place.

[dr.girlfriend]

Aug 19, 2014 7:40:58 GMT -5 demandypants said:

it looks fantastic, and I actually think the backspash tile will look great between the two slabs of granite. Even so, it sucks that there was an issue in the first place.

Yeah, honestly in the long run I think it will actually look better.  The riser was the full thickness of the granite, which seems extra-thick (I guess Bianco Antico is fragile so they have to make the slab pretty thick), and even when they had the misfit-riser in there it looked like kind of a big monolithic wall of granite.  I think the tile will actually lighten it up, and tie the two halves of the kitchen together better.  I just hope it stays clean; my main concern was with having white grout lines right behind the faucet.

[raangoli]

That really sucks that they wanted to put some random granite slab in there! At least you were home to make sure you didn't come back to a disaster. I agree with the PPs that the tile will look really nice. We have white grout behind the sink and it's easy to keep clean if you wipe it down. A good sealer might be able to help with that, too.

Yeah for an almost done kitchen!

[nomad100]

OMG, I love it all (except the granite drama).

Are you going to give a breakdown of all the costs?

I know we need to start saving for our kitchen reno and I am trying to figure out what kind of damage we may be talking about. We want to do IKEA cabinets too and will be taking down part of a wall.

[dr.girlfriend]

Aug 19, 2014 9:39:38 GMT -5 nomad100 said:

OMG, I love it all (except the granite drama).

Are you going to give a breakdown of all the costs?

I know we need to start saving for our kitchen reno and I am trying to figure out what kind of damage we may be talking about. We want to do IKEA cabinets too and will be taking down part of a wall.

Sure, I'll post a breakdown of costs, maybe this weekend.  I was aiming for $20k knowing it might be closer to $25k, and that's pretty much where it came in.  I went pretty lush on most things, though...especially the appliances, sink + faucet, granite, that kind of stuff.  Rough estimates:

contractor:  Original estimate $8500, ended up adding $1400 for permits and another $1000 for additional permit costs and materials
fridge + oven :  $4500
dishwasher:  $700
sink:  $400
sink grid:  $80
air switch for disposal:  can't remember, but under $20
faucets (touch faucet + insta-hot water system) $500
light:  $280 (pendants $99 each, other light $79)
ikea cabinets (under) $3500 -- I bumped it up to $3500 to get 10% off by buying a lot of organization stuff (which in itself took it down to $3150), but I have a lot to return, including some big stuff like appliance panels that were $100 or more so I think it'll end up closer to $2800
granite:  $3300 (but this was a pretty high-level granite -- level 7 I think? -- and I did the ogee edge all around
tile:  $150 (original) + $30 (remainder of backsplash) -- although $50 of that was shipping, the tile itself was around $4 per square foot
pretty plugs/outlets:  $200
paint:  $120
cabinet hardware:  not sure, maybe $50 total?  I linked to them here

I think that's it.  I'm not counting the flooring because we bought it a few years ago when it was being discontinued (it's the same flooring as in the adjoining t.v. room), but I think it was about $500.  And then I also sold our old stove and dishwasher for $150 each, that kind of thing, which hopefully brings the costs down more. Also, keep in mind it's a VERY small kitchen -- 9 x 11. There's only that one upper.  So more space would bump up the cabinet and granite costs signficantly.

[nomad100]

dr.girlfriend Thanks! This is very helpful (even if it depresses me at the same time).

FML, I am so screwed budget-wise. We have a large kitchen 12x20ish that is stupidly laid out and I hate it so much. So lots of moving of appliances and a goodly number of cabinets. I have a feeling I am looking at $45-50K plus when it is all over (we need new flooring in there too.) Sigh. I am going to have to live with my stupid kitchen for at least another 3-5 years because the bathrooms need work before I can start saving for the kitchen.    

[dr.girlfriend]

Aug 19, 2014 10:11:11 GMT -5 nomad100 said:

dr.girlfriend Thanks! This is very helpful (even if it depresses me at the same time).

FML, I am so screwed budget-wise. We have a large kitchen 12x20ish that is stupidly laid out and I hate it so much. So lots of moving of appliances and a goodly number of cabinets. I have a feeling I am looking at $45-50K plus when it is all over (we need new flooring in there too.) Sigh. I am going to have to live with my stupid kitchen for at least another 3-5 years because the bathrooms need work before I can start saving for the kitchen.    

I know what you mean...when I first started planning, I had a contractor who said he'd do the work for $5000, and I was like, "Okay, cabinets will be like $3000, I'll easily have it all done for under $10k!"  Then I started to add up all the other things -- both big and little -- and...yikes!  We saved for an additional few years, but it was good because it allowed me to collect ideas and really think it over fully instead of my original "just keep the current layout and update stuff" plan.

[nomad100]

dr.girlfriend I am hoping that it may not be as expensive as I think because DH and I are very handy we can do some of work ourselves (backsplash, floor install, painting, hardware install, lighting install, etc.) and hire out the stuff we don't/won't do (plumbing, drywall, electrical, countertops).

But still, it is going to suck big donkey balls no matter what we do since it is a total gut job.

[compassrose]

It looks amazing! Nicely done! And thanks for the breakdown- that's very helpful.

[Ashley&Scott]

It looks beautiful!

I think you should definitely get the $300 credit for the granite you never received. Sure he sent his guys out there to "make you happy" but that's their job and they offered a poor solution. Don't let him feel bad for wanting it done right. If it were me I would take the credit then hire your other contractor to do the tile back splash above the sink.

[msmerymac]

Gorgeous! Can you refresh my memory? Did you put together your own cabinets? What did the contractor do? And can you PM me his information? Thanks!

ETA: It looks like you got a great amount of storage in there, and I love the light you picked for in front of the window.

[dr.girlfriend]

Aug 19, 2014 11:54:50 GMT -5 Ashley&Scott said:

It looks beautiful!

I think you should definitely get the $300 credit for the granite you never received. Sure he sent his guys out there to "make you happy" but that's their job and they offered a poor solution. Don't let him feel bad for wanting it done right. If it were me I would take the credit then hire your other contractor to do the tile back splash above the sink.

Yeah, he is offering no credit.  That's what I *suggested* to him.  He responded with a lot of "lol"s.  Very professional.  :-P  He counter-offered that I pay his tile guy $200 to do it, we settled on me paying the tile guy $100 "for gas."  I think he thinks he's being generous by sending his tile guy.  My bad for paying him at the time he brought all the other stuff...I felt on the spot to pay since he HAD brought the majority of it, but I should have held $500 back or so, it would have put me in a better bargaining position.

[Ashley&Scott]

dr.girlfriend that sucks that you've already paid.

[Laura Palmer]

AMAZING

[kaylie]

Does your contractor do bathrooms? That's a pretty great price. If he does, could you PM me his info?

[dr.girlfriend]

Aug 19, 2014 17:22:52 GMT -5 kaylie said:

Does your contractor do bathrooms? That's a pretty great price. If he does, could you PM me his info?

He does, actually he does more bathrooms than kitchens.  I'll PM you his info.

[dr.girlfriend]

Aug 19, 2014 12:10:40 GMT -5 msmerymac said:

Gorgeous! Can you refresh my memory? Did you put together your own cabinets? What did the contractor do? And can you PM me his information? Thanks!

ETA: It looks like you got a great amount of storage in there, and I love the light you picked for in front of the window.

Here's what he did for $8500:

Kitchen remodeling:

1. Remove and dispose old cabinets and counter tops

2. Remove and dispose kitchen/dining room wall, redo air duct, remove and patch vent/fan on back wall

3. Build half wall for bar area, install supporting beam for a ceiling

4. Reconfigure plumbing for sink and dishwasher to be on the side of a bar area

5. Install lighting (4 recessed lights and 2 pendant lights)

6. Install new additional electrical lines for new appliances and plugs/switches as per plan

7. Install flooring

8. Install wall and base cabinets, toe kicks and crown moldings, appliances as per plan, including cut-down of 12" deep pantry to 6" deep, and crown molding in dining room

9. Install tiled backsplash

10. Finish and paint ceiling and walls in the kitchen area

11. Install faucets (regular and Quick-Hot) and garbage disposal



Materials included: rough-in electrical and plumbing; drywall, compound, tape, wood beam, screws, nails, tile adhesive, ducting



Materials not included: Appliances, sink, faucet, garbage disposal, counter-tops cabinets, moldings, tiles, light fixtures, flooring, paint