How to Purge and Pack for a Kitchen Remodel

By Bethany Beebe The landing place for purses and bookbags. A place to catch up on the morning news. A spot to gather for a family meeting. Where the kids do their homework.

The modern kitchen functions in a myriad of ways beyond giving us space to make meals. To make this space more functional, beautiful, and add value to the bottom line of one’s overall home, a remodel of the space can be an idea worth banking on.

Especially given the price of such structural changes, being organized and prepared is smart. Smaller kitchens may cost $10-15,000 to redo, with grander outcomes over $100,000. No matter what you spend, with good plans in hand, you are far more likely to end up with aboveaverage results.

The dollars and cents

Deciding what will change and how much to spend on those desired changes are key planning decisions. Staying inside the lines of an established budget and doing it yourself as much as possible both help keep spending in check. Experts recommend adding at least 20% of the total one expects to spend to be built in as “wiggle room” for issues and surprises and develop. One never knows what issues lurk behind a wall that will find the light of day once a project starts, and the extra budgetary breathing room makes allowances for such.

Out with the Old

Once the budget is established and the countdown clock running for the start of work, it is time to prepare for the overhaul of the Grand Central Stations of our lives. Transporting away what is not built into the area soon to be under construction is a major portion of this stop on the road to completion. Expert suggestion offers that if the remodel is planned for under a month, putting things in a different room will be easiest. When the overhaul exceeds one month, placement of kitchen goods into standard packing boxes that are well labeled, with (at least) sensitive items wrapped individually for protection, is a good idea. In the case of a longer time of work, only the most basic of functional items that can be washed, probably without the use of the dishwasher, need be allowed to stay in regular circulation. Smaller boxes are more manageable.

Get rid of random clutter, disposable containers without their lids, and donatable items like dishes, flatware, or mugs and glasses no longer used. Experts also recommend that if you would rather pack everything away and go disposable, this might be the ideal chance to use up the leftover items like napkins from your son’s birthday party or the fun paper plates from last year’s anniversary event.

In with the New

When it is finally time for the dust to fly on your kitchen remodel, you will be glad for the plans you have made. Experts suggest that if you are planning to sell your home in the next five years, only the amount you can make back in resale should be spent. A “forever home,” or house that you expect to keep longer, could look to a plan with more function, pleasure, individual comforts, and tastes in mind. No matter how long you plan to spend in the space, though, your prudent, creative, and functional plans can put great outcomes on the menu. a