The kitchen floor replacement has begun...

 We are doing another minor remodel to our kitchen.  It all started with a trash compactor that was located as a built-in in my kitchen, here in Fairbanks.  It does not work.  It did not work when we bought the house.  It was disclosed in the blurb from the seller's realtor.  It was one of the only houses that actually had a compactor.

I had a stand-alone compactor in Parkesburg.  I really loved being able to compact my trash as I could go for a whole week with only one bag of trash.  I brought that compactor with me and it is now in the garage.  But the non-working trash compactor was an eye-sore in the kitchen.  It did, however, serve as a trashcan.

Rob has wanted to replace it since day one!  In fact, he had begun digging into how it was in there to see if it was something that he could do on his own.  It was then that he discovered that the hardwood floor, that had been installed in the kitchen, had actually trapped the compactor, as well as the dishwasher, under the counter since the hardwood was about 3/4 of an inch thick and now the appliances that were under the counter could not be moved out without tearing up the floor.

We had looked at replacing the countertop and replacing the appliances at that point, but our Handyman who was going to do that decided to move back to the lower 48 before he was able to do that for us.  So we switched gears and decided that replacing the floor was a better way to go.  Even if we had done the countertop, if one of the new appliances needed to come out, we still had the same problem, so attacking the floor was the best option.

That work began this morning.  Eric, from Ace Handyman Services, arrived at 9:00 AM.

I remembered to take pictures before he started so we can have some before pictures.  I also snuck up and took a few pictures during the process.

This is the view of my kitchen from the dining room.  This is before Rob and I moved anything out.  The baker's rack is the coffee and tea center.  Next to it is the rolling round cart for my Instant Pot. The fridge, with a rolling spice cart on the far side out of sight in this picture, is on the right along with the stove.  Those two appliances will be staying.  On the other side are the black trash compactor and the ivory dishwasher.  The dishwasher is 22 years old and so replacing it at this time should prevent the old one from dying just as a bunch of holiday dishes need to be cleaned.  Rob ordered each item in stainless steel and the dishwasher will be able to be connected to the internet, so I can start it from my bed if I forget to do it before I head to the lower level for the day.

Here is the floor closeup.  It was a tad worn but still looked nice.  I was not thrilled with it.  While I never did, I worried about spilling something on the floor like liquid jello and then trying to get it cleaned up out of all of those grooves and joints.  And I have a Roomba that vacuums twice weekly on the upper level.  I had to block the kitchen as the noise it made running over the boards in the kitchen was LOUD!!!!

We are going to be replacing the floor with vinyl planking.  It is the newest thing in floor coverings.  We drove to North Pole, AK to find what we wanted.  We had so many choices, it was almost scary.  I was overwhelmed.  They all looked good.  Any of them would work.  But Kate zeroed in on one that she really liked, so we went with her choice.  So glad that I did not have to choose.  We purchased 4 boxes.  The appliances arrived in the early fall and we had the planking in the garage before the snow fell in October, so we have just been waiting for a good time to get started.

This is the view from the kitchen into the dining room.  Just using this so you can appreciate the "during" photos.

This is the look at the floor out to the dining room.  The trash compactor is on the right and the dishwasher is on the right towards the far end of the kitchen.

Now, for the disaster that is the 'during' section of the remodel.  Eric arrived on time this morning and went right to work.  The first thing was moving the stove and the fridge out of the kitchen.  Rob and I had cleared up the kitchen so that there was nothing in his way yesterday.  Eric moved the stove into the dining room and then moved the fridge just at the end of the kitchen so it could be plugged in and used until it can be put back into place.  By the time we are done, the new floor should be completed and even be under the fridge, stove, compactor, and dishwasher.

Then began the demolition.

Eric began removing the hardwood boards from the floor.  Rip, crack, shovel, and pull were the sounds I could hear in my craft room.  I went upstairs when it appeared he might be done and was greeted at the top of the stairs by this pile of wood and nails.

This was a look at the next floor under the hardwood.  He (Eric) has since moved all of the wood into his vehicle and will be transporting it to the dump.  But here is the somewhat ugly vinyl floor that was under the hardwood.  Eric thought perhaps he could leave it down and treat it so the planking could go on top, but in checking the dishwasher, he noted that it was still blocked in by this floor.  Turns out this vinyl was glued down over luan flooring adding a bit more than 1/2" to the original floor, so it will be coming out as well.

This is a view into my dining room from the living room.  As you can see, the fridge is now blocking the end of the kitchen.  It is plugged in next to my mixer.  If you look carefully you can make out the stove next to the back window.  Eric has equipment stored there as well.  He has coverings on the carpet and was able to move the fridge without tipping it.  He has obviously done this before.

I took this picture over the wall from the living room to look at the floor that was under the stove.  Nor sure what is going on there, but that will be Eric's problem.

Those of you who know me, know that I have always had cameras all over the house.  It allows my kids to look in on me so that if I fall ill and cannot call for help, they may eventually find me and send help.  I have installed many WYZE cams all over this house.  I used the kitchen cam to snap a picture of Eric's back next to the pile of the second floor in the corner of the kitchen.  He found a third floor under the second floor.  It, too, is vinyl and is a really, really ugly brown color and is supposed to look like 2 or 3-inch floor tile.  Eric says it is finally down to the original floor.  The appliances can finally be moved.  So this third floor will remain and be treated so the new floor can be laid.  So Eric will be cleaning up from this, getting the appliances out, and will return on Thursday to finish the job.

So why not tomorrow??  Tomorrow I have our electrician, Bill Stewart, coming in to do some new wiring,  Right now, we cannot run the microwave and the dishwasher at the same time.  Bill is going to come in and disconnect the Sauna (which we will never be using... I have fabric stored in there now), split the 240 line, and run separate electric lines into the kitchen so we can run multiple appliances at the same time.  He has already scoped out the job and Rob and I cleared out 2 cabinets, at his request, so he can do his work tomorrow.  Then Eric will come back in on Thursday and finish the floor job.

I will keep getting pictures of the work and will show off the finished product when everything is finished.  A great way to start off the new year.