How to Renovate a Kitchen

If you're doing the work yourself and learning as you go, this will be slow-going. Kitchen plumbing and electrical are not exactly trades you learn overnight. But if you're using a contractor or hiring subcontractors, your head will spin at how fast experienced plumbers and electricians can do this.

Rough-In the Plumbing

Your new kitchen may have a kitchen island with a sink or a refrigerator with an automatic ice-maker. Or you may decide to move the main sink to a different spot. In any event, it is almost certain that you will have increased plumbing needs. At this "rough-in" stage, new supply and drainage pipes are added for sinks, dishwashers, and refrigerators.

Add Electrical System

You should have at least a 200 ampere service panel to power a modern kitchen. If you have less than this, you will need to heavy-up, or increase, your service capacity. This is a job best done by an electrician. Electricians most likely will abandon your old wires in favor of running new wires through the walls to power lighting and appliance circuits. If you are doing the work yourself, you may also find it easier to run new circuits than to deal with a spaghetti mess of old wires.