Floor first..

All new construction here ten years ago.

All flooring went down to the walls in every room.

Had a new stove installed about a year ago; no problem. A qualified installer would not ruin the floor.

Having the flooring done first allows you to change the arrangement of the kitchen at any time, otherwise there would be places with no flooring.

Sue

Always floor first so that it can go fully under appliances. What they did on your current situation is a builder trick to save a little expense and really stupid, if it were a more expensive flooring that might make more sense but I would never allow that. It should be fully installed below all appliances except in some cases a dishwasher, but I make them do it also.
So that does mean you have to have your appliances pulled out into another room while they install.
Then make sure they are extremely careful not to damage the floor.
If going with tile it should sit a day before heavy appliances are put back on it. My tile installer would not allow walking on it for a day after he installed it.

My guess is if they did that under your appliances they didn't put it under your cabinets either. When doing a full kitchen renovation I have had them put the floor down in the entire room then install the cabinets and other stuff so if you ever pull the cabinets to change something you have a full floor under it and not a floor that just goes to the cabinets.

add me to floor first group...if you're on a budget, look for flooring you can store, until ready to do appliances....or vice-versa....have you decided what you want? wood? more vinyl? and how many layers are there already? we had to do a full tear out as there were already 2-3 layers...and doors wouldn't have closed, ect...my fave are sheet vinyls..(.more expenisve than carpeting in some cases) but no squares to trap dirt...but we were not only doing the kitchen but ds1 was getting married so went with peel and stick....it's done well for 13 years but showing it's age...and with mine, i like things like the thicker bamboo, ect that's comfortable to walk on...(and considered "green")

I work construction side jobs "and" did my own kitchen rmodel about 10 years ago.....just saying..

Flooring is always "first".

We had a total kitchen remodel six years ago. All cabinets, appliances and flooring where replaced. The flooring (wood) was the last thing installed. We never saw a need to spend extra money for flooring we'd never see. Plus, since it's wood and prone to damage if we had a water leak from the fridge or dishwasher, we wanted the flooring to easy to rip out. No regrets whatsoever.

Jodi-

Do the entire floor.

Then make your appliance delivery people aware you have a new vinyl floor..... make SURE they are aware of it. Let the people know who you bought the appliance from that you have a new floor.

The guys that delivered my stuff were very careful and brought along some very thin boards so that they could roll the heavy refrigerator off the dolly and onto the boards and navigate it back into the spot it needed to go, then carefully removed the boards.

Make sure you floor is clean when they come in and that no debris gets carried in - keep a broom handy. You don't want rocks or other things under the wheels that can scratch or tear your floor.

I have also found that if you let your new floor "cure" a bit - it doesn't tear quite as easy.

Hi again Raven ...

... are you sure that you didn't put a flea into the installers' ears, to not walk on the floor for a day ...

... to get to have dinner ... plus the others, for a whole day ... out?

o j

PammyFay -- Thanks for starting this thread.

We need to replace our refrigerator and our kitchen/breakfast nook floor (linoleum), so this discussion is providing me with some useful information.

When we re-did our kitchen about 4 years ago, the contractor did the floor first, then called in the shop where we bought the flooring.
It was all done in the same day, when the floor was done, contractor called floor covering installers - they were waiting for the floor, and it was in by dinner.
They had to move both the refrigerator and freezer out of the kitchen to do the floor...and both were moved black in place the same day.

Susan -- I have no idea what kind of flooring I want. Well, actually I know what I don't want -- hardwoods, because there are hardwoods for the combined DR/LR just a few footsteps away from the kitchen. It'd be a bear to match, and while I like them in the DR/LR, I need fuss-free so I don't get stressed out if the dog slurps her water.

Sunday, I think I'll go to a flooring store (and the big-box depot) to do some "recon" work. Probably more vinyl, no tile.

I will have to check beneath the stove to see how many layers there might be. I think I am just the 3rd owner of the place, and I'm pretty sure previous owners didn't do any updates, so it's probably subfloor and vinyl (unless there's usually something between them?).

Even if this project doesn't get done for a while, research has always been the rough part -- I research too much!

[And thank you everybody for sharing your opinions on floor-vs-appliances first. Stay tuned for more kitchen questions, next time with a photo!]

I'll be waiting for your opinion after the vinyl and other floor research. I would love to get rid of the tile in my kitchen, but I'm not sure what to replace it with. I've heard cork is great, but I don't know how easy--or hard--it would be to keep clean. I know vinyl's have changed tremendously over the years. Good luck in your search!

This discussion reminds me of a neighbor who painted the baseboards in his house before putting it on the market. (We liked the wife but not him.) When the new owners moved in they discovered that he had painted up TO the sofa, the sideboard, etc. but not *behind* anything!

lol..pammy you can shop too much so be flexible! boy did we find that out the hard way...we had decided to to a traditional checkerboard (like b/w) but then when we got to the store, and by this time with rehersal dinner looming at the house...we realized the colors were aweful with the new cabinets...

i swear to you, in 20 minutes had changed counter color, took a chunk of that to the flooring dept, where we found this multi-toned peel and stick...so i guess the pressure wasn't all that bad in the end...

one reason i suggested sheet vinyl are the wood toned patterns it comes in..quite realistic looking and the joy of wash and go...without the care...keep us on your journey!

Today I saw Armstrong's Alterna vinyl tiles (a more upscale line, I guess). They were 12" square, $5 a square foot (plus installation -- I'm not a DIY person for a job like that!). Took 2 color samples home. Surprising how quickly you can tell something won't work -- neither did. Home Depot -- blah. I don't want the thin self-stick tiles; don't have much confidence in them. Tomorrow, it's Lowe's and one or two smaller flooring stores.

In the meantime, some pictures so you can see what my quandary is -- getting something that will work with both my kitchen cabinets (which I'm not in love with but don't want to replace now because of cost) and my hardwood in the DR/LR, which abuts the entryway, which leads from the front door to the kitchen to the powder room (so the new flooring will go that expanse).

The hardwood flooring pic may show a little light. It's beech (a little orange-y than maple).

SO... any ideas for a good transition color? pattern or solid? type of flooring? Eventually the appliance color is likely to change.

{{!gwi}}

{{!gwi}}

{{!gwi}}

This is Armstrong sheet vynl. We put this in about 3-4 years ago. Today, it looks just the same as day 1.
DGD used to ride her tricyle on it. Not a nick or scratch.
Wipes up with a wet swiffer mop.

How about an all-over, non-distinct pattern for this small space? A flagstone look? I'd stay away from the regimented tile look in a small room. Something 'forgetable' that doesn't show every spot would be my choice.

We bought our linoleum from a local (Ace) hardware. So many incredible choices, plus as much advice as we wanted. We took samples home several times and looked at them on the floor.

Chisue: Exactly! I don't like a lot of the "faux stone" patterns -- too complicated, and I don't want to take away from the wood floor. I want something that is just "there." Hit on 4 more options today (at 2 different stores) -- two are Mannington sheet vinyls, the others are a sheet vinyl from a company I've not heard of. Have samples of the first 2 being mailed.

(Plus today I got my first estimate, based on my I-wouldn't-bet-my-paycheck-on-it measurements. Yikes! It's been a while since I replaced the carpeting and installed the wood floor in my place, so I've forgotten that all the basics of a home just don't come cheap! Even with vinyl!)

Whoa, Monica! That is some fridge! Is it commercial? (Not that I could even get it through my front door, but I was just wondering about it!)

pammy found a 18x18 (?) tile at lowes site called cream stone....what i did like were the warm undertones of brown (to complement your existing wood) remember you will have a threshold piece to "marry" the floors...

We remodeled our kitchen using a contractor. He did everything EXCEPT flooring, so we did our floor afterwards. Contacted Sears, who sent a salesperson out with samples, made an appointment and 2 installers put it in very neatly. They were careful about existing fixtures and cleaned up before they left, took less than a day.

Susan: Thanks for the color tip. I didn't get to Lowe's yesterday, but there's one near another flooring store I want to visit, so I'll stop in.

I'm a sucker for color and pattern on a kitchen floor. The kitchen is just the right place to play with color.

We have wood floors but the kitchen has a rust & cream checkerboard pattern. The kitchen is open to the dining room but the floors make it it's own space.

We used to have Armstrong vinyl and I loved it. But we took it out since we made the kitchen larger. Had we not remodeled, I never would have replaced the vinyl. It was white with small dark green diamonds.

Patterned floors makes a kitchen unique and cheery, IMO. It's your own personal stamp or statement. The fun part is accessorizing.

My vote is pattern! :)

Vinyl Flooring

Lowes has some nice looking choices in vinyls.

My sister just did her kitchen and bath in the vinyl tiles that are a slate look and they really look good, I had to touch them to make sure lol I love the slates there are so many varieties and the colors in them are beautiful, usually a color to go with anything. I have been leaning toward slates for my kitchen redo, likely the real tile but not real slate, I don't like the irregular levels and chipping of some real slates. I love the slate tile back splashes too.