Best Order for Kitchen Remodel: Flooring?

-When being your own contractor, you might be faced with a decision about the best order for a kitchen remodel. There are a lot of moving parts: countertops, appliances, cabinets, flooring, plumbing, just to name a few of the factors involved in deciding on the best order for your kitchen remodel. Here are some thoughts:

-Some recommend putting flooring down after you have installed cabinets (which occurs after you have painted). The advantage of this is that you don't waste money installing flooring under base cabinets where it will never be seen. If you choose to follow this order for your kitchen remodeling, be sure that you are allowing enough height for your dishwasher or that your dishwasher has adjustable height capability.

-I would go ahead and put your hardwood flooring or tile down under where the refrigerator is going to go. The expense is going to be negligible, and it will save you a lot of hassle in terms of trimming out the floor around the refrigerator. Also, that will make things easier when it comes time to push the refrigerator into place. Just be sure you don't scratch the floors, if possible.

Former builder and instructor of "Save Time and Money in Home Remodeling" cont. ed. course at Emory University