The Kitchen Remodel – Part 5

And we’re finally back working on the kitchen. Good news! Our windows came in…..after a year of waiting. Backing up, we ordered hurricane impact windows for half of the house early on in the project. As we moved forward with the house, we finalized plans for the rest of the rooms and got those windows on order. However, with covid, everything got delayed and the lead time got bumped out to a year. I’m just glad they’re here now. For this order we’ve got the window for the kitchen, a window for the master bathroom and an identical window for the master bedroom, and then a pair of windows to replace the existing windows in the living room.

Window install time

With the windows in hand, I took a sawzall and cut out the plywood covering the window opening in the kitchen. Well, first I double checked the dimensions to confirm the window would fit. Then I got to cutting. With the opening cut, I lined the bottom of the sill with flashing tape. Next, I stuck the window in the opening and temporarily held it in place with a screw while I ran inside and got it properly fastened. Once it was secured, I used the same flashing tape to cover the top and sides of the frame which creates a nice water and air seal. I don’t tape the bottom in place so that if moisture finds its way inside the frame, it can run out rather than getting trapped.

An awning window

It’s really nice having natural light in the kitchen again. The window faces south so it tends to get a lot of sunlight. With it blocked off, it was really dark in the kitchen. Also, it is an awning style window – it is hinged at the top so it can be opened by a crank at the bottom. We wanted to be able to open the window and an awning window was the best choice (most glass area with the least obstructions).

Insulation and plywood

With the window in place, it was time to start on the walls. I got the window wall insulated with fiberglass insulation. Once it was insulated, I got the plywood installed on the walls. Now, most people drywall the walls. However, since all of the wall will be covered up with cabinets, backsplash, and window trim, we’re opting for plywood. This means you can screw the cabinets anywhere and get a good bite. It’s also much more structurally sound in the event of a hurricane passing through.

The oven wall

After putting plywood on the window wall, I started the plywood on the oven wall (which is the wall shared with the master bathroom). I got the plywood fit and screwed in place. I worked my way down and installed plywood on the pantry wall. There’s still one small wall that needs covering on this side, but because it will not be completely covered with cabinets, we’re going to drywall it.

A little electrical

The next wall up is the exterior wall on the back of the house. Before covering this wall up, I had to do a little electrical (and low voltage) work. Way back when we had Comcast out to set up our internet service. They had to pull a new cable. I talked to the installer and he was nice enough to leave us some slack in the new line so that we could fish it through the walls later when we were remodeling the kitchen. Well, that time had come and so I drilled holes and ran the wire through the wall. I then installed a low voltage box over the corner cabinet in dining room and brought the cable through there. That way we can set our wireless router on the top of the cabinet. Once that was complete, I ran a wire for and installed a GFCI outlet outside by the back door. Now we don’t have to run extension cords across the driveway from the outlet outside the shop!

Odds and ends

Here’s a picture of how Teak sleeps in his crate. He’s quite the goofball. Oceana’s orchids are in bloom. Also, she’s got more sunflowers growing. They’re real tall! We dodged a bullet this week. There was a real bad hailstorm that hit Sebring and parts of Avon Park. I saw a picture of someone holding hail that was 2″ in diameter (bigger than a golf ball). There was lots of damage just a few miles away. Fortunately, we only caught a little wind and rain. That’s all for this week. Thanks for following along.