When thinking about changing up your kitchen counter, planning to do it yourself is a huge undertaking. Many things can go wrong if you try to install a kitchen counter without experience. If this is a project you are determined to accept, you must make certain preparations in advance.
Numerous complications can arise during countertop installation. Measurements, safe practices, and working around other kitchen features such as the sink can all prove difficult to manage. In light of all these things to consider, hiring a professional is a far better and easier choice for most people.
Lacking Proper Skills
There are several steps involved in swapping out your kitchen countertops yourself. A detailed plan can help you initiate your dream and highlight areas that you might find troublesome. Installing kitchen countertops if you’re not particularly handy can lead to messy installations, uneven countertops, and many other mistakes. Alternatively, hiring a professional will guarantee skilled work completed in less time.
Tools and Supplies
Having the proper tools is essential for this kind of home improvement project. However, it’s important to know beforehand what tools you would need and how to use them. This includes saws and caulking guns, which some households might not have. Hiring someone to replace your counters who already has all of the necessary tools can be an easier choice than teaching yourself.
Removing Your Sink and Old Counter
Before you can begin placing a new countertop, you must first remove the old counter and kitchen sink. Removing a sink requires several steps in itself. Shutting off the water and disconnecting the pipes can be a big job. If you have a garbage disposal, turning this off is essential and should never be overlooked.
If you have ordered new countertops, you need somewhere to keep them while you remove the old ones. If the new ones aren’t in a safe location, they could break and cause setbacks in your project.
You cannot install broken or damaged counters, so if you have any issue with your new counters before installing, you might have to order new ones. This will cost more money and extend the length of your project.
Ensuring Your Cabinets are Level
If your cabinets are not level once you remove the old counters, you will have to rectify that problem. Incorrect installments of previous counters can be difficult to see if the old installers cut corners or added certain elements to make them level.
Uneven cabinets might mean other additions need to be used to keep your new counters from developing a slope or tilt. Your project could change from installing kitchen countertops to straightening your cabinets, adding an unforeseen and unwelcome twist to your project.
Correct Measurements are Essential
Proper measuring is one of the biggest hangups of any home improvement project. If, at any time, you misread a measurement or make a measuring error, it could affect the entire counter space and result in more time and money spent trying to correct the error. Understanding how to measure is essential to any project.
Installation Time
Usually, it takes three to five hours for a professional to replace a regular-sized countertop. It’s better to assume that the entire project will take a day to get right. A large countertop job will take up to three days to complete.
If you try to install a counter yourself, you might have to extend this timeline multiple times to ensure that you’ve completed the installation correctly. A short replacement could last weeks or even months if you are unprepared for the amount of work required.
Installing kitchen countertops by yourself can be hard work, especially if you’ve chosen granite counters. It’s much safer and easier to complete the job with someone to help you. However, if there’s no one you can rely on, it’s better for your kitchen and peace of mind if you hire professional installers.
Conclusion
Hiring a professional makes the job quicker and less of a hassle. A professional can guarantee the correct measurements, ensuring that your new space has level counters and no gaps.
Putting in your kitchen countertops has the potential to save you money, but there’s no guarantee that it’s the best decision. Mistakes and errors could waste time and money that hiring a professional from the outset would avoid.
