Kitchen Remodel Checklist
A kitchen remodel is really two projects running at once: the work we do, and the products you buy. The second one is what usually decides how long the first one takes.
Download the printable PDFWe do not start until your materials are here
Every finish material on this list has to be physically at your home before we begin. Not ordered. Not shipped. Not out for delivery. Delivered, and checked by us.
We give you a completion timeframe and we hold to it. The only way we can do that is to control what is in the house on day one. A material that is still in transit has too many ways to fail — backorder, freight delay, shipping damage, wrong color, wrong quantity, wrong dye lot — and every one of those lands on your finish date instead of the supplier's.
So if the materials are not here, we do not start. Your project does not become a slower job. It becomes a later start. That is exactly what protects the timeframe we promised you.
Your countertop is the one exception. The slab is reserved at the yard before we start, but it cannot be cut until your cabinets are set and measured.
Almost everything we build is sized around something you purchased. Cabinets are built around your appliances. Countertops are cut around your sink. Rough plumbing and electrical are placed around your range, your hood, and your pendant lights. If a spec arrives late, we are not just waiting on a box — we are waiting to find out where things go.
One item in particular waits entirely on you. We cannot complete your cabinet design rendering until we have a rough layout of the kitchen and the dimensions of every appliance you plan to put in it. The rendering is what the cabinet order is built from, and the cabinet order is what sets your start date.
How to use this checklist
- Tick the box once the item is bought and the spec sheet or model number is sent to us — not when you have decided on it. A decision we cannot see is not a decision we can build from.
- Send specs to Tony.KVIConstruction@gmail.com. A photo of the model sticker or a link to the product page is enough.
- Anything marked "On site before we start" has to be at the house before day one. Anything marked "Before we start" is a decision we need from you by then, not something you deliver.
- If a line does not apply to your scope, cross it off with us at the pre-construction walkthrough so nothing is left looking unanswered.
What you purchase, and when it is due
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Appliances
Send these first. Cabinet sizes, gas lines, circuits, and venting are all built from these spec sheets.
| Done | Item | What we need from you | Due by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Model number, fuel type (gas / electric / induction), overall width, and the required gas line and circuit size from the spec sheet | On site before we start | ||
| Model numbers and the cutout dimensions listed on the spec sheet, plus circuit size | On site before we start | ||
| Model number, CFM rating, duct size and direction, and the mounting height you want above the range | On site before we start | ||
| Model number, width / depth / height including door swing, whether it needs a water line, and panel-ready yes or no | On site before we start | ||
| Model number and panel-ready yes or no | On site before we start | ||
| Model number, cutout dimensions, water line needs, and whether it requires a dedicated circuit | On site before we start | ||
| Model number, horsepower, and whether you want an air switch in the counter or a wall switch | On site before we start | ||
| Where we can keep the appliances once they arrive. All of them are here before we start, so we need a garage bay, a spare room, or somewhere dry and out of the work zone | Arranged before we start |
Model number, fuel type (gas / electric / induction), overall width, and the required gas line and circuit size from the spec sheet
Due by: On site before we start
Model numbers and the cutout dimensions listed on the spec sheet, plus circuit size
Due by: On site before we start
Model number, CFM rating, duct size and direction, and the mounting height you want above the range
Due by: On site before we start
Model number, width / depth / height including door swing, whether it needs a water line, and panel-ready yes or no
Due by: On site before we start
Model number and panel-ready yes or no
Due by: On site before we start
Model number, cutout dimensions, water line needs, and whether it requires a dedicated circuit
Due by: On site before we start
Model number, horsepower, and whether you want an air switch in the counter or a wall switch
Due by: On site before we start
Where we can keep the appliances once they arrive. All of them are here before we start, so we need a garage bay, a spare room, or somewhere dry and out of the work zone
Due by: Arranged before we start
Cabinetry and hardware
Cabinets set your start date. Nothing after them can start early, so this section moves first.
| Done | Item | What we need from you | Due by |
|---|---|---|---|
| We cannot produce your cabinet design rendering without a rough layout of the room and the dimensions of every appliance going in it. The rendering is what the cabinet order is built from, so this is the first domino in the whole project | Before we start | ||
| Your signed approval on the final shop drawing and a physical color sample you have seen in your own light | Before we start | ||
| Pulls and knobs — count per the plan plus four spares, the finish, and the screw length if you have thick drawer fronts | On site before we start | ||
| Trash pull-out, spice rack, tray dividers, lazy susan, drawer inserts — these ship with the cabinet order | On site before we start | ||
| Material, length, bracket type and finish. We install blocking in the wall for these, so we need it before drywall | On site before we start |
We cannot produce your cabinet design rendering without a rough layout of the room and the dimensions of every appliance going in it. The rendering is what the cabinet order is built from, so this is the first domino in the whole project
Due by: Before we start
Your signed approval on the final shop drawing and a physical color sample you have seen in your own light
Due by: Before we start
Pulls and knobs — count per the plan plus four spares, the finish, and the screw length if you have thick drawer fronts
Due by: On site before we start
Trash pull-out, spice rack, tray dividers, lazy susan, drawer inserts — these ship with the cabinet order
Due by: On site before we start
Material, length, bracket type and finish. We install blocking in the wall for these, so we need it before drywall
Due by: On site before we start
Countertops
Countertops cannot be measured until the cabinets are set. That template date is the start of a fixed waiting period.
| Done | Item | What we need from you | Due by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand and color. For natural stone, the specific slab you walked and reserved at the yard, with the slab number | Reserved before we start | ||
| Picked from the fabricator’s samples | At template | ||
| How many holes and what goes in each one — main faucet, soap dispenser, filtered water, air switch | At template |
Brand and color. For natural stone, the specific slab you walked and reserved at the yard, with the slab number
Due by: Reserved before we start
Picked from the fabricator’s samples
Due by: At template
How many holes and what goes in each one — main faucet, soap dispenser, filtered water, air switch
Due by: At template
Plumbing fixtures
| Done | Item | What we need from you | Due by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Model number, single or double bowl, undermount or farmhouse. A farmhouse sink changes the cabinet it sits in, so this has to be settled before the cabinets are ordered | On site before we start | ||
| Model number, finish, and pull-down or standard | On site before we start | ||
| Model number and finish. The valve goes in the wall at rough-in, so tell us early if you want one | On site before we start | ||
| Model number and whether the unit needs an outlet under the sink | On site before we start |
Model number, single or double bowl, undermount or farmhouse. A farmhouse sink changes the cabinet it sits in, so this has to be settled before the cabinets are ordered
Due by: On site before we start
Model number, finish, and pull-down or standard
Due by: On site before we start
Model number and finish. The valve goes in the wall at rough-in, so tell us early if you want one
Due by: On site before we start
Model number and whether the unit needs an outlet under the sink
Due by: On site before we start
Tile and flooring
| Done | Item | What we need from you | Due by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tile delivered to the site with 15% overage. Include the trim or bullnose pieces, or tell us you want a metal edge profile instead | On site before we start | ||
| Chosen from our sample board held against your actual tile, not from a photo | Before we start | ||
| Material with 10–15% overage, plus the transition pieces to every adjoining room | On site before we start | ||
| Schluter or similar profile and finish, if you are using them | On site before we start |
Tile delivered to the site with 15% overage. Include the trim or bullnose pieces, or tell us you want a metal edge profile instead
Due by: On site before we start
Chosen from our sample board held against your actual tile, not from a photo
Due by: Before we start
Material with 10–15% overage, plus the transition pieces to every adjoining room
Due by: On site before we start
Schluter or similar profile and finish, if you are using them
Due by: On site before we start
Lighting and electrical
Every fixture location is set at rough-in, before the walls close. Changes after drywall mean opening the ceiling back up.
| Done | Item | What we need from you | Due by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Count, trim finish, and color temperature — 2700K reads warm, 3000K reads cleaner. Pick one and use it everywhere | On site before we start | ||
| Model number, how many, and the height you want them hanging above the counter | On site before we start | ||
| Tape or puck, dimmable or not, color temperature, and where the transformer can live | On site before we start | ||
| Model number and weight. Anything heavy needs blocking in the ceiling before drywall | On site before we start | ||
| White, almond, or black, plus the cover plate style | Before we start | ||
| Which circuits you want dimmed and whether you want smart switches | Before we start |
Count, trim finish, and color temperature — 2700K reads warm, 3000K reads cleaner. Pick one and use it everywhere
Due by: On site before we start
Model number, how many, and the height you want them hanging above the counter
Due by: On site before we start
Tape or puck, dimmable or not, color temperature, and where the transformer can live
Due by: On site before we start
Model number and weight. Anything heavy needs blocking in the ceiling before drywall
Due by: On site before we start
White, almond, or black, plus the cover plate style
Due by: Before we start
Which circuits you want dimmed and whether you want smart switches
Due by: Before we start
Paint and finishes
| Done | Item | What we need from you | Due by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand, color name and number, and the sheen for each surface | Before we start | ||
| Ordered from your cabinet supplier with the cabinets so it matches the production run | On site before we start |
Brand, color name and number, and the sheen for each surface
Due by: Before we start
Ordered from your cabinet supplier with the cabinets so it matches the production run
Due by: On site before we start
Order these first, they decide when we can start
- Appliance specs. Not the appliances themselves — just the spec sheets. We cannot even produce the cabinet design rendering without them, and the rendering is what the cabinet order is built from.
- Cabinets. Generally two to four weeks depending on how much customization you want, though timing is always subject to change. This is the item that sets your start date.
- The countertop slab. If you want natural stone, go to the yard and put your name on a specific slab before demo day, not after.
- A custom or oversized hood. The framing above the range is built around it, so we need the model before we frame.
The order the work actually runs in
This is the order a kitchen runs in and roughly how long each phase takes. Your job may skip a phase or combine two of them, but the sequence rarely changes — each phase depends on the one before it.
Read the last column closely. That is where your purchases land on the schedule.
Every phase below assumes your materials were already at the house on day one. That assumption is what the whole schedule rests on.
| # | Phase | Typical time | What must be settled or on site first |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Design, selections and ordering | 2–6 weeks | Rough layout and appliance dimensions to us, cabinet rendering approved, slab reserved, and every material on page 1 delivered to the house |
| 2 | Permit, if the scope requires one | 1–3 weeks | Plans submitted. Moving walls, gas, or plumbing usually triggers this |
| 3 | Site protection and demolition | 1–3 days | Your temporary kitchen set up somewhere else, and the room emptied |
| 4 | Framing and structural changes | 1–4 days | Final layout approved and any header or beam detail confirmed |
| 5 | Rough plumbing, electrical and HVAC | 3–5 days | All appliance specs, sink model, pot filler decision, pendant locations, under-cabinet lighting |
| 6 | Rough inspections | 1–3 days | Scheduled by us. Timing depends on the inspector’s calendar, not ours |
| 7 | Insulation and drywall | 4–8 days | Nothing needed from you |
| 8 | Prime and first coat paint | 2–3 days | Paint colors and sheens selected |
| 9 | Flooring, if it runs under the cabinets | 1–3 days | Flooring delivered, acclimated, and inspected |
| 10 | Cabinet installation | 2–4 days | Cabinets delivered and checked for damage before the crew starts |
| 11 | Countertop template | 1–2 hours | Sink and faucet physically on site — the fabricator measures around them |
| 12 | Countertop fabrication | 7–14 days | Nothing happens on site during this stretch. It is normal and it is already in the schedule |
| 13 | Countertop installation | 1 day | Access to the driveway and a clear path to the kitchen |
| 14 | Backsplash tile | 2–3 days | Tile, trim pieces and grout on site, dye lots checked |
| 15 | Finish plumbing, electrical and appliance install | 2–3 days | Every fixture and appliance on site and unboxed |
| 16 | Trim, hardware and final paint | 2–3 days | Cabinet hardware on site with spares |
| 17 | Final inspection, punch list and walkthrough | 1–3 days | You available to walk the job with us |
1. Design, selections and ordering
Typical time: 2–6 weeks
Rough layout and appliance dimensions to us, cabinet rendering approved, slab reserved, and every material on page 1 delivered to the house
2. Permit, if the scope requires one
Typical time: 1–3 weeks
Plans submitted. Moving walls, gas, or plumbing usually triggers this
3. Site protection and demolition
Typical time: 1–3 days
Your temporary kitchen set up somewhere else, and the room emptied
4. Framing and structural changes
Typical time: 1–4 days
Final layout approved and any header or beam detail confirmed
5. Rough plumbing, electrical and HVAC
Typical time: 3–5 days
All appliance specs, sink model, pot filler decision, pendant locations, under-cabinet lighting
6. Rough inspections
Typical time: 1–3 days
Scheduled by us. Timing depends on the inspector’s calendar, not ours
7. Insulation and drywall
Typical time: 4–8 days
Nothing needed from you
8. Prime and first coat paint
Typical time: 2–3 days
Paint colors and sheens selected
9. Flooring, if it runs under the cabinets
Typical time: 1–3 days
Flooring delivered, acclimated, and inspected
10. Cabinet installation
Typical time: 2–4 days
Cabinets delivered and checked for damage before the crew starts
11. Countertop template
Typical time: 1–2 hours
Sink and faucet physically on site — the fabricator measures around them
12. Countertop fabrication
Typical time: 7–14 days
Nothing happens on site during this stretch. It is normal and it is already in the schedule
13. Countertop installation
Typical time: 1 day
Access to the driveway and a clear path to the kitchen
14. Backsplash tile
Typical time: 2–3 days
Tile, trim pieces and grout on site, dye lots checked
15. Finish plumbing, electrical and appliance install
Typical time: 2–3 days
Every fixture and appliance on site and unboxed
16. Trim, hardware and final paint
Typical time: 2–3 days
Cabinet hardware on site with spares
17. Final inspection, punch list and walkthrough
Typical time: 1–3 days
You available to walk the job with us
Shaded rows are stretches where little or nothing happens on site. They are part of the schedule, not a sign the job has stalled.
The three most common delays on a kitchen remodel
- Appliance specs arriving late. The cabinet order waits on them, and if they change after rough-in we are moving gas lines and circuits that were already run.
- The countertop slab not being selected and reserved. We cannot schedule the template, and the template is what starts the two-week fabrication clock.
- Tile arriving short or backordered. Tile crews are booked weeks out. If your tile is not here on their day, we lose the slot and wait for the next one.
Typical lead times
These are ranges we see in the Columbus market. Confirm the real number with your supplier when you buy, and tell us if it is longer than what is shown here.
| Item | Typical lead time | Order it by |
|---|---|---|
| Cabinets, stock through custom | 2–4 weeks | As soon as the job is booked |
| Standard appliances | 1–4 weeks | As soon as the job is booked |
| Pro-style or panel-ready appliances | 6–16 weeks | Before we set a start date |
| Custom or oversized range hood | Varies by model | As soon as the job is booked |
| Countertop fabrication (after template) | 7–14 days | Cannot be rushed or started early |
| Specialty or imported tile | 2–8 weeks | 4 weeks before the tile phase |
| Light fixtures and pendants | 1–6 weeks | 3 weeks before drywall |
Cabinets, stock through custom
Typical lead time: 2–4 weeks
Order it by: As soon as the job is booked
Standard appliances
Typical lead time: 1–4 weeks
Order it by: As soon as the job is booked
Pro-style or panel-ready appliances
Typical lead time: 6–16 weeks
Order it by: Before we set a start date
Custom or oversized range hood
Typical lead time: Varies by model
Order it by: As soon as the job is booked
Countertop fabrication (after template)
Typical lead time: 7–14 days
Order it by: Cannot be rushed or started early
Specialty or imported tile
Typical lead time: 2–8 weeks
Order it by: 4 weeks before the tile phase
Light fixtures and pendants
Typical lead time: 1–6 weeks
Order it by: 3 weeks before drywall
The other planning checklists
Lead times and durations on this page are typical ranges for the central Ohio market and are not a quote. Your project is scheduled from your own scope, selections and supplier confirmations.