Flooring or Cabinets First?

Today I’m here in the empty kitchen area of a partially renovated home and I’m making the all-important decision of whether to install the flooring or the cabinets first.

In short, if you are installing hardwood flooring (planks nailed down) or tile flooring (porcelain, ceramic, or stone), or sheet flooring (vinyl or linoleum roll) and your subfloor is solid and in good condition, you can install cabinets either before or after the flooring. But if you are installing any type of floating floor (where each piece is not directly attached to the floor), you should install the cabinets first. If you have the choice, it’s usually easier to install the flooring first and then the cabinets. Let’s discuss why that is, and some scenarios when it is not, as well as some other factors to consider.

Regardless of which flooring type you are using and which method you used to install it take extra precaution to avoid damaging your floors During the project. Builders paper is a commonly used solution to help reduce the chances of damage during construction. To learn more about selecting the right builder’s paper click here to read my article.

Do Hardwood Floors Go Under Kitchen Cabinets?

You can install hardwood floors before you install cabinets or you can wait and install them afterward. If you choose to install the hospital floors afterward you can’t save a little on materials and labor because you’ll be effectively decreasing the amount of floor that you’re covering with hardwood.

If you install the hardwood floors after the cabinets are installed you have to be mindful of the dishwasher. In most installations, the dishwasher’s feet sit at the same floor height as the cabinets. In order to accomplish this, you’ll need to add a piece of plywood underneath or inside of the dishwasher opening so the dishwasher can slide into the designated space freely.

If you choose not to install a piece of plywood to level and raise the floor under the dishwasher you may have issues removing the dishwasher when you need to replace or service it in the future.

Finish floors before or after cabinets?

Once you’ve installed your hardwood floors theft also decide when to finish them. Have the option of finishing them before the cabinets are installed or you can wait until after the cabinets are installed to perform the finishing process process. When making this decision you may also want to consider the color of your cabinets and the color of your stay.

Currently, in my area of the country light cabinets and dark floors are all the rage. I prefer to install my sand and finish hardwood floors first before cabinets. After installation, I stain and apply the first coats of polyurethane. Then I install the cabinets. And once all of the other work is complete in the kitchen I complete the hardwood floor by applying the final coat of polyurethane. This eliminates the risk of getting a stain on your cabinets it also gives you one final opportunity to address any minor issues like scuffs or rubs that may have occurred during the kitchen remodel or the appliance installation.

Laminate Flooring or Cabinets First?

If you aren’t installing a laminate flooring for any other type of floating floor that is made from a wood based product it is better to install the cabinets first. The floating floor allows the pieces to move more freely As they expand and contract. Installing cabinets on top of the floating floor could lead to issues what’s the buckling and gaps because the cabinets can prevent the floating floor from moving freely as it’s intended to do

Tile or Cabinets First?

Regardless of whether or not you’re playing to add tile in the kitchen floor bathroom one of your first and primary concerns should be the condition of the subfloor. In older homes, the subfloor could be made from 1 x 4 or 1 x 6 planking running diagonally across the floor joists.

1 x 6 plank float subflooring is not an adequate subfloor to install tile on 1 x 6 with a modern subfloor which comes in 3 x 5′ sheets or you can add subfloor on top of the one by six if the floor heights in your space will allow.

If you installing floor tile and a bathroom as part of a larger project that includes wall tile such as a bathroom tub surround or shower it usually makes sense to complete all the tile at the same time.

This eliminates the need for the tile installer to come back twice. Another benefit to installing the tile in the bathroom first is that if you change your mind about the style of the bathroom vanity will be much easier. To change it up in the future and you will not have to replace or change the tile if you don’t want to.

When you’re installing tile floors it’s important to pay very close attention to the condition of the subfloor because unlike other floors any movement can cost the floor so weekend in overtime this movement can cause the tiles to come a loose from the sunset and the grout to crack and eventually the tiles may come loose pop-up for.

How to install hardwood floors around kitchen cabinets

If you’re installing hardwood floors in an existing kitchen it is possible to run your hardwood floors up to the base cabinet toe kick. The most difficult part of forming this type of installation is being able to cut close to the toe kick of the base cabinets without damaging the cabin.

Tile to hardwood transitions

When planning a transition from tile floors to hardwood floors you have to options. The simplest option is to install a threshold that covers the exact location where the tile and hardwood meet each other. The transition usually ends up being slightly higher than the finished floor but it’s very common. The second option is to install the hardwood floors and tile with a seamless transition.

You need to ensure that your hardwood floors stop in a relatively straight line, so he won’t have too many issues with running your tile up to the edge of the hardwood floors. Metal edging is also commonly used between the hardwood floors and tile.

Be aware that the gap or grout line between the hardwood floors and tile may require some maintenance over the years. The tile and hardwood floors are two different building materials and they each have different properties.

Because the hardwood floors or a natural product they will expand and contract with changes in temperature and humidity. This is normal. For this reason, it is best to allow for a small gap between the hardwood floors and the tile floors to allow for expansion and contraction of the hardwood floors while minimally affecting grout of the tile.

Some tile installers choose to grout in this seam. However it is a better solution to use grout caulk which is more elastic and resistant to cracking. Most grout colors come in powder form and tube caulk form, so you should not have a problem matching your normal tile grout.

Install vinyl flooring before or after cabinets

If you’re stalling vinyl flooring in a kitchen or bathroom it’s much easier to install a flooring before installing cabinets for plumbing fixtures like toilets. This is particularly true for sheet products like vinyl and linoleum.

If you choose to wait until after the cabinets installed then you must be careful to cut around the perimeter of the base of the cabinet to make sure that your lines are straight. In some cases, you may have to use shoe molding for around to cover the edges of the vinyl where it meets the base of the cabinets.

How are kitchen cabinets installed?

Kitchen base cabinets are screwed to the wall behind them. Ideally, the cabinets will be secured to a stud to limit their ability to move after installation. Wall cabinets are installed in the same manner however with the wall cabinets it’s more important that you hit a stud since they have to be able to hang from the wall.

How to install a kitchen island

Kitchen islands aren’t typically installed one of two ways. The quickest way to attach the kitchen island to the floor is to screw through the lower portion of The cabinet and directly into the floor. However, this method does require you to trim out the perimeter of the island with some type of baseball thing to cover the screw holes.

The second and more thorough way to attach the kitchen island to the floor is to first install 2×4 blocks directly to the floor and then place the island cabinets over the two by fours and then screw into the two by fours through cabinets.

The easiest way the easiest location is along the front of the cabinets because you can install the screws through the toe kick and then conceal the screws with a toe kick trim which typically you would do anyway.

Installing a Kitchen Island on Concrete Floor

In order to attach the kitchen island to a concrete floor, you can use either of the methods mentioned just above, but I would recommend the 2×4/toekick method. For this application, you will need to first drill pilot holes in the concrete and then use concrete screws to attach the 2 x 4 directly to the concrete floor. Then you can use regular wood screws to attach the cabinet to the 2×4 that is now securely anchored to the concrete floor.