Renovation & Design
Renovation & Design
Cooking up a unique style for your kitchen
Of all the rooms in a home, the kitchen reigns as the most used space. And as such, updating the kitchen is one of the big priorities when thoughts of renovating come to mind. There is no shortage of information on the subject. Design magazines, decorating books, TV shows and the Internet overflow with inspiration, new products, timely tips and trendsetting styles. I've produced shows and written books that feature old or tired kitchens transformed with paint and imaginative design solutions. And I am always on the lookout for the next best thing -- a style that rocks, a design that makes the heart of the home work and look the best it can.
Recently, I came across a book that does just that. Kitchen Ideas You Can Use, written by Chris Peterson, Cool Spring Press, is filled with clever solutions and inspiring designs for remodelling today's kitchens. Peterson presents a pictionary of kitchens, and each photo is accompanied by a caption that explains what makes that kitchen unique. Photo credits at the back will lead you to sourcing.
It's easy to find specific sections on style preferences, the newest in appliances and fixtures, centre-island designs and daring colour palettes or accents. What makes so many of the kitchens distinct is the choice of a not-so-common surface material applied to countertops, backsplashes and floors. Here are a few examples.
The innovative use of some materials such as plywood, glass and paper speak to the green movement with recycling central to their makeup. An industrial modern kitchen is full of rough-hewn life with the plywood vertical island surfaces and concrete floor. A laminate edge on the shelves mimics the look of plywood. Frosted glass doors continue the modern, airy kitchen design where the simple lines of white crockery and accessories are meant to be in full view.
There are paper-based fibre-composite countertops whose edge profiles come in different colour combinations for an eye-catching detail. These countertops are eco-friendly, recycled paper, incredibly durable and easy to work with. Source www.richlite.com for more details.
Stainless-steel countertops have become a familiar sight in kitchens, but there are other metal options worth exploring. Zinc has been used for the countertops in European bars for more than a century. Zinc can be protected, but the natural patina markings produced by skin oils, lemon juice and other materials produces an alluring quality. Copper is available, too, but more expensive. And in my family kitchen, my favourite features are the hot rolled steel floor and countertops installed 10 years ago. The floor is cool in summer, warm in winter and still looks chic and stylish.
Marmoleum is the modern version of linoleum and comes in easy-to-install tiles, a huge variety of colours and patterns, and is made of natural ingredients that are anti-bacterial, making it one of the greenest materials you can find. Cork tiles are another great option; for a dramatic effect, cork can be richly stained to mimic the look of old stone, but it feels like walking on a cloud.
Kitchen storage is always a challenge. Peterson shows kitchens with sliding bars and integrated all-in-one wall-mounted hanging systems available from many kitchen suppliers and home retail stores. It's a neat, clean way to use vertical wall or backsplash space and get a cooking area in order.
Debbie Travis' House to Home column is produced by Debbie Travis and Barbara Dingle. Please email your questions to house2home@debbietravis.com. You can follow Debbie on Twitter at www.twitter.com/debbie_travis, and visit Debbie's new website, www.debbietravis.com.
Renovation & Design
Not bath people? Focus on shower
Dear Debbie: We live in a bungalow condominium community and plan on staying for our retirement. Our master-suite bathroom has a large whirlpool bathtub we never use. We are shower people. We are planning to renovate and want to replace the bathtub with a shower. Are there different styles you would recommend that are trendy now? Thank you. Miranda
Dear Miranda: Your home's design should be based on those elements that match and enhance your lifestyle. If you have the opportunity to renovate your bathroom, then make it truly yours. Don't take baths? Forget the tub. Then take the time to research all the styles and options available to make a shower experience that is safe, comfortable and looking great.
The shower base will set the footprint of your design. There are plenty of choices and sizes to fit large and small spaces. Be sure to look for bases that have a safe, non-slip surface.
Shower doors also come in a variety of panel shapes. They can be rounded, square, divided into sections or all made to fit the shower base. To get an idea of how to design a shower that suits you from the ground up, visit www.Fleurco.com and click on the Build your Shower button on the home page. Move through the step-by-step selections that include bases, door configuration, hardware and hinge finishes and glass type. Once completed, it gives you a quote for your design.
As far as trends go, there is tremendous emphasis on safety and comfort in the bath experience. Fleurco offers two shower bases with seat and storage, a design detail that is both practical and versatile. A step-in shower with safety bars and built-in seat creates a safe and accessible shower experience for everyone. The Urbana base shown here with Titan doors has the storage facing outside the shower.
Complete your new shower design with shower heads and sprays that can be controlled for different purposes, from power massage to rain-shower soothing. You will enjoy a refreshing spa experience every day.
Dear Debbie: We've just moved into an old house that we love, but it's in rather rough shape. The bathroom will need a complete redo, but for now, how can we make it fun and kid-friendly? Janice and James
Dear J and J: Begin by cleaning and bleaching all the surfaces. You might be surprised at how bright the sink and tiles look after a good scrub.
Storage is all-important in a family bathroom, Everyone should have a cubbyhole. Assess the storage. If there's a cabinet under the sink, remove the doors and build in shelves for the kids' bath stuff. Fit a narrow storage cabinet up the wall beside the bath/shower if there's room. Then paint in high-gloss white, accenting a few of the shelves with bright colours -- red and blue and green are favourites.
Mats and towels will freshen up the floor and walls. Arrange hooks so kids can hang up towels easily. (They still won't, but this helps.) If there is any spare wall space, see if you can carve out niches between wall studs for stacking soaps, brushes and toys. Keep any medicines and cleaning supplies locked away up high, preferably in another room.
Debbie Travis' House to Home column is produced by Debbie Travis and Barbara Dingle. Please email your questions to house2home@debbietravis.com. You can follow Debbie on Twitter at www.twitter.com/debbie_travis, and visit Debbie's new website, www.debbietravis.com.
Renovation & Design
SOLUTIONS: Cracked wax could cause stinky bathroom
QUESTION: There is a very bad odour coming from my bathroom that I have not been able to locate. I notice it mainly during humid weather. It disappears in colder weather. It seems to be coming from the outside area of the toilet, around the base. Signed, Help!
ANSWER: If your toilet tank and bowl sweat a lot in humid weather, it may be that sweat is dripping and wetting the floor around the toilet causing mold to grow. Also, when urine and sewer smells persist near a toilet despite careful cleaning, there may be an air leak at the wax ring of the toilet or in the vent pipe. Rotted or damp wood can also cause an odor.
Check to see if the toilet is tightly sealed to the floor. Grab the bowl of the toilet and try to slide it from side to side. It should resist a few pounds of pressure. If the toilet rocks from side to side, the wax ring has failed. Replace the seal.
One other tip: Make sure that the toilet is sealed, consider using a GE product called XST which is silicone but easier to use than typical silicone, it is also paintable, the drawback is it is more expensive than regular silicone. Alternatively, use a regular 100 per cent silicone seal to close the gap between the floor and the toilet where urine tends to collect, the drawback is it is difficult to remove when the toilet needs replacing.
QUESTION: Yesterday, I put a load of white clothes in the washing machine. I took them out of the washer and they looked nice and clean, so I threw them in the dryer. When I opened the dryer this morning, I was horrified to find that a tube of hot pink lip gloss from my pocket had opened and spread all over my nice white clothes, including my all-time favourite white hoodie! The product that got all over my clothes was raspberry lip shine.
Obviously, this was a big mistake on my part, and I am terribly embarrassed about it, but I thought if anyone knew what I could do about this, it would be you. If you have any idea of how to get this lip gloss out of my clothes, I would greatly appreciate hearing back from you. Thanks so much for your time and consideration, I will be sure to pick up your books for my friends. Dawne (Treherne, MB)
ANSWER: You are not alone; I have received many letters from people with the same challenge. Here are two options: Soak the clothes in hot water and Oxy Clean or soak each garment in a separate solution of half-cup Arm and Hammer washing soda and enough hot water to cover the clothes for 30 minutes. Wash as usual and air dry. Repeat until stains are gone. If all else fails, you can bring the white back to normal by using RIT dye remover according to the directions on the box.
QUESTION; I am at my wit's end, and ready to rip out our fairly new sink and replace it. Our bathroom sink drain has a musty smell most of the time. I have tried vinegar, bleach and tackled the overflow with both numerous times. I keep the metal sink stopper out all the time to let the drain air out. There are a couple of holes on either side of the inside of the drain and I clean these as best I can.
Do you have any suggestions? The plumber said it's quite common with many sinks and not a plumbing problem. Thanks for any help you can give me. Joan, Winnipeg
ANSWER: This problem is annoying especially when company is coming over. This sink dilemma may involve the drain and vent. The trap under the basin may not be holding enough water and is allowing sewer fumes into the room. If possible, remove the trap and clean it well with vinegar, water and dish soap. Also, clean the drain: pour one cup of vinegar into drain, chase with one cup of baking soda. Plug the drain and fill the sink with hot water. Leave overnight and in the morning, drain (it takes a couple of treatments to effectively remedy the odor).
Do this once a month to keep the bathroom smelling fresh. If the sink continues to smell, call a plumber to investigate the vent stack from the roof.
P.S. Vinegar and bleach is not a safe mixture -- in fact, you should not mix bleach with anything other than water.
Feedback from Manitoban's who Care
Re: Rhubarb leaves and potato bugs
*I just wanted to let you know that, although very effective for potato bugs, rhubarb leaf juice is also poisonous. Don't let your pets lick or drink it! Marie
*We had lots of potato bugs over the years. About ten years ago, I saw an article in a magazine and ever since then I have saved onion skins all winter and placed a few of them under my potatoes when planting. I have not had one potato bug since, it sure works for me. I hope it will work for Emilie and others too. Vicky
Handy Tips of the Week
*I was burned with hot butter over most of my hand, I immediately cut a russet potato in slices, placed them over the burn and wrapped my hand with a kitchen towel. The starch in the potato stopped most of the blistering and eased the pain. Submitted By: Lynn
*For crunchier coleslaw, cut a cabbage in half and soak it in salted water for an hour. Drain well and use. Submitted By: Lester
*If cookie dough gets gluey, resist the impulse to add extra flour so the cookies don't become tough. Cool in fridge until firm or roll out between two pieces of waxed or parchment paper. Submitted By: Lily
I enjoy your questions and tips, keep them coming. Missed a column? Can't remember a solution? Need a motivational speaker for an upcoming event? Check out my website Reena.ca.
Renovation & Design
ASK THE INSPECTOR: Gap in kitchen backsplash can have several causes
QUESTION: Our kitchen counter backsplash has pulled away from the wall. It has pulled away on the two exterior walls and a smaller interior wall to about a quarter of an inch. What should we fill it with?
Thank you, Diane Zakala.
ANSWER: I regularly see homes, often newly built, where there is a gap between the top of the kitchen counter backsplash and the wall behind. There are a few reasons that this may be happening, and identifying which one is causing your problem is the key to determining the type of repair you should do.
The most common reason for a gap like this is improper installation. This may simply be poor securing and caulking of the counter itself, but it's just as likely an issue with leveling and fastening of the base cabinets below. The majority of modern kitchen cabinets are made in modular fashion from some form of particleboard or fibreboard. That means that a row of base cabinets is actually several individual units secured together.
Once assembled and connected, normally with short wood screws, the base units must be levelled and squared before fastening to the walls behind. The simplest way to level base cabinets is with thin wooden shims inserted at the bottom of the cabinet gable ends and at the back of the cabinets. If these shims are improperly placed, or if the base cabinets are not level, plumb and square after securing to the wall, movement can occur.
Since kitchen cabinets support a variable load, both on the countertop and in the shelves and drawers, some movement can occur. This is only increased by constant opening and closing of the doors and drawers.
If the cabinets are not held in place with the proper number and length of fasteners, they can pull away from the wall. As they become loose and pull away, the countertop will move as well. If this is the situation in your home, re-levelling and squaring the base units before installation of additional fasteners will be required before dealing with the gap behind the countertop.
Fitting and securing of the countertop, especially common post-formed laminate counters, can be a tricky task for those inexperienced with this type of finishing work. As we all know, walls in homes are never perfectly straight, square or plumb. This is due to variances in individual wooden wall studs, drywall seams and other normal construction materials. Particularly in older homes with plaster walls, there can be considerable bowing or waviness in the kitchen walls.
Installation of a perfectly straight countertop on a crooked wall, or walls, is impossible without modification. It's much easier to trim the backsplash on the countertop to fit the wall that the other way around. This may involve the use of a portable jig saw, belt sander or other less-modern woodworking tools. An experienced installer will order the countertop cut roughly to the angle of any corners and then scribe and trim the backsplash tight to the walls before fastening to the base cabinets. This can also be true of granite, stone or cultured-stone counters, but on-site modifications are much more difficult.
The other possibility for the gap behind the backsplash is due to shrinkage in building materials in the kitchen. While it's unusual for most countertop materials to shrink noticeably, some cabinets or wooden shims may get slightly smaller as they age. This can cause small gaps in some areas, but not normally as large as yours.
A more likely scenario is shrinkage or movement in the floor or wall framing in the kitchen area. If your house is newer and the floor is built with conventional framing lumber, there can be significant shrinkage in the joists and wall studs across the width of the boards. In typical two by ten joists, this can be as great as three or four millimetres.
That much reduction in the size of the joists can cause the base of the cabinet to drop, while the back remains relatively well secured to the wall studs behind. This could easily account for the space behind the counter in your home.
Floor settlement or movement at the main beam and teleposts could also account for movement in the base cabinets. This type of movement is very common in our area, due to our expansive clay soils, which may be the problem if your home is older but has a newer countertop. The last couple of summers have been very dry, creating above-average settlement and movement in many homes.
The solution to that issue is slow, careful adjustment of your teleposts, to try and return the floor structure to near the original position. In that case, you would not want to fill the gap at the backsplash, as it could be used as a guide to determine if adjustments are working.
Whether the space behind your kitchen countertop is caused by poor installation or movement in the floor or cabinets, filling a gap as large as yours prior to repairs will not be fruitful. Determining the exact cause for the movement of the counter before proceeding will be necessary. The repair will likely involve shimming and re-securing the base cabinets, and possibly the countertop itself, which may be critical to preventing a quick return of the void.
Once things are brought closer together, a simple bead of silicone caulking should do the trick to prevent water or debris falling behind the backsplash.
Ari Marantz is the owner of Trained Eye Home Inspection Ltd. and the President of the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors - Manitoba (www.cahpi.mb.ca). Questions can be e-mailed to the address below. Ari can be reached at (204) 291-5358 or check out his website at www.trainedeye.ca.
trainedeye@iname.com
