Heated Renovation

Ilya Rosanov is the character we love and hate in Heated Rivalry. He is obnoxious and sweet at the same time. Just like renovating a kitchen! Going through a kitchen renovation is not always pleasant. There is the dust, the disruption to the normal routine, the invasion of privacy, and the rising costs. However, there are aspects of renovating that are pleasurable, such as picking out cabinets, finishes, colors, and an overall concept. Having renovated houses and built a house from the ground up, I am well aware of what it takes. However, each project is different. Each contractor has their own strengths and weaknesses. Fortunately, I liked the contractor a friend recommended to me. His name is Santiago. 

Our odyssey began in December when, after finally deciding we would renovate the kitchen, I went to a kitchen cabinet company, A&E Cabinets in Beacon, New York, to pick out cabinets. I had a good idea of what I wanted and this part went smoothly. Albert the owner was helpful in planning the layout and the types of cabinets we wanted. I picked a stain, instead of a solid color, to avoid having a purely white kitchen. The cabinets are made in the U.S. from hickory wood and stained in their color, Cotton. Albert recommended that before finalizing the cabinets, we should arrange for the appliances.  

Sohn’s Appliances in Walden, NY has been in business for the past 118 years. A family business with many recommendations from people I know. They have a small showroom in Walden. We could have gone to a big-box store, but we felt we would have a better experience by buying local. Andrew had sticker shock when we looked at the appliances. Nothing is inexpensive. From past experience, I knew I wanted a Bosch dishwasher. There was an attractive Bosch refrigerator on display. Our salesperson, Cody tried to show me refrigerators costing much less. I quickly learned it was only his first month on the job. I told him I wanted the Bosch refrigerator and since we were buying a dishwasher, we would like all other appliances to match. What a luxury! After our long experience of having appliances that either worked only partially or not at all, having a matching set of appliances was the icing on the cake! 

Mind you this was the beginning of December. I paid for the cabinets, paid for the appliances and then we looked at granite for the counters and the backsplash. Our color scheme was going to be light grey and white. We toured a local granite supplier, also highly recommended by friends, and found a granite that would be perfect for our color scheme – Delicatus White. We paid 50% down on the granite – I thought that was to purchase it, but it was only to reserve the price.  

Santiago could not begin the demolition until January 19, 2026. We cleared everything out of the cabinets and moved it all to the basement. Santiago began demolition on January 20, 2026. The house immediately became covered in dust! Plaster was removed from 3 walls and the ceiling. The floor was torn down to the subfloor. 

Previous renovations over the years had been undertaken in a less thorough manner. There were layers of old linoleum on top of a pine floor. The pine floor had gaping holes where the previous contractors had made cuts to accommodate wiring and other unknown accommodations. The pine floor had to come out. 

Taking out the walls and the ceiling showed us how prior contractors had cobbled things together, sometimes in less than a desirable manner. While Santiago did not say it out loud, I know he was thinking we were lucky the house did not burn down, because some of the wiring was badly done.  

Dining room as temporary storage area and kitchen.

Meanwhile, turning off the kitchen electricity rendered the room adjacent, my home office, unusable because of shared wiring. No electricity to power my computer or turn on lights. I decamped to the living room. The refrigerator had been shunted to the garage. The microwave was placed on the former kitchen table, now in a corner of the dining room. However, when the electricity was turned off in the kitchen this also impacted the outlet in which the microwave was plugged. It moved across the room on the floor. 

All of this sounds manageable, but to provide some additional context, New York experienced an intense winter. We had weeks of extremely cold weather and a lot of snow. When the demolition began, the doors leading from the  kitchen to dining room and hallway were blocked with plastic. This was to prevent so much dust from getting into the rest of the house. Once the floors were exposed, dust and debris showered down into the basement, where it remains today – a lovely coating on everything. With the refrigerator in the garage and no ability to walk through the kitchen to get to the garage, the only way to reach the garage was to go out the front door. Not a big deal, except when you wake up with the wind chill at -11 Fahrenheit, and snow on the ground. Going outside to get things for breakfast from the refrigerator in the garage was not a enviable task. 

I want to stop here and say my only point in documenting this is just tell you what it has been like. When there are bombs raining down on Iran, as well as Ukraine and Gaza is in ruins, I fully recognize the privileged life Iead – to be installing a new kitchen and am merely inconvenienced by the process. I know I am truly blessed and none of my descriptions should be taken as a complaint. 

Slowly the kitchen walls were installed, then a new oak floor. The work seemed to be progressing rapidly. It stopped for a couple of weeks, while we waited for the cabinets to arrive. They arrived and they were beautiful. It seemed like we were back on track. I notified the granite people and the appliance store of the completion of the cabinets. I went back and forth multiple times with both companies. The granite people said they would not do anything if I did not have the appliances on site. The appliance people said they would not do anything if the granite was not installed. I truly wondered if I was the first person on earth to renovate a kitchen. Finally, I got the appliance company to agree to deliver the stove top, which needed to have a cut out. 

From there it became a comedy. The granite people told me the stone had not been ordered – I thought I did this in December. It took a month for the granite to be ordered and installed. Still without a kitchen I was growing impatient. While I was waiting for the granite installation, I had many calls with the appliance company. Even though I paid for the appliances in December, they had not ordered them. They said they do not order them until everything is complete. Then when they finally did order them, in March, they said the microwave was on back order. It seemed like a crazy process all around. 

Not only was the process not great, but the granite counters also looked nothing like I had anticipated. Our colors were grey and white. The granite showed up and is a yellow-brown with black streaks. This was very disappointing, but I had no choice, I had fully paid for them and given the approval. They could be worse, but they could also be much better. 

Santiago was great to work with, but his crew didn’t always do what I wanted. The electrician insisted he had more experience than me and placed the ceiling lights where he wanted them. Once the cabinets were installed, we discovered this was literally on top of one of the cabinets. They had to be moved. I cut and installed some trim, because Santiago’s guys did not seem to understand. The floor finishing company completely ignored my instructions and painted the stain on the floor, resulting in a much darker finish than what I intended. I tried very hard to have a facade of patience, but sometimes this facade was not well maintained. 

Finally, the appliances were delivered and installed. The plumbing was hooked up, and we had a new kitchen. Days of cleaning await. Dust is still everywhere. Slowly I have put everything into the new cupboards. The basement is still dusty, but this week Andrew and I will finish cleaning. 

Steel folding tables set up for a party at the end of this week. The new kitchen is very flexible and so much easier to us.

Would I go through it again? Absolutely! Working appliances, a layout that makes it easier to work in the kitchen, more cabinet space and more counter space. We are excited to begin cooking again! Here’s to renovation and results.