Seems realistic to me based on our experience, except for the flooring. We had ceramic though and it took 2 days to remove by itself, what a mess. If you have vinyl or something easier than ceramic to remove then it's realistic. If ceramic give yourself some additional time.

Are you renting a bin? If you haven't already considered it, then look into it. Makes the demo so much easier when you can just dump everything into the bin in your driveway vs. having to take multiple trips to the dump. And if you have ceramic it's pretty much a must just re. the weight of the flooring you'll be removing.

Good luck with your reno!

We have vinyl in the kitchen and wood parquet in the hall and bathroom. I should have specified that.

I think we will rent a bin. I saw one called the "Bagster" which seems like it will suit our needs. (We plan to sell or donate the cabinets.)

Here is a link that might be useful: The Bagster

Our electricians finished their rough-in work in 3 days -- rewiring the whole kitchen, adding I think 4 circuits and lots of electrical outlets, relocating 2 can lights, moving all appliances to different walls, fixing some old scary wiring they found, and adding several smoke detectors (required by the permit). All this was with plaster walls intact. They were a crew of 3 and they were great.

Our HW floor installers removed our old floor -- just the top layer of laminate, not all the ancient vinyl beneath (which might or might not be full of asbestos). It took them 1 day to remove the old floor and lay the new HW (11x14), then the finisher took part of one day to sand and apply the finish (a one-coat oil, so it was fast). If you don't have much else to remove, you might ask what their fee is for taking up the old floor. It might be less than if you disposed of it yourself. Oh wait, you said your soffits were coming down, didn't you? So you will have to get a dumpster or something anyway, then.

Good luck and have fun!

1. be prepared for surprises.
2. make sure the wall you are removing is not a supporting wall.
3. locate all electrical, plumbing and HVAC before you start to demo. If anything needs to be moved, know about it beforehand rather than during.
4. if the parquet is glued down, it will resist coming up. you need a smooth surface for your new flooring. If you're removing subflooring, it will take time to replace.
5. have big shovels and cans for picking up the loose debris and also good push-brooms.
6. dust masks and old clothes that you can throw away. Eye-protection and gloves.

Just a word on the bagster...we used one for our diy demo. They don't hold as much as you might think. We ended up having to break alot of stuff down and stack it in there so it would all fit. Make sure you know the measurments of the bagster, I can't remember them. You may end up needing two.

If you're planning to donate your cabinets, I think demo might take longer than 2 days. You won't be able to smash through them as you otherwise may have. I would say maybe 4 days of demo given all that you are demoing.

things to check on:

there are new rules on demo in some states. in CA you cannot just demo without testing for lead and doing abatement if it tests positive. check on this now so you fully understand the scope of what you need to do.

not sure how old your building is. is there risk of discovery of dry rot and termites? that could add time to fix unplanned repairs.

keep in mind if 1 vendor misses their schedule or a worker calls in sick and you are scheduled too tightly you could have a domino effect of delays. keep a bit of flexibility in your schedule to allow for the inevitable surprises and random delays like sick days. this sounds like a small job for these vendors so you may get bumped around a bit and will need to be able to accomodate for this.

re: hardwood, make sure to have the vendor deliver the wood early so it is on site in advance and can acclimate to the conditions of the site, otherwise that time does not seem sufficient.

you are coming up on summer when workers take time off- you may be crossing memorial day, 4th of july and labor day and into thanksgiving depending on length of your project and start date. check on this as well.

is this going to be a permitted job? allow time for inspections between tasks.

do you need to add any insulation? add time for a vendor to do this as well.

where is your priming and painting of walls before the cabinets are installed - add to schedule.

any need to move any HVAC venting?

hope this helps.

All of these tips are very helpful. Keep them coming!

We should be okay with lead. Our house was built in 1989.

I don't know if the parquet is nailed or glued. Praying for nails.

I have experienced getting bumped by a vendor before. A plumber cancelled on us last minute during our master bath remodel. Tile guy was scheduled the next day. Luckily my husband is handy and was able to take the day off and DIY the plumbing so we didn't lose any time. He does not want to take on the electrical work for the kitchen!

I am hoping that if I schedule a week for each vendor I will have enough time built in.

Thanks for the paint reminder- totally slipped my mind and that's a job for ME!

We have parquet floor and my husband read it is very hard to come up. Our GC says it will be easy . During some pre electrical work my husband pop off some squares with no problem. I hope the rest comes up the same way. Be aware if it is glued down, the floor may have to be sanded to remove the left over glue.

Also ... make sure you have permits in hand for the electrical BEFORE you start.

Check with places like Habitat for Humanity and other greenish/charitable resellers. Some will remove the cabinets for you which will save you the hassle of trying to get them off in donatable condition. If you go that route, you need to schedule them in too, but it would be worth it I think.