Installing a new kitchen doesn't happen every year and since it doesn't, most kitchens still have the original flooring or some form of decrepit material underfoot. Very often people install a cost-effective type of flooring, hoping that soon a new kitchen will suddenly take shape. As we know, that rarely happens and the flooring begins to look as worn-out as the kitchen.
Therefore, if you are thinking of re-doing your cabinets, you almost certainly are thinking of re-doing your floor. This article and the next will help you sort out the alternatives available to you.
Most people have a tough time figuring out which goes in first, the floor or the cabinets. Actually there are some variables which affect that decision. If you are choosing anything but a laminate floor, meaning something like Pergo, you should rip out your old kitchen cabinets, install the new flooring and then install the new cabinets.
With a laminate or floating floor like Pergo, you should install the flooring after the cabinets. These floors 'float' on top of the old floor and must not be restricted from moving by the weight of the cabinets. Other floors, such as hardwood, ceramic or cork, should be installed before the cabinets.
However, an additional explanation is in order here. Work with a flooring installer to decide whether your new flooring needs a substantial change of your substrate, or the stuff which supports the floor. If you are thinking of ceramic tile, for instance, you require a solid base of 3/4 inch material in order to prevent the tiles from cracking.
Even some forms of stick-on tile or sheet flooring require a nice level surface. This would mean that once the old cabinets are removed, a new base can be installed. If you were to wait until the new cabinets were in, the counter height would be affected if you were to put a new base everywhere else but under the cabinets. This height differential would be significantly increased if you were to put ceramic tiles in on top of the new base.
To sort all of this out, speak to an experienced flooring person. If your kitchen requires a new substrate, it makes sense to do it before the new cabinets are installed. If your flooring is going to be something like sheet flooring, then it would be fine to install a new base before the
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