Replacing Kitchen Counter Tops? - Knowing Local Building Codes Could Save You Time and Money
When it comes to a home remodeling, it is more than just dealing with all the construction work, financing, noise, and after-project cleaning.
In most regions, local laws require homeowners to secure a permit before they can execute a remodeling project.
And though such laws are usually applied only to renovations of a bigger scale, in some cases, homeowners must secure a permit even for a small project such as replacing kitchen countertops.
While these laws are established to ensure that the homeowners are complying with the building, electrical and other important codes of the local government, they provide a real hassle for homeowners who are replacing kitchen countertops.
These codes can lead to spending time filing documents and meeting lawyers, weeks of delay before beginning the project and additional money spent to get the job done entirely-from both legal and technical perspectives.
If you take a closer look at fundamentals behind the local laws requiring a permit for kitchen countertop renovation, however, you may notice that there is a way in which you do not have to deal with legal hassles.
As I mentioned earlier, such laws are to ensure that all houses being renovated are in compliance with building and electrical codes set by local government; and thus, they are often tied to replacement of kitchen countertops as such project could, and often, involve demolition and placing additional fixtures in house that need to be carefully monitored to not violate the set codes.
What this means is, as long as the scope of your project does not include demolition or major changes in fixtures of the house, which means no risk of violating the building and electrical codes, there may be no need to secure a permit for replacing your kitchen countertops.
The best way to avoid dealing with legal issues when replacing kitchen countertops is to not do any renovation.
However, if you must do it and want to bypass the legal issues, you may want to figure out a way to replace your countertops without having to go through demolition and/or any other major constructions.
Nowadays, some companies and contractors offer services and products that allow for easy replacement by attaching new countertop surface on top of existing one.
This makes replacing kitchen countertops a paperwork-free, hassle-free project.
You can even choose to overlay granite on top of an existing countertop-as long as the existing surface is clean, flat, smooth, and not chipped.
However you choose to go about replacing kitchen countertops, be sure to get some in-depth research done on different products and services as well as on legal issues involved for the best possible solution for your renovation project.
In most regions, local laws require homeowners to secure a permit before they can execute a remodeling project.
And though such laws are usually applied only to renovations of a bigger scale, in some cases, homeowners must secure a permit even for a small project such as replacing kitchen countertops.
While these laws are established to ensure that the homeowners are complying with the building, electrical and other important codes of the local government, they provide a real hassle for homeowners who are replacing kitchen countertops.
These codes can lead to spending time filing documents and meeting lawyers, weeks of delay before beginning the project and additional money spent to get the job done entirely-from both legal and technical perspectives.
If you take a closer look at fundamentals behind the local laws requiring a permit for kitchen countertop renovation, however, you may notice that there is a way in which you do not have to deal with legal hassles.
As I mentioned earlier, such laws are to ensure that all houses being renovated are in compliance with building and electrical codes set by local government; and thus, they are often tied to replacement of kitchen countertops as such project could, and often, involve demolition and placing additional fixtures in house that need to be carefully monitored to not violate the set codes.
What this means is, as long as the scope of your project does not include demolition or major changes in fixtures of the house, which means no risk of violating the building and electrical codes, there may be no need to secure a permit for replacing your kitchen countertops.
The best way to avoid dealing with legal issues when replacing kitchen countertops is to not do any renovation.
However, if you must do it and want to bypass the legal issues, you may want to figure out a way to replace your countertops without having to go through demolition and/or any other major constructions.
Nowadays, some companies and contractors offer services and products that allow for easy replacement by attaching new countertop surface on top of existing one.
This makes replacing kitchen countertops a paperwork-free, hassle-free project.
You can even choose to overlay granite on top of an existing countertop-as long as the existing surface is clean, flat, smooth, and not chipped.
However you choose to go about replacing kitchen countertops, be sure to get some in-depth research done on different products and services as well as on legal issues involved for the best possible solution for your renovation project.
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