Booked ahead
We schedule Waterloo kitchens further out than local ones, so materials are on hand before day one. Cabinets and counters are ordered once the measured plan is signed, so nothing waits on a missing part.
Larger kitchen projects in Waterloo
Waterloo kitchen renovation
Waterloo is about 65 km from our Oakville office by Highway 401. We take on bigger kitchen jobs there and book them further ahead. One crew lead stays with each job until the last inspection.
Is $10,000 enough for a new kitchen?
Not for a whole new kitchen, though it can cover a refresh of the one you have. Paint or new doors, a new tap, hardware and lighting suit a budget that size better than new cabinets do. A new layout, new boxes and new stone push well past it. In Waterloo we mostly take larger jobs, so a small refresh may suit a local trade better.
Working at a distance
How we run a Waterloo job from Oakville
Distance changes the planning more than the building.
One crew lead
The same lead runs the job each day and is the person you call with a question.
Checked early
We look at the panel, drains and floor on the first visit, so the plan holds once work starts. We also ask whether a softener is in place and where it sits.
Waterloo basics
Roads, permits and city rules
| From our office | About 65 km in a straight line, mostly along Highway 401. |
|---|---|
| Building permits | City of Waterloo Building Department. You need one to add or remove walls, or to add or change plumbing, even new fixtures at an existing rough-in. |
| No permit | Replacing a plumbing fixture with the same type in the same place. |
| Rental units | Leases over 30 days in low-rise homes, basement units included, need a long-term rental licence. |
| Heritage | In the MacGregor/Albert Heritage Conservation District, most outside changes need a heritage permit. Interior work, such as a new kitchen, does not. A new window over the sink there would count as an outside change. |
| Wiring | Our electrician notifies the ESA of each new circuit, and an inspection follows. |
For landlords
Kitchens in licensed rental homes
Waterloo licenses long-term rentals in low-rise homes, such as houses, duplexes, townhouses and basement units. Units in larger apartment buildings are left out.
To apply, an owner sends in an electrical inspection by a licensed electrician, dated within the past 12 months. A kitchen redo with new circuits is a sensible time to get it.
The City also allows additional residential units on the main floor or in the basement. Creating one of those units, kitchen included, needs a building permit before work starts.
Hard water
Plan a Waterloo kitchen around hard water
The Region of Waterloo draws on wells and the Grand River, and it calls the groundwater hard. The minerals leave white scale on taps, sinks and the inside of a dishwasher.
Many homes run a salt softener, and the Region's advice is to treat just the hot side. It even offers a rebate for the plumbing change that does this.
A kitchen job is a sensible time to ask about that change, since our plumber is already on site and the supply lines are being rerouted.
If you want a drinking water filter under the sink, say so before the cabinets are ordered. It takes space in the sink base.
Hard water also shapes what we suggest for finishes. Dark sinks and black taps show white spots sooner, so we point that out while you choose.
Our own trades
Plumbers and electricians on the crew
Our crew includes licensed plumbers and electricians, so we do not wait for an outside trade to find a free day in Waterloo.
That matters more on a site far from our office. Each trade visit is planned around the inspection that follows it.
Floors get covered and dust walls go up, so the rest of the house stays usable while the kitchen is apart.
Before you call
What helps us price a Waterloo kitchen
Send these with your first message and the free visit goes further.
- A few photos of the kitchen, taken from each corner
- Rough room sizes, or a floor plan if you have one
- Whether the home is rented or has a basement unit
- Whether the home has a water softener, and if it treats hot water only
- What you want to keep, such as the floor or the appliances
- The budget you have in mind, even a rough one
- When you would like the work to start
Our other kitchen pages
Closer to the office
The kitchens shown are idea photos only. We did not build them, in Waterloo or anywhere else.
Sources we checked for this page
- City of Waterloo, get a long term rental licence
- City of Waterloo, rental housing licensing bylaw
- City of Waterloo, interior renovations and basements
- City of Waterloo, check if you need a building permit
- City of Waterloo, build an aru on the main floor or basement
- Electrical Safety Authority website
- Region of Waterloo, water softeners
- Region of Waterloo, about water
- City of Waterloo, check if you need a heritage permit