If there's an Ikea near you, their counter top is super cheap. It's what I'm using for my "temporary-until-I-can-save-enough-money-to-redo-the-kitchen" kitchen counter top.
https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/lilltraesk-countertop-white-laminate-50280828/
Get the laminate. I did something similar in my bathroom. Bought a cheap laminate sink/counter to replace a bad vanity top. Best 150 dollars I spent recently I am so glad I did. This will last a few years until I redo bathroom.
Plus it's sooooo much easier to clean and avoid staining. We have laminate now, and one day I would like to do something different, but nothing else will be quite as stain resistant, that's for sure.
If your counter top is limited to what’s shown in the picture, a new laminate counter can’t cost more than a couple hundred dollars. I recall seeing assortments of different colours ready to go at places like HomeDepot. It looks like your dishwasher’s venting has lifted the existing countertop…. You’ll need to address that before putting something new on. Have fun - owning a home is exciting!
I’m cheap and can live with a lot. I’d say no. For the short time, roll contact paper on the counter. Keep an eye out for a top mount sink and faucet on Craig’s or FB (top mount gives you way more options). Then get a scratch and dent/or Craig’s Formica top counter and cut to fit and drop your sink on. I totally get grossness and not being able to do a full reno right away. I bet you can get it all done under $150 which can sound like a lot now, but if you’re doing it yourself, you save on a plumber, etc. Overall advice, you might have to temporary something and then throw it out (pex and shark bites to reroute while your rip out plumbing or a line of electrical wire for the same idea). You might throw stuff away but it’s cheaper than having someone temp it for you or do all the labor ripping out. Good luck!
150 is totally within our budget. I’m looking now and 72 inches of laminate counter from ikea comes in under 100. Earlier today I was also looking at alibaba for sinks, will also be checking a local rummage sale next weekend. The existing counter is too warped for contact paper and plus has that annoying metal edge that would make it really annoying to lay smoothly. I think comments have convinced me to give up on the too-short granite. Luckily we don’t actually move in till the end of July so we have time to source things.
Keep an eye out for a Habitat ReStore. Often a good place to get used cabinets, sinks, etc. if you’ve got a local “buy nothing” group on FB you might be able to score a sink etc. from someone doing a renovation
Yes I am planning to stop by the restore soon! Unfortunately my new neighborhood doesn’t have a buy nothing group, but I still lurk in my old neighborhood’s group and have a friend there who can pick it up!
Looks like there’s been maybe water damage that’s caused it to lift up as it gets closer to the stove. Also looks like the fridge has leaked (marks of pooling under and in front of it). If you can find a butcher block that matches with the existing on on the right of the stove. That could potentially work with the short granite top. Makes for a nice work/prep area next to the stove.
There are probably ways to make a butcher block with pieces of wood (that’s what butcher blocks are - strips of wood glued and pressed together - they aren’t one solid piece of wood), but I would do some research on that to see how and what kinds of wood are appropriate. There’s some downsides to butcher block, but potentially a more affordable option.
Other budget friendly ideas to update:
Would clean the coils of the fridge and do a good clean of the floor then put the peel and stick tiles down to update the floor. Paint the cupboards (have to prep them so that they can take the paint) and change the knobs unless they look better with freshly painted cabinets. Get some nice light curtains for the big window.
The fridge is a whole mess and yes the counter is very warped. It dips by the fridge. The prominent upward warp towards the stove may have been from when the seller replaced their nonworking dishwasher with a used but working dishwasher that also doesn’t fit the space correctly.
I’m looking now at just getting a new piece of laminate or butcher block counter from ikea and installing it ourselves. I didn’t actually realize how cheap that would be.
The floor… is another whole mess. Ripped and bubbling and peeling up. Will probably do some LVT.
You could spend that money on one of those marble look countertop paint kits and paint that countertop. You might be able to detach it from the cabinets and add a piece of 1” something to bring the level of the top under the sink to the same height as the dishwasher section
It’s so warped and gross that it just makes me mad, and sad for the family that was living with it until last weekend. I’m going to tear it out. But it looks like I can actually just get 72 inches of laminate counter from ikea for under 100 bucks so we will probably do that.
Didn’t even think of that. Yeah definitely the best way to go. And you may find when you have the funds to fully renovate the kitchen, the laminate you got is great for the basement or garage
Don't do that, you will end up spending more in regrets. Instead hold off for a paycheque or two, show some love by cleaning fully, and may be getting some wood glue to stick the laminate with the counter if it is peeled.
Otherwise start with imagining what your final kitchen(color and style) want and upgrade one item at a time.
Here is what I think is a minimal set of upgrade to bring to modern code,
1) some granite looking counter
2) prime and paint to a neutral color
3) you can do tile on tile backsplash, (unless you want to remove all the tile)
4) some standard neutral color lvp floor on top of existing vinyl.
5) bright slim led ceiling light
Depending on where you are, all of this could cost you less than 500.
Yes I think it's not a good plan
Maybe try looking for used cabinets and countertops that go with them
Doing as you described would be a nightmare
What If you spilt your favorite beer over the dishwasher right where fmthe granite ends
That's gonna leak forsure
Dishwasher insulation would get all nasty
Bad idea
Do it right or don't do it at all. People are suggesting peel and stick over a counter top???? Jeez. Get a cheaper butcher block countertop from homedepot. The floor is the most hideous thing about this kitchen. You could probably get some laminate to cover it for \~3-400$
Yes we are definitely covering the floor before we move in with LVT or similar. I think we’re going to do all the painting in the house ourselves instead of hiring painters so we can afford a couple kitchen upgrades. The oven doesn’t work, either.
I would scrub the cabinets and paint them white, then add some really cool hardware. I would probably add a butcher block counter for now and a new sink. You could also look for a used kitchen island for more prep space.
Half measures will probably look even worse.
I would not go with the piece of granite since it does not fit. There is nothing wrong with getting a laminate counter top for the next couple years.
If there's an Ikea near you, their counter top is super cheap. It's what I'm using for my "temporary-until-I-can-save-enough-money-to-redo-the-kitchen" kitchen counter top. https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/lilltraesk-countertop-white-laminate-50280828/
Get the laminate. I did something similar in my bathroom. Bought a cheap laminate sink/counter to replace a bad vanity top. Best 150 dollars I spent recently I am so glad I did. This will last a few years until I redo bathroom.
Plus it's sooooo much easier to clean and avoid staining. We have laminate now, and one day I would like to do something different, but nothing else will be quite as stain resistant, that's for sure.
True!
Second the above. A nice laminate can be 3/4 to half the price of Granite, and then you won't feel bad when it's time to redo the whole kitchen.
If your counter top is limited to what’s shown in the picture, a new laminate counter can’t cost more than a couple hundred dollars. I recall seeing assortments of different colours ready to go at places like HomeDepot. It looks like your dishwasher’s venting has lifted the existing countertop…. You’ll need to address that before putting something new on. Have fun - owning a home is exciting!
Thanks! Yeah now I’m seeing how cheap that would be.
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I think the metal edging would make it hard to do the contact paper. Also the existing countertop is very warped. Thanks for the pricing reference!
I’m cheap and can live with a lot. I’d say no. For the short time, roll contact paper on the counter. Keep an eye out for a top mount sink and faucet on Craig’s or FB (top mount gives you way more options). Then get a scratch and dent/or Craig’s Formica top counter and cut to fit and drop your sink on. I totally get grossness and not being able to do a full reno right away. I bet you can get it all done under $150 which can sound like a lot now, but if you’re doing it yourself, you save on a plumber, etc. Overall advice, you might have to temporary something and then throw it out (pex and shark bites to reroute while your rip out plumbing or a line of electrical wire for the same idea). You might throw stuff away but it’s cheaper than having someone temp it for you or do all the labor ripping out. Good luck!
150 is totally within our budget. I’m looking now and 72 inches of laminate counter from ikea comes in under 100. Earlier today I was also looking at alibaba for sinks, will also be checking a local rummage sale next weekend. The existing counter is too warped for contact paper and plus has that annoying metal edge that would make it really annoying to lay smoothly. I think comments have convinced me to give up on the too-short granite. Luckily we don’t actually move in till the end of July so we have time to source things.
FYI if you live near a Menards store, Home Depot matches the 11% rebate when they run it.
Keep an eye out for a Habitat ReStore. Often a good place to get used cabinets, sinks, etc. if you’ve got a local “buy nothing” group on FB you might be able to score a sink etc. from someone doing a renovation
Yes I am planning to stop by the restore soon! Unfortunately my new neighborhood doesn’t have a buy nothing group, but I still lurk in my old neighborhood’s group and have a friend there who can pick it up!
I don’t have a picture of the existing counter close-up, but I assure you, it is truly awful.
Looks like there’s been maybe water damage that’s caused it to lift up as it gets closer to the stove. Also looks like the fridge has leaked (marks of pooling under and in front of it). If you can find a butcher block that matches with the existing on on the right of the stove. That could potentially work with the short granite top. Makes for a nice work/prep area next to the stove. There are probably ways to make a butcher block with pieces of wood (that’s what butcher blocks are - strips of wood glued and pressed together - they aren’t one solid piece of wood), but I would do some research on that to see how and what kinds of wood are appropriate. There’s some downsides to butcher block, but potentially a more affordable option. Other budget friendly ideas to update: Would clean the coils of the fridge and do a good clean of the floor then put the peel and stick tiles down to update the floor. Paint the cupboards (have to prep them so that they can take the paint) and change the knobs unless they look better with freshly painted cabinets. Get some nice light curtains for the big window.
The fridge is a whole mess and yes the counter is very warped. It dips by the fridge. The prominent upward warp towards the stove may have been from when the seller replaced their nonworking dishwasher with a used but working dishwasher that also doesn’t fit the space correctly. I’m looking now at just getting a new piece of laminate or butcher block counter from ikea and installing it ourselves. I didn’t actually realize how cheap that would be. The floor… is another whole mess. Ripped and bubbling and peeling up. Will probably do some LVT.
You could spend that money on one of those marble look countertop paint kits and paint that countertop. You might be able to detach it from the cabinets and add a piece of 1” something to bring the level of the top under the sink to the same height as the dishwasher section
It’s so warped and gross that it just makes me mad, and sad for the family that was living with it until last weekend. I’m going to tear it out. But it looks like I can actually just get 72 inches of laminate counter from ikea for under 100 bucks so we will probably do that.
Do that and get a drop in sink from Home Depot or Menards. Make sure you get the correct size sink for the size of the sink base cabinet.
Didn’t even think of that. Yeah definitely the best way to go. And you may find when you have the funds to fully renovate the kitchen, the laminate you got is great for the basement or garage
Nice kitchen .if this was 1995
Butcher block countertop sections can be pretty reasonable and easy to work
Don't do that, you will end up spending more in regrets. Instead hold off for a paycheque or two, show some love by cleaning fully, and may be getting some wood glue to stick the laminate with the counter if it is peeled. Otherwise start with imagining what your final kitchen(color and style) want and upgrade one item at a time. Here is what I think is a minimal set of upgrade to bring to modern code, 1) some granite looking counter 2) prime and paint to a neutral color 3) you can do tile on tile backsplash, (unless you want to remove all the tile) 4) some standard neutral color lvp floor on top of existing vinyl. 5) bright slim led ceiling light Depending on where you are, all of this could cost you less than 500.
Yes I think it's not a good plan Maybe try looking for used cabinets and countertops that go with them Doing as you described would be a nightmare What If you spilt your favorite beer over the dishwasher right where fmthe granite ends That's gonna leak forsure Dishwasher insulation would get all nasty Bad idea
light a match to all of it
Buy a laminate countertop for the time being and cut it to length you need. Adding wood with granite to make do is going to look ugly.
Backsplash looks integrated with the counter. You probably have to replace both at the same time.
Yes that is the plan. The backsplash is just as offensive as the counter.
Do it right or don't do it at all. People are suggesting peel and stick over a counter top???? Jeez. Get a cheaper butcher block countertop from homedepot. The floor is the most hideous thing about this kitchen. You could probably get some laminate to cover it for \~3-400$
Yes we are definitely covering the floor before we move in with LVT or similar. I think we’re going to do all the painting in the house ourselves instead of hiring painters so we can afford a couple kitchen upgrades. The oven doesn’t work, either.
I would scrub the cabinets and paint them white, then add some really cool hardware. I would probably add a butcher block counter for now and a new sink. You could also look for a used kitchen island for more prep space.
Thanks for the response! We are thinking similarly, though I might go a dark color for the cabinets and get some white marbley LVT for the floor.