DIY Network

Kitchens (2 of 2): Lighting and Flooring From "Blueprint for Home Building" episode DBHB-206

In the last segment host Jeff Wilson took a look at countertops and islands for the kitchen in your new home, and in this third segment he explores the lighting and flooring.

Lighting is extremely important in a kitchen because you want to have functional light and mood light (figure A). Proper lighting in a kitchen boils down to task lighting over the countertops or islands -- and even under the counter with cabinet lighting (figure B), which is effective for working.

Figure A

Figure B

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Lighting Tips and Options

• One light at least in your new kitchen should be directed toward the sink (figure C), and one light toward the oven where you're working so you can see what you're doing. Another one should beam on the countertop.

• In addition to strategic light-fixture installation, you can plan for efficient use of natural light with your architect in the early stages of design.

  There are different ways to incorporate natural lighting into your kitchen -- windows, skylights (figure D) and openings to other rooms in the house, such as glass block or a glass door.

Figure C

Figure D

	Figure E
	Figure F
	Figure G

Kitchen Flooring

• The first thing to think about with kitchen flooring is that it should be water resistant and easy to clean.

• There are many options, including vinyl, laminate, tile, ceramic tile -- or a resilient natural product such as linoleum (figure E), which is made out of linseed oil and resin wood chips and coloring. It smells good and looks good.

• Ceramic Tile (figure F) works beautifully in a kitchen because it's durable, beautiful, waterproof and easy to clean. When it comes to price, ceramic would be cheaper, porcelain a bit more costly and stones the most expensive.

• Slate is a nice material for kitchen flooring is another good choice, but it has to be sealed every six months. It's inexpensive and beautiful.

• Hardwood (figure G) floors can also be used in the kitchen, but like slate, they need to be sealed to protect them from water damage and staining.

• Cork flooring is another natural material that's easy to install -- and because there is a spring to it the comfort level on the feet is high.

  Design Tip: When you're ready to lay down your kitchen flooring, consider placing the flooring diagonally. Since everything is lineal and 90-degrees and straight in the kitchen, the diagonal flooring usually breaks up the look, which results in a unique design.

Since everything has been covered in the past two episodes, in the final segment on kitchens the sink will be explored.

GUESTS :

Al Sain
Homeowner
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Bob Cheney
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E-mail: deache@adelphia.net

John Harmon
Licensed Contractor
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Pierre Abboud
Designer/Sales
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Skip Weahunt
Homeowner
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Regina Zernay
CMTS, Inc.
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CMTS
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