Kitchen Flooring Replacement: LVP, Porcelain or Hardwood, and Whether to Remove the Cabinets

Best kitchen flooring options: LVP, porcelain tile and hardwood

Most kitchen floors we install today are one of three materials, and the right one depends less on looks than on water, subfloor and height. A kitchen floor takes dropped pans, dishwasher drips and constant traffic, and each material handles those differently.

Luxury vinyl plank

Waterproof, forgiving of dropped dishes and relatively thin, which helps at the dishwasher and doorways. It can fade in strong sun and shows dents from heavy furniture legs.

Porcelain tile

Very hard, long-lasting and easy to clean. It needs cement backer board or an uncoupling membrane over a stiff subfloor, and stain-resistant grout or sealing to keep lines clean.

Hardwood and engineered wood

Hardwood gives continuity with wood floors in the rest of the house and can be refinished. Engineered boards are more stable, but neither tolerates a slow dishwasher leak.

Kitchen flooring replacement without removing cabinets

This is the standard approach, and for good reason. The old flooring comes up to the cabinets, the subfloor is prepared, and the new floor is laid to the toe kicks, finished with base shoe, toe-kick trim or a tight cut hidden under the kick. The job is faster, far less disruptive, and the countertops never move, which matters with stone tops that can crack when cabinets shift.

Floating floors like LVP and laminate are generally installed around cabinets rather than under them, which is what most manufacturers recommend. A floating floor pinned under heavy boxes cannot expand and contract, and the joints can open up.

The dishwasher height trap

A dishwasher sits in an opening under the countertop with very little spare room. If new flooring goes down in front of it but not under it, the floor in front ends up higher than the floor the dishwasher stands on. The appliance is then trapped: it cannot be pulled out for service or replacement without cutting the floor or lifting the countertop.

The fix is planning. Either pull the dishwasher and run the new floor into the opening so the appliance sits on the same level, or confirm the remaining height under the counter still lets it slide out after the feet are lowered. Stacking a new floor over an old one makes the problem worse, which is one reason we usually take old layers up. The same applies to a built-in refrigerator or a range in a tight opening.

Water damaged kitchen subfloor: signs and repair

Kitchens leak at the dishwasher, the sink drain, the refrigerator water line and the ice maker. Slow leaks soak the subfloor long before they show on the surface, so the signs are often subtle.

• Soft or bouncy spots in front of the sink or dishwasher.
• Cupped wood boards or lifting vinyl seams.
• Cracked tile or grout near appliances.
• A musty smell that does not go away.
• Staining on the ceiling below, if there is a room underneath.

1. Stop the leakRepair the supply line, drain or appliance connection first; nothing else holds until it is dry.
2. Open the floorCut out the damaged subfloor back to sound material and expose the joists.
3. Check the structureProbe the joists for rot. Large or long-term damage, or any visible mold, calls for a water restoration or mold professional to dry and assess the area before rebuilding.
4. RebuildInstall new plywood of matching thickness with construction adhesive and screws over solid blocking at the seams.
5. Lay the finished floorOnly after everything is dry and flat does the new flooring go down.

Subfloor prep: flatness, stiffness and old layers

The finished floor is only as good as what is under it. Plank floors need a flat subfloor; dips and humps telegraph through and can cause joints to separate. Porcelain tile needs a stiff floor, plus cement backer board or an uncoupling membrane, because flex cracks tile and grout.

Older Chicago homes often have several layers of old flooring stacked up over the decades. Some older vinyl tiles and adhesives may contain asbestos. If you are unsure what a layer is, have it tested before anyone sands, scrapes or tears it out.

Condo kitchen flooring and underlayment rules

Many associations require a sound-rated underlayment under hard flooring, to limit footstep and impact noise reaching the unit below. The requirement is usually written in the building's rules or declaration, may name a minimum sound rating, and may require approval before work starts. Some buildings restrict hardwood or tile in upper units altogether.

Get the written requirement from management before choosing material, because the underlayment adds height and affects the dishwasher and doorway transitions. Many Chicago condo buildings also limit work hours, require elevator reservations and ask for the contractor's insurance certificate.

Transitions, timing and what to expect

New kitchen floors usually meet a hallway, dining room or living room floor at a doorway. Plan that transition before ordering: a flush transition looks best when heights are close, while a reducer covers a larger difference.

On the job, appliances are pulled and reset, water and gas connections are handled carefully, and baseboards or shoe molding are removed and reinstalled or replaced. A typical kitchen floor replacement takes a few days; tile runs longer because of setting and grout cure time, and any subfloor repair adds to that. LVP can usually be walked on right away, while tile and site-finished hardwood need cure time before appliances go back.