Tag Archives: Remodeling Advice

How to Compare Multiple Bids the Smart Way

You’ve surely heard the phrase “Comparing Apples with Oranges”.

If you change your design every time you interview a contractor and ask them to bid, then comparing their bids will be a worthless exercise.  Each contractor will be bidding on a different thing.

Avoiding this problem is obvious: have a clear detailed plan and give the same set of prints to each contractor you ask to bid.

However, even if you give ten contractors the same plans, when you receive the bids you must look further than their bottom line price.  You should not always go for low bid, assuming you will save money; or high bid, assuming you’ll get the best quality; or middle bid, assuming you’ll get the best of both worlds.  Smart comparison means reviewing exactly what you will get for your money.

For example, if one contractor takes responsibility for mistakes, and has a built-in 5% allowance for unexpected costs, their bid will naturally be higher and still be a better value.

Or a contractor might be high bid because the other contractors left out portions of the remodel on the bid, relying on charging for change orders to finish the project.

Or a contractor might be the lowest bid not because they are basing it on cheaper materials or omitting parts of the project, but because they have an original and unique solution no one else has thought of.

The thing is to be smart when you compare.  A good idea is to choose your bidding contractors by reputation and involve them in the budget.  A good contractor can help you make the correct decisions that will allow you to stay within your budget.

Why Does Remodeling Cost So Much?

My bathroom is $30,000?! Why so much? The reason it costs so much is because there is $30,000 worth of work in the job.  If we want it to cost less, what we have to do is take out some of the items that we are including.  If you go grocery shopping and the bill is high, it’s because you bought more groceries.  If you want the bill to be lower, you have to buy less.  If you buy a car and it has features that you want, you’re going to pay more for those features (a back up camera or heated-seats, for example).  So in a bathroom if you wanted to buy a heated floor, it is going to cost more than a bathroom without a heated floor.  The price is related to the purchase quantity and quality of the products.

Recently completed Clinton Township Master Bathroom

Most people do not buy a bathroom or kitchen nearly as often as they buy a car.  So people generally understand why cars cost what they cost, especially related to other cars.  Some cars are more expensive than others.  All cars take you to work, though.  When we talk about bathroom and kitchen remodeling, price is going to be reflective upon what is included.  More electrical, higher price.  More plumbing, higher price.  More expensive sink, etc.

This Sterling Heights client saved money on their Kitchen Remodel by not replacing their cabinets and just focusing on the countertops, backsplash, paint, appliances, sink, lighting, and adding electricity to the island.

Now if we are comparing proposals from one company to another and one seems to be $5,000 higher let’s say, the reason for that is most likely the salesperson’s interpretation of what you said you wanted coupled with his/her desire to get you to purchase better quality products so you won’t call back later and say there was a problem.

Some salespeople’s mentalities are more budget-oriented, while other salespeople’s mentalities are more quality-oriented (where the price ends up higher).  So depending on the personality of who you’re talking to, that person’s interpretation of what they think you should buy will be different.

Our advice is to be more clear up-front about your goals.  Do your research ahead of time, and be specific about what you want (and what you don’t want).  Then, the prices from the companies that you call in will be much closer together.  Then it is just a matter of deciding who you think you can have harmony with as a company-client relationship.  And it would be a good idea to visit their showroom, talk to some of their past customers, or just ask around – there are a lot of ways to find out about a company.  Talk with the City Hall about them getting permits, talk with the appliance suppliers, the cabinet supplier even.  Find out if they pay their bills – that will give you some idea of their business acumen along with the harmony that they have with their suppliers.  If they have good relationships, most likely it will end up to be a smooth-flowing job.

The Benefits of Visiting our Showroom (2023)

  • Updated from a post originally published on: 08/14/2015

The majority of our potential clients will initiate their contact with us by sending an email or calling us on the phone, and requesting a free in-home consultation. While we in no way discourage this, I would humbly suggest that the better route to take would be to first stop by our Showroom. We are open from 9:30 to 5:00 Monday through Thursday, 9:30 to 2:00 on Friday and from 10:00 to 3:00 on Saturday.

Welcome to Kopke!

The reason I see it most beneficial to visit our Showroom before making an in-home consultation appointment is, by visiting, you will have the opportunity to meet with multiple members of our staff, from design, to pricing, to production. Even potentially the installers who will be working on your job, the bookkeeper who can answer any questions related to financing, and the marketing team who will gift you with a promotional item or two! We might be having an employee’s birthday party and invite you in for a slice of ice cream cake. You will have an inside view into our company culture instead of one stranger appearing on your doorstep.

Sometimes a walk-in client will be greeted by one of our designers, begin a discussion about their project, and come to a technical question that that individual is not an expert on. We can easily grab the nearby expert, and answer your question for you right there. Have a question about how long your project will take to start? Ask our production department, who know their schedules better than anyone. You can even meet the owner and shake his hand. I think you are beginning to get my point.

Tons of product samples to browse!

Additionally, we have thousands of product samples here that will inspire you. You will have a much better direction of which samples you would like brought out to your home during the in-home consultation. You can even borrow some to take home with you!

I would sincerely suggest visiting us here, developing a rapport with a design consultant, and then making an appointment for him/her to meet with you at your home to proceed further. By visiting us you will have a much clearer picture of whether or not our company is a good fit for you. Call 586-777-6633 to make an appointment to come visit, or walk-ins are always welcome!

Range Hoods and Make-Up Air: The Case for Clean Air

In the kitchen and bathroom, it is widely known that proper ventilation is needed for the safety and health of your family and your home. In the bathroom, vent fans, and in the kitchen, range hoods, are included in nearly all present-day remodels. When bathrooms don’t have ventilation, steam builds up and not only does it make for annoying foggy mirrors, it can also lead to mold which can be both harmful and unsightly. When kitchens don’t have proper ventilation, specifically a range hood above the stove, steam and grease blanket your kitchen and the moisture and oils can settle on the cabinets causing them to warp and/or wreck. It has always seemed like an easy enough fix to just add a ventilation fan to suck the unwanted elements out of the home, but something you may never have thought of is: how is that air being replaced? That is what we call make-up air, the air that replaces the “bad” air that has gotten sucked out by a fan or range hood.

In the old days, homeowners were instructed to “open a window” when cooking, which allowed for fresh air to come in and fill the void.  Also, homes were much less “air-tight”, or “energy-efficient”. Picture older homes that have air passing under the doorways, sometimes enough room to slide a thin package under. Also the windows were drafty, and you could hear a slight whoosh if you got near. In newer homes, doors have weather-stripping that seal out any airflow underneath, and windows are so tight you wonder how they were even able to fit them in the opening. These things are great for saving money on your energy bill, but did you know a tightly-sealed home can actually be dangerous?

When a range-hood is employed while cooking, it sucks air at variable rates, depending on the size and model of your unit. The rate that the air is sucked is measured in terms of CFM (cubic feet per minute). Think about it, that is quite a lot of air! Currently in Michigan, there is a code stating that if your range hood has a rating of 400 or more CFM, you must have a system in place to provide fresh make-up air. Without it, the air will try to replace itself, and if no fresh air is available (no window open), it will sometimes draw in exhaust from furnaces and water heaters (backdrafting).

A make-up air damper is what is recommended. This is a flap that lets fresh air in the home. Imagine a duct that goes from your kitchen to any exterior wall of the home. When the range hood turns on, it sends a signal to the damper, which opens up and lets in fresh air. When the range hood turns off, the damper flap closes. This is a way to ensure that there is no negative air pressure created when you use your exhaust fans.

This is a relatively new code, and so it is very likely that you either have no exhaust system at all, or you do have a range hood but no make-up air system. If you fall into the former category, you may want to consider installing such a system in your kitchen. This is what the National Kitchen and Bath Association has to say:

“The EPA has labeled the kitchen as the number one source of contaminants in the home and the majority of those contaminants relate to the cooking activity. And because cooking generates periodic large quantities of contaminants, it is more efficient to have a specialized ventilation device (range hood) capable of handling the localized need to prevent the infiltration into the rest of the home. Many older homes have wall fans rather than range hoods and while this does provide ventilation it does not adequately prevent the spread of cooking contaminants in the house. The reason is that the particles from cooking are hundreds of time smaller than the human hair…it is vapor. If these vapors are not captured within the cooking area they are very likely to stay air borne for up to 72 hours and spread throughout the home. A wall fan is not powerful enough to prevent this spread…it can help but it is not a good replacement for a hood.”  (Source: NKBA)

If you fall into the category of having a range hood but no make-up air system, you want to make sure that you have a window open while employing the fan. In Bathrooms, make-up air is not as big of an issue, because no bathroom fans that I know of run at 400 CFM, but you still may want to open a window if possible when running your fan.

When you are ready to remodel your kitchen or add a ventilation system, give us a call at (586) 777-6633!

How Much Does Remodeling Cost in Southeast Michigan? (2012)

Yesterday one of my Salespeople came to me, frustrated, asking “How do we educate the public as to how much Remodeling projects cost?”  It is very often, from my understanding, that homeowners have skewed expectations of what it really costs to complete the project they are envisioning.  Whether it is HGTV programs showing super-cheap D.I.Y. fixes, billboards falsely advertising the complete $4,000 Kitchen, or a combination of both, it is my goal to help de-mystify the entire process.

Kitchens (Major) Kitchens (Minor) Bathrooms (Major) Bathrooms (Minor)
Low $13,962 $3,000 $8,499 $1,397
High $30,175 $9,196 $20,673 $11,276
Avg $22,825 $6,097 $13,265 $4,764
Additions Windows (Vinyl) Windows (Wood)
Low $10,600 $565 $1,384
High $63,304 $12,000 $57,511
Avg $28,669 $4,521 $11,186

Please note that this data is not indicative of the entire Detroit Metro Market, just jobs completed by Kopke Remodeling & Design in the year 2012.

As far as the windows are concerned, these numbers do not (for the most part) refer to an entire replacement of all windows in the home. Our customers often purchase a handful of windows at a time, sometimes even just 1.

These numbers are aimed to show you what other Southeast Michigan Homeowners like you are spending on their remodeling projects.

Click here to see enlarged charts of data from all categories.

You will notice that all categories have quite a large range.  For example, Kitchen remodels can range from 13,000 to 30,000.  These prices directly reflect the prices of the different items you choose to include in your project.  There is expensive tile, and there is inexpensive tile.  You can choose a laminate countertop, or go with Quartz.  So ultimately, you decide how much you want your project to cost based on the items you choose.  The size of the room is also a factor of course, as are different obstacles that are unique to each an every home, such as updating the plumbing or electrical.

 Thank you for reading!  As always, don’t hesitate to email me at advertising@kopkehome.com or call (586) 777-6633 with any additional questions you may have.  I will do the research and get them answered!