House Flipping 101

As we all know, the kitchen is like a hub of our house, we spend much of our time in there, preparing meals, entertaining, and of course cleaning. You want to ensure there are plenty of cupboards, as well as counter space. Make it look new, bright, and spacious. If your budget allows room for those extras, this is where you'll want to use them.

Two of the most important areas that can make or break the sale of a house are the kitchen and the baths. These can also be areas where fixture replacement can be expensive. However, just because fixtures look bad, doesn't mean they must be replaced. Sometimes good solid cleaning strategies and a bit of elbow grease can make a fixture look renewed.

Baking soda and bleach are two components of the house flipper's essentials kit. Baking soda is a low abrasive cleanser that can be rubbed into surfaces with a wet sponge and used like popular name brand cleansers. It works very well on stainless steel sinks, as well as on porcelain. It has the added benefit of being a deodorizer, so when you rinse it down tub and sink drains, it can eliminate drain odors, especially if a property has been sitting unused. It is also biodegradable. Bleach is an old stand by for getting out stains and sanitizing. Pour some in that ugly toilet bowl and let it sit for a few hours, then use a toilet brush to clean the bowl. You may have to do this more than once. Remember that bleach will remove color from things it comes into contact with, so be careful not to spill or drip it on non-colorfast surfaces. Both these cleaners can help to remove stains and grime from laminate and cultured marble counter and sink tops. Test laminate for color fastness in a hidden area, before using bleach.

I found a great product for removing cigarette burn marks and some other stains from cultured marble sink tops. It comes in a kit along with excellent instructions and two freebies-instructions for removing surface scratches on porcelain and a handy little book that gives "recipes"
and instructions for inexpensive cleaning products. This product is called the Burn Buster Kit and the URL is in the Additional Resources. Well worth the investment.

For old style cast iron tubs with porcelain finishes, cleaning may not be enough. Sometimes you will find chinks in the porcelain or the porcelain may be worn and the black of the cast iron is showing through the finish. You have two potential options here. For simple chinks or nicks, use Nick Fix Porcelain-Enamel-Acrylic Touch-up. It can be purchased at Home Depot Supply or from Surface Repair. You will find it in and around the plumbing or the bathtub and sink caulk. It comes in a small bottle with a little brush and you apply it like paint. Another product that I strongly recommend to save those cast iron tubs with the gray showing through the bottom is SureStep Non-Slip Coating. I have used it many times and when used properly, it creates a very nice finish that eliminates the need to replace the tub, which is not only expensive, but time consuming. Buy it direct from the source at the URL in Additional Resources. Nice friendly folk who will let you buy one can or a case. Be sure to read the directions and feel free to tell them you read about it here.

After you have cleaned your tubs and sinks, before you do any finish repair or installation of new fixtures, strip out any old caulk that is discolored or stained and replace. They make a tool for this, but I have found a utility knife and a straight edge razor blade in a holder does a better job. Do not use painter's caulk for wet areas, it will mildew. I recommend GE Silicone II, a Home Depot item. To give your caulk a professional looking finish, squeeze the caulk along the seam, then use the Homax caulk finishing tool to remove excess caulk (available at Home Depot for about a dollar). Wipe excess caulk from finishing tool frequently with facial or toilet tissue. Finish by gently wiping the caulk with a smooth damp rag.

If you plan to keep flipping, invest in a hand held steam cleaner. It gets into corners, cleans tile and grout, toilets, sinks, refrigerators, stoves, just about anything that won't melt. Steam is also a super disinfectant. Because the steam loosens dirt, it may be as easy as wiping to clean.

Now that your fixtures and counter tops are all clean and looking good, just add some updated faucets, spouts and handles-and of course a new toilet seat-voila, looking good.

Of course, then you want to take care of the Kitchen Cabinents, any funky odors, and of course Cracks and Gaps in wall corners and where molding is not fitting tight.

One final thought, check out this great book. You'd be surprised how many quality items you can get at Ikea for your kitchen. I've saved THOUSANDS on Kitchen Builds with this knowledge and I always recomend it.