How Long Does a Kitchen Remodel Take? A Clark County Timeline
A realistic phase-by-phase kitchen remodel timeline for Clark County homes, plus the things that stretch it and how planning before demo keeps you on track.
Most kitchen remodels in Clark County run about 4 to 6 months from your first planning conversation to the final walkthrough. The part where your kitchen is actually torn apart and unusable is shorter, usually 6 to 10 weeks. The long stretch up front is planning, selections, and waiting on materials, especially cabinets, which can take 8 weeks or more to build and ship [1]. The single biggest thing you control is how much you decide before demo starts. A kitchen with a finalized layout, ordered cabinets, and chosen counters moves fast. One that is still picking tile after the walls are open will stall.
The short answer and the honest one
If someone tells you a full kitchen remodel will be done in two weeks, they are either talking about a cosmetic refresh or they are not counting the planning and lead times. The active construction can be quick. Getting to the point where construction can start is what takes time. We would rather give you a realistic kitchen remodel timeline than a hopeful one that slips.
Phase 1: Planning and selections (2 to 8 weeks)
This is where the project is won or lost. We measure the space, talk through how you actually use the kitchen, and lock the layout. Then come selections: cabinets, countertop material, sink and faucet, appliances, flooring, lighting, and the backsplash. Every one of these has to be decided before the right phase, and some have to be decided early so they can be ordered.
Cabinets drive the whole schedule. Industry planning guidance recommends finalizing your cabinet specs well before install day, because that is the part you wait on. Get selections done here and the rest of the project has a clear runway.
Phase 2: Permitting, if the work needs it
Not every kitchen remodel needs a permit, but many do. Moving plumbing, adding or relocating electrical circuits, or taking out a wall usually triggers one with the local jurisdiction (the City of Vancouver, Camas, Washougal, or Clark County, depending on where you live). A like-for-like swap that keeps everything in place often does not. We handle the permit process where it applies and build the review time into the schedule so it does not surprise you mid-project.
Phase 3: Ordering and lead times (the wait that overlaps planning)
Once selections are final, cabinets and counters get ordered. This is the long pole. Stock cabinets can arrive in a few weeks. Semi-custom and custom cabinets commonly run 8 to 12 weeks or more to manufacture [1]. We schedule demo to land near cabinet delivery so your kitchen is not torn out and sitting empty for a month waiting on boxes. Ordering early, during planning, is how you keep the timeline tight.
Phase 4: Demo through finish (the 6 to 10 weeks of construction)
This is the part most people picture when they think remodel. Here is roughly how it sequences once the work starts:
- Demolition: 1 to 3 days. Old cabinets, counters, and flooring come out.
- Rough-in: plumbing and electrical get moved or added while the walls are open, then inspected if a permit applies.
- Drywall, paint, and flooring: the room gets put back to a finished shell ready for cabinets.
- Cabinet installation: a few days to a week, depending on the size of the kitchen.
- Countertop template and install: counters are measured (templated) only after cabinets are set, then fabricated and installed, which adds about 1 to 2 weeks of wait between template and install.
- Tile and backsplash: goes in after counters.
- Finish and punch list: faucet, appliances, hardware, trim, and a final walkthrough to catch anything that needs touching up.
The countertop gap catches people off guard. Counters cannot be templated until the cabinets are physically in place, so there is a built-in pause while they are fabricated. We plan around it instead of pretending it does not exist.
What stretches a kitchen remodel timeline
A few things reliably add weeks. Knowing them ahead of time is how you avoid them.
- Custom cabinet lead times. The fancier and more bespoke the cabinets, the longer the build. Order early.
- Layout changes after demo. Deciding to move the sink once the walls are open means new plumbing, new electrical, sometimes a new permit, and a reset clock.
- Surprises behind the walls. Older Clark County homes can hide outdated wiring, hidden water damage, or plumbing that is not where the drawings expect. We open things up, show you, and price the fix before moving on.
- Slow selections. The backsplash you keep going back and forth on can hold up the whole finish phase.
- Appliance and fixture backorders. A specialty range with a long lead time can become the new bottleneck if it is ordered late.
Why planning before demo keeps it on track
The pattern is simple. The projects that finish close to schedule are the ones where the decisions were made on paper before anyone swung a hammer [1]. When the layout is set, the cabinets are ordered, and the counters and tile are chosen, the construction phase becomes a sequence the team can run cleanly. When decisions are still open after demo, every pending choice becomes a place the project can sit and wait.
That is why we put real work into the front end. A written scope, a confirmed layout, and ordered materials before demo are what let us give you a date and keep it. The National Kitchen and Bath Association points to the same thing: time spent planning is time saved on the back end [2].
Want a realistic timeline for your kitchen instead of a guess? We will walk the space, talk through what you want, and put a clear written scope and schedule in your hands. Call us at (360) 838-6731 or start here. See Kitchen Remodeling