Need Help with Kitchen Reno!

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Columns - Green Living

Green Living - Questions & Answers

......with Debra Lynn Dadd

After recovering from MCS by removing toxic chemicals in her home, Debra Lynn Dadd went on to become a pioneering consumer advocate for health and the environment. Author of Home Safe Home, she also has a popular website containing a directory with more than 1000 links to nontoxic and eco-friendly products, a Q&A blog with many MCS bloggers, recipes for using natural sweeteners, and more. Debra is also available by phone for consultations. She lives in Florida with her husband, who drives a car powered by vegetable oil. Visit her website at http://www.dld123.com.

Tuesday, May 12th, 2009:

Need Help with Kitchen Reno!

by Debra Lynn Dadd

Q:

Hi Debra,

I find myself overwhelmed with choices for an eco kitchen reno. It seems that either solid wood cabinetry or cabinet boxes made of strawboard with solid wood fronts are the only eco options. I've tried re-covering used cabinets from the paper, but they are always in really bad shape.

Further, are granite or soapstone the best environmental options for countertops, and doesn't it depend on the granite's source?

My kitchen is falling apart and I'm afraid to take one step forward!

Thanks for any help you can offer, and I really love your newsletter.

V. L.

Victoria BC Canada

A:

There ARE a lot of choices for eco kitchens, more even than you list.

Green Home Guide has a great article that outlines all the possibilities for countertops, and gives some resources. The best environmental option isn't necessarily granite or soapstone--I once redid my entire kitchen with salvage gray marble slabs at $5 a square foot. Eco-options for countertops include tiles made from various recycled materials, too.

Both your choices for cabinetry sound fine. There are more options--such as metal cabinets, but wood is much more aesthetic. Consider having cabinets custom-built. I know that sounds expensive, but I had a local cabinetmaker build all the cabinets in my California kitchen with solid wood and my choice of finish, and the total cost installed was less than if I had purchased particleboard cabinets from Home Depot. So check around.

There are no single products that are "the best" choice for everyone. In a personal one-on-one phone consultation, I can help you choose the kitchen reno products that are right for you.