Forget about what he said, what does the contract say? If you were having a new plywood sub floor put in the contract should say that. Same goes for wiring.

what does your contract say? these things should all be outlined in the scope of work in your contract. if your contract is not clear i would stop all work, renegotiate the scope of work to the detail necessary so everyone is clear on who is doing what. stop the train until both parties fully understand and are aligned on the scope of work.

Is he going to install a new underlayment on top of the old floor? Although this adds some thickness since you don't start on top of the subfloor, instead you are starting on top of existing flooring, but this is one way that it is done.

In terms of the electrical, the number of circuits recommended in a new kitchen is much higher than used to be recommended. (I think I went from 2 circuits to 7). If he is adding new circuits all the way from the panel (assuming there is room to do so) there is nothing wrong with leaving some of the existing circuits in place. However, I would not simply add electrical load to the existing circuits.

I think you need a circuit for each appliance (fridge, DW, microwave, range, disposal, etc.) and two completely separate ones for the countertop to handle small appliances.

I think your objections are sensible, but I wouldn't be surprised if the other posts are right and that it depends on your contract whether you'll have to pay extra to get things done to your satisfaction. I ran into a similar situation when I had my bathrooms remodeled. Fortunately, the architect I had hired had drafted a very thorough scope-of-work that was bid out to several contractors. Those specs were all in my contract with the GC. When I ran into a particular problem and the GC didn't want to do it, I could respectfully and politely point to the contract he agreed to, so in the end he kept his side of the agreement.

Best of luck. I hope all works out and you love your new kitchen when all is said and done.

As palimpest said you will need some new circuots. Reusing the old circuits is pretty standard. Unless you specified they be changed it would typically be an overage to insist on it. If the wiring were aluminum or much older it would be changed.
As to the floor- that too is typical if what we are seeing is the final subfloor. If it goes under the walls then it is. To replace it would require cutting it at the edge of the wall, intalling blocking below and then adding new plywood and then undderlayment. Only done in cases of rot.going under the walls and sitting on joists increase the stiffness, a replacement won't do that.

In my own kitchen I had a similar situation. Put down floor leveler, then put in 1/2 hardy backer with thinset and screws, then the tile. This was a 21" tile which requires twice the stiffness of 12 in. I already had 1 1/4 in of sub floor. Still fine 9 years later.

The floor that you're seeing is not the final subfloor (hopefully I have the terminology correct). It appears that there's another wood floor below the floor that I'm looking at.

If he's planning to put cement backer-board on top of that linoleum before putting down the tile, then I think you'll be fine as long as the subfloor underneath it is in good shape (no water or termite damage, no dry rot, etc.). But if he wants to put the tile right on top of the linoleum, then no. I made the mistake of letting a tile guy do that in my bathroom, and now I have cracks in the grout and it creaks when I walk on it. It's going to have to be re-done before I can sell the place.

As far as the wiring goes, the code requires two 20-amp circuits for receptacles and small appliances. Those are the *only* outlets allowed on those circuits, with a couple small exceptions for clocks, starters on gas ranges, etc. When I re-did the wiring in my 1956 kitchen there was only one circuit, so I had to add another.

As far as I can tell, the code doesn't explicitly require separate circuits for each major appliance. But it does require that they can be turned on simultaneously, which in practice either means separate circuits or a really huge cable, so I think people tend to run separate ones. Some newer appliances like double convection ovens are bigger power hogs than older ones tended to be, so those might require newer, larger cabling. Note that I'm not an electrician, though. I probably know just enough to be dangerous. :-/

What I'd suggest is:
- If your contract says he has to replace everything, then make him do it. Or give you a discount if he doesn't. :-)
- If the wiring is aluminum I'd rip it out and replace it, and pay extra for it if necessary. But I think aluminum wiring was a 1970's thing.
- Otherwise, if the existing wiring is grounded (3 conductors), is copper rather than aluminum, is large enough (20 amps requires 12 gauge or larger), and the cables aren't visibly damaged, I'd let him re-use it.
- Make sure the existing circuits for the oven, cooktop, etc. are big enough to handle whatever appliances you plan to install, and any reasonable ones you might upgrade to later. I think that usually means 50A for ovens, but I'm not sure. Go browse some high-end ovens. :-)
- Make sure there will be two receptacle / small appliance circuits. Whoever the GC hires to do the electrical will know about this code requirement and will probably just do it. Otherwise there's no way it will pass inspection.

I hope that helped. Like I said, I'm not an expert or an electrician, just a semi-educated layperson.

Laura

april love, it looks like we had a similar electrical and flooring situation as you, however, we didn't have any problems with our contractor regarding it. We had floor areas that used to have pipes or electrical lines coming up through the exterior wall (which was completely removed) and they did cut a piece to fit the holes. Tile went over it just fine and our tile was BIG too - 24'' x 24''! A lot of electrical wiring was "re-used" but new circuits were added to our panel box and part of the electrical system were overhauled but again, some of the existing outlets were re-used and that is fine. I guess I am trying to encourage you and persuade you not to totally freak-out. You still have a long way to go before you are done and so try not to lose it on the GC yet.

I'm so confused now. Right now the work is at a standstill.

I know that I'm stupid for this but we didn't have a formal contract in place when he started the work. I've worked with this contractor before for several smaller jobs. In the past, we talked about what would be done, an estimate of price was provided, work was started, and a contract would be provided at some point.

The contractor has always been very trustworthy and I've never had any issues with him. All work that has been completed in the past has been really good. With that said, a permit was not pulled because for the most part there are no major changes.

I told the contractor that I wanted to pull a permit and he didn't have a problem with it. He only griped about the additional cost that I would have to pay and the longer period of time to complete the project.

I searched the internet, took a look, and it appears that the wiring is copper.

Do I continue on with the project, stop and come up with a new plan (I interviewed several other contractors and craftspeople), get the permit, not get the permit, .....

Wise GWer's please advise me on what to do.

Dunno about the floor question, but regarding the electrical, you asked if all the cords in the walls should be replaced.
What you need to know is if the wiring is copper or aluminum. Aluminum wiring can cause fires, so a gut reno is the time to replace it, at least in the kitchen. If it's copper, it's fine.

Adding circuits is a separate issue; your local building code will determine that.

As others have said, all these things should be spelled out very specifically in your contract. Our contract was several legal-size sheets covered with hand-written items.

With that said, a permit was not pulled because for the most part there are no major changes.

Because your local law does not require a permit for a complete gut of a kitchen or because you decided you're above the law?

No permit means no inspection means no one is going to hold your contractor to code for you. So tough luck on the electrical.

taking a room down to the studs is likely to be viewed as "major" by an inspector...
that being said, the older wiring looks like it is still 'modern' wiring (not fabric or older covering styles, nor aluminum) so it should be fine to keep. There is no code violation and given the price of copper and the additional labour in running new lines, this is a good thing from a budget perspective.
What you need to know from your GC/electrician is how they are adding additional circuits. As others have mentioned, a modern kitchen will have upwards of 7 circuits, with many appliances requiring its own breaker. Ask to see the electrical plan - the should be one for a change this extensive, even if it is not inspected.

Regarding the flooring...my parents put tile over lino - not a good idea, eventually (over 20 years) a few tiles cracked and groutlines crumbled...they should pull the lino and get down to a flat, stable wood or concrete (or cement backer board) floor. scraping up the lino is a crappy job but with a good wide scrapper (attached to a big hammer drill) it comes up pretty fast.

When I did mine I checked with 3 tile installers and the John Bridge tile forum before proceding. Might want to check there. My lino was old enough and the type that likely had asbestos which is safer rncased than stirred up into the house.

Marcolo,

Yes, I feel really stupid now. All work has stopped. I'm trying to figure out how I should proceed - the right way. I certainly don't think I'm above the law but I guess that I didn't realize what was actually going to be done until it was done.

I told the contractor that I wanted permits yesterday and he told me he would look into it and get back with me.

Don't beat yourself up, you can still remedy this. STOP the speeding train until you have a clearly defined scope of work, contract and permits in hand. Not another ounce of work by any vendor until this is done, printed and signed by all parties. It should include line by line details of all work to be completed, schedule to complete, warranty, payment schedule etc. If it causes you timeline delays than so be it. You absolutely need a contract to protect all parties interests. Dont freak, just buckle down and get this train back on the tracks.

Ditto what babuska_cat said. If your GC doesn't like this, get someone else.