FAQ

Our full-service area is within a 20 minute drive of our office, meaning that we will serve as general contractor for installs within this radius. Design Consultations within 20 minutes cost $150.

For jobsites between a 20 and 30 minute drive from our office, homeowners will be responsible for arranging a local contractor for their project installation, and we’ll supply design, materials, installation documentation, and delivery of materials. Design consultations within the 21-30 minute radius cost $200.

Projects are most successful when the project is managed and installed by a contractor who is local to the jobsite, and when the homeowners can easily come to our office to meet with their designer.

We typically have not been taking on new projects that are 20-30 minutes from our office, and we have not taken any new projects over 30 minutes from our office due to the demand for remodel projects we’ve been experiencing. We will use Google Maps to determine the distance from our office to your home and welcome you to do the same as a preliminary check prior to moving forward with your inquiry.

Kitchen & Bath
We design, sell, and install cabinetry, countertops, plumbing fixtures, shower and tub surrounds, tile, flooring, and associated accessories. Accessories we supply as part of our cabinetry projects include decorative hardware, trim and molding, sinks, faucets, cabinetry inserts for organization, integral power stations in cabinetry or countertops, undercabinet lighting, decorative lighting, and bath hardware. These accessories are not available for individual sale.

Additionally, we design, supply and install closet/pantry systems, glass shower doors and panels, fireplace mantels, floating shelves, and other custom woodwork. When in scope, our installs are managed by our dedicated project manager, and done by a combination of our in-house installation team, and our trusted subcontractors.

Our primary cabinetry lines provide a wide range of price points, customization, and styles. If you are looking for something special, and it isn’t in our standard offerings, we also have total custom options to create entirely one-of-a-kind cabinetry and other woodwork.

While the most common countertop materials used in our projects are quartz, granite, laminate, marble, quartzite, wood, and butcher block, our material options are virtually limitless. Specialty countertops we have included in past projects include stainless steel, labradorite, and cast pewter.

Flooring
Our Flooring division sells and arranges installation for a wide variety of products including but not limited to LVP/LVT (vinyl), laminate, hardwood, carpet, and tile flooring, underfloor heating, tile backsplashes, tile showers, tile/stone fireplaces, and more. Our Flooring division works in tandem and independently from our Kitchen & Bath division; customers working with our Designers on a remodel project may work with our Flooring division to select flooring and tile options for their remodel, and the Flooring division also serves customers who are looking for flooring only.

Other
Please note, the following services are not included in our scope: design only, refinishing, refacing, stairs, small accessory sale when not part of a larger project, installation of or repairs to materials not originally purchased from Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor.

You do not need an appointment to visit our Flooring Showroom. Come by anytime we are open!

An appointment is recommended for visits to our Kitchen & Bath Design Center. This space is made for designers to use as they guide homeowners through decisions on their project, with material and finish samples tucked away so as not to overwhelm people with too many options. Therefore, we feel you’ll find it much more useful and informative to walk through with a Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor representative. While you are welcome to stop by anytime during our normal business hours, we highly recommend that you call in advance just to make sure that someone can be available to help you find what you are looking for.

Knowing roughly what you hope to spend, and what you want to accomplish is very important from the very beginning of your project. After you contact us about your project, one of the tools that we’ll send you is a Budget Estimator. This tool uses budgets from actual recent projects as a percentage of home value to help you understand and plan for a preliminary budget. Another tool you’ll receive is the Design Survey, you will fill out a budget range on your Kitchen Design Survey (or Bath Design Survey) and discuss it in more detail with your designer during your Design Consultation. Knowing your budget in advance makes it possible for your designer to create a design to fit your budget instead of spending time creating and pricing a project that you won’t want to do in the long-run. Your designer will be able to tell you up front if your plans can fit within your budget, or if you need to adjust your budget/expectations in order to accomplish your project goals. This is a back-and-forth conversation between you and your designer, proposing an amount you’d like to spend, explaining what you will be able to accomplish within that amount, and then adjusting budget and/or scope to make both match. Clear communication about budget will make for a more efficient design process, and a plan that works for you.

Two kitchen projects with the same space and layout can have a huge price difference depending on materials, organizational inserts, and accessories. We try to be very clear when sharing a Budget Estimator tool with you because the estimator range will be wide, and your own budget will vary from that range. Our goal is to design a space that accomplishes as many of your goals as possible within your budget, and as such, the conversation will be ongoing. During your design meetings, we can tell you whether we believe we could create a design for your space which would fit your budget and what sort of options you will have to choose from in that range.

While we do accept credit and debit card payments, payments made by credit or debit card incur a 3.5% service charge. To avoid the extra charge, we recommend you be prepared to pay with cash, check, or money order.

Once your design, project scope, material selections, and budget are all just right, it’s time to sign your contract. You’ll submit your signed contract and down payment check for 60% of your contract value.

Your second invoice for 20% of your project value will be issued upon substantial completion of your project. Your final invoice for the remaining 20% of your project value will be issued once the original scope of your contract is completed. Your project may include multiple contracts (e.g. cabinets/cabinetry install and countertops/countertop install), in which case you will receive invoices at different times based on the progress and completion of each contract scope. Your invoices will show payments you have made and the amount due. 

All payments due upon invoice. Invoices that remain unpaid after 30 days will incur a finance charge.

• Paying with Credit or Debit Card: 3.5% processing charge. You can avoid this charge by paying with check, money order, or cash
• Storage of cabinetry at Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor for more than 2 weeks after it arrives​: $150 storage charge/month billed on the first business day of the month. If your project is delayed after your cabinetry order is placed, contact your designer as soon as you know of the delay. Finally, if your project is delayed after your cabinetry is already being manufactured, you can choose to store it in your garage, or any other space at your jobsite to avoid storage charges for keeping the cabinetry at Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor.
• Unplanned delivery inside your home, or to a location not accessible by a 26′ box truck
• Uncommunicated changes to your floor plan or utility locations after your Design Consultation​: If the floor plan used to design your project is different from the floor plan at the time of your technical site measure, your design will need to be updated and your pricing may change. If you signed your contract prior to your technical site measure, your designer will create a change order contract for these changes. You can avoid additional charges by informing your designer as soon as you are aware of any changes to your floor plan or utility locations, so that they can adjust your preliminary design and pricing to accommodate the new plan.
• Changes requested after signing your contract​: Any post-contract changes require that you sign a change-order contract addendum and will likely result in additional charges. Any change order resulting in a defined increase in the value of your project will be invoiced immediately (not at the time of contraction completion billing). Any time and materials changes will be invoiced upon completion of the time and materials work. Any change resulting in a lower contract value will be issued as a credit, and deducted from the final invoice value.
• Other: We do our best to account for all of the costs of your project in your original contract, but there are expenses that may arise in areas that cannot be seen prior to the start of your project. Some examples are electrical or plumbing that is not up to code, hidden water damage, poor insulation, and floor height discrepancies.

The following will not result in charges beyond the value of your signed contract:

• Shipping damage, or damage caused by Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor installers or subcontractors
• Warranty-eligible repairs to installation done by Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor installers or subcontractors
• Install trips for punch list, backordered items, or warranty items
• Replacement or repair of any Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor-supplied materials with warrantied manufacturing defects

For most Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor projects, design is included in the cost of the final cabinetry and countertop contracts. Design-related charges prior to signing your contract are:

• For projects with less than $2000 of material sales: additional design costs may be applicable and will be included in your final contract.
• On-site Design Consultation: Our full-service area is within a 20 minute drive of our office, meaning that we will serve as general contractor for installs within this radius. Design Consultations within 20 minutes cost $150. For jobsites between a 20 and 30 minute drive from our office, homeowners will be responsible for arranging a local contractor for their project installation, and we’ll supply design, materials, installation documentation, and delivery of materials. Design consultations within the 21-30 minute radius cost $200.
• Design Release Retainer: $500 or 5% of your contract value (whichever is greater), non-refundable retainer required only if you need your design printed or e-mailed to you prior to signing your contract. Design Release retainers apply towards the cost of your final project.

Unfortunately, no. The Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor Design Center and our standard procedures are set up for specifying and supplying materials for larger projects coordinated by our designers and don’t support the sale of small retail items. We suggest you try local retailers, for example: Franks Hardware, Feltz Lumber, or any of the home improvement stores in the area. We’re sorry that we are unable to accommodate this sort of purchase, and we appreciate your understanding.

Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor designers will specify any materials and fixtures which we sell, including but not limited to cabinetry, countertops, tile, flooring, plumbing fixtures, and light fixtures. For the remaining items, your Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor designer will be happy to refer you to our partner vendors who are experts in their products. We’ll provide you with samples of your selected cabinetry, countertop, tile, flooring, and decorative hardware materials, and furnish the specified vendor with any information they may need to know in order to help with your project. We’ll also be happy to provide an expert opinion on material options you’d like to run past us.

While your designer will typically not accompany you to make your selections, we have great working relationships with each of our partner vendors. We work hard with these vendors to make the process of choosing materials and fixtures as simple and painless as possible.

If you feel strongly that you want a designer to assist you with selecting all of your materials, fixtures, appliances, furnishings, etc., we may recommend adding an interior designer to your project team. We can refer you to an interior designer for your project, but we’d also be happy to coordinate our work with any interior designer of your choice.

When in doubt, let us know what you need, and we’ll help you get it!

Your appliances need to be selected prior to signing your contract. Your final design and pricing are affected by the specifications of your appliances, so we are not able to place any orders for your project materials before we have your appliance selections and have adjusted your design to accommodate them.

It is common for a kitchen or bath design to take 3-8 weeks from Design Consultation to signed contract. Your timely selection of appliances and other materials needed to complete your design helps keep the design process on track. If your project is on a strict timeline, please inform us as early as possible. We’ll do our best to expedite your project, and if we aren’t able to meet your deadline, we’ll let you know so you can come up with a new plan right away.

Yes, Welling can help with your bathroom remodel! We’ll create a design, specify all the necessary materials, and coordinate all onsite work for your bathroom remodel. We’ll then coordinate our team of trusted subcontractors for plumbing, electrical, and any other work that needs to be done outside of our own in-home install crew’s scope of work. We’ll be your main contact for the project and make sure it goes as quickly and as smoothly as possible. Bathrooms, while small, are the most involved room in the home to remodel, and commonly take 1-2 months of onsite work to complete.

**The increase of demand during the COVID-19 pandemic, and resulting material and labor shortages have had a huge effect on lead times for materials. Please talk to a designer to find out current lead times.**

Prior to the pandemic, the following was true. We hope we’ll return to this in the future!

Most cabinetry arrives 6-12 weeks from the date you sign your contract. All cabinetry is made for individual projects, so your lead time may vary based on the finish you select, and the intricacy of any custom pieces.

We work with several different cabinetry manufacturers in order to provide a wide range of options and price points. Our primary cabinetry vendors are located in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Yes! The Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor install crew has decades of experience installing cabinetry, laminate countertops, and custom woodwork. Because different tools and expertise are required for stone projects, tile, plumbing, and electrical work, we subcontract with our trusted partners for these parts of our projects. We work closely with our subcontractors to ensure smooth communication and execution of the install.

**The increase of demand during the COVID-19 pandemic, and resulting material and labor shortages have had a huge effect on lead times for materials. Please talk to a designer to find out current lead times.**

Prior to the pandemic, the following was true. We hope we’ll return to this in the future!

Once your cabinetry is installed, they will be templated for your countertops. Typical lead times for laminate tops is 1-2 weeks from template. For most solid surface and stone tops, you can expect install within 2-4 weeks of template.

In rare cases, when countertops do not have edges against multiple walls, template may not be required after cabinetry install. In these cases, countertops can be installed at the same time as cabinetry.

Yes. Project management will be included in your contract unless you are working with your own contractor. If you choose to work with your own contractor, you will be responsible for coordinating* your contractor with the Project Management team. Otherwise, we will assign our team members and project partners to complete the work in our contract. We have a great relationship with our project partners, and we are happy to coordinate them for subcontracted labor to work along with our install team for your project. Subcontracted labor (for example plumbing & electrical) is charged at cost +10% for project management.

*The exception to this is if you are working with a contractor that we have an established relationship with on a new build project. Please talk to us to confirm that your contractor is one that we work with in this way.

We are happy to supply your cabinetry for pickup or delivery. Please note that any install-related issues, including cabinetry damaged in install, are not warrantied by Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor if not installed by the Welling team.

Yes, but think twice before you do! When you pay to have Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor take technical measurements for your project, you are essentially paying for an insurance policy. If Welling takes measurements, any measurement-related issue is warrantied. If you make a measurement error, you are responsible for paying for any additional materials or modifications needed to make your project work.

If installation is part of your Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor contract scope, we require that a Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor representative take technical measurements for the project.

Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor does not release design drawings, either in digital or hard copies, prior to signing of your contract, and receipt of down payment. If you need your drawings for any reason before you accept your contract, you may choose to pay a Design Release Fee of $500, or 5% of your proposal price, whichever is greater. Your Design Release Fee will be credited towards your project if you decide to proceed, however it is non-refundable if you decide not to move forward with the project.

No. Welling KBF does not supply design-only services.

All project decision-makers need to be present at every design meeting. This ensures that decision-makers have a chance to ask questions and prevents repeated meetings and delays in decision-making.

Sure! We have coloring supplies and books available for kids which they can enjoy while sitting with you or in our breakroom. If that doesn’t sound like their cup of tea, be sure to bring something along for them to do. An hour-long meeting can feel like an eternity to a bored kid!

Habitat for Humanity, out of Wausau, takes donations of used cabinetry that is still in good shape, and they’ll pick them up! Let your project manager know if you are interested in this, and we’d happy coordinate with Habitat for pickup on the same day as tear-out.

Another option is selling your used cabinetry online. Past customers have had luck with Craigslist and the Facebook marketplace.

It is common for remodel project scope to change or grow as projects progress, as there are often unexpected challenges hidden beneath the surface of walls and floors. It is very important to us to make sure that the cost of your project is as clear as possible to you at all times, and we are committed to communicating any needed changes or additions beyond the scope of your signed contract as soon as we become aware of them.  Here is how we handle changes needed after receiving your original signed contract:

• Obtaining your agreement to scope change​: We’ll provide you with a written change order or credit memo, and ask you to return that signed document prior to beginning out-of-contract work.
• For a change order resulting in a defined increase in the value of your project: The additional scope of work will be invoiced immediately (not at the time of contraction completion billing). Payment is due upon invoice.
• For a change order requiring time and materials billing: The additional scope will be invoiced upon completion of the time and materials work. Payment is due upon invoice.
• For a change resulting in a lower contract value: You will be issued as a credit memo, and the value of that credit will be deducted from the balance of your final invoice.

No, sorry. We don’t provide refacing services.

There are 2 primary options for changing the appearance of existing cabinetry: replacing fronts, and refacing. Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor does not provide cabinet replacement front, refacing, or repainting services. 

Replacing your cabinet fronts gives you lots new options for door style, however it doesn’t allow you to change the color of your cabinetry, since your cabinet face frames will remain unchanged. The cost of the materials to do this is typically about 60% the cost of entirely new cabinetry, and installation can take nearly as long as a full cabinetry install.

Cabinetry refacing is the only way to change the color of your existing cabinetry. If you are trying to achieve a different stained finish, this involves applying wood veneer to your face frames, and any finished ends, and finishing those parts onsite. If you want to paint your cabinetry, your cabinets will need to be thoroughly cleaned, then existing face frames and finished ends will be painted onsite. Most people decide to get new doors when they are refacing their cabinetry, however existing doors can be reused for painted cabinetry. Taking shortcuts on refacing preparation can result in poor finish quality and even finish failure. If you are considering this option, we highly recommend that you get references for your painter and talk to happy clients whose projects have held up for several years.

Maybe. The easiest, most cost-effective way to get a cabinet to match your existing cabinetry is to purchase it from the same manufacturer who made the original cabinetry. You may be able to find evidence of the original manufacturer on any interior labels inside the cabinetry, or on the bottom or back of drawer boxes. If you don’t know who made the originals, or the style you are looking for has been discontinued, we may be able to find a door style which is similar enough to your existing doors, and either use a close-enough standard stain color or do a custom color match to your existing finish. Other considerations when matching cabinetry include hinge style, overlays, toe kick heights, etc. Getting a cabinet custom-made to match existing cabinetry can be a pricy undertaking and is only possible in some cases. Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor supplies cabinets to match existing, non-Welling cabinetry on a case-to-case basis.

Yes! Some suggestions are:

• Replace your countertops
• Add undercabinet lighting and/or toekick lighting
• Get new decorative hardware
• Upgrade to soft-close hinges and drawers (this may or not be possible depending on existing hardware)
• Add rollouts to cabinets that currently have only shelves
• Add organizational inserts to make your storage more efficient
• Get a new backsplash

No. Your old cabinetry belongs to you. If cabinetry disposal is part of your install scope, we’ll haul your cabinets to the landfill for you. If you’d like to donate your used but still functional cabinetry to Habitat for Humanity, we’d be happy to help coordinate that for you.

We take protecting our environment seriously and are always looking for ways to reduce our impact. The Welling Kitchen, Bath & Floor facility has a large solar array which contributes to our energy consumption. We work with environmentally responsible manufacturers who recycle waste, take measures to maintain good air quality, and use materials and processes designed to have the lowest impact possible on the environment. We are also supporters and contributors to the Midwest Renewable Energy Association, an organization that works locally and throughout the nation to encourage environmental stewardship and the use of renewables.