Demolition can be thrilling, but there’s always that little voice reminding you that whatever you tear out will need to be replaced.
Bummer, right? Still, we didn’t dwell on it—we jumped straight into rebuilding the kitchen. While demoing the old tiles and plywood, we made a quick run to The Tile Shop (in my sister’s borrowed SUV) and picked up cement board so we’d have materials on hand as soon as demo finished.
We used 1/4″ Permabase Ultrabacker cement board, about $10 per 3×5 sheet after the store discount code, and planned to use them across the entire back wall above the stove (our focal wall, with tile to the ceiling, a large range hood, and open shelves) as well as for the standard 18″ backsplash areas on the other walls. I started with the smaller 18″ backsplash pieces first because they were easier to handle and required careful measuring around the window and outlet locations.
For cutting I used a jigsaw because it was convenient and I could control it well. I wore a proper respirator (not a paper mask) to avoid breathing the dust. My blade didn’t hold up well—cutting the coarse cement board sanded off several teeth—so lesson learned: use a blade rated for abrasive materials next time. Even so, the boards cut and fit as needed.
Installing the cut boards was straightforward. They matched the thickness of the plywood underneath, which made for a seamless surface for tile. I leveled each board, drove the screws so their heads sat flush (you don’t want pokey screws under tile), and worked my way around the kitchen while Sherry kept Clara out of the construction zone.
This round went more smoothly than expected—maybe because we were prepared and because the 5′ tall boards fit almost perfectly on the 5′ wall behind the stove. That meant minimal cutting on the big sheets besides outlet holes. With Clara napping, Sherry helped hold the boards while I drilled, which sped things up quite a bit.
The temporary outlet above the vent will become the range hood connection. We placed the junction box in a location that should work for where the hood will be mounted; if adjustments are needed, there’s a little slack in the wiring and the final vent cover will conceal the hole if it ends up slightly off.
Although the range hood opening isn’t perfectly centered on the tiled section, it will align visually with the entire back wall when you include the area beside the doorway. We’ll offset that by styling the open floating shelves—everyday dishes, vases, a plant or two and some art will help balance the composition once tiles, shelves, and the hood are installed.
We still had work to do on the wall above the sink and pantry.
We debated tiling that wall up to the ceiling, but decided one focal wall of floor-to-ceiling tile would be enough. The opposing wall will receive the standard 18″ backsplash to balance the kitchen, and tiling over the pantry felt awkward, so we stopped the tile at a natural rectangular boundary.
The kitchen walls aren’t drywall—they’re painted paneling, which adds soft texture and a cozy feel once painted. So, yes, we actually bought a sheet of new paneling to match and used a leftover piece to the right of the window. I had the store rip the paneling to size so it would fit in our car, and I picked up a fresh jigsaw blade to cut the microwave outlet.
The single 4×8 sheet covered the remaining areas we needed. One small shortcut: we left a piece of plywood in place behind where a small upper cabinet will hang, since it won’t be visible once the cabinet and crown molding are installed. Little time-savers like that helped keep the project moving.
For the cement board seams, we’ll tape them and cover with thinset before tiling, per the manufacturer’s recommendation, to ensure a durable base. Looking at the wall head-on, you can see the window placement and how the final layout will balance once cabinets, shelves, and tile are in place.
When the upper cabinet goes to the right of the pantry, there will be 14″ of wall on the cabinet side and 14″ between the window trim and the 12″ floating shelves on the focal wall—so visually the window will sit balanced between elements on each side.
Here’s how the kitchen looked when we finished this phase: cleaner and more finished than the post-demo mess, though still a work in progress. Removing the upper cabinets really opened up the room, and seeing the cement board and paneling in place gave us a better sense of the final tiled look.
Both of these walls are interior (the window looks into our insulated sunroom), so we didn’t add insulation during this step. We lived through a cold winter with the same configuration and didn’t notice drafts, so we felt comfortable proceeding without additional insulation at this stage.
The whole demo and rebuild took two days—one day for demo and buying materials, one day for installing cement board and paneling. My back complained afterward, but the next steps—paint touch-ups and ceiling repair—are manageable. Once painted, the room should feel far less mismatched and much more coherent.
Have you ever installed cement board or bought paneling? Any ceiling painting on your to-do list?
Pssst—We chatted about the birthday time capsule we made for Clara on BabyCenter.
Pssst—We’ve listed our black above-the-range microwave for sale; it’s about a year old and still works great.