Kitchen Remodeler in Compton, CA

Compton permits, lead-safe rules and an honest starting point

Compton runs its own building and safety office, so permits for this address come from the City of Compton, not LADBS. Cabinet, counter and floor swaps in the same layout are usually cosmetic. Moving plumbing, adding circuits, rerouting gas or removing a wall needs a permit and licensed trades, and a contractor’s license can be confirmed on the CSLB website.

Age adds a federal rule. In homes built before 1978, the EPA’s RRP rule requires lead-safe practices when renovators disturb painted surfaces, which covers pulling old cabinets and trim. We don’t have Compton projects to show yet; this page sticks to what applies to your address.

Pre-war bungalows and post-war homes between the 105 and the 91

Older Compton bungalows usually sit on raised wood foundations, with narrow-strip oak floors that were later covered by linoleum, carpet or tile. Kitchens are small and enclosed, with a back door to the yard and a service porch that sometimes holds the laundry. Post-war homes on the city’s flatter tracts are more often on slabs.

The foundation type changes the floor choice. Over a raised floor, a flexible plank or engineered wood copes with slight movement; heavy stone needs a stiffer subfloor first. Where oak survives in the living room, many owners keep it and pick a kitchen floor in a matching tone.

The 1933 Long Beach earthquake hit Compton hard, and houses from that era may sit on unbolted foundations; a retrofit is structural work for licensed trades, but it is worth knowing about before heavy stone and full-height tile add weight. Service porches were often enclosed into the kitchen later, so the floor can step down at the old exterior wall, and cast-iron drains under raised floors deserve a plumber’s camera look before new cabinets cover them. In Richland Farms, which keeps its agricultural zoning, houses sit far back on deep lots, which lengthens the carry for deliveries.

Getting from Compton to Sherman Way and back

1. 1

   Measure and lift a corner

   Record wall lengths and appliance positions, and if you can, check what flooring sits under the current layer.

2. 2

   Drive north

   Most people take the 110 north to the 101, or the 710 to the 5 and the 170; leave room for traffic either way.

3. 3

   Compare finishes together

   See doors, slabs, backsplash and planks side by side and take samples home.

4. 4

   Order with confirmed sizes

   Deliveries, and installation on request, are then scheduled to your Compton address.

Compton Creek, the Alameda Corridor and Compton/Woodley Airport

Compton is framed by the 105 to the north, the 91 to the south and the 710 to the east. Compton Creek runs through the city toward the Los Angeles River, and the Alameda Corridor rail trench carries port freight along its eastern side. The Metro A Line stops at Compton and Artesia stations, Compton College sits on Artesia Boulevard, and Compton/Woodley Airport is a county-run general aviation field off Alondra Boulevard.

The city runs its own municipal water department for much of town, with SCE delivering electricity and SoCalGas the gas, and Compton Unified runs most public schools.

Kitchen remodeling and whole-home work in Compton

Nearby Lynwood and Paramount have similar housing, and our post on remodeling older LA homes covers surprises behind old walls.