The kitchen is the highest-ROI room in a Los Angeles home — and a well-planned expansion that opens the space, raises the ceiling, and modernizes every underlying system typically returns the strongest resale numbers of any single project. DG Custom Construction & Electric Inc. designs and builds kitchen expansions across Pasadena, Altadena, Sherman Oaks, Malibu, and the broader LA area, reconfiguring outdated galley or closed-off kitchens into open, light-filled, entertainment-ready spaces.
A kitchen expansion is not a cosmetic remodel. It is structural work — load-bearing walls are removed, ceilings are sometimes raised, windows and doors are moved, and every major system (electrical, plumbing, gas, HVAC, lighting) is rerouted and upgraded. Treating it like anything less creates the common bad outcomes homeowners fear: cracked drywall above new beams, kitchens that trip breakers, or plumbing installed for the short term.
What a Kitchen Expansion Typically Involves
- Removing one or more load-bearing walls and engineering properly sized beams.
- Relocating or enlarging windows and exterior doors (including glass patio and accordion-folding systems).
- Raising ceilings, adding skylights, or opening to exposed-beam or vaulted configurations.
- Expanding the footprint into an adjacent room, porch, or small bump-out addition.
- Full electrical redesign — new circuits, lighting layout, island pendants, under-cabinet lighting, pantry lighting, and USB-integrated outlets.
- Plumbing rework — sink relocation, secondary prep sink, pot filler, dishwasher, refrigerator water line.
- Gas line resizing or relocation for new range, cooktop, or double ovens.
- HVAC supply and return adjustments for the new footprint.
- Custom cabinetry, stone countertops, tile backsplashes, and flooring.
Structural and Layout Considerations
Removing walls is the most technically demanding part of most kitchen expansions. In LA-area homes — particularly older Pasadena and Altadena houses — the wall between a closed-off kitchen and the dining room is often load-bearing. Opening it requires a properly engineered beam, new posts or columns, and foundation verification to ensure loads transfer cleanly to the ground. Our kitchen expansions always start with a structural walkthrough. We identify load paths, verify foundation capacity, and size beams and posts with a licensed structural engineer. Only then do we finalize the architectural layout. The finished kitchen looks open and effortless — because the structure supporting it was designed to carry the load correctly, not hidden behind a soffit.
Kitchen Systems We Upgrade
Electrical
Modern kitchens demand far more power than the 1950s and '60s originals most LA homes were designed around. We add dedicated circuits for each major appliance, code-required GFCI and AFCI protection on all countertop outlets, under-cabinet task lighting, island pendants, and full lighting scene control. In-house licensed electricians design and install the entire system.Plumbing
Sink relocations, new prep sinks, dishwasher supply, refrigerator ice and water lines, and pot fillers — all tied back to properly sized main lines with shut-offs that are accessible instead of buried.Gas and HVAC
New ranges and cooktops often require upsized gas lines. Relocated kitchens always require HVAC supply and return adjustments for proper heating and cooling performance.Finishes, Cabinetry, and Appliances
Our finish standard matches custom residential work, not production housing. We coordinate with your designer (or ours) on cabinetry selection and layout, stone slab selection for countertops, tile and backsplash detailing, flooring transitions, and appliance specifications. The kitchen that shows up on day 90 matches the renderings from day 5.Timeline and What to Expect
Most kitchen expansions take twelve to sixteen weeks from demolition to final walkthrough, assuming permits are approved. Structural changes extend the timeline modestly; fully permitted bump-out additions can push to eighteen to twenty weeks. We schedule each trade tightly so the site does not sit idle, and we communicate every milestone to the homeowner in advance.
Most families move out of the kitchen for the duration of the work. We can help set up a temporary kitchen in an adjacent room with a microwave, mini-fridge, and a working sink so daily life remains functional.
Where We Build
DG Custom Construction & Electric Inc. serves homeowners and property owners across Pasadena, Altadena, Sherman Oaks, Malibu, and greater Los Angeles. If your project is in LA County, we would like to hear from you.