Kitchens - buying & fitting

[TomM]

Right. The first upgrade to my house (modding already :D ) needs to be the kitchen. But I've never bought one before. I can't afford too, and anything I save on the kitchen will let me buy better appliances (like Smeg stoves :nod: ) and more stuff for the 200sx ;)

So I want to mostly fit it myself. Which likewise, I've never done before.


Is there anyone who knows about this that can suggest good suppliers and the obvious pitfalls? Cost-wise, Ikea looks pretty good, and I'm tempted by some of their more expensive (ie solid wood) designs.

Are carcasses generic - as in can I shove more expensive doors on someone else's cheap underpinnings?

What makes a good quality kitchen - what to look for?

Worktops - I was planning on paying a professional to fit a nice worktop for me, once everything else is done. Wood? Stone? Something else?


Cheers all :thumbs:

[NikB]

I'm planning on doing it the same way - spend money on the tops and doors and the rest cheap stuff. Try looking at www.screwfix.com I think they do kitchens.

I think it's quite easy as the cabinets are flat pack, the tricky bits are gonna be - plumbing, tiling and the work tops.

[Vez]

SHITE :smash:







































:wack:

[Rude Dog]

Where do you live Tombs, I may be able to help :thumbs:

[Aitch]

Where do you live Tombs, I may be able to help :thumbs:
Even further North than I do! :nod:

[piehound]

screw fix and b&q are the same place , so go see em before you buy
kitchens are tricky
some look good but build quality shite
get a kitchen planner to pop round and do all the working out and try to remember there ideas but they wont give you the plans till you sign to buy from them (just pick there brains )
if you are going to fit it yourself then keep all the units in line regardless of the shape of wall then scribe worktops to fit
if you want to hide dishwaser/washing machine etc just use a breakfast bar as a worktop and rip it down and get doors to suit as pupose built things will cost squillions
it aint as hard it appears but good planning is ESSENTIAL

pie
(20 years in the game ) remember elecs etc

[Ken]

I'm a Kitchen designer if that helps, if you want a chat P.M me and I'll give you my number :) can advise you on what to look for etc

Rude, are you Corgi/NIE by any chance? we need fitters :)

[Grim]

wickes do some nice ones. i hope they do anyway, just bought one :)

[TomM]

Thanks guys :)

I've been playing with Ikea's kitchen design software, and have a fairly good design in mind. I'll post it up later, if I can, and let Ken pick holes in it :) I think I've followed the basic principles fairly reasonably :no: :wack:


if you want to hide dishwasher/washing machine etc just use a breakfast bar as a worktop and rip it down and get doors to suit as pupose built things will cost squillions I'm not sure what you mean by this, Piehound. I was planning on having the washer at one end of the kitchen, under the main worktop, against a wall, possibly with a door hiding it. What's the best way of doing this? I was considering a small dishwasher next to it that has the ability to take a fascia that matches the kitchen.

I'm not too worried about the plumbing and the electrics - I'm always up for learning new jobs :wack: Might need to pay to get the gas & the worktops done though :)

I'll have a look at screwfix later :)

[Lasitha]

MFI can plan you a vitual kitchen, take all the measurements before you go and they will make you one on the computer so you can see what it will look like. :) :)

[voodoo_melon]

Even further North than I do! :nod:
You could help him Aitch, with your DIY expertise the job would be finished in a matter of minutes :nod: :D ;)

[Cath]

Our kitchen was put in by the previous owners ........ well :eek: is all i can say :wack:

Waiting for my parents to get a new kitchen to i can have their one :D its looks like new and is lovely :thumbs:

Would deffo fit ourselves as well as i reckon you save a bomb

[Jim]

You could help him Aitch, with your DIY expertise you would all be in casualty in a matter of minutes :nod: :D ;)


:nod:

[Aitch]

I've never injured anyone else - I need someone to drive me to the hospital! :wack:

[TomM]

Attached is the first draft of my self-designed kitchen.

http://www.sxoc.com/vbb/attachment.php?attachmentid=8824

A few points:

1. The sink in the corner. I'm not entirey sure about this, but as I'm getting a dish-washer, the sink will bo for food preparation only. This way, it doesn't take up valuable unit space, makes use of the otherwise-hard-to-utilise-corner, and is right near the food preparation area :)

2. The double cupboard will have drawers in the top, hopefully; if not, I'll perhaps make the single unit all drawers.

3. Hopefully, the washing machine and the dishwasher will have the same fascia as the cupboards.

[Ken]

Can't put the cooker under the window unfortunately Tombs :(

If you want, email the dimensions of the kitchen and I'll draw something up for you :)

[TomM]

Oh? I thought that that was a good place to put it. :rolleyes: On an exterior wall, anyways :(

Why not, Ken?

[brucy]

It's something to do with corgi IIRC, they say it's not good to have a cooker beneath a window. don't know why tho :wack:

[Ken]

It's all to do with the heatlh and safety reg

[turbo pete]

If you want to go really cheap build all the units yourself and just ppay for fornts and ends. MDF is really cheap and easy to work with. I would invest in a decent router and kitchen fitters jig for concealing fixing bolts, finishing, trimming etc.


Wickes do a really good written guide on designing kitchens. It lists all the regs and explains why not to put cookers under windows etc...

The sink in the corner doesn't look good. I reckon you will find it annoying after a while even if you don't use it often.

One reason not to put a cooker under a window is that windows can be a source of escape in the event of a fire. If you have a hot cooker under it you won't want to climb over it. You may find alot of condensdation forms on the window too which will encourage mould growth. If you want to fit an extractor I doubt it will be possible if the window is directly behind the cooker too.


I am contemplating building the fronts of my kitchen too but that is way down my list of prioroites at the mo.

Good luck.

[TomM]

:thumbs: I'll get down to Wickes then :)

Ken, a basic plan of the dimensions is attached :)

[Ken]

I'll try and get something drawn up tonight

[TomM]

:notworthy :thumbs: :thumbs:

No hurry :)

[Ken]

Right had a quick play, there's only one way I can see you can do it within the regs and still make it practical, on the base starting from the left is Fridge, Dishwasher, 500mm sink unit ( make sure the sink you buy will fit a 500mm base ) ,next washing machine, then in the corner a 900 x 900 mm L shaped corner ( will require cutting a bit to go around the outcrop in the corner ) then cooker and last 300mm base unit. On the wall again from the left 800mm wall unit ( this comes level with the window you may want to go for a 300mm and 400 mm wall instead ) then above the cooker a bridging unit with a 600mm wall to the right and 300mm to the left.

I based the appliances on 600mm for fridge, 450 for slimline dishwasher, 600 washer and 600mm cooker, it's tight though. The worst thing is you only have one working drawer unfortunately

Hope this helps :)

http://www.sxoc.com/vbb/attachment.php?attachmentid=8882

I would still go to your local B&Q or similar and get them to send out a designer to check measurements and positon of services etc, it's a free srevice :)

[Aitch]

The worst thing is you only have one working drawer unfortunately
Unless you make the cupboard/drawer unit to the right hand side of the oven a set of drawers rather than a cupboard/drawer unit. ;)

[Ken]

Unless you make the cupboard/drawer unit to the right hand side of the oven a set of drawers rather than a cupboard/drawer unit. ;)


Not lot of companies offer a 300mm drawer set though :(

[Aitch]

Not lot of companies offer a 300mm drawer set though :(
Perhaps they should - maybe it's a marketing opportunity missed. :nod: There's one drawer there already - how hard is it to extrapolate that to a full set? :confused:

[Ken]

The bottom 3 drawers in a set are a different height to the std top drawer, so it would mean making a different size fascia, plus demand is not that high for the 300mm drawer set, 500,600 and 800 are the most popular sizes

[TomM]

Ken,

How close can the left hand edge of the cooker/hob be to the front edge of the work-surface running along under the window? 'Cos I reckon I could fit in a 50cm unit of drawers to the right of the cooker :)

Possible?

[Vez]

Cant you lose the wall on the right? and what difference would losing the gas boiler dibber make?

[Cath]

don't think you can loose the gas boiler unless he is having new heating - I used to have a gas wall one too - until it leaked and nearly killed me :wack:

Installed oil but u are talking £2k - WIll admit have my kitchen wall back now tho - but maybe an expense you don't want ?

[TomM]

I'd like to keep the wall, Vez, as it helps form a partition between the kitchen and the living room. I'm coming close enough to making them one big room by getting rid of the bar-cum-shelves-cum-cupboard thing :)

I need to chat to a plumber - can I move the boiler upstairs into a cupboard there, or are there odd H&S rules about this, too? And getting rid of the boiler wouldn't make that much difference, there's not really any room to put a cupboard there. The only thing would be that I could have the hob under where it is now :)

[Ken]

Ken,

How close can the left hand edge of the cooker/hob be to the front edge of the work-surface running along under the window? 'Cos I reckon I could fit in a 50cm unit of drawers to the right of the cooker :)

Possible?


Should really be 300mm from the adjacent top