Ikea Kitchens & DIY

Wherehasmymoneygone

Hi All,

Haven't used this forum much but it has areas for everything so you may well see more of me!

I suffered some water damage to my house and the insurance are only going to replace the damaged units not the whole kitchen (as you can understand) anyway with the money I get and a bit I have I will pay for a new kitchen to be fitted however I dont have lots of money to buy a new kitchen but I do have an Ikea card... so I will be buying the units from there.

I know they sit flush against the wall but so does the kitchen currently in my house and im getting the butler sink so no issues re cutting a hole in the sink as its already there.

Anyone got one or installed one? I was thinking of taking my current kitchen down myself to save on a days labour but a friend said its very hard to get tiles off the wall / floor and I will need to do this also....

Also I need some ideas re the kitchen. I have decided to go for the Ikea Abstract Gloss White Units to brighten my kitchen as I have dark brown flooring in the kitchen which is new, brown blind and I was planning on getting a dark worktop to match the floor with the white units breaking it up but will the contempory gloss go with the wood or laminate? They would match the floor which I want....

Also would a butler sink which I think is a bit more country house look ok with a moden kitchen? My husband has wanted one since he was in school lol so we have to go withone of them but I dont want to change everything else?!

Wow long post but thanks in advance!

ginvzt

If you enjoy cleaning - then go for white gloss. They will show everything - dirty fingers, splash of anything, run-down drop of water. They really do require more cleaning to keep them good, nice and clean. I would rather go for light wood - it would still brighten up your kitchen, and you can have under-cupboard lights installed to brighten up the worktops.

My friends had Ikea kitchen installed - they went for cream. It is really nice looking and I would have no problems getting Ikea kitchen myself. I love their storage solutions.

Doozergirl

It's really easy to remove wall tiles. And fun!

White gloss is easy to clean because it's smooth and wipes down quickly; there's no joins for stuff to get ingrained. If you have to clean it more regularly it's only a good thing - I don't think it needs doing more often anyway; if it's got crap on it, it needs wiping off.

I wouldn't personally pick a butler sink as going with a modern kitchen but it's your kitchen so you have what you want There aren't any rules.

ic

I recently fitted an Ikea Askome kitchen and over the moon with it. I'd happily recommend it and their appliances. I had a one week holiday where I fitted the majority of it. Six months later I still have a bit of tiling to do.

It took me about a day to rip out the old one - its an easy job. Just get some push-fit ends for capping off the water pipes.

Wherehasmymoneygone

My husband suffers with a bit of cleaning OCD so he will be fine with the gloss lol seriously, he dosent let me hoover or anything - hard life :rotfl:

ginvzt

Can I borrow your husband for house cleaning once a week or so? Mine doesn't care if the house wasn't cleaned for a week. If I have to go away with work, I can bet the house will look exactly the same when I am back, just the mail will be left on the table!

Steve_the_fitter

What worktops are you thinking of getting??? If its laminate butler sinks are a massive no no as they will get ruined by water getting into the chipboard and making it blow. Youll be fine if you go for wood or grantie or even a composite worktop. Id recommend wood but thats personal preference. The other think to consider with butler sinks is that they are not all that practical with them being so deep.
As for putting a butler sink with a white gloss kitchen. You may live in a country home but you are not thinking of getting a country kitchen. As said there are no rules but a nice modern sink and taps would look loads better imo. If your hubby really wants a butler sink get him one but make sure he uses it as a plant pot as opposed to putting it in a white gloss kitchen

handyandyman

I understand what Steve is saying

The cheapest kitchens at the mo are probably Ikea and wicks and if you get you own fitter that would probably work out your cheapest option and if fitted right will look good and last.

If you get a fitter before you buy the kitchen he would probably help you design it (This would be a better option than trusting Ikea or Wicks to do it)

However if you want something a bit special in the way of storage solutions and a butler sink you may be safer getting some quotes from some local kitchen specialists there are some very good small companies out there offering made to measure kitchens at good prices but you do have to look for them.
You may be surprised what extra you can get for a bit more brass

Ultimately it is budget dependant as always.

Mummy_Jo

We fitted our own kitchen from Ikea (by that I mean the royal WE - I made the tea). Would do it again in a flash. Our friends spurred on by our success did the same too. She even built the units herself in the garage whilst Hubby installed them. You could give it a go and if it doesn't work out get someone in.

As we were doing it ourselves we did it in bits over a few weeks to minimise losing the kitchen altogether. Hubby did all top units first - removed old ones and put up new ones whilst the bottoms were still in place. We didn't put the doors on until the last minute though just incase there were any mishaps.

Also, Check and Double check your order when it arrives from IKEA we had some problems and stuff had to be redelivered. Its ok if you have a bit of time to wait for the stuff to arrive but if you haven't got the time - fitter is there and he can not work... you get the picture.

Any Questions PM or post here and I'll ask hubby if he can pass on his pearls of wisdom!

We also did all the tiling, new lights etc and he flies planes for a living!.

Good Luck

Mummy Jo

Fire_Fox

Do you mean you are buying IKEA's butler style sink and a purpose made housing unit? They are VERY VERY heavy and need a much sturdier base than a normal sink. If the sink is plain white and the units plain white I think it will look very nice, but you would want a large super modern tap to pull the look together. I would choose a worktop with a bit of 'pattern' in, either a striking wood grain or granite chips or whatever.

Removing tiles is very easy, tho it's pot luck whether the tiles are stuck to the skim coat of plaster better than the skim coat is stuck to the plaster/ brick/ plasterboard underneath. The weakest bond will be the one that breaks, so you sometimes lose big chunks of the skim coat of plaster along with each tile or are left with big chunks of tile adhesive firmly stuck to the plaster!

As long as you end up with a relatively flat and stable (not flakey) surface you can tile right onto it, other wise you may need to patch up the holes or hack off the loose bits. You can even tile over tile if you want the same area done, but you must be very sure the underneath layer is well bonded to the wall. You would also need to ensure the joints are not aligned.

Wherehasmymoneygone

Hi All,

Thanks for the replies.

This was the sink I wanted, and if we go for it it will sit in the unit made by Ikea so I would assume it can hold it.

http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/S69847478

But now I am not sure if it will go with the gloss kitchen.

Thanks Steve re the worktop advice.

My floor is like this http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=20001&partNumber=1630833&c_2=2%7Ccat_12079487%7CLaminate+flooring%7C12455073&c_1=1%7Ccategory_root%7CFlooring+and+Tiling%7C12079487

I want a wood worktop that is the same colour as the floor and then the tiles up to the wall units will be white in a brick style and then from tiles above I will paint but what colour I dont know.

The whole thing is kind of decided by my floor, the floor is in my dining room which is off the kitchen and hall and my kitchen book said if you keep the floor the same it makes a smaller room look bigger so thats the plan... only think is the floor is dark but I have french doors which bring in light and the gloss kitchen will brighten things up....

Ikea dont do a dark wood worktop only a laminate but if I go with butler I know I cant do this....

Worktop question - when ordering my worktop, should I order the same measurements as my units e.g. say I have 2 60 width units should I order a 120 worktop? Should it fit exact?

Part of me wants to wait until the units are in and then measure and order the worktop just in case!