IKEA kitchens any experiences??

devotee

I had an Ikea kitchen before but this time I went with Homebase one and regretted it! Homebase kitchen was much more expensive for what it is and the units are shallower and you can put less stuff in them! Plus many of the extras if you need to buy later (pull out baskets etc) are cheaper and readily available, unlike Homebase or B&Q - I wanted some pull out storage and the delivery is 6 weeks and four time the price of Ikea.

properchippy

I've fitted dozens of kitchens and would recommend paying the little extra. However, if money is really tight there are 3 things which will massively improve the look of the finished kitchen:

1. The carpenter/Joiner
2. The cabinet doors
3. The worktop

You should prioritise them in that order and remember that you can spend a fortune on materials but the kitchen will still look rubbish if finished poorly. Also consider buying the doors from a different supplier if you're not happy with Ikea's range.

Finally:
During this time of economic hardship you should not look for the cheapest tradesman but the (few) good ones which are no longer charging high rates.

paddypaws101

I am taking out an Ikea kitchen which we put in 15 years ago...and replacing it with another from Ikea! Price wise they just can't be beaten and offer lots of funky little extras which you don't get with Howdens etc which seem a bit more 'traditional' in design.

becs

We are 2 novices at DIY but we fitted our kitchen ourselves and think with patience it can be done. Father in Law also helped but again is no professional.
When we were looking at kitchens we looked at Howdens but they didn't do drawer units which I'd seen in IKEA and definately wanted. So I would agree that Ikea definately are ahead in features and benefits, not sure what Howdens are like now though.

clareanddavid

My experience on kitchens is Ikea cant be beaten on value for money. I have had three of them before and fitted them myself with husband - they are really easy to put together and very intuitive (good job - husband doesnt believe in instructions). Only problem you will have is that they dont have a service panel at the back - but thats no big deal and it makes your cupboards bigger. Oh - and if you get the high gloss kitchen - the plinth doesnt match - its not high gloss, but matt. And as mentioned before, the worksurfaces arent really that good (except for the wood ones). We ended up buying that from somewhere else.

And my latest kitchen - its from B&Q, and dont I regret it. Got it cos we have a teenager who ruins things - so figured whatever kitchen we got it would only last 4/5 years or so. The B&Q 'it' range is a bit cheaper than Ikea, so we plumped for them - and whilst it looks the part, the drawers are shoddy, the units badly made up, difficult to assemble, the corner units very weak and unstable, the shelves falling to bits and we had to go back 3 times to replace scratched doors. The wall units are very narrow and the cupboard shelves hardly fit anything on them and they are very difficult and awkward to fit on the walls. I bitterly regret not spending an extra thousand on the units and wonder if they will even last 3 years. Only good thing about B&Q is the variety of worksurfaces, sinks and taps (but the worksurface had a 6 week delivery time).

Anyway - good luck with washing up in the bathroom sink for weeks whilst your new kitchen is being fitted.

waveyjane

We bought an Ikea kitchen a few years ago and had it installed by a good handyman we knew. He said that it was harder than it should have been to fit because we have an old house (build 1900) which has all the plumbing on the outside of the walls. Ikea units are cubic, with no recession in the back to accommodate pipes. So if you have house like that, watch out.

Another thing we found: if you are going for solid birch worktop, give it a hell of a lot of oil (from underneath as well as from the top, before and after fitting). We sank a whole large can into ours, but it's not warped or cracked at all in five years.

becs

We didn't really find a problem with the whole pipe thing mainly because

1.Our only pipes were the water for washing machine, sink & dishwasher and the sink is where water comes in, with washing machine and dishwasher either side.

2. Both appliances are hose connectors which have been drilled through the sides of the sink cabinet. yes it's not the most attractive but then what cupboard under the sink is?

3. The waste pipes run under the units as the legs are about 6" giving plenty of room for other pipework to run under the units.

Canucklehead

Good morning: Ikea kitchens are a value for money option but I would avoid the sinks and appliances...lots of threads on here about merits and detractions if the OP does a search.

HTH
Canucklehead

dizzybuff

If you do go for ikea , dont buy the appliances .. rubbish quality ..

Get a a rangemaster they fab.. Not got one but mil has and its wonderful

nancy711

Yeah, the message to take about Ikea kitchens is their units are terrific - great price and they do last. However, their appliances, sinks etc are not all that good, and in this instance you really do get what you pay for.