New kitchen needed - help?

shona_2

Hi
Does anyone have recommendations for kitchens -

where to buy them?
fit yourself of company or joiner?
worktops - what is best - stone/wood/laminate etc?

It's expensive, so I don't want to get it wrong!!

We also might want to address the issue that our dining area is through the wall but requires a long walk at present!

Any advise welcome

Shona

prettypennies

I bought mine from Ikea and a firend who is a joiner fitted it for me. The plus side with Ikea is as long as the stuff is in stock you can take it away one the day. (My OH is a removal man so collecting everything wasn't a problem)

Also the do longer than standard wall cabinets, so lots of extra storage.

On the minus side - if you need to return stuff, the returns part is often v busy and if there is anything not in stock it can be a long wait before it comes in.

I bought the adel-yellow/white kitchen with the wood worktops and ceramic double sink. I have been really pleased so far. When the wood tops start to look a bit tired a I just whack antoher coat of linseed oil in.

The kitchen design software they have is very useful. I tired out loads of different layouts and colours before a came to a final decision.

The best thing to do is decide on your budget and priorities (ie lots of storage, big fridge, dishwasher or waterever) and then get quotes from the company that can fulfill your needs the best.

muir_steve

the last few kitchens i've fitted, in my home as well as for others, have been b&q. never had any problems with them and are generally pretty sturdy.
if you know someone with a howdens account, they're pretty good too and come pre built.

worktops are down to personal preference, if you can justify spending a thousand pounds on them alone then granite or similar finishes kitchen off really well but won't increase the value of your home any more than laminate.
wooden worktops can be sanded if they become scratched but, again tend to cost more than laminate.

laminate require the least care and as long as you cut on boards they last well.

ShirleyPark_2

I've had 2 ikea kitchens, both have been fitted by me, my BF and my stepdad. Both have been great except for one thing.

The base units are 60mm deep, they go back to the wall unlike most base units. So if you have pipes that are above 10cm from the floor, or you have very wonkey walls like we have in our victorian house you may want to go for units which are set off from the wall.

When we bought the kitchen for this house we got bits from all over the place, the units were ikea, the sink, taps and worktops B&Q and kitchen appliances including the fitted ones from Boots kitchen appliances. Ok it was probably more work than buying everything from one place as things sort of arrived when they arrived, but we got exactly what we wanted rather than settling for whatever 1 shop had.

Funkyfarmgirl

muir_steve wrote: »

the last few kitchens i've fitted, in my home as well as for others, have been b&q. never had any problems with them and are generally pretty sturdy.
if you know someone with a howdens account, they're pretty good too and come pre built.

worktops are down to personal preference, if you can justify spending a thousand pounds on them alone then granite or similar finishes kitchen off really well but won't increase the value of your home any more than laminate.
wooden worktops can be sanded if they become scratched but, again tend to cost more than laminate.

laminate require the least care and as long as you cut on boards they last well.

I had a fire 18 months ago and i had my litchen from B&Q i have a huge farmhouse kitchen and they were very good got tehm in the sake and anything extra i wanted they put it in the back for me. I would buy from them again.

deca_321

the best place place to go for kitchens is screwfix.com stay away from B&Q thier larger products are not too good. lkea is good as well. kitchens can be done by yourself, the secret is the right tools and good planing. To rent out tools check out HSS.com.

And thier is loads of tips around the internet as well. Its not as hard as you think, honest

pooranddesperate

deca_321 wrote: »

the best place place to go for kitchens is screwfix.com stay away from B&Q thier larger products are not too good. lkea is good as well. kitchens can be done by yourself, the secret is the right tools and good planing. To rent out tools check out HSS.com.

And thier is loads of tips around the internet as well. Its not as hard as you think, honest

Think screwfix are actually owned by B&Q so would have thought that they'd stock the same sort of products?

I personally wouldn't want to fit a kitchen - suppose it depends on how competent DIYers you are - if i were spending alot of money on a kitchen, i'd spend the extra on getting a professional in to do it properly (also likely to take a LOT less time and be a lot less stressful!)

Lifeisbutadream

Get a professional to do it for you.

You can tell the difference between a badly fitted kitchen and a well fitted kitchen.

alzeebub

Agreed, buy the kitchen yourself and have a pro fit it. That way you're saving money and getting the best possible end result.

Check out National Kitchens for a further option, They're friendly, helpful, have a huge selection of rigid units and their pricing is affordable.

Good luck!

deca_321

how many times have we been ripped off by dodgy tradesman? too many, take a part time/evening dly course and do it youself, it is not as hard as it seems. l do not trust any tradesman anymore, too expensive. And even tradesman make mistakes as well.

deca_321

and who came up with this 50-50-90 rule anyway? their is no such thing as chance, if you are well prepared, got the right tools, efficient enough then go ahead, nothing too lose, lots to gain if it works out right.