New kitchen - howdens...how do I know...?

Ramona123

Ikea kitchens are not in the same league as everyone elses’. There are cheap and feel cheap. There is no service voids at the back and the units very flimsy when I saw one assembled. I would say they are OK to install into a student flat that might not get looked after very well but I would not install one in my home.

womble12345

Thanks Ramona123. How recent is your experience with IKEA? I read some old reviews that said there was no service voids but I haven't found any mention of that in more recent reviews. I appreciate they are more flimsy but I need to decide of it is worth the saving.

I am installing in a new utility room so don't need "kitchen quality".

Doozergirl

Ikea kitchens are great!

They're not flimsy and they stand up exceptionally well to the likes of Howdens, especially given their price point. You get a huge amount for the money. The METOD feels better than the old FAKTUM kitchens, but I have a large FAKTUM kitchen, over six years old without one fault so far.

We installed the matt, handleless kitchen for a good friend in 2016 and it looks brilliant. Far, far above the standard of 'student flat' (which is also an insult to tenants).

No service voids but I doubt most people even understand what that means. It may mean a little extra work for the plumber on first fix, but the price differential on the kitchen makes up for some extra work. They are flat pack, being Ikea, so there is also some labour in assembly.

Fitters aren't always the biggest fan of Ikea kitchens but they do get paid for the additional work and it's not exactly hardship.

The kitchens come with 25 year guarantees, appliances with 5 - that is confidence. I would not knock Ikea for providing an excellent product at the price point at all. I have not found better value for money at that price point.

Carer

I have Ikea units in my utility room and they are really good quality. They are used a lot and it's a high traffic area. 4 years in they still look like new. Far better quality than we saw in most of the sheds.

SR_Builder

I have used Howdens for years due to lack of competition and ease, prob fitting 100's of their kitchens now. The pricing still fluctuates for me still after all this time and if allowed they would rip anyone off in a heartbeat. There discount percentage is a gimic and anybody buying with them should insist on 80% minimum discout or just walk away. I have recently began to fit more DIY kitchen co. Kitchens and cant advise anyone thinking of getting a new kitchen to get a price off them first. The door quality is better, the carcass are better and colour coded to the doors as opposed to Howdens white or wood grain effect only, the build quality is better and the units arrive pre assembled saving time onsite and reduces the endless amount of cardboard you get with Howdens.
But most importantly they are cheaper and clearly priced. :beer: One price for all with no sneaky margins for everyone to take a cut from which i have always been against.
Howdens will actively try to fleece the end point customer by providing the contractor with two quotes. One with the percentage discounts and actual price. Then one inflated quote for the contractor to make some money on too. If your holding one of these without margins displayed then your builder is trying to make money on the supply too:mad: Dont blame him though, the sales team in howdens have just brainwashed him into thinking you all have huge pockets and provided him with the mechanism to make more on every Howdens kitchen he fits. Obviously hoping he will promote their product in return for his extra gains.

In short. Search for DIY Kitchens online. Use their online planner or get them to call you and save yourself £1000's.
If something was missing (yet to happen touch wood) they say they will have it in 2 days. Ive waited over a week for howdens to get my parts before now so dont think them being on every corner is a big plus.

another_casualty

I have just had my kitchen fitted with howdens cupboards etc by my builder. He gave me a quote ( literally sending me an itemised list from howdens) . I agreed . I paid for the kitchen . He finished installing yesterday and I await his bill for Labour etc which I will pay in the coming week .
He did give me options other than howdens, but tbh I heard about howdens being good and not expensive.
I wanted white gloss, no handles . It looks great . The doors have the slow close mechanism as well. Hard to explain, but not as expensive as it used to be . I think the range I chose was clerk.

My take is , if you have a good feeling about the builder use him/her and let them order and install the units. I expect the builders to make something with trade prices etc. This means if you need anything done in the future , they will be there for you . I'm loving my new kitchen.

cddc

I would always advise anyone with a Howdens quote to get a comparative quote elsewhere before going ahead.

There is nothing wrong with the product itself but the business model allows some less than scrupulous tradesmen to make a massive and unjustifiable profit on the supply of units.

The price should be roughly equal to that of the likes of Wickes, B&Q etc. as it is of similar quality. If you go to one of those and they are much cheaper, you can then tell that your builder is taking you for a ride.

BoxerfanUK

Ramona123 wrote: »

There is no service voids at the back

Personally I hate service voids in kitchen units, they just waste space. I would rather have sight and access to any pipework from within the cupboard without having to rip the back out is there's a suspected leak + plus even with service voids you still have to notch out the sides of a unit to accommodate any pipe runs. Just my opinion.

Richard_Overton_2911

BoxerfanUK wrote: »

Personally I hate service voids in kitchen units, they just waste space. I would rather have sight and access to any pipework from within the cupboard without having to rip the back out is there's a suspected leak + plus even with service voids you still have to notch out the sides of a unit to accommodate any pipe runs. Just my opinion.

When I make a kitchen I always include a service void because its easier to fit/scribe a unit back to a wonky wall than have to pack them off when they don't have a service void and The vast majority of walls are not plumb. I hate seeing pipework inside a unit and would much rather not see it and there shouldn't be any pipework leaks and if the pipes are inside a unit and theres a leak it can very quickly ruin a unit carcase. Leaks are bad news wherever they are and shouldn't happen and tend to be down to poor workmanship.

Personally I can't stand IKEA kitchen units and think people confuse good Scandinavian furniture design (which there is plenty) with cheap chipboard tat sold by IKEA.

BoxerfanUK

Richard_Overton_2911 wrote: »

When I make a kitchen I always include a service void because its easier to fit/scribe a unit back to a wonky wall than have to pack them off when they don't have a service void and The vast majority of walls are not plumb. I hate seeing pipework inside a unit and would much rather not see it and there shouldn't be any pipework leaks and if the pipes are inside a unit and theres a leak it can very quickly ruin a unit carcase. Leaks are bad news wherever they are and shouldn't happen and tend to be down to poor workmanship.

Personally I can't stand IKEA kitchen units and think people confuse good Scandinavian furniture design (which there is plenty) with cheap chipboard tat sold by IKEA.

Richard, as you presumably fit kitchens for a living then I absolutely get your point, but as a fairly competent DIYer I would always fit my own kitchen so wouldnt mind making a few adjustments as my time is my own.


I don't have an issue with seeing a pipe or two at the back of my cupboards and the extra 3-4 inch depth for storage is worth more to me, + 99.9% of the time my kitchen unit doors are closed.