Howdens Quote

rakkan

My builder recommended Howden's for a new kitchen. It's a fairly small kitchen, plus a breakfast bar, plus a small utility room.
The quote "feels" expensive to me, given it does not include a worktop or appliances, and isn't real wood.
I would like to shop around, but my builder seems /very/ keen on using Howdens and expects to fit the kitchen in two weeks.
I did ask for a quote from Benchmarx too, but it was around the same price, and my builder said he didn't ask for a breakdown of cost.
I'm a pensioner and widow and do not really know how much kitchens cost.
I realise the pre-discount prices must be a work of imagination, but the discounts I'm getting seem large.

Could I please ask whether the below quote looks fair, if not I'll have to rush and try and get an alternative quote.

1 ZZD39 Delivery 0.00 80.00
1 TAP3547 Lamona Chrome Rienza Swan Neck Monobloc Tap 65.00 74.90
1 SNK1021 Lamona White Ceramic Belfast 1.0 Bowl Sink and Waste 65.00 173.25
1 PLU1002 Plumbing Kit for 1.0 Bowl Sinks with 1 x Appliance Trap 81.15 9.99
19 HKB1321 Pewter Effect Knob Handle 33mm 64.98 94.43
5 HKB1324 Pewter Effect Cup Handle 94mm 64.96 16.80
1 FCH5883 Fairford Cash 1000 CC Fridge Freezer Bridging 460 Tall 80.00 190.40 F
Wall White Cab
1 FCH5408 Fairford Cash 300 CC 900 Tall Wall White Cab 80.00 72.20 F
1 FCH5478 Fairford Cash 631 CC 900 Tall L Shaped Cnr Wall White 80.00 225.00 F
Cab
1 FCH5480 Fairford Cash 200 CC 900 Tall Wall White Cab 80.00 68.60 F
1 FCH5497 Fairford Cash 600 CC Half Height Wall White Cab 80.00 71.00 F
1 FCH5206 Fairford Cash 200 CC Hi-Line Base White Cab 80.00 54.60 F
1 FCH5920 Fairford Cash Continuous Plinth 2.75m 80.00 25.80 F
3 FCH5955 Fairford Cash 2310 Tall Twr Decor End 80.00 318.60 F
2 FCH591A Fairford Cash Cornice/Pelmet Square Profile 2.4m 80.00 64.80 F
1 FCH5675 Fairford Cash 600 CC 2292 Tall Single Oven/Mwave Twr 80.00 269.60 F
White Cab
1 FCH5211 Fairford Cash 400 CC Hi-Line Base White Cab 80.00 81.40 F
1 FCH5146 Fairford Cash 600 Upgrade CC 3 Dwr Base White Cab 80.00 227.20 F
1 FCH520C Fairford Cash 350 CC Hi-Line Base White Cab 80.00 79.00 F
1 FCH5556 Fairford Cash 800 CC Pre-Fit Hi-Line Full Ext Cnr 80.00 359.60 F
Storage RH White Cab
1 FCH5291 Fairford Cash 600 CC Belfast Sink Base White Cab 80.00 92.80 F
1 FCH5904 Fairford Cash 600 Hi-Line App Door 80.00 61.20 F
1 FCH5231 Fairford Cash 600 CC Hi-Line Base White Cab 80.00 91.80 F
1 FCH5211 Fairford Cash 400 CC Hi-Line Base White Cab 80.00 81.40 F
1 FCH540F Fairford Cash 350 CC 900 Tall Wall White Cab 80.00 78.00 F
1 FCH5408 Fairford Cash 300 CC 900 Tall Wall White Cab 80.00 72.20 F
1 FCH5438 Fairford Cash 600 CC 900 Tall Wall White Cab 80.00 96.80 F
3 FCH591A Fairford Cash Cornice/Pelmet Square Profile 2.4m 80.00 97.20 F
2 FCH5920 Fairford Cash Continuous Plinth 2.75m 80.00 51.60 F
4 FCH5933 Fairford Cash 910 Base Decor End 80.00 152.00 F
6 FCH5947 Fairford Cash 932 Tall Wall Decor End 80.00 247.20 F
2 FCH5955 Fairford Cash 2310 Tall Twr Decor End 80.00 212.40 F
1 FCH5989 Fairford Cash Breakfast Bar Backing Panel 80.00 89.80 F
1 FCH5258 Fairford Cash 900 CC Hi-Line Cnr Base White Cab 80.00 102.20 F
1 FCH5231 Fairford Cash 600 CC Hi-Line Base White Cab 80.00 91.80 F
1 FCH5448 Fairford Cash 800 CC 900 Tall Wall White Cab 80.00 125.60 F
1 FCH5728 Fairford Cash 500 900 CC Tall Glass Wall White Cab 80.00 132.20 F


Total Goods 4433.37
VAT 886.67
Estimate Total 5320.04

Doozergirl

Is that an 80% discount it's showing? That is the holy grail of Howdens discounts.

If you wanted a solid wood kitchen, you're looking at a great deal more money - at least three times that.

Where I think you could save some money is the design of the kitchen and size of your units. There are an awful lot of small units there and 2 small units will cost nearly double that of one larger unit. And small units are pretty annoying!

Your largest unit, aside from corners is only a 600.

Show us the design? I'd ask Howdens to look over it but I'm sure we can pick out anything glaringly obvious straight away.

rakkan

Hi, and thank you so much for your quick and helpful response. I didn't realise that smaller cupboards were more expensive (although it makes sense!) and I see what you mean, especially two narrow cupboards next to each other next to my fridge, above the fridge, and either side of the flue.


I would include my plans, but the site will not let me share them as "Sorry as a new user you are not allowed to post with links. This is done to stop spammers clogging up the site. Please edit your message below to continue."


Instead I have saved them on Imgur at /a/mrYPDJ3.

Doozergirl

Did you design it? It's really awkward looking. Kitchen design isn't like Tetris where you just try to make things fit . You want symmetry and clean lines.

I haven't purchase from Howdens for some time now, but Tewkesbury Range was always their most expensive range and that isn't actually a small kitchen. I think your price is actually very good. I can remember paying £5,000 for Tewkesbury Oak units over 10 years ago!

Back to the design...

Anywhere you have a 600 and 400 together can be a 1000 unit with two 500 doors.

The 200mm units are pointless. Merge them with something else.

In the area at 90 degrees to the fridge, I would bring that whole section of units forward from the wall. Lose the L shaped corner unit and use a straight one instead, so the corner is right next to the fridge. Even though you have a structural wall in between, the run of units where your hob is can continue on exactly the same line and make the room look more like one room instead of two. A much cleaner line!

To do that, you either build out a false stud wall for the units to sit against or the budget option would be to leave the wall as is and use a breakfast bar as extra deep worktop and have a gap behind the base units.

You also use less units there, so there's a cost saving too.

The curved units are the most expensive things on the planet. Consider whether you really need that - nothing else in the room is curved so I don't think you do.

Can you tell me what the washing machine area is? A separate utility? There's another awkward corner in there. If storage is so important, I would put in full height larder units just next to the washing machine and not come around the corner at all.

...or go traditional, put WM and TD next to each other (possibly with a narrow unit between). with worktop over and have just a simple wall caninets over - but no corners.

Corner units really are the most useless part of a kitchen and they date the design, IMO.

Doozergirl

I've just realised that the WM and TD are right by the fridge freezer. Will rethink.

Edit: Swap FF with the washing machines. Bring those down so they are side by side. Worktop over.

Pull FF forward so that's level with the hob run. Either blank off the immediately adjacent area with stud and have straight wall cabinets over the WM or (my preference) have nothing over the WM and bespoke something that looks like a larder unit next to fridge freezer. You can use an actual larder unit that only has doors above the worktop and nothing underneath.

That probably makes no sense to you, but sometimes a little bit of jiggery pokery makes a kitchen look more expensive. You'll save on units there too.

rakkan

Thank you again for your replies. I'm going for Fairford, which I think is MDF, the original plans were for Tewkesbury which came in at around £8k, which was way more than I could afford.

I pointed out roughly that I wanted the fridge in the utility room, a washing machine and drier, sink, hob, oven and microwave. My builder/Howdens came up with the design.

Following your first post I went down to Howdens and made the following changes:
- Removed the "tongue-and groove" effect from side panels: they said that was an expensive extra. I didn't ask for it in the first place.

- Removed the "soft close" option from the doors. I didn't ask for it in the first place.
- Made the 600/400 on the island into one 1000.
- Changed the curved 300 into a normal 600 (the invoice had actually already been amended for that, just not the plans).
- To the left of the sink there was a pull-out thing, which I didn't ask for or want, so that's gone.

I tried to get the thin cupboards in the utility room changed for bigger cupboards, but they told me it was not possible in the space I have, so I left them for now. I also hinted at just removing the thin cupboards either side of the flu, but they resisted for now.

I'm expecting a new quote tomorrow, and hopefully I'll be much more happy with the price.

Regarding your second post, the main kitchen is in a new extension, and the utility room is what used to be half of the old kitchen (with a toilet now to the left of it).

I follow the logic of your third post, will give it some deep thought, and combined with how I feel about my new quote, will probably suggest it!

Doozergirl

Keep us updated

Pont

The tap selected, IMO, is overpriced rubbish. You can find a much better deal for your door handles and sink (fleabay?)
I had a quote for my new kitchen from Howdens - just over £8,000 for units only. Bought from DIY kitchens for just over £4,000 - much nicer finish/better quality than Howdens Tewksbury range (again IMO).
Agree with poster above re: curved units (expensive for what they are) and small cabinets (can look really 'bitty').
I actually like soft close drawers/doors?

RubyRedRidingHood

@pont may I ask if you've received your kitchen and fitted it? We're considering DIY kitchens but have no experience of them. How were they to fit? Is the quality worse/better/equal to other DIY kitchens ie ikea etc?