Help with an awkward kitchen (small and full!) (this post is long i'm sorry...)

ST1991

Thanks again all - and thanks Doozer for taking the time to look at it with such great ideas

I'll have to look further into expanding the doorway to the dining room, as it might come down to the cost being the biggest problem there. At the moment, the other side of that wall is a breakfast bar, and then we've got a nice dining table and american fridge/freezer in there.

Obviously i don't want to have to live with an awkward kitchen any more, so it is worth doing it 'right'! We just don't have the biggest budget to add on thousands in additional work, if it would come to that.

Thankfully, the boiler we are looking at is a worcester bosch one, and possibly the same one you mention. The chap who will be fitting it has also advised we can move it slightly to the left so there is no more 'useless' 10cm of space between the boiler and wall - and we can box it in too. 10cm doesn't sound like much... but when there isn't much room to play with, it makes a difference!

I like the radiator idea. Either a modern/skinny one or a plinth heater both sound like good options in place of what is there at the moment.

I haven't looked at the roof to be honest. It's difficult to tell if it is particularly cold there or not, as the whole house is cold (solid stone walls and concrete floors!) so i probably don't notice the difference. I'm not sure how much space there is to go 'up' in the roof, but whilst decorating it is within our scope to remove the ceiling and re-board it, so we could add insulation at the same time.

Thanks again for all your ideas. It's so nice to get other peoples input and opinions when you get 'stuck' looking at the same thing every day!

FreeBear

Ectophile said: If you're going to be paying a kitchen company to supply and fit the kitchen, then most will offer a design service as part of the package.  It may be worth getting them to take a look and suggest how things should be laid out to fit the space.

The likes of Magnet, Wren, Wickes, B&Q, and others all offer a "free" design service. Might be worth going round a couple of them to see what ideas they come up with. Just don't give them your email address though. Made that mistake with Magnet (really poor design for my kitchen), and they started to spam me despite being told not to. Went in there and tore a strip of the salesman for it in front of another customer.

ic

For maximising on space available, I can wholeheartedly recommend using drawers throughout under the worktop in base units, no shelves - this will get you using the space all the way to back of a unit, without the need to get on your hands and knees to get there.