Moving the sink

skm1981

We are in the process of buying a house and hopefully will complete soon after Christmas, and although I like the kitchen I'm thinking about rejigging it.  Basically I'd to just have units against the back wall and then an island, so moving the washing machine and sink to possibly where the oven currently is or having it put into the island.  I've attached a picture of the kitchen and the floorplan.  I don't know anything about plumbing, but the sink does seem to be in an odd position as behind that wall is the living room.  I'm used to seeing sinks usually against a wall that backs on to the outside.  

So does anyone have any idea how much work it would involve to move the sink?  Would it be a really big job, or is it not possible to tell from the pictures?

TELLIT01

Where is the current drain for the sink?  If it's a detached house it should be fairly straightforward to move it to the wall where the cooker is located.  Moving the sink to an island would required a lot more work, how much depends on whether the floor is timber or concrete.

skm1981

I'm not sure where the current drain is, the house is detached though.

gwynlas

It appears to have been placed there in order to create a long run of worktop. Why not try living with it for six months in order to see if it works for you? Running any utilities to an island would mean digging up the floor and a sink there would need hot and cold water and drainage.

skm1981

I think this is what we will do.  We'll wait a year and see.  I think if we do decide to rejig it, then the sink will go on the back wall.

Slinky

skm1981 said:

I'm not sure where the current drain is, the house is detached though.

Wow, was expecting you to say it was a semi. How odd to have no external window on that left hand side of your kitchen.

skm1981

Is that odd? That wall faces the side of the next house so I'm guessing none there for privacy reasons, and probably because not a particularly great view, plus you wouldn't be able to have any cupboards above the worktops if there was a window there, well it would limit anyway.  My current house is a semi but our kitchen runs along the outside wall (the non-attached side), but we only have a window on the end that faces out into the garden.

Slinky

Yes it's odd. If the house next door is the same design as yours, you're looking at their garage wall so not a privacy issue, which I'd prefer to have over having no light coming into the kitchen other than the borrowed light via the conservatory.

daivid

Slinky said:

Yes it's odd. If the house next door is the same design as yours, you're looking at their garage wall so not a privacy issue, which I'd prefer to have over having no light coming into the kitchen other than the borrowed light via the conservatory.

I don't think it's odd as such, certainly if going with the definition of unusual, it's a very common example of poor planing. The kitchen would have had plenty of light prior to the conservatory, then someone built that and didn't think to add a new window to the side, or (if we are feeling very generous) perhaps the aspect and proximity of the neighbour makes a side window almost useless.  

skm1981

I wouldn't want a window there.  It faces out onto the neighbours sideway where they park their car.  I do however agree that adding the conservatory has made it darker in there, but over the long-term, we may well remove the conservatory and add on a small extension instead with some sky lights.