Kitchen extension and saving costs

TELLIT01

d0nkeyk0ng said:

Brie said:

Or nicely point out that a fully functioning kitchen on a hot day is bad enough without having all that extra sunny heat pouring in from above. 

SWMBO now wants blinds for the bifolds. I'm having to argue her down from integrated blinds to having them attached to the back of the bifolds.

If you attach blinds to the back of the bifolds they won't be able to fold flat onto each other.  That will somewhat defeat the purpose of bifold doors.

ComicGeek

NSG666 said:

Brie said:

If you have a good recommended second hand appliance shop local that could save you a lot.  Personally I wouldn't get a separate fridge and freezer.  We have ones hidden behind cupboards (IYKWIM) and they are tiddly.  Lot's of wasted space and I wonder what we'll need to do if something happens to one bit or the other. (kitchen was fairly new when we bought the place)

Go to someplace upmarket to get a design plotted out but ignore the sale pitch and then get the same things from B&Q or someplace similar.  

Another thing about standard sizes....do the same for the sink.  Again - previous owners had this plastic(?) finish 1.5 sink fitted and the drain plug is not a standard size.  The plug is partially broken but is still useable but it's just a matter of time before it stops working to keep the water in the sink.  When it gets to that we will need to replace the entire sink and possibly all of the counter.  If it was a standard stainless kitchen plug it would cost about £5. 

OP sorry to hijack your post but.....
It bugged me reading this as I used to encounter this problem every so often and I can't remember the solution but  I think McAlpine Plumbing do the sink waste that you will need.

Or buy a washing up bowl - I just picked up one made from recycled plastic in Tesco for £1

SaverRate

Have a look at AO ebay Telford for appliances. They have open box/customer return items for 100+ off the retail price on ao.com. They list any issues with the item like scratches etc. 
I will be honest we brought an oven & dishwasher from them. The dishwasher was listed as no fixing kit and had £140.00 of the retail price and when it arrived the fixing kit was there but there was a dent to the top (you cant see it once its installed as was integrated). I contacted them and they refunded 10%.
The single oven was marketed as perfect condition and had it for £105.00 off Retail price. When it arrived the power cable was missing and a small dent in the rear. A replacement cable cost me £10 and they again refunded 10%. 
On both items I got the option of a 10% refund, a collection and exchange for another item on their site or a collection and full refund. 
They are always quick to respond and resolve issues though!

kungfu_navs

Brie said:

If you have a good recommended second hand appliance shop local that could save you a lot.  Personally I wouldn't get a separate fridge and freezer.  We have ones hidden behind cupboards (IYKWIM) and they are tiddly.  Lot's of wasted space and I wonder what we'll need to do if something happens to one bit or the other. (kitchen was fairly new when we bought the place)

Go to someplace upmarket to get a design plotted out but ignore the sale pitch and then get the same things from B&Q or someplace similar.  

Another thing about standard sizes....do the same for the sink.  Again - previous owners had this plastic(?) finish 1.5 sink fitted and the drain plug is not a standard size.  The plug is partially broken but is still useable but it's just a matter of time before it stops working to keep the water in the sink.  When it gets to that we will need to replace the entire sink and possibly all of the counter.  If it was a standard stainless kitchen plug it would cost about £5. 

can may be able to make a replacement using a 3D printer

Doozergirl

d0nkeyk0ng said:

Brie said:

Or nicely point out that a fully functioning kitchen on a hot day is bad enough without having all that extra sunny heat pouring in from above. 

SWMBO now wants blinds for the bifolds. I'm having to argue her down from integrated blinds to having them attached to the back of the bifolds.

Sliding doors and voiles.  Like the Sanderson hotel in London.  The longest expanse of window you've ever seen. 

You can't put blinds behind bifolds - they'll get smashed up - and the integrated ones cost something insane like the price of the doors again.  And how long are they really going to stay airtight? 

Sliding doors rock, anyway.  You spend most time looking out of the doors, so an uninterrupted view is, on the whole, better, than loads of small windows for most of the year.  

 

If swmbo wants people to think she's cool, she's buying sliding doors. 

Ballymoney

You can actually get external blinds to work perfectly well on bifolds. You can fit them to the outer frame so the opening of the doors is unaffected.

Rosa_Damascena

d0nkeyk0ng said:

edgex said:

If your having a big expanse of door/window, then do you need skylights?

SWMBO's demands. Bifold doors alone would have sufficed for me

I like a man that does what his wife tells him to

Having said that there must be economies somewhere. I'd live without the blinds for a year and see how it goes, I bet you won't even miss them. I say this as someone who has spent a small fortune on curtains and soft furnishings and they have been no more than pleasant decor to look at. On reflection those thousands would have been better spent upgrading my tech.

Doozergirl

Ballymoney said:

You can actually get external blinds to work perfectly well on bifolds. You can fit them to the outer frame so the opening of the doors is unaffected.

Fair point.  But messy and they'll hang over the opening. 

I'd definitely rather have a soft furnishing.   

Ballymoney

Doozergirl said:

Fair point.  But messy and they'll hang over the opening. 

I'd definitely rather have a soft furnishing.   

Definitely doesn’t have to be messy, as displayed in this pic of a lovely house I follow on Instagram

Anyway, I think blinds are the least of the OP’s worries by the sounds of it. My advice though is do NOT skimp on appliances. If you have to delay the project by 6-12 months to save more money then do it. Good luck.

Chickereeeee

d0nkeyk0ng said:

We've been to a few more kitchen places - it's amazing how a kitchen can cost between £5k and £20k (Wren) for the same design and layout. Gloss finish, true handleless design, laminate worktop. Some of the cheaper ones are making everything in-house behind the office/showroom (I've visited). We've also found a small company that will supply and fit quartz worktop for the side run, and for the island (which means we can have a wider island than the 900mm limited by laminate).

I think the only thing left is appliances - there's a small company that does ex-display/end of line appliances. I don't know how reliable the different brands are.

RE: fridge/freezer - we've currently got an American style fridge freezer so can't see us going back to tiddly 70/30 design. We're looking at full height built in separate fridge and freezer.

Do you mean integrated fridge and freezer? If so, save money, and make life easier, by getting stand alone units, and 'build around' (I.e. leave the appropriate  space for the units to fit snuggly).