[Closed] HOWWWWWW MUCH?????!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mate, in exactly the same place. Our wall has just come down so we are in the process of getting quotes, designs, ideas etc.. This will be the last part of the house to be done (gutted the whole gaff over the last 3 months) and I will project manage it. Yes, you'll get some company in who 'claim' it will all be done exact to spec, daily updates etc.. My arse, they are idiots so micromanage them. Don't try to get one company to do all of it and subcontract out the bits they don't do, use point excellence company, trades and manage them yourself.

I clicked this link thinking it was going to be an amusing story about your OH's reaction to a new bike purchase. Now I feel slightly robbed.

Also dont forget that plinth bases the bits that hide the leggs, are just contiboard, available from B and Q just need 6 inch wide and cut to size, both toolstaion and screwfix sell the door soft closers.

Howdens also sell kitchens ready built units, but expect quite a few bits not to turn up, and doors not to be available, oh and they seem to charge for every screw etc, all nicely itemised on the bill.

Yes, you'll get some company in who 'claim' it will all be done exact to spec, daily updates etc.. My arse, they are idiots so micromanage them

We're a bit wise to this. We have luckily found a brilliant sparky and plumber, and I've got a chippy working on the stairs on Friday (New bannister) and a mate works with a good plasterer, so I think we've got it all covered by now. I'd rather give my money direct to a local tradesman.
The kitched companies are on about £4000+ for installation (plus worktops). And it's just making flat pack furniture and screwing it to the walls FFS.

Don't, whatever you do, go with Moben. Rip-off merchants extraordinaire. We had a quote from them about seven years ago, to refit a 10' square-ish kitchen. So, he came round to measure up and 'design' the kitchen and came up with a quote of £8000.

"Haven't you got a half price sale on?" I asked

"Yes" he said "that's the sale price".

"Bye", I said.

I was knocked off my bike by someone who worked in Homebase kitchens.

They're all evil.

I hear ya....... Well trying to find a good kitchen supplier is difficult. You'll see I started a thread about this ages ago and still not made our minds up yet, we got a fairly healthy ~12-15k budget but some of these jokers are after stupid money, and the kitchen isn't even massive.

It costs a few grand just for slab of marble.

Back in '88 my Mum's kitchen was 8 grand in a sale.
Now I would expect to pay £20K

Not cheap!

Maybe a buy a book -kitchen building for dummies as even though you pay loads the fitter does a naff job!

Still would cost loads for the material.

It costs a few grand just for slab of marble.

So don't use marble. Or bypass all the middlemen!

Corian is most expensive, but not the best (It scratches and can melt)
Wood needs a lot of care, and is no good for icing wedding cakes as the texture of the wood ends up on your icing.
Granite is slightly pourus.
The current best performing kitchen worktop is Quartz, according to the industry.
£4-5k fitted for our kitchen if you listen to the kitchen companies. About £2.5k if you don't.......

we got a fairly healthy ~12-15k budget but some of these jokers are after stupid money, and the kitchen isn't even massive.

From what I've learned you could probably half that if you do your homework, and fit the units yourselves.
If you can make up flat pack furniture and possess a spirit level, pencil and a drill, then you can fit kitchen units. I did so in our last house. 🙂

Brother in-law works for a bespoke kitchen company designing kitchens and they charge tens of thousands of pounds to build and fit a kitchen. Anyway for my parents we got a kitchen from Ikea. Seemed the best price and the quality was good, according to him. All drawers are soft close and soft close doohikeys can be added to the door hinges for a couple of quid each door.

Only issue we had was that there is no space behind the units to run pipes etc, but we we were re-jigging the plumbing anyway so not an issue. I'd recommend them. Plus their software for working out units etc was useful for me. If you do pay someone else to install it just get them in to level off the floor units and fit the worktop. Need a jig, and router, which you can get from screewfix but it was a real fag of a job. Certainly glad the Bro' in-law was there to-do it. 🙂

Have you looked at IKEA kitchens?

I think my sis got her kitchen from there, it seems good quality & I am pretty sure she said it was pretty good value compared to others that she looked at.

I think what we're going to do is use the money we'll save by being careful (As in my OP) and fitting it ourselves, and spend it on quartz worktops and a new fridge. There's already a near top of the range Neff oven going in, but the expensive hobs are pointless, so that'll be a base model. Mrs PP needs a good oven. She really does. I wouldn't skimp on that. 🙂

Haven't read the thread, so apologies, but you can buy little soft close dampers that you retrofit to the normal units in a jiffy and they work well and cost but a few quid 🙂

Me and the missus did the kitchen in our old house and this one too.
Plan it out on squared paper to scale and away you go.

Only the usual diy stuff like electrics and plumbing, bit of tiling and save a fortune

Had enough of crap workmen in my houses over the years and far more satisfying doing it yourself. Did all the new UPVC windows too, very simple and surprisingly cheap when ordered direct, yet again measure up properly

Buy decent tools though, makes a world of difference and once bought should last for years

Kitchens are a fashion item, so you get screwed on them.

At the price of fitted units you could instead get a bigger room for kitchen duties and use furniture for storage eg Welsh dressers etc.

I reckon for the price of a "good" kitchen you could eat out for a few years. Then it would be time to replace the kitchen again, so you could continue to eat out. Eventually the no-kitchen would become fashionable.

Molgrops, nail square on the head mate! 🙂

TT - We decided to get a second/third/fourth opinion on it becasue we needed to chage the layout. One lot made it worse, 2 made it better. It looks like we're combining the 2 better plans for the finished product. 🙂

Kitchens are a fashion item, so you get screwed on them.

At the price of fitted units you could instead get a bigger room for kitchen duties and use furniture for storage eg Welsh dressers etc.

I reckon for the price of a "good" kitchen you could eat out for a few years. Then it would be time to replace the kitchen again, so you could continue to eat out. Eventually the no-kitchen would become fashionable.

Only if you chose to be taken in by the fashions and/or fit cheap stuff.

And the 'eating out' is utterly missing the point. I realise most people want a flash kitchen like they want a flash car: To show off with, but never use it. But Mrs PP cooks a LOT. And makes wedding cakes. So she needs a kitchen, and a good one at that to work in. So, to get vlause for money, we spend the money where it's needed - Quality oven for example. And on hardwearing wooden doors and worktops in classic colours which will last under a lot of use, and still look good in 10-15 years.
For instance - People love glass inserts on doors - Fine for showing your posh crockery and glases, but useless when the contents are jars of spices and packets of flour. Who wants to see those? And clean flour off the glass?
So we reckon glass is for people that don't cook. We need a lot of storage space for ingredients and stuff like the big catering quality Kenwood mixer. It's not pretty, but it's been working for 30 years and gets used a lot. Not everyone has those requirements.
This is why we can't have wooden worktops or dressers as you suggest - You can't roll smooth icing on wood! 🙂

my new wife wants a new kitchen, what she's getting is some new tiles and a new worktop, fitted by me.
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anyone know any issues with retrofitting a new worktop to an existing kitchen?

We keep that much crap in our kitchen drawers that they never shut anyway!

anyone know any issues with retrofitting a new worktop to an existing kitchen?

No, not at all. It should be pretty easy. Levelling the units is the tricky part IME. 🙂

I can give you a few tips if you want them though?

Stainless steel FTW!

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Stainless? Yes please. I have a stainless steel fetish. Love the stuff!

Not at home though. Although I might try and convince her to get a stainless splashback for the hob, and the sink, tap, hob, oven and fridge will all be stainless. 🙂

Oh, and the handles.

And all our pans are stainless. (11 years old and like new)

And the Dualit stuff is too.....

I reckon for the price of a "good" kitchen you could eat out for a few years. Then it would be time to replace the kitchen again, so you could continue to eat out. Eventually the no-kitchen would become fashionable.

A hospital round the corner from us was redeveloped into a s****y housing estate. Free one Sunday, Mrs North and I went for a nosey. The first "townhouse" (terrace to you and me) had a tiny kitchen. Mrs North asked "where do you fit the washing machine?". "Don't know," was the reply. "You'd have to remove one of the units."

"But then there wouldn't anywhere to store food," said Mrs North.

To which the response was (and could only have been):

"Ah, but there are loads of restaurants in the area. People who live here eat out all the time."

It's like the infamous "free money" idea of interest free credit. Twuntish estate agents.

Did you promptly turn one out (pinch one out, crimp one off) on the floor and say: 'Well the people round here will surely have cleaners'? Probably not but hope so.

we spend the money where it's needed - Quality oven for example.

Like a..

Neff oven

Nah. Shoulda got a Britannia range like Mrs North bought when we did our kitchen... 😀

Did you promptly turn one out (pinch one out, crimp one off) on the floor and say: 'Well the people round here will surely have cleaners'? Probably not but hope so.

Sadly not. We just looked at each other, laughed rather too loudly and walked off.

like Mrs North bought when we did our kitchen

Tom, you [i]really[/i] don't want to do that. 😯

It's OK. You've probably got a better baby-stroller that converts into a car seat.

ikea sell the 'soft close' things as an extra (ie not built into the cupboard). they're £5 a pair. Personally, I'd highly reccomend an ikea kitchen - i've nothing to compare it with but it went together very easily and the wood worktops are bonkers cheap

you can't take anything homebase at full price. Due to their highly regular sales, I'd not buy at less than 60% off full rrp.

PP said:

can give you a few tips if you want them though?

if you have the time, that would be great!

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anyone know any issues with retrofitting a new worktop to an existing kitchen?

None at all, just make sure you have a good jigsaw with decent blades

OMITN - Spot on mate! We lookd at 3-4 new houses. They have huge big lounge/diners and poxy little kitchen/breakfast rooms.

And when you look closer, the lounge/diner won't be big enough for a proper dining table, only the tiny 'cafe' table they have on show in there. And the kitchen has a dishwasher, fridge, freezer etc, but no cupboard space. We looked at a 4 bed detached that actually had no more kitchen space/units than out 60s 2 bed terrace (I counted the units up and it had the same number, but one had a dishwasher inside it)

Our conclusion was the same as you it seems - They expect everyone to eat takeaways or frozen ready meals sitting in front of the TV. The kitchens are useless as a result.

And don't get me started on garages and en-suite bathrooms! Ohhhh! Blood boiling! 😉

That's why we bought another ex-council house where the last owner had built an effing great big garage on the side of it, which was big enough to put is car in and have is motorbikes down the side too! 🙂

promptly turn one out (pinch one out, crimp one off) on the floor

Then smear it all over the place in a Dirty Protest. On arrest, you could justify it with 'well what with the huge increase in the price of hummus at Waitrose, we felt we simply had to make a stand'.

Trust me, you'll get let off.

I'd stay away from B&Q, Wickes & Homebase etc. Sister in law had one from B&Q wich had missing parts, wrong parts, broken parts!!! nightmare to deal with on after care too. Ikea kitchens are cheap & cheerful and about 1/4 of the cost, I installed my own kitchen (1st one) and it was simple. Ikea have a good free online design package too. Just remember to get the work surface profesionally fitted.

You've probably got a better baby-stroller that converts into a car seat.

I think it cost more than any bike I own....

Cast-in-situ concrete kitchens. This is the future. Look out for me on Dragons Den with this one.

if your looking for a really good quality kitchen try woodfit really good quality and bits and pieces to fit all the different size spaces that can be left over, as for worktops try (sorry dont know how to linky) kitchen-worktop-direct.co.uk. My sister recently got a marble worktop, 4.5m total length all cut outs, edges, templated and fitted for £1600ish, I was surprised how chaep and well fitted they were. I know you said you were after quartz, Im sure I remember they supplied them also

Don't use any of the big sheds unless you want a cheap kitchen or be ripped off comparatively

Find a good local craftsman and get a Howdens Kitchen, 18mm rigid carcase that will give the option of 'normal' or softclose doors and drawers or if you want the cheaper damper option they can do that too.

I have been out of the industry for a couple of years but still know quite a few very good fitters in the midlands area, and Howdens will send someone to see you for design purposes (free service)

Oh and btw somone above mentioned quartz worktops above being the bees knees, dont be so sure as quatz is porous which means it can absorb and hold germs/moisture, most worktops have some element of trade off and tbh you cant go too wrong with a good quality laminate (6 layers or more)

Haven't read all the thread, it grew too quickly!
Homebase did our kitchen and they did a very good job. No complaints at all. They sub-contract the work out anyway.
The soft-close hinges are just these things
[IMG] [/img]

for the price difference you quote, you must get the fancier, internally damped version. Worth £127 quid of anyone's money
[img] [/img]

And don't get me started on garages and en-suite bathrooms!

We had a two bed flat once that had an en suite. And I mean a tiny two bed flat - not big enough for a family, so wtf are there two bathrooms?

Oh and Ikea kitchens are lovely 🙂

if you have the time, that would be great!

The main one is this - If you're cutting holes for hob & sink, put the worktop in place BEFORE you cut the holes. Worktop is very heavy, and if you do it elsewhere and [i]then[/i] move it into place, it'll just snap where the thin bits are!
No need to screw it down, just rest it on the units, make sure it's clear underneath and then cut the holes before sliding gently into place.

I think you can get the corners mitered by the factory these days though, which is handy.

Think about where you're going to cut as well. You might not get a pefectly straight end edge, but if there's a windowsill or wall at one end, make the cut there and leave the factory cut on the exposed end, then hide the other end easily.

As always, measure TWICE, cut once. 🙂

Tiling - Paint you wall first, tile, then put a strip of masking tape along the top of the tiles on the wall before you grout the edge. Gives a lovely crisp finish on the wall.

my fathers a builder - having spent a fair bit of my younger years working on building sites in summer - wouldnt buy a house that hasnt stood for 40 years. let along a new house :s Wouldnt let any of those "homebase/mfi/ikea/moben" folk install my kitchen or kettle for that matter ...

much like my car - trusted local tradesmen only - reccomendations from mates or my dad. But the ammount of repair work my dads lot gets called in to do on the big guns newly fitted kitchens/bathrooms is rediculous !

including one where 20k worth of damage was done by a leaky pipe not connected correctly behind the units - wasnt spotted till the unit and laminate flooring started to bubble after about 6 months ! kitchen had to come out carefully , new floor boards and joists and replacement flooring , a chunk of the wall had to be replaced - old plaster and lathe wall soaked. kitchen units damaged all along the wall. - insurance covered it - the couple didnt want the cowboys the fitted it back in the house !