Reply to: KITCHENS

If you are like most men into DIY and love your wife then....don't DIY, as i think it might make her rather miffed to say the least to have a no kitchen for 6 months while she waits for you to finally admit you will never finish it and hire pros to do it.

Re: Kitchens

Damm you Maximus

Back to the drawing and planning board

Re: Kitchens

"i'm going to replace the doors and worktops as there is nothing really wrong with the cupboards"


ahh but what happens once you lay your slate floor...will you take the slate under the units ar stop at the plinth?

will you take it under the plinth but stop at the legs?

will you have to cut the plinth to suit for an uneven slate floor?

Re: Kitchens

Thanks for all your advice.

I am a contractor but i like to get my hands dirty when it comes to DIY.

I have decided after spending 2 hours last night travelling round a few DIY mega stores i'm going to replace the doors and worktops as there is nothing really wrong with the cupboards. going to put a new slate floor down and change the tiles. Along with a new big american style fridge (with ice machine) i think it will look beutiful.

Hopefully it will encourage the other half to increase the quality of her food. !!

Re: Kitchens

Oh and if you do go down the kitchen company route (you'd be best not to) make sure you pay by credit card.

That way, when they inevitably go bust, you at least have (some) protection and can claim from the c. card company.

Kitchens

Most important is the triangle (sink, cooker, fridge)
If you are a contractor, employ others to fit the kitchen - it ain't worth the time involved.

Biggest hassle is what you cook on when you are replacing the units. You would be surprised how quickly you will get p*ssed off even after just 2 days without water.

If you are just replacing the units, why not put new fronts on the cupboards and a new work top? anything else and you will need plumbing, electrical, carpentry, (plastering?) and tiling skills.

Don't know about your house but consider a real Aga, black granite, tiled floor, tiled splash backs and a decent 110cm range cooker.
N.B.Good tip - Ensure the units are exactly horizontal and tile the floor after the units have been fitted (hids any unlevel floors)

Another good tip - cheap kitchen units with granite on top looks much better than expensive units with a crap worktop.

I'd get the pros to do the marble worktops

or are you a permie?

Beware the new Euro regs that came into effect on Jan and Apr 1st banning lots of DIY jobs.

That's no problem: you started the work last December, right?

PS worktops where the laminate goes round the front and onto at least a bit of the underside, are likely to resist water seepage longer than, say, IKEA worktops where the laminate covers the top (of course) and front edge, but not of the underside: water drips can linger on the underside, seep into the chipboard, and distort it.

Also, check for heat resistance, it does vary. And note that the vendor, especially IKEA, is likely to take your line of worktop or doors out of production just after you buy your stuff, so get any extra bits you might want sharpish.

KITCHENS

Being an ex carpenter fitting a kitchen is quite easy.

Would advise getting all electrics/plumbing in the right places first before any fitting. First before starting anything make sure you can turn water off at the mains - fatal not to. Beware the new Euro regs that came into effect on Jan and Apr 1st banning lots of DIY jobs.

The actual units are simple to fit but a lot of carpenters will fit just the worktops for you - and it is advisable to take that route if you have corners or spend several hundreds buying the equipment.

Start all disconnection/re-connection am and when shops are open all day. You never know what you want last minute and never start the job on a bank holiday when B&Q is full.

Average kitchen would be 2 -3 weekends for a good DIYer.

New Kitchen Sir?

Why don't you try Mr Miller's Kitchen Emporium in Oldham (now under new management).

www.manchesteronline.co.u...rogue.html

Rock bottom prices and customer service that is second to none:rollin

3) You are a geek and only eat pot-noodles so why have a kitchen?

Should that be:

3) You are a geek and only eat cheeseburgers and coke.

Remember, pot noddles are dirty and make your inflatable date blush.

Surely Threaded invented the kitchen?

FFS this is supposed to be a contractor site.

Contractors should fall into one of these categories:

1) You work & live away from home so why have a kitchen?

2) You eat out all the time so why have a kitchen?

3) You are a geek and only eat pot-noodles so why have a kitchen?

4) You run a REAL company, so put it through the books and pay someone to do it for you.

5) You are Threaded and ate the kitchen.

Measure, Measure again to make sure and just before you cut measure again.

Then you know that you are hopeless when you cut that bit of work surface the wrong length... :rollin

In all seriousness your biggest problem is likely to be the corners, it seems no house has 90 degree corners and that buggers you up no end when putting in units. For an easy life the foreign immigrant sounds like a good idea if you can trust one.

My advice is don't do it yourself. Do what I did and hire some Polish handyman for thruppence cash-in-hand. Mine did a brilliant job at a reasonable price. No wonder the local chav population is growing - they can't compete with the foreign competition.