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Kitchen cabinets

MichaelC

MichaelC

pfm Member
Recommendations please.

We are having our kitchen updated and we now need to start thinking about cabinets.

In years gone by we had kitchen cabinets from Crowm which we were pleased with. Any other suggestions. Any to avoid?
 
The cabinet is what counts - all particle board construction, preferably chipboard, and 18mm thick. Beyond that you are paying for name and/or fancy doors.

I bought mine from Wickes - absolutely fine, all but bombproof.
 
DIY kitchens. Having one delivered tomorrow. As far as I could see, unbeatable value for the quality.
 
Bob McC said:
Benchmarx. Same manufacturer as Wickes but cheaper.
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But with hardboard backs - dreadful, most especially in any spot where there is a trace of damp. Wickes cabinets are 18mm chipboard throughout, or the ones here are, now 5-6 years old.
 
Vinny said:
I bought mine from Wickes - absolutely fine, all but bombproof.
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ours are from Wickes, 12 years old and despite a few scuffs inside from moving stuff around, as good as the day I fitted them. The pan drawer runners are starting to show some wear but have still plenty of life in them.
 
Minor thread hijack (sorry MichaelC) but for those of you sourcing your cabinets from places like DIY Kitchens, are you fitting yourself? We're in the process of replacing our old and tatty kitchen, but I can't abide the kitchen fitters costs. It's almost as much as the kitchen itself.
 
farfromthesun said:
Minor thread hijack (sorry MichaelC) but for those of you sourcing your cabinets from places like DIY Kitchens, are you fitting yourself? We're in the process of replacing our old and tatty kitchen, but I can't abide the kitchen fitters costs. It's almost as much as the kitchen itself.
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Absolutely not! A good kitchen fitter will make a relatively affordable but good quality kitchen (such as DIY) look fantastic. A bad kitchen fitter (such as myself) would make a Mark Wilkinson kitchen look like something out of Ikea.
 
Of course the fitting is as much as the kitchen itself, that's where the value is! Fit it well and it will look good for 20 years. Do a poor job and it will look crap from day one. Do nt underestimate the labour either, I've done one. Screwing the bozes together is easy, the time is in getting the services right before you start and then getting the final trim right. I remember spending a long time getting an external mitre absolutely right, it was heavy going because not everything was absolutely square and I had to decide where the compromises were to be made.
 
farfromthesun said:
Minor thread hijack (sorry MichaelC) but for those of you sourcing your cabinets from places like DIY Kitchens, are you fitting yourself? We're in the process of replacing our old and tatty kitchen, but I can't abide the kitchen fitters costs. It's almost as much as the kitchen itself.
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Have you got the few tools that it needs, and how are your DIY skills?
I have seen just 2-3 kitchen-fitter-fitted kitchens, and speed is everything. Shall we leave it at that?

It also depends on what you want. For instance, I wanted drawer space - FAR more useful than cupboard space below the work surface. So I bought two broom cupboard units, and two base 4-drawer units and refitted all the drawers into the bases of the broom cupboards. So, I have two full height cupboards with 8 drawers in them. That took time and care because all the holes for the drawer runners had to be accurately marked-out and drilled by hand. IF a professional fitter had done that............................... I dread to think................... You would never guess that they were other than off-the-shelf here.
 
stevec67 said:
Full height and drawers? Are you massively tall?
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Hmmmm - I did say drawers in the base of the cupboards.
That apart - small kitchen, so optimisation of space is essential.

I also fitted a sheet of inch square stainless welded mesh on double extension stainless drawer runners, to the side of a base cabinet, next to the cooker. A large set of pans hang from that, are EASILY accessible, and take up about 6-7 inches of base width, (the lids without loop handles are stacked in the cupboard beside the rack).
 
Thanks for the replies. Seems to be a difference of opinion.

I need plastering, new electric board, some gas pipe installation, floor etc and with the budget we have - modest - it seems that the most significant saving I can make, whilst keeping Mrs farfromthesun happy in terms of the look of the kitchen itself, is on the fitting which looks like being around £4k. With that saved and redeployed on the cabinets, doors, etc, it's a big difference. Cost to me? Time, and I'd better not screw it up.

(with apologies to OP, again)
 
No need to apologise. It's all relevant. I wholly concur with the skills of the fitter(s). Our builder will be doing the installation and we have seen examples of their work elsewhere. The builder had some suggestions but I thought it worth throwing the question out to all because there are so many kitchen cabinet suppliers out there.

Thus far it seems to me that Howdens, Crown and Wickes are in the mix. I do understand that Howdens are not terribly transparent with their pricing but with pricing from others we can take a value decision. The Solid Wood Kitchen Cabinet people look to be worth a viewing, they have a showroom not too far away.

Thank you for the responses thus far.
 
I am sure that you are more than well aware of pricing being a nightmare.
I certainly didn't pay full price at Wickes and although the banners outside seem far less frequent these days, 30% reductions are reasonably common. It depends on how much of a hurry you are in.

Many moons ago it was possible to buy just door-less cabinets, as opposed to the norm of standard cabinets being provided with "free" doors of your chosen design. If it can still be done, that might be worth a look too.
 
One of the best supplied cabinet construction were from Magnets(southern) I have no idea if they still exist even.
They were ready built and had an applied material to all the joints on the carcass, thus preventing liquid spillage to creep into the joints.

If Magnets were no longer available I would go for Ikea carcasses and order my doors, pelmits, cornice etc from this mob https://kitchenandbedroomdoors.co.uk/

As for design, most pro kitchensI have seen/worked in are on a galley basis. I have fitted many kitchens where the pan drawers were on the wrong side of an island unit,and away from where it is required. Ovens, grills should all be at mid height, not a good idea to be lifting heavy food laden trays from a low position. Wall cupboards at a max to prevent unnecessary bending, I prefer them right up to the ceiling and the void between the top of the unit and the ceiling is infilled and painted in with the walls or the lid (this prevents the tops of the units being covered in a greasy film. Fit a direct to exterior extractor fan and for me NO TILING. I detest tiling in kitchens as the grout invariably will eventually discolour. I use sheet stainless steel or this https://www.interiorpanelsystems.co.uk/ all adhered to the wall surfaces. For worktops I prefer a standard Beech look stripwood as per Ikea or similar. A couple of coats of oil a year and they come up like new, really like them, easy to fit also.

Bloss
 
Vinny said:
But with hardboard backs - dreadful, most especially in any spot where there is a trace of damp. Wickes cabinets are 18mm chipboard throughout, or the ones here are, now 5-6 years old.
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the ready built cabinets which I bought from Benchmarx were solid chipboard backed.

I repeat Wickes cabinets are made by Benchmarx, but dearer.

Both companies are owned by Travis Perkins.
 
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