SWMBO wants a new kitchen which I've agreed to. Does anybody have any experience with this whole thing? We are currently having a quote made up by a place who supplys Rok punkt kitchens. Their a German make and ment to be very good. Im guessing i will be paying for this. If i went to Howdens and got a kitchen would there really be that much difference in quality or does it more come down to quality of fitter? [img]http://www.fuelly.com/driver/rob2529/range-rover[img/]
04, 4.4V8, Vogue Oslo Blue with LPG.
"You can sleep in your car, BUT you can't race your house!!!!"

If something can't be fixed with a hammer....... You have yourself an electrical fault!

Now dont shoot me down but have a look at B&Q kitchens, we looked for pricing up one for when the house extention has been built for starters, the quality of the doors and work tops are very good, solid wood and granite wooktops on the ones we looking at and must say they have come a long way from what they where 15 years ago!

The carcuse is all chipboard no matter where you go, when looking at other places, thats unless you want B-spoke kitchen and then ££££ goes up and up.

Also with B&Q they set us up on their 3d view system so you play around with styles on their kitchen range and see what it will look like, even down to door handle styles! If it dont work.......burn it!

If the IId tool cant fix it.......burn the FF.

If the FF cant be fixed......buy a Land Cruiser!

If the LC cant be fixed..............................................BUY a horse !!

i agree with mike, b&q/tradepoint stuff is pretty good, as is ikea as well.... ... - .- -.




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We fit kitchens from B&Q and Magnet and sometimes Howdens. We fit more Magnets than any others. Ikea can be problematic if parts are missing as can B&Q. Whatever you go for you need a good fitter to get the best out of it.

75% of a kitchen is down to the fitter. If you can find the doors you like the units are all very similar. Ikea do some very good kitchens to be frank. I put one in for my In-Laws. The secret is assembly of the carcasses.

The only difference in carcasses between say a Trend and Ikea is Trend come fully assembled with glue & dowels. If you have the patience then pre-make the carcass on a flat surface using Gorilla glue & plenty of dowels.

Any of them are fine, B&Q, Wickes, Ikea and so on. Just don'e use their fitters. Find yourself a local carpenter, and I mean a carpenter, not a 1st fix chippy. Get it fitted right and tell them exactly what you want.

Also, don't under estimate the value of a professional kitchen designer. Well worth the couple of hundred quid you'll pay and they know how to make best use of space with the various units.

Great stuff thanks. Why are these German made ones so special? What makes them worth the extra £££ over say the likes of a Howdens? Am i being a sucker buying on into this german made stuff being the best? [img]http://www.fuelly.com/driver/rob2529/range-rover[img/]
04, 4.4V8, Vogue Oslo Blue with LPG.
"You can sleep in your car, BUT you can't race your house!!!!"

If something can't be fixed with a hammer....... You have yourself an electrical fault!

Depends how bad the old one is - last time I did ours, I just replaced the doors and a couple of end panels and added some extra units.

I'd spend the extra on door handles & worktop - I've had granite for 15 years now & it still looks fantastic.

I got my doors & extra carcasses from http://www.diy-kitchens.com - the carcasses were delivered pre-assembled which was great & I've been very happy with the quality

The differences are in the extras, doors and mechanisms.

We fit all sorts, latest lot are benchmarx which are Travis Perkins own brand. Seem ok so far, and the carcasses are better than magnets.

If you start adding an automatic hinge here and a oojimabasket there, then a kitchen can double in value instantly!
I would start with a plan from one company, one which will come out and measure up, then use that plan and send it to other suppliers to get different quotes.

Get your worktops from a specialist supplier for granite or quarts and price compare against local timber merchants if you are going for a laminate.

And yes a quality fitter is essential! There is nothing that can't be fixed with a hammer😜😜
FFRR 4.4 SDV8 Autobiography Santorini Black.
Fiat 500x 1.4 multiair Lounge 2015
2010 LR D4 Commercial 2.7 TDV6

Get howdens out to give you a free no obligation quote which they will do a CAD design of what you want hopelly they will be using ARTI-CAD as this sytem lets you put in everything windows , worktops , wall tiles , curtains , blinds , kitchen accessories , wine coolers , in drawer wireworks , and any other piece of detail which will give you a true account of how it will look , then either take it to Magnet , Wickes , B&Q , or any other well known place you know that does kitchen and find out what their price would be .

Regardless of German / UK , compressed chipboard is the same in any country , price will vary if you want 15mm carcases or 22mm carcases , also if your carcases are okay just now just do a re-face with your doors , add some soft close hinges and new handles and thats you sorted .

Into the bargain most kitchen fitters including Magnet , Wickes , and private kitchen companies carcases are built and shipped in from Ireland .... Including your German stuff , only difference with Howdens is they manufacture their own stuff and if you get a better price elsewhere go back to them and they will be even cheaper ....... Plus they will probably throw in appliances .. Dont be fooled if you think the appliances are not branded goods ... They are its just howdens get them brand stamped differently ...... ====================================

"Open Mike Night " sounded like a lot of fun until i found out i was going to an Autopsy

Most cabs come 18mm now, which is solid enough.

Appliances wise as Mick said most of the big kitchen companies just get their own brand stamp from the big manufacturers. We have learned which to avoid! We like aeg and whirlpool and Cda, which are all one company! We don't like Hoover candy products....... Hoover, candy, neue. There is nothing that can't be fixed with a hammer😜😜
FFRR 4.4 SDV8 Autobiography Santorini Black.
Fiat 500x 1.4 multiair Lounge 2015
2010 LR D4 Commercial 2.7 TDV6

^ What he said , meant to add 18mm , typed all that out via my iphone and thumb 👍👍😄 ====================================

"Open Mike Night " sounded like a lot of fun until i found out i was going to an Autopsy

Deffo go for granite/stone or composite stone worktops, we have had ours for 10 years and they look brand new still, a bit pricey but well worth it. My Motto: If you are going to have one, have a BIG one!

Rob2529 wrote:

SWMBO wants a new kitchen which I've agreed to. Does anybody have any experience with this whole thing? We are currently having a quote made up by a place who supplys Rok punkt kitchens. Their a German make and ment to be very good. Im guessing i will be paying for this. If i went to Howdens and got a kitchen would there really be that much difference in quality or does it more come down to quality of fitter?

We have just had fitted a B&Q Cooke & Lewis solid framed oak kitchen with quartz/stone worktop. We fitted the kitchen ourselves as me nor my other half did not wish to pay £4k fitting but would rather do it himself. We didn't buy appliances through them we bought them separate. The process was easy and no issues, arrived when we wanted it to.

The worktop has to be templated and fitted by their supplier (for obvious reasons) which looks beautiful. (as it should for the price!) Basically what we saved on fitting paid for the worktop! We looked at Schrieber and Magnet and to be honest, there was no obvious difference apart from the price tag and the plaque they may attach to a drawer somewhere! The B&Q kitchen also is wood inside not white which some are which makes it looks alot nicer. The overall look is down to the fitting of it, the worktop and the appliances you have.

Would definitely recommend B&Q from my experience. 2011 4.4 TDV8 Autobiography

Having installed a Texas kitchen 23 years earlier I eventually gave in and agreed to a new one. I suggested B&Q/Wicks/Howden, she suggested ones out of glossy magazines. We ended up with a local company who make it all themselves. Did not cost enormously more than the store ones but is significantly better. If you were in Somerset I would not hesitate to recommend. There must be something similar in your part of the world. letters not necessarily in the right order