B and q or ikea kitchens?

[Lemonmelonsun]

Ok?

I'm getting desperate, magnet was too much, can't even get a quote out of howdens, DIY looks wonderful but I'm nervous about measuring the kitchen myself and their reviews...
Wicks is booked till Sept I've got homebase, ikea and b and q left.

I'm not after a dream kitchen, I can't do much with my space, I just need a new nice clean one. Thank you.

@Lemonmelonsun our kitchen was a ridiculously awkward shape, even wren struggled to get the right cabinets to fit. B&Q didn't seem to have any issues.

I’ve currently got an IKEA kitchen that the previous owners installed and was more than happy with it but needed to add cabinets and a few other bits and they no longer make them so it was coming in relatively expensive to swap the doors etc.

I’m going with Magnet but would have have another IKEA kitchen as a replacement for the current one but my local store are having terrible supply issues and quoted me September delivery back in May, which I couldn’t wait for.

Have a look online at recent IKEA reviews - think there is a current brexit related issue getting parts

Phone dear thanks for for the heads up..

I'm without an oven so I am hoping to get something soon.

@Lemonmelonsun We've since had it painted/tiled too. I'm very very happy with it!

We had b&q. When looking to redo we went IKEA, they didn't offer us much design wise then screwed up arranging install etc. Ended up going with Wickes who transformed our kitchen and we're very happy.

That said there was nothing wrong with the b&q cabinets structurally, but the design the previous owners picked did my head in. We also have some IKEA kitchen units in another room for high storage and as a bespoke tv table seriously! and they're fine too.

Installation wise, it can be luck/location. A friend had a wickes kitchen a few weeks before ours through a different store and hers went badly. Ours went great even when we changed something midway.

Yes, you can cut holes to put a pipe through, that’s not a problem, but it could be of water or gas pipes are running above floor level, if so, avoid ikea.

And if you go for IKEA avoid the Kungsbacka doors, the only way to keep them clean is washing them with sugar soap every fortnight or so, as even water leave stains on it that are difficult to remove.

Really happy with my DIY kitchen. You just have to measure lots of times and make sure you’ve got it right. I also posted my plans on mumsnet and got some good advice on layout etc

@MyGrassIsBrowner

That looks fabulous doesn't it I'm not surprised your thrilled!!

It's great!!

Thanks re ikea, tricky as I'm not sure what is there really. I'm going anyway to have a look but now I'm getting more confident I'm swing back to DIY...

@RoseAddict

Good name BTW me too also at b and q designer was putting lots of random wood in to fill gaps so I guess as long as it's too small not to large.. Gaps can be filled??

op I have no experience of B&Q but I adore my ikea kitchen and highly recommend. So many clever space saving options! the units are deeper so you have so much extra room in them.
This does mean however there's no gap at the back for services so you need either one of their fitters or a fitter who's happy to work with Ikea units.
Their units are also not standard UK sizes which means if you ever get replacement doors you couldn't just get new ones from homebase or whatever. Many companies online now do made to measure doors anyway.

@Lemonmelonsun Thank you! As I say, my kitchen is small and such an awkward shape. Wren originally put loads of filler plinths/cabinets in and there just wasn't a lot of useable space. B&Q really worked with it and every single cabinet is usable, baring one corner plinth which had to be re-worked by my fitter but it was a non issue. I highly recommend them! 😊

I'll also add, a good fitter makes all the difference. Our fitter was recommended by our kitchen designer but he wasn't employed by B&Q, he was fantastic and we've had him back to do other refurbs in the house since.

Big vote for Diy kitchens here. We went for the Helmsley in frame range and it's beautiful looks so much more expensive than it is.

I was nervous about self measuring too but everything comes in standard measurements no matter who supplies it so a kitchen actually fits together quite logically. Definitely measure measure and then measure again though!

Another good tip is to use a free kitchen design service by Howdens/B&Q then use theirs as a base for your DIY kitchens order.

Also yes re get a really good fitter (ie a word of mouth recommendation). Ours was awful (whole other story our bastard contractor walked off site mid build leaving us scrambling to find someone quickly- never ever a good position to be in when dealing with tradesmen ...) we're still fixing some of the crappy work 4 months on.

@Lemonmelonsun my chickens have been munching one of my new roses

Anyway yes as long as it’s not too big you’ll be fine. It’s never going to fit exactly so you need various filler bits and a good carpenter

Rose you have chickens as well

I went to another meeting today, it's amazing how much one learns.
I must say whilst super friendly, b and q didn't ask at all what I wanted and actually over ruled some of my design colour choices.

IKEA tomorrow but from I'm reading here I'm not sure it's worth going with the back aspect of it. Apparently ikea has two legs and the weight rests on a back board.

I have a full IKEA kitchen and appliances, and used their fitters. It's 2 years old now and I still love it. Plus the price was great. Highly recommended!

@JorisBonson

Can I ask you did you you have the "service" panel issue?
Akzo do you have a kit too repair the doors?

Went to IKEA, super impressed but not on the colours