How exactly does a new kitchen installation work?

[AmyD54321]

Hi everyone, I’m a first time buyer so I’m new to all of this, I hope some can offer some advice to a complete novice...

I want to replace the kitchen in my new house (all the cupboards, wall and floor tiles, appliances). It’s small and I’ve chosen IKEA for the units and various places online for the appliances.

So... what I’m unsure about is how exactly it works. Who do I need to remove the old kitchen? I assume I need a tiler for the wall and floor tiles, so when do they come in? IKEA offer installation, but is there someone I should look for who could do the entire project?

I suppose what I’m asking is - what tradespeople do I need?

I’m sorry if this is common sense, but I’m at a complete loss as to how exactly the whole process works.

Thank you

You'd need a joiner to fit the kitchen units, a plumber to plumb in new sink/waste/washing machine etc and a decorator could tile and redecorate.

There may be "kitchen fitter" type trades who are able to do all 3 as well.

I work in property management and that's how we've arranged projects in the past, however I've never actually changed my own kitchen so don't have 1st hand experience.

The people ikea contract to can do all the work needed, or you could find another kitchen fitter/general builder to do it.

Finding someone by recommendation is the best way. Or we've had some luck with www.checkatrade.com/

I used a joiner who also arranged for a tiler, gas fitter and electrician to do the bits he couldn't.

It’s best to get a kitchen fitter who can either do everything themselves or who will bring in someone to do any bits that they can’t (eg you might need some electrics if you want new plug points or lighting).

Thanks for posting this OP!
How did you know what to buy from IKEA for your units? Did you just measure the space and order them to fit? It seems far beyond my skill set to even do that.

You can either manage the project yourself or get someone to do that for you. The company we bought the kitchen units from offered this service so that's what we did. We met with them and worked out exactly what they were responsible for and what we needed to do ourselves. They then coordinated joiners, plumbers, electrical, plastering, floor laying and waste disposal so the job ran smoothly. We had to source our appliances and paint. We could have saved money maybe by shopping around for tradesmen but decided it wasn't worth the hassle and we didn't know what order we needed people etc. We had an issue with the quality of the plastering and it was nice to be able to go to the kitchen company and them sort it out rather than us having to argue directly with the plasterer who was a bit of a knob.