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Housekeeping

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Original poster

New kitchen being fitted next week...

23 replies

Fourarmsv2 · 08/06/2015 09:56

Any planning tips?

We've got one fitter doing all the work.

Kitchen (Magnet) is delivered on Friday, we're planning to take our old kitchen out over the weekend and fitting will commence on the Monday.

Will have a halogen oven and an actifry. Shall I buy an induction hob for the week? Maybe we can keep the cooker for a few more days as it's not fitted?

OP posts:
cozietoesie · 08/06/2015 16:30

I'd be thinking kettle and takeaways. Microwave at a push. You really won't want to do anything substantial in the middle of the war zone a kitchen being refitted.

Original poster
Fourarmsv2 · 08/06/2015 18:13

Thanks!

Not sure how we'll be washing up... No other large sink downstairs. Maybe I'll get a 5l bottle to refill from bath taps. Is that drinkable?

Is it very dusty and messy? We put up lots of cupboards in our utility (glorified alleyway!) and it was quite painless.

OP posts:
cozietoesie · 08/06/2015 18:48

Cold water from bath taps is the same as cold water from kitchen taps if you're on a standard UK plumbing layout so it should be perfectly drinkable.

My own instinct for a kitchen refitting is to admit defeat from the beginning and go for paper plates, microwaveable meals/takeaways etc etc. You may be made of sterner stuff of course and want to keep up with normal things - but it's only for several days, right?

Bostonpj · 08/06/2015 19:27

We bought an induction hob from Aldi for cooking when our kitchen is finally being replaced in 3 weeks. Although I am planning on a few takeaways too. Ours is expected to take 2 weeks and considering the mess and dust just from having new wiring for the cooker put in, I'm thinking a lot of dust & mess. I just keep telling myself it'll all be worth it in the end! We have a steamer and microwave and fortunately, a downstairs loo/utility.

Icedfinger · 08/06/2015 19:31

Ours took two weeks. Pack away all but essentials, leave plenty of mugs for workmen!

I'd go with easy meals, microwave jobs or takeaway. We're quite lucky that my DPs live near so we ate at theirs quite abit too.

Millipedewithherfeetup · 08/06/2015 19:42

Fingers crossed the weather will hold up and you can bbq for a couple of nights ? That with a bag of salad will be fine, Slow cooker will also be a god send if you are working during the day, would also suggest take away/ready meals it wont do you that much harm for a few nights.

paulapantsdown · 08/06/2015 19:48

We are just back in our new kitchen after a TWO MONTH extension build and total refurb. We had to live upstairs in the spare room. I had a microwave, tiny camping cooker and a kettle. I had 4 plates, 4 forks etc, and washed up in the bath. For 2 months. I never want to eat another takeaway in my life. You'll manage fine for a week or two!

Original poster
Fourarmsv2 · 08/06/2015 23:22

Thanks :)

Will look out for paper plates in Tesco!

OP posts:
Agrestic · 08/06/2015 23:43

My kitchen is being removed next Wednesday, but it's going to be gone for three months! I've bulk ordered paper plates and plastic cups from b&m. Got a halogen oven, microwave and steamer. I'll get some huge bottles of water.

It'll be alright, right!?

cozietoesie · 09/06/2015 09:10

Three months ?? (Gulp) That's not so much a battle as a campaign! What in Goodness name are they doing? Building the darned thing from scratch using glued matchsticks?

I've found that the real difficulty in living with major works is not so much the food - it's easy enough to manage getting calories down forbye it can sometimes be a little expensive eg getting takeaways and not cooking for yourself if that's the way you go - but the general upheaval and mess/spare 'things' everywhere. You'll likely find that you use the kitchen for a darned sight more than just cooking and eating and you keep thinking 'Oh I'll just......Oh No - I can't'.

Maybe try to have one room defended as a 'sanctuary' so that at the end of the day when the workmen have left, you can alwys retreat there, have a shower, put on clean clothes and watch a bad movie or something.

Shall you have a working washing machine etc for the duration?

Original poster
Fourarmsv2 · 09/06/2015 15:09

We've got a washing machine connection in the garage. It would be wrong to put the dishwasher there for the duration wouldn't it??....

3 months [faints]

OP posts:
cozietoesie · 09/06/2015 17:43

How long is this going to be do you reckon? (I'd always choose a working washing machine over a dishwasher though.)

Original poster
Fourarmsv2 · 09/06/2015 20:01

Five days. I reckon we'll run out of plates before clothes.

I did buy 18 new plastic plates at IKEA. Plus we probably have 30 dinner plates. That should see us through a few days! DS2 only has two of his favourite weetabix bowl though....

OP posts:
cozietoesie · 09/06/2015 20:15

Nil Desperandum Wink

Original poster
Fourarmsv2 · 09/06/2015 20:16

:) :)

OP posts:
missqwerty · 09/06/2015 22:51

Cereal bars and fruit for breakfast or breakfast biscuits. Pot noodles for lunch and takeaway for tea, or a toastie if your feeling adventurous.. well that's how it panned out for us. Stock up on paper plates and dispossible polystyrene cups and that pretty much covers all corners. Set the kettle up somewhere safe and your good to go.

We joke that we spent more on takeaways then the new kitchen Blush

blink1552 · 14/06/2015 15:53

My DH did ours so it was much slower but less disruptive. We set up a 'kitchen' in the dining room with a few top cupboards just stood on the table, and we used those to store a few plates and pasta etc., plus microwave etc. The cooker swapping happened in a day so I think we were never without a cooker. We had a galley kitchen and he did the 2 sides at different times, meaning we always had one or other side functional.

SophieHatters · 14/06/2015 16:14

Oh hello, we're having ours done too and I hope it will only take a few days...Hmm

I've had to fix some massive holes in the walls so had to take out the free standing sink the other day, am now using a washing up bowl in the bathroom on a chair, it's not easy as the bathroom is also full of DIY stuff and washing.

I haven't had time to get any paper plates. The guy starts on Tuesday and the worktops will be the last thing I reckon by which time I will be on my knees with all this.

We do have a microwave on the other side of the room, and we have flooring, and a fridge so that's a bit easier. It is a tiny room though. There will be sandwiches and possibly McDonalds involved.

Good luck OP!

TwiggyHeart · 14/06/2015 19:22

Two weeks without a kitchen and we survived with a microwave and a kettle (plus some kind friends and a few take aways!). Do you have young DC's? I found feeding them the most problematic. Washing up in the bathroom and some big bottles of water will get you through. Good luck!

MrsJamin · 16/06/2015 11:53

We're on about week 4 of a very reduced kitchen and another 6 weeks until the new one is installed! I am a little smug in having a freezer full of batch cooking of Dal and chilli that I can just reheat in the microwave and have with naan or tortillas also microwaved to be heated up. I have a handy plug-in two electric hob so it's not totally dire. I am least looking forward to not having a washing machine rather than a kitchen. It's too easy to get in to too many takeaways and then you wonder where all the money's gone! It's time to call up friends and offer to cook over at their houses! At least that's sociable and they may well appreciate the help with their DCs etc. I need to bung stuff in the slow cooker too, it's just hard being organised...

backdatednamechange · 16/06/2015 12:02

We had this for a fortnight back in November.
Wee moved the fridge into the dining room and survived with a washing up bowl, paper plates, a slow cooker and a George Forman. Lots of sandwiches and more takeaways than normal.

backdatednamechange · 16/06/2015 12:05

and I had an 18 mo old and a 3 week old. I must have been mad.

poocatcherchampion · 24/06/2015 07:56

We did our kitchen ourselves over 2 months. It was fine, you just eat differently.

We did keep the dishwasher plumbed in for all but approx 2 weeks though which was brilliant :)

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