Kitchen.... wanting good quality units etc!

[Sair33]

At long last, we have decided to completely redo our kitchen.
Units, flooring, tiles etc. (woohoo!!)
But I've spent a week looking, and am now confused!

UNITS
I really don't mind spending the money on good quality units, and would rather spend a little more to ensure its good quality, without being ripped off.
Any recommendations? I've looked at Omega / Sheraton which look ok, Howdens, not sure about. Wren look ok on paper, but not actually seen any in the flesh.

We have someone to do the planning and fitting, so that aspect is covered.

Easy to clean is another priority! Gloss, Matt or wood??

WORKTOP
Duropal seems to be everywhere, and it looks as though the dimpled finish will hide any water marks etc. I love the look of Corian and similar, and solid wood, but not sure i want to deal with the maintenance of either.. anything for an easy life!

FLOOR
We're thinking of Karndean (maybe Amtico), or engineered oak for the floor. Again, any pluses or minuses experienced here?

TILES
For backspash etc... Gloss I imagine will be a pain to clean, so thinking satin or matt, but again unsure, and don't know whether a lighter colour would be easier.

COOKER / RANGE
We're also tempted to get a range rather than built- oven, but reviews on these seem quite variable. Again, I'd rather spend decent money to get something worthy!

Any help greatly appreciated.... it's a minefield put there!

If you have the budget for an Omega/Sheraton, look at German kitchens. You should be able to get some makes and they are miles better. Howdens are OK for the price but its basically a budget kitchen.

A good designer will be able to answer all your queries regards worktops, taps/sinks, appliances, flooring etc.

Have you looked at Magnet. They also do a trade catalogue which you should get through a local joiner. Howden's is OK too but I think I prefer Magnet.

Have a look at Nobilia kitchens. We have a friend who has worked for almost 30 years in the trade in Germany and he has recommended Nobilia.

They are not much more expensive that Howdens, and are much better quality.

We looked at Magnet, Howdens, Wren etc - none of them offer value for money, imo.

MmeLindor - Nobilia are ok (they are probably one of the most basic German units) and you can do better than Nobilia on similar money.

Kmdesign
That surprises me. I've lived many years in Germany and nobilia are not considered 'basic'. They do have a couple of basic lines that are sold cheaper.

What brands would you recommend?

For similar money to Nobilia, I would say Hacker for instance is a better kitchen. Part of the problem with Nobilia in the UK is that one of their main retailers, Homebase puts a crazy markup on it.

We have a Cotteswood Kitchen. It is great and I anticipate loving it for years. I have two built in ovens. One is 600 mm wide and the other is 900 mm wide and both have grilling and lots of options. I also have two fridges. Christmas food storage is no longer a problem. We have a small freezer between the fridges and coffee machine above. The work surfaces are granite. Last forever and no maintenance. Avoid wood. On the floor we have ceramic tiles that look like limestone but are less than half the price and have no maintenance or sealing issues. Amtico is good and I had that in my last kitchen.

I would not have a range cooker, personally, as I like a more streamlined look. I have an induction hob so less cleaning. It is the best thing ever! I have the same kitchen as I saw in the showroom and it is wonderful. Cotteswood are extremely helpful too and don't run away if you want something tweaking. Always professional and helpful and that means a lot these days.

We have karndead floor, it's great. really practical. BUT it's all in the fitting. Our fitter wasn't great so the finish and attention to detail isn't great. Worth spending more if it means the fitting finish is better.

Falcon range ovens are amazing. Made by aga company but not agas obviously.

We were looking at a german brand which did really good quality kitchens but I forget the name now . We ended out with a local independent one.

karndead?! is that a freudian slip! Karndean I mean.

Hi ! A quick answer to your points :

cabinets - go for the best to suit your layout - doesn't have to be the most expensive - but avoid the absolute cheapest if you can afford to do so.

Worktop - if you have saved money elsewhere why not get a quote for corian ? If you love it ! ( tip : always look at the complete room cost not the individual items - if you want to spend more on X reduce what you spend on Y and Z )

Flooring : karndean tends to be cheaper than Amtico - but there are alternatives that are cheaper still - so if you get a cheap one now - it can easily be changed in 5 years to give you a fresh look and to help the budget right now ! (It doesn't have to be fitted under the cabinets - just to the cabinet legs )

Tiles : for an easy life have glass - no grout !! Bliss !!!

Cooker / range : as far as I'm aware ( please correct me, anyone, if I'm wrong as I'd be keen to know too) but there isn't a range that has pyro clean oven systems - so if you have a range there will be oven cleaning required - a good alternative is a pair of pyro cleaning I end with an easy clean induction hob ! Can be installed in stainless steel under oven housings and a stainless steel top with stainless steel ends to give impression of range if that's the look you are after !

Hope that gives you food for thought ! :-)

Should have pro read that ! Whoops ! ' a good alternative is a pair of pyro cleaning ovens with an easy clean induction hob ' that should say !

Oops I have reported meant to send a pm. Apologies.

Whoops !! I will email you ! :-)

Thanks for all the tips!! Will do a bit more research and ponder further :-)

We are just starting our kitchen refit and it took us months to decide on units alone. There is so much choice these days so there is a lot to discuss! After trawling around Magnet, Wren, Homebase, John Lewis and others we heard about a smaller independent showroom not too far away that sold German kitchens. Pleasantly surprised with their quote as it was far cheaper than expected. Also, having checked prices for appliances on line, they priced hob, oven, dishwasher etc much cheaper than the internet sites.

There is a myth out there that German kitchens are expensive. They aren't cheap but for the quality they offer excellent value for money.

We put a Hacker systemat kitchen in 2 years back and we're very very pleased with it. We have corian worktops which are great but it does scratch (fortunately we have white so it isn't too obvious). Our flooring is karndean which is fab, especially with two young boys!

We looked at a whole range of kitchens and I think you do get what you pay for when you look at the finished product.

Just to say, we had Howdens kitchen units, taps, worktops, flooring - fitted about seven years ago. Still looks new to me, nothing loose or falling apart. I'm one for always wiping kitchen units over, and there's no damage from constant damp cloths. The drawers are nice and solid underneath, whereas our others were flimsy and started to come away underneath.

Be sure of what you're getting wherever you go, my sister-in-law paid for what she thought was quality, had it fitted while she was on holiday to find the installer hadn't put a back on the units - he went out of business then and she has visible old messy walls behind her units. Her kitchen is about two years older than ours, but fronts are falling off at hinges and you can see where they've knocked into units and made small dents.

millymollymamma. Just googled cotteswood kitchens.....beautiful. What ball park figure would you be talking for one of those? (No guide prices on their site)!

Angie - several sample plans and quotations on the cotteswood kitchens website.

Ajax to clean corian gets small scratches out ! ( as it's slightly abrasive !)

Ajax "slightly" abrasive

I didn't think anyone used that product these days. I'd suggest Cif, much gentler.

We have just put in a Wickes kitchen which I'm very happy with. The trick is to play their sake - when the sale starts, phone and ask the kitchen salesperson when the 70% weekends will be (they are usually at the start and end of the sle period) and buy it then.

Sorry for hijack....Does anyone have any opinion on quartz vs granite workstops? price seems similar. We are weighing up a local independent fitter with a limited range of German units/cabinets vs Wickes or Magnet, both of which have lots of offers and a bigger range but a less personalised service. we are fitting a strange shape kitchen due to the bizarre shape of the room so design is very important. Also looking at Karndean for the floor vs large tiles - but I get the impression a wood-look floor is now more "in" than tiles?