DP installing kitchen?

[birdybirdy21]

We have had a quote for someone to install our kitchen and lay the flooring. It's £2k. Not a huge kitchen at all. This cost is basically making the project prohibitive.

DP thinks he can do it. He's never done it before, he successfully installed our decking in the garden last year and is amazing at doing mechanical stuff (working on cars).

The units we will get are from Benchmarx which come ready assembled. The worktops will be installed by a company so no work for him there. His dad is an electrician. There will be a small amount of plastering to do which we will employ a plasterer to do. Flooring will probably get someone to do at cost. My hesitation is that having a kitchen in chaos ain't gonna be pleasant. We have a "spirited" 2.8 year old and a 3 month old.

We won't get a holiday (UK) this year either as DP will have to take time off work to do this in lieu of summer holiday time.

Am I crazy agreeing to this?

Don't think so - it's fairly straightforward to do and shouldn't take too long. DH did ours in the last house and, including assembly, it only took three days (two of those were for assembly). Apparently the only fiddly bit is levelling the units.

Wrt the holiday, if you paid for someone to do the kitchen, would you be able to afford to go away anyway?

But either way, it's fairly straightforwards. I laid the laminate flooring, and DH installed the units. It was quite scary cutting out the work surface for the sink, but we managed.

Not a granite work top then, Mary? Lots of the floor will be under the units so probably doable but DH and I would be divorced if he had attempted it!

I think my dad did theirs. It's possible if he's 'handy' and sounds like he is.

Of he's handy it should be fine. I recommend you taking the kids to your parents for a couple of weekends.