Any alternatives to a kitchen extension?

[Trytosmilefor2025]

We are in the south east and a kitchen extension to the house will simply not be worth it, but also we don't have the funds as already stretched to the max for the mortgage. Are there any cheaper alternatives that would allow more space for a proper dinning space off the kitchen? Anyone added a conservatory type building and was happy? Any thoughts will be much appreciated. As we have 3 teenage boys and it's a real squeeze around the small dinner table we have currently in the kitchen!

Is there a possibility of knocking through to another room? Eg utility room or dining room? Otherwise I can't see why a conservatory wouldn't work

I did think about the knock (please see my other thread re this). But I think it will make the living room a bit awkward and I really want to keep the kitchen smells and mess separate!

Have you lived with a conservatory? Maybe modern ones are better but the ones I’ve lived with mostly go between freezing cold and boiling hot. I don’t think they are perceived as adding value to properties really either.

what about rearranging the kitchen units/ kitchen layout to give more space over to the dining part? Not sure if you have any budget for that but you could at least go to one of those kitchen showrooms and ask a designer to play around with the layout to see what’s possible.

Another thought - we just bought a house with a hideous 1980s kitchen but weren’t sure enough about what layout we wanted and have therefore gone for a free-standing approach - apart from a 3 cupboard run with the sink in. We spent less than £2k in antiques shops and with a bit of imagination have a kitchen which works as well as any we’ve have (plus have been able to tweak the layout as we’ve gone along). I know this wouldn’t be for everyone though.

We have a conservatory, not as a kitchen extension and we use it as a second living room but it would make a lovely dining room, its so light and bright, its warm in winter because it has solar glass and an oil filled radiator. We use it all year round I dont really understand it when people sya they cant use theirs although our garden is north facing

It gets hot some days in the summer but again the solar glass is helpful for keeping the heat out, plus some nice blinds (not those office style blinds)

We have a lovely conservatory. Can't say I've found it expensive to heat but we don't feel the cold.

It's got some sort of special roof so we can't see the stars but it acts better than glass for insulation and direct sun protection.

Every window has a small opening one. And three of the larger windows open too.we have no roof openings as we were told they tend to be a weak point.

We use it for a gym area, seating area to enjoy the garden and at Christmas if the house is full we decamp.there for the dining room and extend the dining table fully.

Biggest issue....rain noise on the roof. Can't hear anyone speak when it's hammering it down.

Its a MN thing - conservatories are all awful with a polycarbonate roof and should be knocked down to replace with <latest fad in bifolds and lantern lights>. I assume none of them have ever lived with modern conservatories.

I’m with you - I love mine and use it as an all year round room. I was amused when I had to get the house valued a year or two ago that two estate agents insisted that it was an “orangery” and the third called it a “garden room” rather than uses the “C” word..

Thank you all. I don't have experience of a conservatory myself but a friend had the roof of an existing conservatory replaced and they use it year round as living room/extra living space. When I visited in the winter it didn't feel that cold. Hence the question. I did explore an extension too but it's just way over our budget as the foundations alone are coming up to 25K (we need 2.4 m foundations due to nearby trees).

It's only a matter of time and we will own an orangery (to add to our cloakroom...sorry, boot room).

On the basis we have grown, from seed, over 20 years, a full size streleiza in there maybe we have earned the right to call it an orangery!

We looked into this on our previous house which had a long but narrow kitchen diner. If your room goes out to your garden or patio area you could add a bay window with patio doors or even just the window as that would give you a bit more space to walk around a round table or pull out the chairs into the bathroom area. You could go conservatory style or more traditional brick and either a square or rounded shape as per the attached images

I haven't thought of this! That might be just what we need actually to make for a bigger space/comfortable seating around the dining table. Thank you! Any other pictures of anyone who had a conservatory used in this manner will be greatly appreciated. Having a visual sometimes is very helpful.

Agreed Im in a similar position and that just looks like a perfect solution

We have put conservatories on all our properties. You are now permitted to extend your central heating system into them.last 2 have had dwarf brick walls,more like a room, but no planning permission required, and a lot cheaper. We have 2 radiators in there. It's off the kitchen, dining table,comfy chairs. We use it all year. It's full of plants. Our neighbours have a flat glass fibre roof and 2 lanterns. You can have a tile effect roof, although that is a lot more expensive. There are companies adding white insulated rooves,I don't know what they are like.

Thanks @Nannyfannybanny for sharing your experience. I don't think it's all doom and gloom for conservatories. I also read this a while back and was really inspired; wondering if anyone else tried to replicate this. Not sure how easy it is to get building regs sign off though!

https://www.aliceinscandiland.com/blog/2017/03/12/how-to-extend-your-home-with-style-for-less-than-you-might-think

We didn't need building regs,SE UK. It came under "permitted development". You can get these ,"builda rooms" erected in a couple of days, they have sort of metal supports instead of deep foundations.

We didn't have walls removed, just kept the back door into the conservatory, obviously this is why no building regulations.

That sounds amazing.
Are the free standing units dressers, etc?

A neighbour has done one of those pod (?) things that attaches to the back.

The cost of a proper conservatory (assuming you don't mean a little greenhouse lean to) is going to be about the same cost as an extension, possibly more. Its the exact same amount of labor/work but windows cost more than bricks in general.

Its absolutely nowhere near the cost of an extension!

@KilkennyCats yes - a Welsh dresser, a tall wooden larder type cupboard, another waist-height wooden double cupboard with a surface on it, a section of 1950s wooden bar taken out of a pub, a chest of drawers (this is where we put light bulbs/ batteries/ candles/ pens/ random stuff though so is maybe not strictly kitchen!!), a wall mounted plate rack. Free standing fridge and dishwasher (sort of smeg vibe but not actually). The section of bar was going to be an island but has ended up more of a peninsula. Like I say, it actually functions really well and I have loved the fact you can tweak the layout.

also I have a hatred of cheap kitchen carcasses and everything in this kitchen is made of solid wood, some now painted. It feels really solid and less ‘in your face’ than a fitted kitchen.

Our inspiration was an episode of George Clark’s Old House New Home in Llandeilo and then a few months of browsing antique shops.

We originally thought we’d just do it until we were more sure how we wanted the space and had saved some money but I’m not sure I’d bother now!

Thanks 😊
That’s exactly the sort of vibe I’m after.

My top tip would be liberal use of a tape measure (both before and during antique shop visits!!). Yes it’s been fun, recommend 👍👍

I think the direction the conservatory will face has a huge impact. North or East are the best - North gives you the most consistent light.
South or West and they can become the 7th circle if hell in the afternoon/evening.
my parents have a North facing conservatory off their kitchen with central heating it is a lovely room during the day, however we never use it in the evening as they are in the country and it is a pool of blackness.

I disagree about north facing conservatory giving the most consistent light. Our first was south facing,yes hot, second west, this one north,it's a bungalow, but I don't think you get much light anywhere in the winter months. One the clocks go forward the sun comes over the roof from the south. Of course the cost is nothing like an extension.ours is big, but you can get a nice 3 MTR square for around £20k.

Dont you have electricity in the country?