Cheapest non-rubbish kitchens

[Bunnycat101]

We’ve been holding out on replacing our kitchen as we’re hoping to extend and do a big kitchen/diner renovation. Realistically we can’t afford to do the extension at the moment but our existing kitchen is starting to crumble (literally). My husband thinks it’s a waste of money to do it when we want to extend and I get that but I don’t think our kitchen will survive another 5-10 years (which is the realistic timeframe for the extension) so we need to do something to make sure we’ve got a functioning kitchen without spending too much.

I think we might need to replace cupboards with something lower end, repainting and keeping the floor as is. The room is about 10m2. Existing appliances could potentially stay. I’d most likely want a decent worktop.

What realistically might we be looking at cost wise? I was hoping for about 10k but not sure if that’s too optimistic.

I have a really close friend who is a kitchen fitter. He has high standards and is an absolute perfectionist and if he does your kitchen for you, you are a lucky person. He swears by Ikea.

You could look for something ex-display or preloved on the likes of eBay @Bunnycat101.

We recently found some painted oak in-frame base cabinets (including two different width pan drawer units) on an eBay auction. There weren't many cabinets, but we only needed a few to supplement those we could reuse of the existing solidly built 1960s ones* we inherited when we bought our cottage. We secured them for around £250 then hired a van to collect. Total expenditure including fuel £360 😁

*Things were built to last in those days lol! We've relocated the kitchen and were able to repurpose some of the 1960s drawers.

Personally, I'm not a fan of Ikea kitchens (I know I'm in the minority) as there was one (dating from 2007) in a house we purchased a few years back and it was awful quality. It literally fell apart when touched. However, perhaps they've improved since.

Take a look at diykitchens.com. Really good quality and good prices.

I bought a kitchen from DIY. Including buying the units, getting them fitted , new integrated appliances, small wall taken down, all walls and ceilings re plastered and electrical work done including spot lights on ceiling, it came to a total cost of £10k.

So you should easily be able to do what you want for a lot less than £10k.

What about a decent secondhand kitchen then put new worktops on and reuse your appliances? That would bring the materials cost right down...

Another vote for IKEA (also in the home of my very aesthetically-oriented builder-architect brother in law.)

Ikea!

Another vote for diykitchens https://www.diy-kitchens.com/

If your cabinets are good and solid, replace the doors. Wickes and B@Q do most sizes. I have done this in two properties and changed the worktops. Saved a fortune and looks new until you open the doors, but I find older style cabinets are strong and try to keep them if possible.

I stalked FB marketplace to keep an eye on secondhand cabinets options. I've seen worktops on there as well. Sometimes kitchen cabinets are offered for free if the seller wants rid because their new kitchen is due to arrive.
Builders merchants might do cheap kitchens and work tops too.

My house had freestanding IKEA kitchen units (including the sink unit and a larder cupboard) when I bought it. They are great! Extremely solid, and of course you can move them to work however you choose. I've replaced it now but they would have lasted for years I think, indeed someone else is using them now.

We have ikea. My husband, a very fussy joiner/kitchen fitter by trade, thinks they're great.
Plus they did interest free credit, not sure if still do, but that helped us massively.
You just need to find a fitter who is happy to work with ikea as many will tell you they won't fit them.

If the base of your kitchen is good enough, your actual cupboard etc then replacing just the doors and work tops is an option.

We did this last year for a similar sized kitchen. We had all cupboard doors replaced, new tiles, new worktops for 6K. Price was including fitting too and we used a local kitchen fitter to us who sorted, sourced and fit.