Browse Forums Kitchen Corner 1 Sep 22, 2008 1:42 pm Has anyone installed their own kitchen?
Did it save you a lot of money, and would you recommend it? We have been told that Barry's Kitchens are pretty good. We are trying to save all the money we can on the renovation, but do not want to comprimise on look. Any advice or ideas would be appreciated, thanks. Andrea Re: Flat Pack Kitchens 2Sep 22, 2008 1:54 pm Hi Andrea - if you click on the search box up in the right hand corner you can search for flat pack kitchens. From memory there has been a few threads.
I know only because I posted pictures of the flat pack kitchen we built in our rental. http://www.forum.homeone.com.au/viewtop ... light=flat http://www.forum.homeone.com.au/viewtop ... light=flat Are just two I found quickly ....... Re: Flat Pack Kitchens 4Sep 22, 2008 9:05 pm We have just finished a flat pack kitchen, we fitted the cabinets oureselves, btr had the granite bechtops by a professional. I think we saved about $2,300 on our kitchen and what is much more important we had a complete control over the whole process. I Looooooove my new kitchen, oit was about 8 years in the making and will last my lifetime .
maggie Re: Flat Pack Kitchens 5Sep 24, 2008 1:08 pm Hi Andrea,
It depends upon how big/complicated your kitchen is and how handy you are. A few thoughts in no particular order : - Have you done any other work on the reno with your own two hands ? - Do you have a reasonable set of tools, including things like a cordless drill/driver, jigsaw, spirit level/straightedge, water level, stud finder, drill bits and holesaw set ? - Does your kitchen have base and overhead cabinets or just base cabinets (overhead cabinets are a bit more difficult to install than base) - Are your walls uneven or not at 90 degrees to each other, and if so do you know how to scribe the countertop and cut it with a jigsaw for a flush fit ? - Being able to draw plans in scale is a big help, either by using grid paper or some kind of computer drafting program. I did a flat pack kitchen for our last reno. About 10-12 lineal metres of base cabinets, 1 overhead in the fridge cavity, post formed laminate benchtop, and I did the doors myself - stained tassie oak frames with mini-orb corrugated iron panels. You can save a big wad of cash if you do it yourself, but do your research first to identify every single task and understand exactly how you're going to do it. Lots of flat pack suppliers cater for this kind of work and will be able to give you some pointers, for example this is where I got my flat pack from : http://www.plyboard.com.au/ Go to their products page and click on their pick a kit design guide, there's some good stuff in there. Cheers, Justin. Re: Flat Pack Kitchens 6Sep 27, 2008 2:50 pm Thanks for your detailed reply Justin.
Quote: Have you done any other work on the reno with your own two hands ? We did a fair bit on this house when we first bought it, we removed walls, added walls, retiled, built a carport etc. Quote: Do you have a reasonable set of tools, including things like a cordless drill/driver, jigsaw, spirit level/straightedge, water level, stud finder, drill bits and holesaw set ? My dad has every imaginable tool and will be here every step of the way. He lives just around the corner and has done a lot of renovating/handy work. Without him I would not do it. Quote: Does your kitchen have base and overhead cabinets or just base cabinets (overhead cabinets are a bit more difficult to install than base) It has mainly base cabnits with an overhead cupboard above the fridge, and over the stove area. Quote: Are your walls uneven or not at 90 degrees to each other, and if so do you know how to scribe the countertop and cut it with a jigsaw for a flush fit ? We had a kitchen guy out to quote who had a laser measurer thingo, and told us that the kitchen was really square considering its age - roof was 2ml out from one corner to the other - not sure of other measurements. Let's just say I hope it is! Quote: Being able to draw plans in scale is a big help, either by using grid paper or some kind of computer drafting program. I have just about finished drawing up a plan to fax off to this company. http://www.struming.com/ . I am also waiting on Barry's to get back to us, they offer readikit. I am surprised that I was in there on Monday and they haven't gotten back to me. We do have a probelm area in the kitchen - I would like a set of drawers under the stove, but for it to be central I am left with 30cm between those drawers and the pantry. I was thinking of making that 2 drawers, using one as oils, and the other for baking trays that can stand up rather than lay down. The same problem occuse above the stove also. Will have to get the guy at Struming to have a look. Thanks again everyone, Andrea Re: Flat Pack Kitchens 7Sep 28, 2008 11:00 am Hi Andrea,
Sounds like you're good to go, that Struming site looks like they've got what you need - shouldn't be any dramas there. With regards to your stove, check it's specs to make sure any "breathing space" that it needs won't be eaten into by the drawers you're planning. You should be ok though. Funny about that 30cm gap between your stove and pantry, I had almost exactly the same issue, and came up with a similar solution. I put a door on the cavity, and used a sliding two tier chromed metal rack that screwed to the right hand wall of the cavity. So the door opened from right to left, you then grabbed the rack and pulled it out towards you and it slid out on full extension drawer runners. It was the best place to put oils, sauces etc - right next to the stove. One tip on this (benefit of hindsight ) is to assemble the hardware onto the cupboard wall whilst the cupboard is still "flat pack". It's a bit hard to screw things into cupboard walls when you've only got 30cm of room to work in. Nowadays there's heaps of funky hardware available to take advantage of spaces in your cabinetry, stuff like the sliding rack that I described. Lazy susan carousels in corner cabinets are good as well, makes good use of what would otherwise be dead space. A couple of good suppliers are Hafele and Hettich. Here's their sites, have a look at their "furniture fittings" sections : http://www.hafele.com/au/ http://www.hettich.com.au/ Have fun, if you put the effort in at design stage it'll really pay off with a fantastic kitchen that you enjoy being in. Cheers, Justin. Re: Flat Pack Kitchens 8Sep 28, 2008 9:15 pm Andrea,
From what you've posted, it's clear that you/dad/etc are much more handy than I am, and flat packs was easy for me. So, won't be a problem for you. I designed my kitchen myself - it's not hard, just need to follow some simple rules and be familiar with what the standard sizes are, etc. Also, I ordered my flatpacks from a reputable company, and it went together easily. You'll save heaps. Chris Re: Flat Pack Kitchens 9Sep 28, 2008 9:32 pm Thaks so much for your replies and confidence boosting!
Now to design the kitchen. You can see from the plan below the shape of the kitchen. [ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ The quotes from kitchen places we have had were based on our kitchen as is, not with the planned extension. We thought we would leave the kitchen the shape it is, but we are now looking at other options. The sink has to stay where it is. Basically I was thinking of changing the bech on the left from a 90 degree corner to a larger angle so it gives us more space to walk through. (the wall on the back of the hallway is where the fridge/oven will go). Would love some ideas on that - I hope it all makes sense. This is the type of bence I am talking about Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ "is it exempt or do I need to get permission from council" Call your Council and ask them 1 1538 I would suggest you simply go and talk to council about your proposal, most councils are getting onboard with ancillary dwellings. There is no benefit in keeping it… 1 4094 I think I know the answer but just checking to see if anyone has had experience with it. I want to build a small 20 square metre retreat in my backyard, it will have a… 0 13880 |