Browse Forums Kitchen Corner 1 Jan 22, 2014 3:44 am Hello,
Last year we had a custom kitchen put it by a large company. Various issues came up, and even though it was difficult dealing with the designer and supervisor over a period of time, management got involved, stating the issues would be fixed this year. Keep in mind kitchen at this stage is not completely finished. Just before Xmas we had the appliances put in, only to find bigger issues. We had to wait till the New Year to bring these up due to holidays. The bigger issues are; A) Fridge needed to go back a further 2cm, either plumbing is wrong or electrical work-we don't know as we are still waiting on them to pull it out. B) Right fridge door has insufficient radius, crisper draws will not open all the way, certainly won't be able to get them out. Moving the fridge back 2cm wont solve this. C) Folding cupboard next to fridge does not open-moving fridge back wont solve this . D) Stand free oven was squeezed in by electrician, causing slight damage on bench top. He needs to pull out for bracket work-but wont. He states the 2mm total ease of movement left by kitchen company(they had the oven width down wrong)is absurd and needs to be widen a few more mls. E) Dishwasher depth within island is incorrect, so last year the plumber with permission from kitchen company cut out the bottom frame(at back) to fit it in. Base is deeper on actual dishwasher, so they could push it back with only the base protruding. There will be not bottom frame at back now, only the kick board(not enough room for both). Is this acceptable? Will it increase noise? The pipe work is all hanging out on floor, where does this go? we have already told them we don't want the xtra pipework pulled through the sink cupboard. We are disgusted with management, who are quiet now- we are left to deal with only designer and supervisor. They are making the process for resolution difficult as they are making us feel responsible for errors, even though no changes were made and appliances stayed the same as within contract. We are in the middle of writing to management as it's been nearly 6 months since contract was signed and four since work begun. We are still waiting for the initial issues to be resolved. This is not what we had expected, in a custom kitchen. All feedback and insight will be appreciated. Thank you. Re: Custom Kitchen Nightmare 3Jan 23, 2014 2:11 pm Good luck! I totally feel you pain here. Wouldn't it be nice if people just did the job they were paid to do? It's a bit rich them making out like it's your fault 0 what, exactly, were you have meant to have done? Today is under construction. Thank you for understanding. Re: Custom Kitchen Nightmare 4Jan 23, 2014 9:07 pm trying to add pics....working with drop box, to no avail Re: Custom Kitchen Nightmare 6Jan 25, 2014 7:10 pm http://s273.photobucket.com/user/paveme ... w/kitchen1 Finally got a link up! Kitchen has not been finished while company try to sort out fridge issue. If anyone has an idea, please let me know Tape on floor is where the floor polishing company went over millipedes. It's been fun and games all around Re: Custom Kitchen Nightmare 7Jan 25, 2014 8:34 pm can't say anything about the dishwasher because no picture and maybe I don't quite understand the issue. HOWEVER, the kitchen design seems to me a MAJOR cockup and unacceptable. I would think that the only way to sort out the fridge dilemma is by separating the fridge side completely from the cabinets along the window wall meaning that there will be a gap that the door opens fully. I would demand a) a new frame to the fridge that allows the fridge to open 120 degrees each door when the fridge is in its correct position. This would mean the cabinet above the fridge needs to be redone too. b) the base cabinet has to fit the between the fridge and window wall and should have the same depth as your other base cabinets. c) I believe the first set of drawers past the corner cabinet would be still in the way when the fridge opens? You might have to accept a smaller set of drawers and maybe have additional drawers in the base unit right from the fridge. d) The left benchtop has to be recut, and the then two base drawer cabinets on the left of the cooker can be slightly moved to leave a bigger gap for the cooker. From a storage and access point of view, you are better off if you have proper drawers rather than a corner unit. All this shouldn't cost you a cent and you should expect some kind of refund. This is a major issue by an unqualified designer. In regard to the oven and dishwasher. Our kitchen builder asked us to bring the oven and dishwasher to his workshop to make sure everything fits in. Overall I like your kitchen, I like t hecountry style look. Very nice. Best of luck Evelin Re: Custom Kitchen Nightmare 8Jan 26, 2014 8:17 am Hello, Thank you for the reply. Fridge door needs 160, at the moment we have just inside 120-we think 150 would do it. The space between the fridge and corner bench(at the 90 degree turn) should be 460mm(fridge manual) they gave us just over 200mm. We would hate smaller drawers her, as this is the main focal point of the kitchen when you enter the front door. We have had no recommendations from the company so far. We are thinking that the fridge could be spun around so it faces the window, Side bench would need to be extended, and the back of fridge cabinet to have glass doors(with narrow shelving) instead of a flat ugly piece of white mdf. The island would need moving over to improve walk through! ugh! what a nightmare Of course there are other issues, although it seems the company are dragging their feet until they sort out fridge. I will include a pic of island soon. cheers Re: Custom Kitchen Nightmare 9Jan 26, 2014 12:39 pm I would suggest you make a simple drawing with measurements that everybody understands what you are talking about, eg size of room, windows, position and size of windows, distnace between aisle and fridge. I made a simple plan to show you how I would do it. Instead of the fridge (don't have one in the program) I just added a cabinet. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ I used imageshack for the pictures. Re: Custom Kitchen Nightmare 10Jan 26, 2014 5:21 pm Oh, got ya, but seriously I'm terribly slow on a computer and it was hard enough getting a link for pics. The fridge cannot go anywhere else at this stage, however i will try my hand at imageshack to see if i can rearrange a desired outcome. I can understand what you mean by cutting down the draws-however since we have really not much overhead space, we cannot let go of any on lower level. Cheers .....what program do you use for 3d layout? is it easy to use? I really only use xero and myob for work purposes- drafting and designing are not my area. Would I be able to use a drafting program like the one above? and if so, which one? Re: Custom Kitchen Nightmare 11Jan 26, 2014 6:27 pm not sure, the program is by a large German kitchen company, it's in English too. However, if your comp is windows 8, it won't work. http://www.alno.com/alnosys3/267.0.en.h ... 3c573a8590 you have to click accept and install it. It is not too difficult, yet getting the 3d view is a bit tricky. Give it ago. You misunderstood me. Where your fridge is now, should be the fridge, I just placed a cabinet as a place holder because the program doesn't have fridge like yours. So ignore it. I think you worry too much about a little place lost. In fact, by getting rid of the corner unit you gain already space by putting a base drawer cabinet in its place next to the fridge. In general, people believe they have to do something with a corner. In most cases you don't gain storage. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Re: Custom Kitchen Nightmare 12Jan 26, 2014 9:47 pm ugh! I tried but it did my head in!! I appreciate your angles, however we would rather have a new fridge than have to cut the bench off. Our house has lot's of rectangle and long themes and we like the feel and look of the long kitchen without any cutoffs. We weren't too fussed about the corner design near the fridge, as long has it went from one side to another and more guided by the designer. The only thing we asked here, was a small bookcase, as it could not go above desk, which sits beneath window. The design phase took us 3 weeks of planning with designer. He raved on how long he was employed by the company(about 36yrs) and his industrial training back in the UK. His strong point was 'to make things work in a functional manner'-his words. We are dealing with a long established business, one would think they could get measurements right. I have sent them a formal letter, recently, hope this will get final resolution soon for us so we can get on with the tiling and rest of the kitchen.. Re: Custom Kitchen Nightmare 13Feb 04, 2014 3:04 pm [ Fridge needed to go back a further 2cm, either plumbing is wrong or electrical work-we don't know as we are still waiting on them to pull it out. How far is the fridge sticking out from the edge of the panels? The thickness of the door should protrude B) Right fridge door has insufficient radius, crisper draws will not open all the way, certainly won't be able to get them out. Moving the fridge back 2cm wont solve this. Unfotunately this is a huge design floor of a lot of fridges! Your wall isn't long enough to be able to put the fridge there C) Folding cupboard next to fridge does not open-moving fridge back wont solve this . Do you mean the corner cabinet? It looks like the handle is on the correct side. Are you able to take a better photo of it? D) Stand free oven was squeezed in by electrician, causing slight damage on bench top. He needs to pull out for bracket work-but wont. He states the 2mm total ease of movement left by kitchen company(they had the oven width down wrong)is absurd and needs to be widen a few more mls. The kitchen company probably didn't do the stone. Most kitchen companies use a stone mason/contractor for this. 2mm isn't enough. I normally allow 5mm E) Dishwasher depth within island is incorrect, so last year the plumber with permission from kitchen company cut out the bottom frame(at back) to fit it in. Base is deeper on actual dishwasher, so they could push it back with only the base protruding. There will be not bottom frame at back now, only the kick board(not enough room for both). Is this acceptable? Will it increase noise? The pipe work is all hanging out on floor, where does this go? we have already told them we don't want the xtra pipework pulled through the sink cupboard. Where does the pipe work from the dishwasher come into the sink cabinet, from the bottom up or from the side??? All dishwasher pipe work should come up from the bottom. If it is coming in from the side then its the pipes that are stopping the dishwasher from going back. Unfortunately this is this one of the problems with a big company. There are so many people involved in the process that it can be hard tracking down the person at fault and getting them admit fault and rectify it. Cutting Edge Kitchens and Cabinet Making http://cuttingedgekitchens.net.au http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cutting-Edge-Kitchens/290484196676 Mobile : 0419 430 575 PH: 9452 4772 Fax :9452 4772 cuttingedgekitchens@outlook.com Hello, we can help you please get in contact 0421019219 thank you 3 32014 Hi, Seeking volume or semi-custom builder in victoria(east), which have existing double story wide floor plans. Seeking 18-20m wide homes with depth of 12-15m long. Or… 0 25284 |