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So I'm thinking of embrasing the credit crunch and getting a new kitchen from B&Q (hey, it'll do) but they don't give an idea on installation costs till they come round and measure up. 

Anyone know a ball park figure on what to expect roughly?    I'm really in the dark on how much these things cost.

Ta

do not get a kitchen from B & Q, i repeat do not get a kitchen from B & Q, worst retailers ever, FACT. They will charge the earth then take forever to deliver and fit and then not do a very good job.

there is some free software on line where you can design your own based on your kitchen dimensions, order direct from a manufacturer, then find a local independent kitchen fitter to fit it for you.

this software is good/free for creating 3d models.

i'll just write a new post each time...

I fitted one myself recently but it was a total ballache so wouldn't recommend it. But that reduces the cost by about 50/60% if you can be arsed, a decent kitchen fitter can chuck a kitchen in in a 2/3 days and paying them a day rate makes it loads cheaper. Know anyone who has had a kitchen fitted lately? most fitters for big firms do foreigners anyway so a bit of effort can save a decent chunk of money and you don't get fucked about either.

lol thanks :)

I was only thinking of them cos they have half price offers on at the moment and 0% interest for 2 years.  I'm not 100% sure we'll do it yet, but just wanted an idea.   Clearly I'd love to save the money and fit it myself, but I barely chanage lightbulbs, a kitchen would be major life tilt for me.

Suggested tips

Don't buy from B&Q
Strip the old one out yourself
Make sure the kitchen is absolutely empty before fitters come in
Do as much prep as possible yourself
Do the planning yourself
Do your own tiling, it's one of those things that scares you until you try it and then realise it isn't that hard.

I bought a house as an investment, many years ago. Bought all the items for the kitchen and 3 of us had a hard, difficult but satisfying weekend fitting it BUT get an electrician and plumber in to do their bits

PS Don't buy from B&Q

i have a mate who spent 2 years waiting for his kitchen from them and they were total c**ts about it all, he wrote them a great offensive letter and spent a year shoplifting the equivalent value from their shops, his only ever crime.

What prep work would one have to do?  Is it easy enough to do or is it hard?  I am shit and DIY, if things need cutting I can't do it. 

sigh

thanks for the honest, if not what I wanted to hear, replies

Can you get Blinds from B&Q?

only the small one, not the big one ;)

yeah but IKEA loads better, unless i am just being set up for a fall?

no i need some and theres a B&Q near me, i got some from argos a couple of months ago cos i was being lazy but they didnt fit and were shit but i couldnt be bothered to take them back so just binned em.

I need on set of big blinds then there are two smaller windows at an angle either side if you can imagine so do they come in a fit size or do they cut them for you there, there are loads of houses i can see on my rd where people have the same window structure as me and i can see they have a perfectly fitting blind in the middle and two at the sides but i dont really want to knock and ask them where they got the from :D

prep work is easyish. deisgn and order kitchen, find a fitter, get kitchen delivered, ask the fitter how he would like the place to be when comes round to fit it, when it is ready to be collected ask the fitter when he can do it, rip it all out the day before he can start (turning off gas and water you may need someone to help you with this depending on your situation)or earlier if you plan on doing your own floor tiling which is proper easy, wall tiling is not as easy to get a great finish but very doable with time and effort.

Actually this is a good option, I've just recalled seeing an advert in the local rag for fitters and their key advertising point is that it's a lot cheaper than getting the other big firms to do it.

Will look into ta :)

and board up the front door.... just to stop anyone from B&Q coming in to fit it.

ikea have a range of sizes that are better than all the DIY stores. Check there website for sizes available, they go up in 5 cms or something and they are good quality and robust.

alternatively you can spunk a load of money getting them cut to size, loads of places on line.

cool, ikea ftw then.

figure out if your going to hang them on the frame or the masonry (this if you have PVC is adviseable), figure out the smallest width that would do it and the largest and hope they do something in between.

Hate to be contrary here, but I've had 2 kitchens from B&Q (in 2 houses, rather than 2 in 1 house :)), and they've both been fine. Current house is pretty large kitchen - about 5k worth of units, + 4k of appliances (range oven and big american fridge/freezer bulk of that), and fitting was around 4k including laying about 20sqm of tile floor, IIRC.

Prep work is easy for the most part Graham, just ripping stuff out. Don't let B & Q, or any big company, fit the kitchen, they will overcharge a shed load. Just get a few quotes from local fitters, ditto for gas and electric work needed.
For kitchens you can often get local manufacturers to make it em cheaper, and made to measure.

I know a builder whose client had problems getting all the kitchen parts delivered, so he walked into the local B & Q and started dismantling their display! They soon found the parts out part that were supposed to be outta stock..lol

Find a local joiner/fitter to fit it FTW. B & Q have to make a profit on the fitting and charge VAT.

Lol i once got a kitchen from B&Q never again! nothing wrong with units but fuck me 10million boxes of units doors etc.you'll end up losing another room just to sort them all out.If your gonna do it rip all the units out yourself,if you need a plumber/electrician get them to give you a price to disconect and re-conect,and get carcasses of the units pre assembled FTW and get the worktops made to measure or compare it with getting chippie in to cut them in.also worth considering depending on kitchen size to get oversized worktops.

B&q used to have their own design software on diy.com>>nteractive kitchen planner

My Advice,
go to your local Howdens Joinery.  Open up a trade account with them (Just pretend you are company called Silo Builders or something).  They only supply to the trade.  They send someone out to your customers (you) to measure up and design and then send you a price to supply only.  It has to be this way as you are obviously the builder who has to fit it..!!  They manufacture the kitchens for lots of outlets like MFI etc..  You would still need to get a fitter to fitter but, the prices you will see on the howdens price list, which is pretty much the price list in the retail shops, will be discounted between 50% and 75%...

They are good quality...  cabinets are supplied already built, so shortens the time to build the whole kitchen, so shorten kitchen fitter costs.

B&Q=Budget brand with the odd ridic overpriced named brands.
Howdens=Budget brand but half price of B&Q
Have you considered refurbing existing? new doors and draws on existing carcass will look like a new kitchen.Really depends on your reason for upgrading.(cheapest)
Kitchen fitter will charge around £1200 for a weeks work.
Bolt made to measure blinds ftw. 1200mmx1200mm about £100 wooden venetian. lol at buyin one from Argos but didnt fit btw. (can prolly guess why u last used a tape measure)

Ive been looking at Howdens, they seem good mid priced kitchens to me.
Although i havent had a quote yet, so not sure.

Quite likely to go down this route tbh.  May get a fitter in and get a quote for the worktop, plumbing, cooker etc, then fit all the doors myself - that can't be hard surely?

Thanks for the replies guys

Seems steep, and if it takes him a week then he's dragging it out by about 3 days

Where you live Graham? my mates a kitchen fitter and could get him in touch with you?

thats a weeks rate man+app,i never said it would take a week.

Bracknell in Berkshire.  No need yet though thanks, need to have a rethink and see what I'm going to do.

Bit far then, It's not as hard to do it yourself as you may think, you could at least fit all the base units yourself which would save a lot of labour costs

I don't mind having a go, but it's the missus I need to pursuade, she knows how good I am at these sort of things :D