New Kitchen - Brisbane

[BenQld]

Hello

I am going to be replacing the kitchen in my PPOR (to be a rental in around 12months) as the current kitchen is 30+yrs old.

I was wondering if anyone has any details of places or ideas where to get kitchens / bench tops / appliances from in Brisbane at good prices ? I will be only putting in a fairly budget kitchen, but I would still like to make it as good as possible for the money.

I will be installing it myself, I have rebuilt 2 bathrooms before, so I figure this cant be too hard (getting a sparky to rewire all the new appliances)

Thanks

Ben

 

[James Allen]

I have used Tony at Kitchens Direct on Beaudesert road in Rocklea twice now, he is cheap but all the kitchens and granite come from china, but they are reasonable quality. Plus he will give you everything you need to install, right down to free drill bits. Don't be scared off by their warehouse, it is a total mess but he knows exactly where everything is. A whole large U shape kitchen cost me $3800 cash last time, that's white 2 pac and granite.

 

[Adlante]

I have used Tony at Kitchens Direct on Beaudesert road in Rocklea twice now, he is cheap but all the kitchens and granite come from china, but they are reasonable quality. Plus he will give you everything you need to install, right down to free drill bits. Don't be scared off by their warehouse, it is a total mess but he knows exactly where everything is. A whole large U shape kitchen cost me $3800 cash last time, that's white 2 pac and granite.

Can I ask James, how your kitchen compares to a say IKEA or Flatpax of similar style, qulity in terms of price..?

 

[James Allen]

I see the benefit of ikea kitchens being the fact that they have arguably the best hinges in the world (blum) and a 25 year warranty, but while the cabinets are cheap if you go with anything other than the basic doors the price quickly goes up.

The hinges on the Chinese kitchen appear to be fine but only time will tell. The quality of the 2 pac is as good as I have seen from Australian companies and come packaged very well, I didn't find a single defect, but once again time will tell. From what I have seen they are of similar quality to the flatpax kitchens but cost less. It's worth just going and seeing Tony and having a look to make your own mind up, his number is 0412789725.

I'll post some pics of one I installed over xmas.

 

[BKR]

You could try ebay, trading post or weekend shopper. They all have them but you may have to take it out yourself. Theres also Second Chance Kitchens at Kangaroo Point who resell them, they have also started making new ones and doing the import from China bit too.
Just went to Ikea yesterday as they had a letterbox drop with a kitchenette for $495. I had to have a look and wanted to go there anyway.
It was a cheap alright, carcusses went straight to the floor, no rebate for kicks, actually no kickboards at all. Benchtop is 28mm, backing in carcusses 3mm mdf, hinges were average, but the draw sides are plastic, haven't seen that before. No end panels on the carcuss and overheads either, so you can see the screws. Doors have 1mm edging all round. Still if you needed something really cheap to get you thru I don't think you could beat that price but all the ppl I saw went straight onto the better made section.

 

[Perp]

There was also this thread, just last week, on this topic.

 

[BenQld]

Thanks for the advice. My father in law was mentioning something about a place that imports kitchens from china, maybe its the same place. The one he had installed in a rental seemed ok. I will only have this place another 2-3yrs before its sold, so it dosent need to last 25yrs !

One question though, how difficult is it to install the chinese kitches ? does all the sections come together pretty easily ? or is there alot of stuffing around getting them all to match up ? Also, I assume I will need to cut the granite myself for the sink ? is this difficult ?

Also, Whats the usual lead time on the Chinese kitchens? as I might have a few weeks off work in about 4-6 weeks and I was thinking of doing it then ?

Thanks

Ben

 

[James Allen]

At the place I use you can get them flat pack of or they can make up the cabinets for you for $150 for the whole kitchen, If you haven't done one before get them to put it together as it would prob take you the whole day to do it. If you do get them to put it together remember that you will need a large truck to transport it, and they have about a 1 week wait, as opposed to picking up a flat pack the same day. They won't put the doors or hinges on tho, just make up the cabinets. I get them flat pack as it's easier to transport and store.

In regards to the granite, I would not attempt to install yourself, I always use a pro, consider each piece is around 150-200kgs and they can crack if not handled right. They will level it all out and cut your sink and stove holes. Let me know if you want his number, he's normally booked about 1 month ahead so you would need to book in now if your going to do it in 4-6 weeks.

 

[BenQld]

It would be good if you could send though his number. As cutting the granite is something I am not comfortable with.

So basically, I would just get all the kitchen cupboards installed and level, and the this guy would come and install the benchtop and cut the holes for the sink / cooktop etc. Would this be done on site, or in his workshop ?

roughly what would they charge for something like this ?

Thanks

Ben

 

[Tizzy]

If anyone else is interested, McMahons Auctions in Wangara ( for WA people) also import 4 or 5 basic designs of these Chinese made kitchens. They look pretty good. They also suggest stone cutters/ cabinet makers who are familiar with putting them together for you and you approach these trades directly.

I worked out that one of their L shaped kitchens plus an island ( therefore quite big) was going to cost about $6000. I would definately use them for investment homes.

Ben, to give you an idea of what they look like, check the McMahons auction site, they may be similar to the ones James is recommending. Possibly even the same source.

 

[James Allen]

Yes you just install cabinets, level off (the better you level them the better the granite will look), and he will install and then cut all the holes, it's done on site.

He's not cheap but does and really good job, last one I did he charged $600 and it took 2 guys the best part of a day, that was for a large u shaped kitchen, so 3 pieces.

You aren't limited by set designs with Kitchens direct, they will just make up a design to suit your space based on standard cabinets they stock, they will cut them down to make custom cabinets as well.

He also offers ceasar stone and glass splash backs (but I don't think they meet australian standards as they aren't toughened glass)

 

[BenQld]

Thanks for the help.

I may also polish the floor in the kitchen instead of tiling it (as the rest of the house has polished wood floors, and its the nice thin hardwood flooring)

Does anyone have any contacts for someone in the brisbane/bayside area who does floor polishing ? it would only be a 4m x 4m area ? Also, any ideas on price ?

I was planning on ripping out the old kitchen, getting the floor polished and then installing the new kitchen, so its easier for them to polish with nothing in the way.

Thanks

ben

 

[crossback]

I'd also be looking forward to any replies on this one, as i'm also about to polish my fllors.

Thanks for the help.

I may also polish the floor in the kitchen instead of tiling it (as the rest of the house has polished wood floors, and its the nice thin hardwood flooring)

Does anyone have any contacts for someone in the brisbane/bayside area who does floor polishing ? it would only be a 4m x 4m area ? Also, any ideas on price ?

I was planning on ripping out the old kitchen, getting the floor polished and then installing the new kitchen, so its easier for them to polish with nothing in the way.

Thanks

ben

 

[BenQld]

I might start a new thread about the floor polishing, as having it hidden away in the kitchen reno thread wont do it much good.

Ben

 

[BenQld]

It's worth just going and seeing Tony and having a look to make your own mind up, his number is 0412789725.

I'll post some pics of one I installed over xmas.

I called that number, and it is a place called kitchens direct, but there is no one there by the name of Tony !

Do you have any other contact details ? as I cant seem to find any.

Thanks

Ben

 

[James Allen]

Try the number below, Tony is his "english" name. Best thing is to ring and find out when they will be there then just go down and speak to him, it's easier to show him want you want than tell him what you want.

Kitchens Direct

684 Beaudesert E
Rocklea
QLD, 4106
Australia
Contact Details

Ph:
(07) 3277 6577

 

[COLJP]

Floor Polisher - Brisbane Bayside

We used Paul Neehouse (Choice Floor Sanding) to do a small 2m x 2m section of floor at our house in Wynnum and he did a brilliant job at a good price. I doubt he normally takes on such small jobs but he happened to be sanding/polishing the entire floor at our neighbour's at the time. Number is 3398 2751. Mob 0419 716 500. That was a couple of years ago.

 

[BenQld]

Thanks for that. I called paul, and he said he would do a small area like I have. and it would only be $400 (min charge). So thanks for the number !

Ben

 

[COLJP]

Floor Polisher - Brisbane Bayside

Good to hear Ben!

Nice to know he's still about as I'd like to get him to do our whole floor in the not too distant future as well. Col

 

[BenQld]

I thought I should give an update on my kitchen

the floorpolishing was very good, Paul did a great job.

And the kitchen from Tony was awesome, the installers he reccomended (3 Chinese guys, they were good, but lacked some serious WH&S, ie no shoes or face masks even when grinding the granite)

Overall I am very happy with the result. From start to finish it has cost me about $9k and thats including the appliances (I did all the painting/Tiling)

Here are some pics (Click for larger versions)







Ben