Renovating Kitchens

[Robyne]

I am considering doing up the kitchen on one or both ips and I was wondering what wisdom was out there.

The plan is to wait until the tennant moves out but have things ready to go when that happens. Both kitchens actually need replacing rather than just a superficial job and may need some design changes.

I guess I would be going for factory direct type kitchens as I want cheap but not nasty.

I am not sure about the installation of these types of kitchens. Do I need to commission someone else to put it in?

Any ideas on what basic type kitchen should cost?

Any tips on this process?

Thanks
Robyne

 

[elwyn.d]

Robyne... Just been there done that..
Had to do a major make over to a house. Included pulling out the old kitchen entierly. THe taps were going to stay inthe same place (window behind) and I ended up leaving the stove in the same place, but not the prefered option. Went to a small factory (tried several) and they had the softwere to move cupboards benches etc around on the computor in 3d mode to my overall but basic mesurments. Chose a charcole bench top and a rosewood doors. Cut and delivered in 4 days. Everthing was labled and every screw hole pre drilled. It took 2 days to assemble. and now looks a million dollars. Cost under$3000.
Once we had inclkude the dishwasher extra powerpoints plumbing and tiles it took the overall cost to just on $5000. If you want to see a couple of photos give me your email address and I will try and send some. Regards Elwyn.d

 

[Cosmo]

Hi Robyne

If the kitchen is a single run of cabinets it easy to instal. If its L or U shaped it’s a bit more involved. Squareness and level of the room become considerations. I’ve done a few basic kitchens with my brothers IP’s but my PPOR involved a U shape with upright oven cabinets, a nagging wife etc so I got a pro for that.

A few tricks I noticed

If you are doing an L or U shaped kitchen place your cabinets 100 mm out from each wall. The bench top profile will allow for the non square corner and / or wonky walls. The spin-offs are you gain an extra 100mm benchtop depth and a service channel for the gas, electricity etc.

Get the cabinets with the adjustable legs. Leveling is a lot easier than those mongrel plinths.

Hope that helps

 

[Frankd]

Hello Robyne,
I'm in a similar position - waiting for a vacancy before I can renovate/replace a kitchen. I've always worried about having vacancies but now i'm almost to a point where I wonder if I'll ever get one so I can get in there and do the work. But seeing all the for lease signs springing up all over melbourne recently I should really be grateful I suppose. Anyway, Ive looked at new kitchens, installed and DIY etc until a tiler colleague who does lots of kitchens told me to look for a secondhand one. Apparently most new luxury kitchens are fashion statements and the old ones are torn out and usually go to the tip because they are too bulky to transport and store are not worth much anyway. He says you can get a full kitchen for a fraction of the new price and most are ideal for IPs or holiday houses etc. The Melbourne trading post newspaper has lots of them for sale, often you need to remove them yourself - prices including all appliances range form a few hundrewd bucks to about $3,000. Getting the right shape and size is the challenge but most cabinets are easily modified to fit.
I'm watching for the right one - it may not be your scene but I think its a great option for an IP.
Regards
Frankd

 

[whitt]

try to keep plumbing in the same spot as the old if possible. this cuts down on the extra expense of having to move gas and water pipes to different locations. likewise for electrical wiring.

 

[Robyne]

Thanks all! Great suggestions. I look forward to doing it!
Robyne