Kitchen renovation advice needed

Discussion in 'Renovation & Home Improvement' started by robbie_p, 21st Jul, 2015.

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  1. robbie_p

    robbie_p Well-Known Member

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    Thanks for advice, much appreciated.

    Have a builder coming this evening and so i'll let you know how it goes :)
     
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  2. Arms

    Arms Active Member

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    I actually live on the side of reality
     
  3. bob shovel

    bob shovel Well-Known Member

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    @Arms ok, well good luck with that. Perhaps robbie can start a thread for you, "how to converse with a builder to arrange a quote" he got one round pretty quick, probably at a small expense of the phone call but you have to take the good with the bad. life is tough, hang in there bud!
     
  4. Arms

    Arms Active Member

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    I will type this slowly so as it can be absorbed by you entirely .
    a lot of the local builders/carpenters the op rings will ask him/her what the job entails .they will make an instant decision as to whether they want to do it or it being a waste of time on their part .
    many ,many carpenters will take the last option .
     
  5. robbie_p

    robbie_p Well-Known Member

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    @Arms I have called a few local builders, who are generally in my suburb, who were all happy to come around in the evenings. Last night a builder actually happily climbed into my ceiling, got covered is dust and cobwebs, just so he could see the structure of my roof.

    Back the the post..

    Due to the structure of my roof, i would not be able to remove any of the walls as they are load bearing and would need an engineers report, council approval etc. This can easily add $5k (or more) onto a kitchen reno with you need to add beams, knockdown / move walls etc. The additional costs of doing this would almost be the same as renovating an ensuite, so due to my limited budget, i think the funds could be better used elsewhere.

    Maximising the limited space i currently have, modernising the current kitchen, replacing the slate with a nice light tile, giving the area a nice paint, nice kitchen appliances, new lighting.. this alone will make a huge difference to my current kitchen (which breaking the budget or spending excessively)
     
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  6. robbie_p

    robbie_p Well-Known Member

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    just got a 2nd quote for the kitchen, which was $9,800 (everything included). Once again this was customized to untilize every spare millimeter.

    This weekend i might go have a look at Ikea and get an idea of how much their kitchens are, but I am leaning towards a custom made kitchen purely to maximize my limited space.
     
  7. Raydar

    Raydar Well-Known Member

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    Keep us posted. Photos as well.
     
  8. bob shovel

    bob shovel Well-Known Member

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    Get into the ikea website and start playing with designing your own kitchen. once you get used to it, it may work for you. I used ikea and came up really well and had no issues with using the standard sizes.
    Would you have a go at installing yourself?

    Could you open up the wall to room on the right somehow or are they all load bearing?
     
  9. robbie_p

    robbie_p Well-Known Member

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    Yup, the wall on right was also load bearing, but not as much as the other wall.. would still need engineers report / council approval etc.

    I would definitely give it a go installing my own kitchen.
     
  10. bob shovel

    bob shovel Well-Known Member

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    It is a smaller span and would be the easier one to take on. you wouldn't need council, engineer about 500, then chippy to throw up. It could change the room/house significantly. probably 2-3 days works at most. If you do the kitchen yourself and your onto the bargain hunting you'll save elsewhere.
    I reckon ikea kitchen less than 2500, appliances less than 2000, your well under the budget of 10k. Use the savings towards opening the room
     
  11. bob shovel

    bob shovel Well-Known Member

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    This was my costs, photos later.
    Ikea 3300 incl laminate bench toP
    Appliances 1500 cooktopp, range hood, oven, dw.
    Sink, mixer, plumbing, cavity door 1200

    Total 6k

    For yours
    You can add on 500 engineer
    Beam 200
    Timber and Gyprock 500 plus trades $ to install

    Misc and contingency 2k
     
  12. robbie_p

    robbie_p Well-Known Member

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    The chippy of my builder is going to be in contact with me to take some measurements and put together a quote, so ill mentioned removing the wall to the right.

    I think removing the larger wall isnt worthwhile its it was supporting quite a long run as well as have quite a bit a wall space for cupboards.

    I definitely agree with what you saying about removing the wall on the right, perhaps turning the current gastop / oven area to a counter area... where would i put my ovan / gas top?
     
  13. bob shovel

    bob shovel Well-Known Member

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    Push it back to the far right wall, i forgot your back door, close that and shift everything right. Keep the counter where it is. It will be a much bigger kitchen! Look at shifting the counter right also to make the dining area larger
     
  14. robbie_p

    robbie_p Well-Known Member

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    Mmmm... i think if i push the gas top / oven to the far right (after opening up things) , it would feel like I'm cooking in the lounge and i think the kitchen would be toooo big in comparison to the tiny lounge.. it wouldnt be a good balance and wouldnt seem proportional.

    If i was to open up that wall, i would like the idea of a counter top / bar overlooking the lounge area.
     
  15. bob shovel

    bob shovel Well-Known Member

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    Oh yeah that could be a good mix. Make a nice big counter so it would still be a "Meals" room and open up the kitchen
     
  16. robbie_p

    robbie_p Well-Known Member

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    What i might do is:

    1: Remove right wall
    2: have a very wide breacfast bar / counter, with a gas top, overlooking lounge area

    See attached.

    What you think?

    The only issue is a gas top with no splashback
     

    Attached Files:

  17. robbie_p

    robbie_p Well-Known Member

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    something like this but maybe a little wider
     

    Attached Files:

  18. robbie_p

    robbie_p Well-Known Member

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    Just spoke to the builder about this design (which he did mention last night) and thinks it would work really well.

    It is going to add about $4000 to the costs, $1300 to council and engineer and about $2500 - $3000 for the new beam and loabour costs(which i think is a bit excessive?).

    Might need to get some quotes from other builders..
     
  19. bob shovel

    bob shovel Well-Known Member

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    Does his price include Gyprock and plastering? Seems alright.
    As for council, i would go direct to an engineer and get them to draw up and specify beam, and you give to the builder. See what eng. say with regards to council, I'd personally avoid council added costs and head aches!

    You will lose a lot of storage though. But you could get a slim line "hidden" built in wardrobe type storage on the opp wall to the new counter
     
  20. robbie_p

    robbie_p Well-Known Member

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    I will get a breakdown of his costs, but after calling the council there only charge about $100 for the application.

    I will start getting some quotes from other builders and when im comfortable with the costs, ill proceed with engineer.

    Currently, we dont have storage space on that wall we plan to remove, so in that respect, nothing will be lost on that wall, but more space gained by a deeper counter.

    If space is an issue, i could still keep the existing counter or add some storage in the dinning or meals area (like you suggested).