New Kitchen time.. feedback on Wren or others please :)

Soldato
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Well.. I think the fitting of the kitchen has broken the builder.

The key is getting the alignment right then worry about door alignment as they can be adjusted.

Anyway I think he’a Getting someone in at his own cost
 
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Well.. I think the fitting of the kitchen has broken the builder.

The key is getting the alignment right then worry about door alignment as they can be adjusted.

Indeed. Getting the carcasses lined up with each other is the most important step I've found, as that's where you'll see any deviation the most. Once they are fixed together in runs then you can work on levelling them up within the room. As you say, doors can be pretty much ignored as they have plenty of adjustment.
 
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Today all the units and panels aligned, cut (as the room isn't straight), stuck and sorted.. so list till completion is (only):
* worktops cut and joined (3 joins)
* hob hole + plumber has pipe finish
* sink hole + seal + fit new sink
* soil down pipe in the corner to be blocked off.
* fit the two top units
* core 150mm hole + fit hood (from the unit box to the hood - about 30cm)
* Electrical connection to oven (from wall to oven)
* Elecrical connection to consumer unit
* fit the top section to the ceilings
* fit the plinth under the units
* Grout remaining floor

Oddly I don't think he'll have this finished tomorrow..

Now although he removed the radiator for painting.. I think I'll end up re-fitting it..

Oh and the Bosch GCL 2000 saved the day again.. freeking awesome - resolved tiling alignments, resolved base unit levels, and will also help with top unit alignments and the radiator alignment.
 
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Wall units up - worktop cuts being done..

There is one cut.. that has to be square and without laminate chipping as that face will join against a the prepared square edge.

The guy is concerned as his circular saw chips.. and doesn’t have a 1/2” router nor understands how the worktop bolts fit in the worktop to pull the units together.

Luckily this is the only visible high accuracy join.
 
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Wall units up - worktop cuts being done..

There is one cut.. that has to be square and without laminate chipping as that face will join against a the prepared square edge.

The guy is concerned as his circular saw chips.. and doesn’t have a 1/2” router nor understands how the worktop bolts fit in the worktop to pull the units together.

Luckily this is the only visible high accuracy join.

Shouldn't all joints be mitred?

https://www.worktop-express.co.uk/i...chen-worktops-worktop-express-nutshell-guide/
 
Soldato
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There is one cut.. that has to be square and without laminate chipping as that face will join against a the prepared square edge.

The guy is concerned as his circular saw chips.. and doesn’t have a 1/2” router nor understands how the worktop bolts fit in the worktop to pull the units together.

I'd be very worried at this point.

If he doesn't want to buy a decent blade then cutting the worktop upside down can help as the blades teeth pass through the laminate before the chipboard "meat" of the worktop.

Or maybe a scoring cut, where the first pass only goes a few MM into the surface. Again, the teeth hit the laminate at a better angle to reduce chipping.

Shouldn't all joints be mitred?

Definitely for a rolled edge but if it's square edged you can get away with a straight cut. I think I'd still want it mitred though, but it doesn't sound like the fitter is capable in this case.
 
Soldato
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Possibly but the worktops are composite:
laminate
chipboard
Blue hard foam
wood spine
Blue hard foam
chipboard
cover layer base

There’s no biscuit but joining bolts to finger tightness and possibly an under joint plate (obviously there is sealant that hardens to laminate hardness).

The guy has managed the cuts - using a knife blade and a circular saw with no chipping.

The worktops on first fit were less than 1mm height difference - the guy seemed impressed with the result using a laser level.

The mitre joins are normally 1/2” router+jig. However these workshops are weird. The edges are fit 90deg with the bondant then smoothing over the joint. The work top is 80mm depth (worktop surface is 950mm above floor by design).

I’ve fitted the 1800mm high 43kg (dry) vertical radiator last night, tested to 2.5bar before dropping the pressure at 67degC to just below 2bar. Just a very slight over night leak (not even soaking 1/2 the paper towel left underneath) which is a good starting point.
 
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Soldato
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6 people working on it now - two electricians, two plumbers and two builder/kitchen installers.

150mm core cut in 30 minutes.

Electric sockets & isolators installed, sink plumbed, gas hob being plumbed, consumer box being changed.. then oven..
 
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Hmm so the kitchen is almost “complete”, however some issues remain with the kitchen unit positioning impacting the magic corner unit and I have a feeling that one side of the entire work units under the hob may need to move 5mm left to solve it - the hob and extractor are fitted so it will be out by 0.5cm but the hob with the burner config looks slightly lip sided anyway (even when perfectly aligned).

The worksurfaces are joined and bolted, all appliances except the dishwasher are plumbed in. I also have a feeling that the washing machine will vibrate in operation which may be too close the work unit side panels.

However a week over schedule and even I have lost patience.the builder had to go but his mate (no experience and is a messy liability) needs to finish off painting, grouting, moving a hinge on a door due to the sink depth (needs a door hole added) etc.

To complete they used - my tile saw, tile cutter, laser level, angle grider, SDS drill, wood working 90 deg, etc.. to give you an. Idea of how unprepared they were.
I had to core (no comment about external extractor duct in our contract or the plans I gave).

Cooked (heated up) a store bought apple crumble to test out after a 40 minute 220degC test.

I have a feeling I will be sorting out issues myself. It will function and look great but needs some tlc.

I think wren kitchens are easy to install however they have more pieces which need cutting if the room is not entirely square.
The work tops are more complex than normal solid worktops.
The issues is if the builder has not scheduled enough time then it becomes a problem.
 
Soldato
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Got a solution for the unit mechanism issue - angle grinder to cut the corner off ( the mechanism doesn’t need that bit.. so problem sortes
 
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Surprising to hear about "professionals" being so unprepared, as I stated earlier my Dad and I did ours over about 3 core weekends and a couple of odd days, but as it was the summer I could cope with the BBQ but i'm very happy with the fit of it all and definitely didn't have anywhere near the number of issues your guys appear to have encountered.
 
Soldato
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I could do it myself - the main thing is the heavy units and ceiling plasterboard panels hence need a second person would have been needed.

I think I would have certainly taken more time sorting out the walls etc but the Mrs wanted someone else to come in and solve the problem A to B. However given the amount of work maybe that was a good thing.
 
Soldato
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Sounds like you just hired a cowboy tbh. All of those are basic tools for a builder, hell I own all of them just as a diyer.

Got pictires of finished install?

Will do once the thing is sorted :)

I’ve taken picks from start to finish.

These guys were more inexperienced rather than dodgy cowboys - we had people quote more and ask 100% up front.. with no tax and say they had a 120k job waiting so they could squeeze me in (dodgy but also do I get dropped for the larger job?!).

It’s getting there and I thin there will be a good kitchen at the end.. just the Mrs has expectations of F1 cleanliness and speed..
 
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So last night passed and a hard call with the builder who had to travel, a senior guy and the junor appeared this morning early - sort a list and they have been working through it.

The senior guy is precise, clean working, focused - just like a F1 team. I have time for this guy.

One issue is that the plastic blanking plates for the door hung holes not in use we’re not taken into account in the build.. so a exec decision to remove them where needed (these can be trimmed to sit flush and still blank off).

So it looks like we’re progressing fast although there could be some additional work tomorrow morning.
 
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So the kitchen is finally finished at 2pm today :D There are a couple of niggles - one being the plastic blanking plates but that can be fixed.

What is good is that we've started adding the bits in tonight so it will feed more like a kitchen rather than a new empty room. Also we had used the oven just to warm up some bramble apple pie but I can't wait to really get a cooking session in. It's freaky - the oven can heat to 180degC in 5 minutes and we can have reheated pie in less than 15 minutes.

I thought last night that rather than do a "my kitchen" thread, I could perhaps make a hints and tips kitchen thread given my experiences.
 
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I put in a Howden kitchen about 5 years ago, I wouldn't get another, all the cupboards started to bubble on the edges after 12 months, after informing them it took 12 months to get something done, that was only after threatening to get it all ripped out out and taking them to court.
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Soldato
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So we’re settled after 1.5 weeks of over run on his estimate however the guy is how asking for £580, saying he charged far less than Wren do etc,for “additional jobs” including a “deep clean” - the original contract stated clean as part of it. I have photos of the original state of the conservatory they had “cleaned”, additionally the deep clean was not discussed other than “clean as contract stated”. Also another additional job is to align the units - which is part of the original “fit a kitchen”.

All this had to be done before i’s have accepted anyway.1

The two main jobs, they guys stated they took 3 man hours for. Based on the previous contract rate that was £30/hour.

The conservatory was such a state and they used my shop vac to clean up!

He’s trying to make me look difficult and demanding when it sounds like he’s attempting to gap span to break even on his original quote..
 
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Earlier this year I worked with a could have ex Wren guys who worked in head office. If I hadn't read the thread I would have assumed given the issues you mentioned you got guy their guys to do it - the horror stories they told me mean I wouldn't get Wren to install a kitchen for me even if they paid me. The kitchens themselves are good, but their attitude to customers seemed right out of the Ryanair playbook.
 
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