OK a bit of a random request this. We need to have our kitchen replaced but also need a new ceiling fitted, a bit of plumbing work and are considering knocking through to the dining room to make a larger kitchen/diner as the current kitchen space is a small square.
I am undecided as to whether to get a builder to come and sort all this out or have a kitchen company come and do it. I have read some kitchen fitting blurb and most seem to suggest that they outsource most if not all of the work.
I'm hoping the combined members here on the forum may well have found themselves in a similar situation and could advise accordingly along with any tips

Thanks in advance

Get a very good recommended builder to run the correct trades, a kitchen company is someone that mainly sells the kitchens and has trades to come in when required much the same as the builder but want you to use their kitchens.

It depends how much you’re prepared to project manage yourself and what you’re appetite for living with a partly finished kitchen for a period of time is.

Clearly the structural stuff needs a general builder.

The plumbing may be simple of complex depending on what you’re changing

You will likely need an electrician and extra sockets, lighting etc.

I highly recommend DIY kitchens for the units, but you need to know exactly what you want. However, the quality & value are great - https://www.diy-kitchens.com/
The units arrive fully assembled, so you need to have the space - they are one of the free companies that do matching coloured carcasses, which adds a subtle uplift in perception of quality (assuming your doors are not white)

I fitted my own, but an independent fitter shouldn’t be too much money.

I then went to a local granite place for the work surfaces.

So basically I had to coordinate everything, but saved a good chunk of cash.

One question is if you want low, mid or high range kitchen.

If low or mid range kitchen then just get a builder to fit the kitchen of your choice as part of the project. A larger builder outfit will be able to outsource (and coordinate, yippee) the plumbing and electrical sub contractors, something that you will struggle to get from a kitchen supplier.

If you want a high end kitchen then defo have the kitchen company fit it. But you'll still need to coordinate the plumbing and electrics before and after the kitchen install. The kitchen company will likely not do this.

A key factor is the level of control you want. Are you terribly fussy, like obsessive over every detail? If so then it's worth taking your time and plodding through it with the best people you can find. If you're normal then finding one contractor who can pull in others, whilst still taking your design directions is the best compromise and enables you to finish the job with the least disruption.

We went high end, with a similar project scheme to yours. We knocked through in February (load bearing wall), making good + ceiling replacement in adjacent room (to be the kitchen) + electrical rewire in March, wood flooring in April, then a pause with gas & plumbing preparation in June, kitchen arrived in July, worktops 2 weeks after, kitchen repainted 2 weeks after that and left to cure for 2 or 3 days, we then spent August/September removing the old kitchen (was in a diff room) and turned that room into a child's bedroom, and the baby arrived mid-October. I was by Christmas.

We hired separately:
Demolition and steel box frame supplier + installer
Electrician
Electrical fittings supplier
Ceiling fitter and decorator
Wood flooring supplier
Skirting supplier
Wood flooring & skirting fitter
Kitchen supplier, installer + cabinet painter
Electrical appliance suppliers (x 3)
Tap + filtered water supplier
Sink supplier
Worktop supplier & installer
Plumber - gas + water + sink/tap installer + ducting
Window blind supplier & installer


That's at least 14 different contractors & suppliers of critical products and services.

Never again!


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As above.

1. Get some drawings done
2. Get builders to quote for all works bar the kitchen fitting.
3. Get the structural alterations and first fixes done by the builder and his trades.
4. Get the kitchen properly measured up.
5. Get the kitchen delivered and have it fitted by local Joiners either through builder or source yourself.
6. Get the second fixes and any tiles/wood flooring done by the builder and his trades.
7. Get decorating finished off.

Simples.

Why some folks make suff like this overly complicated is beyond me..... the level of finish is down to the skill of the joiners. Any joiner worth their tools should be able to fit a kitchen well. It’s not rocket science. I’ve done about 30 myself now, and I doubt anyone could tell that they have been fitted by a moron with a hammer.... There is nothing that can't be fixed with a hammer😜😜
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Gents, many thanks for the replies, lots of sensible answers there and something for me to move forward with. Luckily we don't mind living in a building site for a while, well until SWMBO see's the dust

another vote for DIY kitchens. Designed it myself on their website and everything turned up on time and good quality. I had a joiner/kitchen fitter install it and had the electrics/plumbing done - saved a chunk of cash

I would give a third recommendation for DIY kitchens. Much better quality than anything else I looked at and cheap for what you get too.

I fitted mine myself but got an electrician in and tiler in recommended from my towns local Facebook group which worked well. Lots of people do the same for builders and joiners too. In theory local people used by and recommended by others with their names on a local group should be less likely to mess you about for dear of public naming and shaming. Current 2007 TDV8 Vogue Buckingham Blue