Fitting kitchen

[SparrowHawk99]

I'm putting together a kitchen which is from Wickes http://www.wickes.co.uk/invt/193241/?source=123_75

It consists of wall and base units.

I've been told to start assembling and then fitting the wall units first but I don't know what height to fit the temporary battens.

What measurements do I allow for to fit the temporary battens?

 

[Newboy]

and the obvious question - what/why temporary battens?

 

[conny]

To rest the cupboards on and save someone else holding them up while you mark off to drill for the permanent support brackets.

As to the instruction about fitting cupboards first, ignore it.

A number of reasons.

By doing the base cupboards first you will get a better idea of how high you can reach as it allows you to stand where you will in reality. A false height would be assumed if you stood right next to the cupboard.

Doing the cupboards first will allow you to prop the wall units on something once you decide on the height and so avoid drilling unnecessary holes for temporary battens.

Doing the cupboards first increases the chances of knocking your head against them when doing the base units.

You can align the cupboard ends up more accurately with the base units as the base units will need to be in line with the services, (gas/water etc). Nothing worse than making a good job only to discover/have someone notice the sides of the cupboards are not in line with any base unit sides. looks horrible.

This is all from personal experience.

 

[loply]

I agree that it would seem totally wrong to hang the wall units first.

You'll definitely bang your head on them.

Floor units first, get them where they need to be, then you can gauge things like height of tiles (if applicable) and door handles etc to decide how high the wall units should be...

 

[Blagard]

To add to the above, if you do the base cupboards first you can also tweak the height of your wall cupboard in case it suits any tiling you do above a worktop.

 

[gregers]

and if you have a corner post?fit these cabinets 1st and work from both directions from the post.

 

[SparrowHawk99]

Ok I've today finished assembling the base units.

The units are 850 (including adjustable legs which I've fully retracted when I fitted). The worktop is 40mm thick to go on top. So I'm going to allow 160mm for the plinth (as 6mm underlay and 12mm laminate to go down)

Do I need to fit every unit to every unit? What fittings do I use? The instructions say to use fittings not supplied.

I'm going to start in the corner (it's an L shape) and work back.

Not sure what fittings to use to secure the units to the walls? One wall is 2x4 stud the other is sand cement screed over corrugated stone wall. Cheers

 

[kbdiy]

Do I need to fit every unit to every unit? What fittings do I use? The instructions say to use fittings not supplied.

Yes, fix all units together. Wickes kitchens usually come with double-headed fixing screws for joining but I prefer to screw the units together under the door hinges wherever possible to give a secret fixing. You can usually screw through the cheeks at the back to keep those fixings hidden too.

It's essential to keep everything level and plumb so line everything up before fixing to the wall. 'L' shape brackets are fine to secure to the wall using screws and plugs on the masonry wall. With luck you may be able to find studs to fix to on the stud wall.

If you have any full height units, that will determine the level for the wall units,

Don't worry about plinth height too much as it will normally need trimming down anyway. That is the last thing to fit when everything else is in place.

 

[SparrowHawk99]

Do I need to fit every unit to every unit? What fittings do I use? The instructions say to use fittings not supplied.

Yes, fix all units together. Wickes kitchens usually come with double-headed fixing screws for joining but I prefer to screw the units together under the door hinges wherever possible to give a secret fixing. You can usually screw through the cheeks at the back to keep those fixings hidden too.

It's essential to keep everything level and plumb so line everything up before fixing to the wall. 'L' shape brackets are fine to secure to the wall using screws and plugs on the masonry wall. With luck you may be able to find studs to fix to on the stud wall.

If you have any full height units, that will determine the level for the wall units,

Don't worry about plinth height too much as it will normally need trimming down anyway. That is the last thing to fit when everything else is in place.

Hi KB, just wanted to be clear on what screws to use. Can you post a link to the correct ones if possible? All units are 15mm thick chipboard. I've never seen double headed screws before and a little confused.

If I can't locate a stud along the cavity wall what then?

EDIT : Great idea about fitting under the hinges

 

[Deluks]

Google 'inter screws'

 

[SparrowHawk99]

What's the difference between these
http://www.screwfix.com/p/inter-scr...tracking url&gclid=CNfegdCQn7wCFeXLtAodyGEAAg

And these ?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/KITCHEN-CONNECTOR-BOLTS-SCREWS-HOLE/dp/B007V2GZ0E

Or is one a spade and one a shovel ?

 

[Deluks]

Ones a spade, and the other one is an identical spade which costs a little bit more.