Ikea Kitchen

[CaTzL 0]

Hi All,

I'm new here and we will be getting our keys to our new abode soon. So many decisions & would like to have honest review or opinions from u guys. We have been looking around & asking for quotations.

Question : is Ikea built kitchen good? We saw a design that we liked and the price seemed alright but I'm just worried abt the quality and after sale warranty. I've searched the web for some reviews but there isn't much. Need help!!! Please!!

I've searched for carpenters on the forum but it seems that there isn't genuine recommendations..

Any help will be appreciated!!

[dododo 0]

I personally think IKEA kitchen's quality is not so good if you're a heavy user. Better get a carpenter to do it

[dustyboi84 0]

Ikea use hdf wood while carpenter use solid plywood.

Which is better?

Ikea isn't cheap so no need to compare price unless you going to install yourself.

Both use laminate but ikea got limited selection while carpenter give you more laminate design selection.

[ultimax 2]

Pros:

- For the functions and design you get, Ikea can be much cheaper than custom carpentry. Custon carpentry can indeed be as cheap as Ikea, but the design and functions are limited. Typically straight lines, standard laminate and plain basic drawers. With Ikea for the same price, you can get fancier doors and drawers will all types of features. Or put the other way round, for some of the Ikea kitchen designs, equivalent custom carpentry will be a lot more expensive. For example, some IKEA doors are spray-painted instead of laminated because of the design on the front panel. Laminates wouldn't work here. I think the Stat series is an example. A carpenter, apparently will charge a lot more to do this than laminates.

- There's a 10 year warranty on Ikea kitchen systems. Some say it's BS because of the fine print. But let's put it this way - will your contractor give you a 10 year warranty? At least with Ikea, issues like laminate separating and peeling are supposedly covered, IF you use you maintain your kitchen.

- Ikea kitchen units are modular and standard sized. If anything breaks, you can replace it quite easily. In fact, after a few years, you could even rejuvenate your kitchen with new doors for a new look! You probably can't do the same with your custom carpentry. Considering the per foot run cost, I don't dare think about how much replacing just a single door might be. I think the labour alone will already be more than an IKEA replacement part!

- Can save money because you don't need to build a curb for your kitchen cabinets - Ikea cabinets come with legs.

Cons:

- Ikea uses a mix of materials, most of it fibreboard or MDF. These are definitely less durable than plywood.

- If your kitchen is a weird shape, you may have wasted space size Ikea units are modular.

My colleague says if he could redo his kitchen, he would go with Ikea. He renovated it 10 years ago, and everything's already falling apart. He said custom carpentry is over-rated.

Perhaps the best way forward is a combination of IKEA and custom work. For one, I would opt for granite or quartz counter, and not solid surface. You could also reinforce the joints between the drawer face and the track. At the ikea showroom, these parts are always loose because of the constant strain of customers opening and closing the drawer. I suppose that represents extreme hardcore usage which can be prevented with a little bit of DIY effort.

Edited November 18, 2012 by ultimax

[momiji 0]

I would say some of the doors are of high quality.

I have a current IKEA kitchen bought in 2008 and until today, everything is still good, even the normal white table top that we chose.

[tarawrightes 0]

Ikea has been known as a Swedish furniture store which is the best place where you can go to get trendy,inexpensive pieces for home and it is reasonable in price also. The main interesting thing is that Ikea offers both built-in cabinets and standalone cabinets.

[jimmwong 0]

The one good thing about Ikea's kitchen is their fittings, it's made by Blum.

For the environmental conscious, chipboards are a better choice then plywood, FSC or not.