In terms of kitchen design, you will obviously have to work with the current shape of the room. Although you will be able to move parts of the kitchen around it is always good to work with what is known as the triangle theory. Basically the space between the cooker, fridge and sink should be kept to a minimum and then build work surfaces between them for food preparation and area to put all your pots and pans. Unless you have a clear idea in your head of how you want your new kitchen to be, it is advisable to ask a kitchen designer to give you a few ideas to help you think outside the box. They can generally give some great space saving ideas an you will be surprised how much a small change can make.

Another thing to think about is the current positioning of the plumbing and electrical sockets. Be very careful here as these can be expensive to move around and are certainly not small DIY jobs! Tackling this problem early on encourages you to think about the positioning of the kitchen parts and in a way, may narrow your options unless you have a vast budget and don’t mind paying for the above services to be carried out.

While we are on the subject of budget, let’s talk about the quality of kitchen. Obviously the amount you have to spend on your kitchen will determine what you buy, but the below points will give you some tips on what to look out for.

–   Look at shells that have 18mm carcass timber rather than 15mm

–   Units that have adjustable legs are much easier to fit as you will find most floors are uneven

–   Do test the hinges and runners before you purchase. You will be surprised by the poor quality of some of those on offer

–   Don’t buy cheap door handles! These can make a remarkable difference to the look at only a fraction of the relative cost of the whole kitchen!

If you are purchasing a new kitchen floor as well, note the best time to lay it is straight after the old kitchen has been taken away and the plumbing and electrical work has been done. You want to get the floor completely tiled or laid before the new kitchen is installed as the extra cost of any tiles under the new kitchen units is negligible in comparison to how long it takes to cut around them.

How about Kitchen Ventilation?

Kitchen ventilation is vitally important. Unfortunately, we sometimes hear of gas explosions in kitchens. These are caused more often than not by people not turning their cookers off after use. Kitchen ventilation helps disperse the gas and lower the chances of risk. Also any fumes, especially from frying food, are oily in nature so the stick to everything from the walls to all your cooking equipment. This is not easy to remove so usually requires an expert to come in at cost. Ventilating your kitchen properly with an exhaust fan or hood pays for itself.