Kitchen (German or Irish)

Curious Geroge

In the process of choosing a Kitchen for our new build and tbh, it's becoming less enjoyable. We are looking for an acrylic high gloss look but finding it difficult to decide. Some kitchen suppliers are reps for german companies like NOBIA, NOBILIA, HACKER, SCHULLER or BAUFORMAT while the others tell me that the frame is all done in house and the acrylic doors are brought in from suppliers like springhill and others. All hinges etc seem to be blum

but.. what's the differences that I need to be aware off; are these equally as good as each other ?

tedimc

George, just from my own experience - avoid a laminated door if you can. I've encountered numerous doors where the covering has bubbled or even peeled off.

While there are no doubt some manufacturers have a very good product, many of the examples I seen were definitely not 'cheap' kitchens.

I've heard mixed opinions of the actual carcass. Some carpenters wouldn't touch a chipboard base, but agree that a good quality plywood base is quite sufficient. Others insist on solid carcasses instead.

I believe blum fittings are very good, but have no direct experience.

Ectoplasm

There may be limited differences between the two in terms of construction, the biggest difference tends to be in terms of price; most of the time it is possible to produce a higher spec kitchen locally than it costs to import the equivalent.

There can be other benefits to getting it produced locally, such as much greater flexibility with the design and less dangers of damage in transit. There is also the added bonus that more money stays local but that isn't important to everyone.

Fittings are actually far more important than visual elements when it comes to how your kitchen will work but most people overlook them in favour of appearance. Blum hinges, lifts and drawers are internationally recognised as being top quality and are widely used but it is also worth asking questions about other fittings such as larder units, corner units etc. as the quality of these can vary depending on where they are produced.

Personally I'd lean towards locally produced but whatever you go for, I hope you love your new kitchen :-)