Plenty of kitchens in Stubbington look tired long before they are actually worn out. Swapping the doors and worktops can give you a kitchen that looks new for a fraction of the cost of a full refit, but only if what sits underneath is sound. Here is how to tell which side of the line your kitchen falls on.
A door and worktop replacement keeps your existing cabinet carcasses, layout, plumbing and electrics where they are. The doors, drawer fronts, handles, plinths, end panels and worktops come off and new ones go on. Most people add a new sink, tap and splashback or tiling at the same time, because the old ones rarely survive the worktop coming out or look right next to the new one.
A full refit strips the room back to the walls. Everything is removed, then services are altered if needed, walls are made good, and new units, worktops, appliances, flooring and decoration go in. It is the only route that lets you change where things are.
The whole decision rests on the condition of the cabinets. Much of Stubbington's housing is 1960s to 1980s bungalows and family houses, and many still have kitchens fitted 20 or more years ago. Some of those carcasses are solid 18mm board with years left in them. Others are thin chipboard that has swollen and gone soft.
Empty a few cupboards and look closely before you spend anything.
If the carcasses are dry and rigid, and you are happy with where the sink, hob and oven sit, replacing the visible parts is good value. You get the look of a new kitchen with far less disruption, and the work typically takes around two to four days rather than weeks. The kitchen stays largely usable throughout.
It also suits anyone smartening a property before selling or letting, where the aim is a clean, modern finish rather than a new layout.
Be realistic about the limits. You will still have the same storage, the same awkward corner and the same number of sockets. New worktops also have to follow the existing unit run, so any wall that is out of square stays that way.
Go for a full refit if the layout does not work for you, if several units are water damaged, or if the room needs work behind the cabinets. In older Stubbington and Hill Head properties it is common to find too few sockets, dated wiring, a boiler boxed in awkwardly or plaster that comes away with the old tiles. None of that can be fixed properly with the units still in place.
A refit also makes sense if you want to move the sink, switch from a freestanding cooker to a built in oven and hob, add an island or peninsula, or knock through to a dining room. Expect roughly two to three weeks for a typical kitchen, longer if walls are altered or stone worktops need templating after the units are in.
Prices depend on the size of the kitchen, the materials and what turns up once things are stripped out, so treat these as guide ranges rather than quotes.
For an average sized kitchen locally, new doors, drawer fronts, handles and laminate worktops usually come in somewhere between £2,500 and £5,000 fitted. Choosing quartz or solid wood worktops, or made to measure painted doors, can take that to £6,000 or more. A full refit with mid range units and appliances tends to start around £8,000 and commonly runs to £15,000 or beyond, with electrics, plastering, flooring and worktop choice making the biggest difference.
A useful rule of thumb: if more than about a third of the carcasses need replacing, the saving from keeping the rest shrinks quickly and a full refit usually becomes the better long term spend.
On sound carcasses, good quality doors and worktops should give you 10 to 15 years or more of normal use. The lifespan is usually limited by the old cabinets underneath rather than the new parts.
Usually yes, as long as they are in good working order and fit the existing openings. Integrated appliances need doors sized to match, and a new hob or sink may need the worktop cut to a different size, so check this before ordering.
No, most people stay at home. You will be without a working kitchen for much of the two to three weeks, so it helps to set up a kettle, microwave and fridge in another room.
Call, email or WhatsApp a few photos of the job. We will come back to you with an honest opinion and a clear price.
Lee-on-the-Solent, Gosport, Stubbington, Hill Head, Fareham, Portchester, Warsash and along the Solent coast.