In article ,
Tim Streater wrote:
In article , R D S wrote:

Anyone dealt with Wren?

They've a kitchen I quite like and their online price estimator comes up
with a price that's more than I wanted to spend (standard procedure) but
not shocking.

I'm starting to get that sinking feeling that you get when you tell
someone exactly what you want and they won't tell you how frigging much
it is until you've all become invested in the process.

Someone is coming to take some measurements and then we've to go to the
showroom for a consultation which they reckon will take 2-3 hrs.
It so will NOT!

Yes it will, their software is v. slow. Once the klod has the
measurements then the in-store geezer will be able to design the
kitchen for you - as in, place the units you want, on the plan. You'll
then hum and ha and change your mind, and have to choose between stupid
unit corners or smart ones and what accessories d'ye want and on and
on.

Our kitchen (just over a year old now) was from Wren, but they didn't
install it, we got our own bloke to do that. He also removed the old
kitchen, removed the floors and ceiling, repaired the walls, installed
some studwork, a new rad, did all the pipework, replaced some rotten
floor joists, put a new floor down (properly [1]) using 22mm (?)
chipboard, organised Amtico for the floor, which had to run through
from the conservatory and so be at the same level, put new ceilings up
and light fittings, plastered the walls, built out underneath an RSJ
that crosses the kitchen so that the units didn't extend beyond the
pillars under the RSJ (that looked SO naff in the old kitchen [2]), did
some architrave work round a door or two ...

... and only THEN installed the new kitchen.

[1] the old floor didn't extend to the walls in some places. Hidden by
the units of course, but it did mean that the kitchen got ****ing COLD
in winter with a northerly.

[2] when our bloke took the plasterboard off the pillars supporting the
RSJ, we discovered the remnants of a beautiful 1930's brick arch that
the previous owners had obviously smashed to try to put the two halves
of the kitchen into one room.

Now - Wren. They delivered when they said they would, but as we did not
know how long the work I listed above would take, had to take delivery
somewhat early in the job cycle. It was then a good five months before
our chap could install it, so Wren got a bit snippy about supplying one
or two missing bits due to the six month delay. But a word to our
in-store person and the bits then arrived by return of post.

My verdict, all in all: good.

We knew there's be a lot of extra work doing, which is why we used our
trusty local bloke, who does good work.

Our kitchen saga is't quite as long. It being DIY, I did all the work
myself. We'd orderd froma supplier, now vanished, obtained the 'white
goods' from source like Exchange & Mart (this was 1989) and I stripped out
the kitchen and started re-wiring to put power sockets in useful places. I
found it was taking forever to chase the walls for the cables. I then
collaped into bed; three days later, I was in hopital with legionella. I
started putting theb kitchen together a month later.

--
from KT24 in Surrey, England
"I'd rather die of exhaustion than die of boredom" Thomas Carlyle