Kitchen Renovation

Keeping the sink, hob and hood where the pipes, gas and duct already run keeps the work to new cabinets, the worktop and appliances. Moving them is what adds cost, because each moved fitting brings its own work, such as a water supply and a waste pipe for a sink, a gas pipe or a power supply that can carry an induction hob for a hob, and a new duct out of the house for a ducted hood. Each of those means opening walls or floor and making them good again. A separate wet kitchen adds a set of these for every sink, hob or appliance you duplicate, which is why it costs more than its extra cabinets. A price per foot run covers the cabinets alone, and our look at per-foot wardrobe quotes shows what that kind of carpentry price can leave out.

A carpenter, or a kitchen cabinet contractor, can make and fit the cabinets, which is the part of the job that carpentry and built-ins covers. The pipes, wiring and gas behind the cabinets are different work. PUB requires a Licensed Plumber for regulated plumbing, such as laying or altering water pipes and relocating sanitary piping, though its list of simple works a handyman may do includes installing or replacing a sink with its trap. EMA says electrical work at home should be carried out or supervised by a Licensed Electrical Worker, which covers new sockets for an oven, dishwasher or island. For a gas hob, EMA's advice is to engage a Licensed Gas Service Worker for any gas service work. So if you hire a kitchen carpenter, ask who is doing the plumbing, wiring and gas, and who is responsible for each.

We can't give you a number of weeks until the scope is set. These are the things that decide how long you're without a kitchen. The cabinets and worktop can't be made until the appliance models and final measurements are fixed, so a late change of oven or hob holds them up; an appliance schedule settles the models early. Moving the sink or hob means new pipes, wiring or gas before the cabinets go in, and new floor tiles or waterproofing in a wet kitchen can need drying time. EMA's advice is to have City Energy cut off the piped gas before renovation work starts, so a gas hob is out of use from the first day. If a wall comes out or the kitchen is extended, any approval it needs comes first. Ask for the days without water, a sink and cooking to be marked on the programme, not only the finish date.

Cutting into a wall or beam, or enclosing part of the yard or porch to make the kitchen bigger, is building work that can need plans approved. BCA says private owners may be required to submit building or structural plans for approval, though some minor building works are exempt. Its advice is to engage a Qualified Person, a registered architect or professional engineer, to advise on the clearances needed from BCA and other authorities such as URA, and to consult the QP when in doubt. Approval is separate from who may do the work. New water pipes are Licensed Plumber work under PUB's rules, and new wiring should be done or supervised by a Licensed Electrical Worker under EMA's guidance. For a kitchen extension, read what A&A works mean for a landed house.

A wet kitchen is the closed one, behind a door or glass screen, for frying, wok cooking and washing up; a dry kitchen is the open one near the dining area for preparing food and drinks and serving. A separate wet kitchen is worth it if you fry or wok-cook often enough to want the smoke and grease shut away, and every sink, hob or appliance you put in both needs its own pipes, power, gas or duct. The kitchen guide goes through whether a separate wet kitchen is worth it for your cooking.

For a gas hob and regular wok frying, choose a hood that ducts the air outside. Miele's hood guide says an extraction hood should be installed where possible above gas cooktops, lists frequent wok, grill or deep-fat frying among the cooking it suits, and notes that with a recirculating hood the moisture generally stays in the room. It also says extraction needs a supply of fresh air, such as an open window, and that air throughput depends on the type and diameter of the ducting. Bosch's installation advice likewise is to keep a window open near the hob in extractor mode, and to keep the space between the hood and the wall sleeve, where the duct passes through the outside wall, as small as possible to prevent performance losses; if that distance is too far, it recommends a recirculating hood instead. So a hob near an outside wall is worth planning for, and the duct's way out needs agreeing before the wall cabinets are drawn. The ducted and recirculating hood comparison goes through the choice for a landed kitchen.

Around the sink, dishwasher and hob, we recommend plywood or an aluminium or stainless steel carcass. Formica's guide to the boards under its laminates says MDF and particleboard perform reliably in dry, controlled conditions and that plywood can offer more strength, screw-holding and resistance to humidity, though it rates plywood only marginal as a base for bonding its own laminates. A metal carcass doesn't soak up water, so a slow leak under the sink can't swell it the way it can swell a board, but it won't keep water off the wall or floor behind. Whatever the board, ask for sealed edges and a removable panel to reach the pipes under the sink, because the same maker's care advice warns that water flooding laminate near seams can make the board underneath swell. The kitchen guide explains how to choose cabinets for the wet side.

Choose by how you cook, because each maker sets its own heat rules. Caesarstone asks owners to always put hot items on a trivet or heat pad on its quartz. Cosentino says its Dekton sintered stone is designed to withstand hot saucepans and frying pans, but still recommends mats for longer periods, especially on its 4 and 8 mm slabs. For granite and other natural stone, the Natural Stone Institute says many stones can withstand heat but recommends trivets or mats, and that sealing makes stone more stain resistant rather than stain proof, while many stones may not need sealing at all. So in a wet kitchen, decide where a hot wok lands before choosing the slab, and ask the supplier for the exact product's care sheet. The worktop care article compares the routines before you choose.

You can, but each move adds work behind the cabinets. A moved sink needs a new water supply and a waste pipe that falls all the way to a drain, which can mean opening the floor or building a low platform for the pipe to run under. New water pipes are Licensed Plumber work under PUB's rules, unlike swapping a sink in the same place. A hob on an island needs gas or power brought out to the middle of the room and somewhere for the cooking air to go; for that, Bosch lists island chimney hoods that hang from the ceiling and venting hobs with the fan built into the hob. New wiring for an induction hob or oven should be carried out or supervised by a Licensed Electrical Worker, and a gas pipe to a moved hob goes to a Licensed Gas Service Worker under EMA's advice. Settle all of this before the cabinets are made.

Other rooms can stay in use while the kitchen is done, but the kitchen itself won't be. EMA's advice is to have City Energy cut off the piped gas before renovation work starts, and the water may be shut off for a time while new pipes are connected. Before work starts, decide where the fridge, a kettle and microwave, and the washing up will go, away from the dust. With a wet and a dry kitchen, ask whether the two can be rebuilt one after the other, so one keeps a counter, the fridge and a working socket.