Kitchen renovations in Adelaide

What a kitchen renovation can include

A full renovation replaces everything from the floor up, and most kitchen businesses manage the whole job, including the trades. Depending on your kitchen, that can mean:

• Design and drawings, so you can see the layout before anything is ordered
• Removing the old kitchen and making good the walls and floor
• Custom cabinetry with soft-close drawers, pantry fit-outs and integrated bins
• Benchtops, a splashback, a new sink and tapware
• Supply and installation of appliances, including integrated fridges and dishwashers
• Plumbing, gas and electrical work by licensed trades, including new lighting and power points

Full renovation or partial update?

If the cabinet boxes are sound and the layout works, new doors, a new benchtop and a new splashback can make an old kitchen look new for a fraction of the cost. If the layout fights you, the cabinets are swollen from water, or the kitchen is more than 25 years old, a full renovation usually makes more sense. A good kitchen builder will tell you honestly which camp you're in.

Layouts that work in Adelaide homes

Galley kitchens suit cottages, townhouses and apartments, where two parallel runs make the most of a narrow space. L-shaped and U-shaped kitchens are the workhorses of post-war and 1970s–90s homes. Island kitchens are the most requested layout when a wall comes out between the kitchen and the living area. In larger homes, a butler's pantry or scullery behind the main kitchen keeps the mess, the appliances and the dishes out of sight.

Renovating a character home

Adelaide's villas and cottages bring their own challenges. Salt damp is common in older stone and brick walls and needs to be dealt with before new cabinetry goes in. Many character homes sit in Historic Area Overlays, which mostly control what you can see from the street, so most kitchens end up in a rear extension that opens onto the garden. High ceilings are a bonus: full-height cabinetry and a rangehood that suits the room can look excellent.

Plan for the surprises

Older homes often hide old wiring, a switchboard that needs upgrading, uneven floors or asbestos in homes built before 1990. Keep 10 to 15 percent of your budget aside for whatever is behind the old kitchen.