Integrated kitchen appliances or not?

Sorry for the delay in responding, we have been in town all day with our DGD. It sounds as though it depends on your own preference with very little trouble in replacing, other than the cost which we will look into.

Thanks again everyone.

We've replaced both hob and oven in our fitted kitchen - at least twice. The original fridge is holding up and the washing machine has been replaced a couple of times, but that just slots in under the worktop behind a matching door.

The replacements caused no real problems in fitting (having measured the apertures and bought accordingly, although the current hob needed the hole in the worktop adjusted slightly.

I much prefer having the hob and oven integrated to having a free-standing oven.

We had integrated washing machine and dishwasher when kitchen was done, admittedly ages ago now.
But when we had to replace them, we didn’t bother - they were so much more expensive. Plus one of the matching panels had been damaged and that style of panel was no longer available.

When dd was re-doing her kitchen not long ago and asked my opinion, I said I wouldn’t bother, esp. since cost is always going to be a factor. And she didn’t - but her kitchen is a very slightly off-white anyway so white appliances blend in well

Our kitchen was put in about 15 years ago (and is still in very good condition), and all our appliances are integrated - cooker, 'fridge, freezer, dishwasher - and so far they are all still in good working order. The only thing we've had to replace in 15 years has been the waste disposal unit, and my husband did that.

Thanks all for taking the time to reply. I think we are swaying towards all appliances being integrated but you do read some horror stories at times. I guess everyone has bad experiences with white goods however, whether or not they are integrated.

grannysue05 thanks that's re-assuring. It is exciting picking everything out. Just hope the estimate is reasonable .

Well, I have a fully integrated kitchen in my apartment so I have no choice, unless I rip it all out! It does look neater, but I’ve had to replace my fridge and freezer, and they were lots more expensive than stand- alone ones. So, if cost is important, look at having some appliances stand-alone.

Depends which appliances you're talking about, my dishwasher has been replaced a few times without any problems. My washing machine and tumble dryer are both in the utility room so no problem. We had an integrated fridge freezer in a previous house and the only issue was because it has to fit inside a unit it's smaller and more expensive than a bog standard fridge freezer. No problems with any of them going wrong and being fixed etc.

In my opinion, integrated appliances do look really good especially in a small kitchen but from personal experience, it did cost more to replace when broken down and I slowly changed mine back to stand alone.

If eg a washing machine had to be replaced, Currys men or whoever did not want to know and dumped it in the middle of the kitchen and I had to find somebody to do the necessary work.

Hello lovingit.

We changed to a fully fitted kitchen several years ago and have never looked back. We previously had free standing appliances etc.

One big benefit it the height of the built in oven and microwave. No more bending to lift things in and out, and a lot safer.
Handy tip .... opt for a self cleaning oven. Worth its weight in gold.

So far no problem with servicing. The appliances slide out of the housing should they need attention.

Have lots of fun choosing your new kitchen.