Kitchen refit sites sink short of ideal

By CHRIS BARTON

We've been thinking about fixing up our kitchen for about 10 years.

But the prospect of trekking around kitchen showrooms to find the right benchtop, sink and cupboard handles has caused a lengthy procrastination.

The cost and the enormous hassle of making a kitchen happen were other deterrents.

Surely the internet can make such a daunting task not just easier, but also a pleasure?

On the web I'll find in a flash those dinky drawer shelves I've always thought a good replacement for under-bench cupboards.

I'll leaf at will through online catalogues to find just the right cabinets and finishes. I'll take 3D virtual tours around the latest in ovens and stoves.

Best of all, I'll design my kitchen on the web, see a 3D model of my handiwork, chat online with a kitchen design expert and submit the whole thing for an e-mail quote.

Unfortunately, this sort of virtual reality remains the stuff of a virtual future - the sort of scenario painted by computer companies to convince us how their products and the internet will change our lives for the better.

But there are some signs of this brave new world here and now.

At Dream Kitchens I could design a kitchen online and get a floor plan and perspective views of what it would look like.

Great, except it is a United States site and everything was in feet and inches. It also followed a fairly inflexible template, ruling out unusual spaces and curves.

A similar design-by-numbers approach can be found using 20 20 Technologies' online system - although I was unable to get through on both to a finished design.

After selecting my fridge placement I kept getting an unhelpful "no room available" message.

Budding architects may want to explore the kitchen section of FloorPlan.com and its 15 kitchen layouts with architectural drawings and 3D views.

You can even download a free version of Floor Plan 3D Design Suite software to try your hand at computer-aided design (Cad). Be warned, however, that the software is a hefty 18Mb, which will take about 50 minutes to download over a dial-up modem.

The step-by-step question and answer process at Kitchens.com's interactive kitchen guide is also illuminating. There, I learned about countertop trends: "Stone is still very popular. Granite has been around for a while, but other stones are coming into play," says certified kitchen designer Jennifer Gilmer.

"Jerusalem stone looks like a limestone but it's not as soft and porous. People love limestone but they're afraid of red wine or tomato sauce staining it."

After the design basics are worked out, the next step is to choose the appliances, cabinets and fittings that are right for you.

Rather than helping here, the web opens up such a range of options that it is easy to be swamped with choice - especially if you extend your browsing to American sites.

At Kitchen Sink Store for example, the sink array is overwhelming.

But any virtual-kitchen odyssey will find visits to US sites vital - not just for ideas, but also to see their use of internet technology.

A good starting point is the directory at Google.

What is evident on many US sites is the effort kitchen vendors are making to engage customers through the internet - an effort sadly lacking in New Zealand.

Where to make your choice


Websites that catalogue appliances, sinks and taps are mostly well organised and informative.

All that's missing is the opportunity to buy these big ticket items online. It would help, too, if there was more use of zoom-in views and 3D imagery.

But the sites do take a bit of finding. A great place to start is Home Ideas which has a huge range of appliance brands in one place.

I also found the Spectel site very useful. Its industry links provide a great resource for tracking down local manufacturers.

Ovens, cooktops, fridges, dishwashers, rangehoods


Fisher and Paykel - easy to navigate and has good pictures and information. Prices would be helpful.

Applico Group- excellent online catalogue of Smeg, Classique, St George and Viking appliances. Includes price lists and store locator.

Sinks and tapware


Methven - pictures of Methven taps plus technical information for installation

Reginox - stainless steel sinks, related accessories and tapware - 50 models of sink to select from.

In Residence Atriflo - solid brass taps and Armitage Shanks fireclay sinks.

Stylus - Karran colour and stainless steel sinks plus taps and mixers.

Other:


Austral - handles in rimu, tawa, kauri, matai, jarrah, pine, oak and mahogany. Metal finishes in black nickel, chrome, satin nickel, satin chrome, gold, antique bronze and powder coated colours.

Zepter - stainless steel kitchen utensils.

Crosbie Stainless Steel - stainless steel benches

Slate and Stone Centre - Nevada slate benchtops - scant on information.

Links:


Dreat Kitchens

Kitchen Ideas

Mill's Pride

FloorPlan

Kitchens.com

Kitchen Sink Store

Google directory

Home Ideas

Spectel

Fisher & Paykel

Applico Group

Methven

Reginox

In Residence Atriflo

Stylus

Austral

Zepter

Crosbie Stainless Steel

Slate and Stone Centre