Installing Your IKEA Kitchen: Should You Do It Yourself?

Harder than the brochure makes it sound

The IKEA brochure tells you that you can do it all yourself, but you don’t have to. That can easily give the impression that a kitchen goes together like an IKEA bed. Let me be honest: it doesn’t.

It’s not a weekend job, and a few screwdrivers and a hammer won’t get you there. Walls that aren’t straight, floors that aren’t level, suspension rails, fillers, cover panels and appliances all need to come together within a millimetre or two.

I’ve seen plenty of IKEA kitchens that were far from acceptable, a few so bad they had to be taken apart and redone from scratch. Most of them were done by a friend, a helpful neighbour or a random handyman who meant well.

That doesn’t mean you can’t do it yourself. It means you should do it with the right preparation, in the right order.

• ✓You have the time: a full kitchen takes days, not a weekend.
• ✓You’re patient with details, and you measure twice.
• ✓You own, or will get, more than a drill and a few hand tools.
• ✓Putting together a bed frame doesn’t take you a whole evening.

If you nodded at all four, you’re a good candidate to do it yourself.

What to watch for when you choose an installer

Finding a good installer isn’t easy. Almost everyone calls themselves a kitchen expert. These are the things I’d look for.