[Jaguar]

Originally Posted by carboy

Modular Kitchen Vendors.
I am looking at vendors for getting modular kitchen cabinets & trolleys.
Looked at 2 people - BP Techno in Sion & Sleek Kitchen in Mulund.
If anyone has any experience with either in terms of quality, price & service, do let me know. Also if you have any other recommendations.

Even I am looking for Modular Kitchens. Also, generally how much time does these guys take to complete the kitchen once you give the order? I enquired at Home Town and they told that it would take them 35 days to manufacture the stuff (after you order) and another 3-4 days for the installation. Is this the norm? I feel 35 days is too long a wait.

[carboy]

Originally Posted by Jaguar

Even I am looking for Modular Kitchens. Also, generally how much time does these guys take to complete the kitchen once you give the order? I enquired at Home Town and they told that it would take them 35 days to manufacture the stuff (after you order) and another 3-4 days for the installation. Is this the norm? I feel 35 days is too long a wait.

Sleek Kitchen takes 3-4 weeks for the manufacture & 3-4 days for the fitting. They have a Tatkaal option but apparently it's peak season now & they aren't accepting Tatkaal orders.

Some tips for people getting a kitchen done
- Avoid MDF. Always go for good quality Marine Ply. Marine Ply is hands down the best wood for the Kitchen. Marine Ply can withstand even boiling water etc - it's very resistant. I had once had a non-branded cheap quality marine ply board which was soaked in water through the year. At the end of the year it was in bad shape but still not totally gone - i.e. I could probably use it for 6 months more if I ignored the look. Some kitchen guys who deal only in MDF will tell you that there are various different grades of MDF & they use only the superior grades. However even cheap marine ply is more resitant than the best MDF.
- Other than resistance, marine ply lends itself to repair much better than MDF. It's more difficult to repair MDF.
- Many years back, all modular kitchen factories used to do only MDF. For a marine ply kitchen, you had to get it done in house by a carpenter. However today most modular kitchen guys can do a marine ply kitchen in their factories.
- Avoid the paper thin laminate some mod kitchen shops use. Go for the postformed 0.8 mm laminate.
- Plan your kitchen well - don't go overboard with the steel stuff (pullouts, wire baskets etc). Have enough simple storage space also (solid drawers, solid cabinets etc). Not every thing can be stored in the wired steel baskets - stuff which will slip through them. You need to go for metaboxes & regular cabinets. Another option which is cheaper than a metabox is possible, if your vendor is flexible to mix factory & carpenter made stuff. He can get marine ply drawers made by his carpenter with just the shutter from the factory. This is cheaper than a metabox.
- If you need kitchen storage at the top which doesn't have any support at the bottom - for eg. above the entrance of my kitchen if you need cabinets. Below the cabinets is the entrance, so there is no support for the cabinets. For this kind of stuff, if you get the frame done by the carpenter & rest at the factory, it will be cheaper than the whole thing at the factory.
- Last but not the least, if you are really on a budget & your house is currently unoccupied, getting the whole thing done by a competent carpenter in house will save you 30% to 50% as compared to a modular kitchen. And this is a good option. A good carpenter can do really good looking & lasting stuff. My kitchen in pune is carpenter done & looks as good as any modular kitchen & has actually fared better than MDF modular kitchens.

Originally Posted by carboy

Question about Gas Stoves. I have an LPG stove which I have been using for 4-5 years with no problem. It's a Pigeon 3 burner with auto-ignition. Now I want to use it with Mahanagar Piped Gas. 2 Mahanagar authorised gas mechanics I talked to gave me 2 different opinions
- one said LPG to CNG conversion usually isn't successfull for auto-ignition models & better to buy a new Mahanager CNG stove from him.
- 2nd guy said he can convert it fully for 900 Rs.

Anyone done a conversion in a auto-ignition model?

Got it done by the 2nd guy. The conversion went fine.
Auto-ignition also works. Only thing that though we can lower the flame, can't take it to the absoulte minimum low flame - the guy had warned us about this before we gave him the order.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by dadu

I would suggest buy a Microwave and OTG separately.

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

...I don't see why we shouldn't buy two units.
Of course, I'd prefer an OTG with a rotisserie.

@ dadu: Well, we took your advice and finally did buy a Samsung microwave - this one: Convection - Microwave Oven | SAMSUNG. The OTG + rotisserie will come later, when some space can be designed to accommodate it.

[Jaguar]

Thanks for such a detailed info Carboy.

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

Our travails with the IFB washing machine is become worse. We had got it in Dec, 2005. By now, we have seen about 3 visits per year, each with a downtime of 2 to 12 days. And quality of service is steadily deteriorating. This time, they paid 4 visits, first to trouble shoot, and were experimenting with replacing random parts.

In desperation, we asked the service guys what price this would fetch. "between 1.5 to 2K sir" came the prompt reply. They insisted that it is not worth a single paisa more.

2 hours and one wash after they left, we find that the locking mechanism of the door is broken.

The AMC is due for renewal soon, and cost of AMC is 2.1K (including taxes).

[benbsb29]

Originally Posted by Jaguar

Even I am looking for Modular Kitchens. Also, generally how much time does these guys take to complete the kitchen once you give the order? I enquired at Home Town and they told that it would take them 35 days to manufacture the stuff (after you order) and another 3-4 days for the installation. Is this the norm? I feel 35 days is too long a wait.

I checked with Johnson Kitchens about their modular kitchens and how long they would take to get the kitchen setup, and the time frame which they mentioned was on similar lines as mentioned above. They even mentioned the stuff is made in Mumbai, and then sent to Bangalore.

Needless to say, the price was way out of my budget for the kitchen specifications which i had given them. Am getting the kitchen made by the carpenter who's doing up the interiors in my apartment. Visited some of his completed projects, and was totally satisfied with the quality of work done.

[dadu]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

@ dadu: Well, we took your advice and finally did buy a Samsung microwave - this one: Convection - Microwave Oven | SAMSUNG. The OTG + rotisserie will come later, when some space can be designed to accommodate it.

wow, 37ltrs is huge and steam cleaning feature is well thought of.

[carboy]

Originally Posted by benbsb29

I checked with Johnson Kitchens about their modular kitchens and how long they would take to get the kitchen setup, and the time frame which they mentioned was on similar lines as mentioned above. They even mentioned the stuff is made in Mumbai, and then sent to Bangalore.

Needless to say, the price was way out of my budget for the kitchen specifications which i had given them. Am getting the kitchen made by the carpenter who's doing up the interiors in my apartment. Visited some of his completed projects, and was totally satisfied with the quality of work done.

I found Sleek Kitchen prices to be very reasonable. They are of course higher than a carpenters prices - but not much higher. It may be a good idea to get a quote from them to compare it with the carpenter's prices.

[benbsb29]

Originally Posted by carboy

I found Sleek Kitchen prices to be very reasonable. They are of course higher than a carpenters prices - but not much higher. It may be a good idea to get a quote from them to compare it with the carpenter's prices.

Thanks for suggesting, Carboy. However, i have already paid the advance to my carpenter, and asked him to get started with the work. Need i also mention i am on a limited budget, coupled with major aspirations.

I did compare the prices which the present guy quoted against 2 other quotes which i had taken, and for the quality of his work, his quote seemed reasonable.

[anku94]

Originally Posted by dadu

wow, 37ltrs is huge and steam cleaning feature is well thought of.

The steam cleaning feature has almost become a standard...I think.

[lambuhere1]

Hi Guys

Does anyone have any idea about the costing of the Front Panel for my LG Washing machine [ front loading ]. Reason for asking the same it, during the spinning mode, it hit the bathroom door and got a small dent on the panel. I am able to use all the functions of the machine. But since I keep all my machines in a beautiful condition, I was exploring if it makes sense to replace the whole front panel.

Some thoughts that are going in my mind are, till date [ from last 3 years ], we didn't face any issues with the machine. It was running flawlessly. If I ask LG for replacement, will they be able to do it perfectly like the factory fitted model. And also will the wiring and all be correct, panels gaps etc.

And is it really worthwhile to change the panel for a dent ? Cost is also a factor I am wondering.

Guys, need help Please

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

lambuji, get dry denting done from your (car's) body shop. For a 3 year old washing machine, I guess keeping the panels in a reasonably good shape is more important than aesthetics. Chances are that you will get the thing flawlessly done.

[dadu]

Originally Posted by lambuhere1

Hi Guys

Does anyone have any idea about the costing of the Front Panel for my LG Washing machine [ front loading ]. Reason for asking the same it, during the spinning mode, it hit the bathroom door and got a small dent on the panel. I am able to use all the functions of the machine. But since I keep all my machines in a beautiful condition, I was exploring if it makes sense to replace the whole front panel.

Some thoughts that are going in my mind are, till date [ from last 3 years ], we didn't face any issues with the machine. It was running flawlessly. If I ask LG for replacement, will they be able to do it perfectly like the factory fitted model. And also will the wiring and all be correct, panels gaps etc.

And is it really worthwhile to change the panel for a dent ? Cost is also a factor I am wondering.

Guys, need help Please

Let it be, dont worry much on the dent part unless its hindering some operations inside.

[lambuhere1]

Originally Posted by BaCkSeAtDrIVeR

lambuji, get dry denting done from your (car's) body shop.

Thanks for the reply. The panel is made of Fibre body and the dent is more like a dent + abrasion. I wonder if the dry denting will work.

More likely, I was wondering on the costing part for a new panel.

Dadu: It hurts to see the damage on the beauty, as I keep all my machines flawlessly neat and clean. Probably, it will take a while for me to get used to it

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

yup - dents on fibre panels look like the villain in a Hindi movie watching the vamp dancing.

Usually, such dents would get back in shape (like your fender / bumpers - got the hint?), and some putty and painting by your friendly neighborhood painter would work - I have not seen the LP machine though.

Changing the panel??? You will have to jump some hoops and several rounds of prayers to get a panel for a 3 year old model. OTOH, I certainly would like to know if LG stocks almost non-moving parts like this panel for a 3 year old model. I am looking at a new machine in the next 12 months.

IFB wants 2.1K as AMC for my 5 year old washing maching, which according to them will fetch between 1.5 and 2 K as exchange. So, it will go out when it breaks down next time.