Ikea kitchens and bathrooms -- pros/cons/warnings/raves?

[lhamo]

I've got some renovations pending on my new to me home, and I'm contemplating going the Ikea route for kitchen and bathroom cabinets.  I'm working with a design/build company so will see what other options they recommend, but am generally aiming for moderate cost, durable and not trendy.  Drawn to the Hemnes line for the bathrooms (I have purchased quite a few hemnes pieces both in China and in the US and like the style) and the Sektion Enkoping style for the kitchen.  Both in white.

https://www.ikea.com/us/en/rooms/kitchen/enkoeping-white-kitchen-guide-pub20810b70

Just curious if others have gone the Ikea route in recent remodels and what advice/warnings they would offer.

[BNgarden]

We used Godmorgon Odensvik vanity and Godmorgon wall hung and high cabinets in bathrooms.  Different finish (whitewashed oak?) available then.  Really high durability, good interior space.  I like them.  Not sure whether something else would be cheaper.

[Ladychips]

I know nothing about IKEA cabinets, but did want to say congratulations on the new (to you) house!

[merula]

I installed a Hemnes/Rattviken sink/cabinet with a Hamnskar faucet in 2017. The sink and cabinet are so far holding up pretty well, but there are a number of things I'm unhappy about:

-Ikea plumbing is highly non-standard. I had to make several hardware store runs for the initial installation, and trying to solve various issues that have cropped up over time has been.... challenging. I'm also told that none of the plumbing is up to code in my area.

-The Hamnskar faucet has a "cold start" function where, when the lever is centered only cold water comes out in order to save energy. Personally, it drove me batty. Because of this feature, the lever doesn't open evenly on both sides; you can turn it 90 degrees to the left to get full hot water, or about 30 degrees to the right.

-The Hamnskar faucet started leaking from the lever about 3 years into its life, which is incredibly disappointing for one of the nicer Ikea ones ($110). It doesn't have a replaceable cartridge, but I was able to find a new faucet from Home Depot this time for ~$90 that I've been much happier with. (If only they'd had the style I wanted back in 2017.) However, this also involved a couple of hardware store trips to undo the customization to Ikea plumbing and switch back to standard.

-Both the sink and the Hamnskar faucet came with a sink stopper. Normal replacement sink stoppers don't work with Ikea plumbing because of the low-profile drain design that allows the top drawer to work. One of the stoppers lasted about 2 years and the other is probably on its last legs. I'm hoping to beg a replacement part from Ikea the next time I go as the alternative is $40 on eBay (https://www.ebay.com/itm/176035543554)

-At least once a year I have to adjust the Hemnes drawers because they get out of alignment. I have no idea why. This might be my children messing with them, or it could be that they just don't stay flush with the cabinet for as long as they should.

My bathroom is pretty small and Ikea had the size vanity I needed at a decent price point, but if I had to do it over again I would've looked harder at other options.

[DirtDiva]

The condo we bought in 2015 (built in 2006) has an Ikea kitchen with extensive cabinetry.  It looks fabulous, good as new, with no sagging, drawer problems, or issues with finish.  Two thumbs up.

Edited to add- the plumbing is not Ikea- just the cabinets.

[scantee]

I have a Godmorgon bathroom vanity installed four years ago. Went with Semihandmade fronts in Walnut. I’m very happy with it, no regrets or complaints. It’s held up very well even though the bathroom is smallish and used by teenagers. My experience has been good enough that I am definitely considering using Ikea for an upcoming kitchen remodel. I would likely go with custom fronts again although maybe with a different manufacturer next time just due to greater variety.

[sonofsven]

I haven't installed anything Ikea in a long time, but their kitchen base cabinet leg adjusters are genius, especially for out of level old floors.
I got a call from a fellow carpenter a long time ago to help install kitchen cabinets for one of his clients. We said sure, time and materials, and he left the key under the mat.
We opened the door to find 100's of flat pack cardboard boxes: our introduction to Ikea "WTH? WHERE'S THE CABINETS? OHHH."

[Fru-Gal]

We redid our kitchen in our 100-year-old house 23 years ago with IKEA cabinets. They’re still great. Last year I painted/spray painted (outside) them all and love the new look.

[BNgarden]

Adding: yeah, we bought IKEA faucet for one vanity and there were issues with being metric / different from local options, and there was leaking from one (the hot?) handle.  It was a while back so I don't recall what plumber said specifically.

We didn't have much trouble using a different option (but we use plumbers due to DH complete refusal to do plumbing jobs LOL).

[Sanitary Stache]

We bought IKEA section base cabinets with matching door style for the kitchen. We are happy so far. We bought them in stages over 7years and were glad they didn’t change anything about the style. Shipping is expensive to us so we made little mini vacations of driving to nearby cities to buy our cabinets.

We did our own plumbing and chose our own handles.

I like the hardware and door style so much I built my own custom pantry and laundry boxes and just bought the ikea hardware and the door to match the rest of the cabinets.

I have moved cabinets around a couple times to accommodate a new stove and additional counter top space. So I would say they are versatile.

[rockeTree]

Complete Ikea kitchen in my old place in 2007 or 2008, I know the current owner and it still looks great. As others have noted the faucet both sucked and was hard to replace. Dishwasher is I am told getting cranky. Otherwise no problems of any sort, dirt cheap. Get the under-counter drawers!

[Dictionary Time]

I used to want one, but…

A co worker had so much trouble with them this past year. Sending the wrong thing, crucial parts out of stock (but not disclosed until they just didn’t arrive), such a run around. The customer service and fulfillment was an ordeal for her, I think it took an extra six months. They couldn’t do the counter/sink because of a missing bottom piece.

Good luck though!!

[lhamo]

Thanks for all the feedback!  The supply chain issues are a big concern for me.  There is a local semi-custom cabinet company that my designer and contractor both use a lot that may end up being a better option.  I may also be able to keep the boxes for much of the current kitchen cabinets and just put on new doors to freshen them up a bit.  Still waiting on the initial design plan. 

[sonofsven]

Thanks for all the feedback!  The supply chain issues are a big concern for me.  There is a local semi-custom cabinet company that my designer and contractor both use a lot that may end up being a better option.  I may also be able to keep the boxes for much of the current kitchen cabinets and just put on new doors to freshen them up a bit.  Still waiting on the initial design plan.

I use a local cabinet designer that orders from an in state cabinet shop that delivers right to the jobsite. The order is only as good as the person that designed and ordered it. If there's any mistakes in size or missing parts it could lead to big delays.
As a professional if someone wanted to do an IKEA kitchen I'd be wary. As a DIY option they make sense. Someone has to spend the time to get the order right.

[iris lily]

DH has installed 2 IKEA kitchens and he said the cabinetry is decent quality.

[NorthernIkigai]

We had an Ikea kitchen installed many years ago in a tiny kitchen. I loved being able to plan it using their online service (but maybe you can do this everywhere now). The only thing that wasn’t so good was the worktop: we wanted a specific colour, which was only available in the cheapest material, and it got scratched quite badly relatively quickly.