What Does a Kitchen Installation Contractor Actually Do in London?

Many London homeowners order a kitchen from a supplier — IKEA, Wren, Howdens, or a bespoke joinery company — then turn to a contractor to fit it. What happens next is often less clear than expected. This guide explains every trade involved in a full kitchen installation and what each one does.

The Scope of a Full Kitchen Installation

A complete kitchen installation in London is a multi-trade project. The main elements are:

1. Structural Works (if required)

If the kitchen involves a wall removal, new opening, or structural extension, this comes first. Structural steel installation, temporary supports, and making good around new openings all precede any kitchen work. Skipping this or sequencing it wrong (fitting a kitchen before the steelwork is complete) is the most common cause of kitchen installation delays.

2. First Fix Plumbing

Before units are installed, a plumber extends or relocates the water supply and waste pipework to the positions the new kitchen requires. This includes:

• Cold water supply to sink and dishwasher
• Hot water supply to sink (where separate from mixer tap)
• Waste pipework (typically 32mm or 40mm pipe runs to the soil stack or gulley)
• Gas supply relocation (if the hob position is changing)
• Boiler relocation (if required as part of the kitchen redesign)

First fix plumbing is done before the floor and walls are finished, so pipes can be buried in the floor screed or chased into the wall.

3. First Fix Electrics

The electrician runs all cable routes before walls are plastered and floors are laid:

• Ring main sockets for worktop appliances
• Dedicated circuits for oven, hob (if induction), dishwasher, fridge-freezer
• Under-cabinet lighting circuit
• Downlight or ceiling light circuit
• Extraction fan wiring
• Boiler or heating system connections if the boiler is in the kitchen

4. Plastering and Substrate Preparation

After first fix, any chased cables, removed walls, and altered surfaces are re-plastered or re-boarded. The substrate (the surface behind the kitchen units and tiles) must be flat, level, and dry before units are installed. Inadequate substrate preparation is a common cause of unit alignment problems and tile adhesion failure.

5. Flooring

In most London kitchen installations, the floor is laid before the units (rather than under the units) for practical and aesthetic reasons:

• Allows future unit replacement without floor work
• Cleaner finish at kick-plate level
• Easier to maintain and clean

The floor surface (tile, stone, LVT, or engineered wood) is the client-supplied element in RCB's standard scope.

6. Kitchen Unit Installation

The cabinet installation phase — often described loosely as "fitting the kitchen" — includes:

• Wall unit installation (fixing to solid wall or plywood backing rail)
• Floor unit installation (levelling, shimming, scribing to floor)
• Tall unit installation (larder, fridge surround, tower units)
• Worktop templating and installation (stone worktops are template-measured and cut off-site; laminate and solid timber are cut on site)
• Sink and hob cut-outs
• Door and drawer adjustment
• Cornice, pelmet, and panel installation

A skilled kitchen fitter is a specialist carpenter — the work involves precise setting out, careful levelling on potentially uneven Victorian floors, scribing to walls that are rarely plumb, and tight tolerance assembly of pre-manufactured components.

7. Second Fix Plumbing

Once units are in position:

• Sink is connected to supply and waste
• Dishwasher supply and waste is connected
• Gas hob connection (gas-safe registered engineer)
• Boiler final connections (if relocated)

8. Second Fix Electrics

• Sockets and switches installed and connected
• Appliances connected (oven, hob, hood)
• Under-cabinet lighting connected
• Downlights installed and connected
• Part P notification (or sign-off by a registered electrician)

9. Tiling

Wall tiles — typically a splashback behind the hob and sometimes full-height tiling to the cooking and preparation zones — are fitted after units and worktops are in position. The tile cutter works around the worktops, sockets, and electrical plates already in position.

10. Appliance Installation and Testing

Built-in appliances — oven, microwave, dishwasher, fridge-freezer — are installed and tested. Integrated appliances (behind cabinet doors) require careful door alignment with the unit doors.

11. Snagging and Handover

Final alignment check, touch-up to paintwork around the kitchen, cleaning, and client handover. Instruction manuals and appliance warranties should be provided.

Why Sequencing Matters

The trades above must follow a specific sequence — first fix before plastering, plastering before flooring, flooring before units, units before second fix. Contractors who try to rush this sequence by overlapping trades create expensive problems: plastering over socket boxes that have not been checked, tiling before worktops are confirmed, or connecting services before units are plumb and level.

RCB manages kitchen installations as a coordinated sequence, with one point of contact managing all trades and a defined programme for each stage.

What the Client Is Responsible For

In RCB's standard scope, clients supply:

• All kitchen units and hardware (ordered with sufficient lead time for delivery to site at the right programme stage)
• All appliances
• Worktops (templating is carried out by our installer or the worktop fabricator after units are positioned)
• Flooring
• Tiles and tile adhesive
• Taps, waste fittings, and plumbing hardware

Procurement timing is critical — units and appliances should be confirmed on site before first fix trades complete their work, so final positions are known.

RCB Design & Build

RCB manages full kitchen installations as a coordinated multi-trade project. We sequence all trades, manage the programme, and deliver a complete kitchen from stripped space to fully connected, decorated finish. Contact us to discuss your kitchen project.