Measuring up a DIY kitchen (without paying for a remake)

If your cut list is wrong, everything else is downstream of that. Here’s how to measure a kitchen accurately the first time.

Measure at three heights

Walls are rarely plumb. Floors are rarely level. The top and bottom of a wall run are often 10–15mm different, and that gap is where expensive mistakes live.

Always measure wall-to-wall at three heights: floor level (to size your kicker), 900mm (to size your base cabinets), and ceiling level (to size your overheads and bulkheads). Record all three. Use the smallest number when cutting cabinetry.

Mark every service point

Power, gas, water, waste, ventilation, data. Measure the exact position (from a fixed reference point) and the height above the floor. Take photos with a tape measure in frame. Send these to us with your cut list.

The three most common surprises we see: dishwashers that don’t line up with their waste, ovens with cords too short to reach the nearest power point, rangehoods where the ducting path wasn’t considered before the cabinet above was ordered.

The three mistakes we see every week

1. Forgetting the cornice or bulkhead. A 3000mm tall wall is actually 2950mm available cabinet height if you have a 50mm bulkhead. Easy to forget when you’re excited about the job.
2. Not accounting for skirting. If the existing skirting is staying, your base cabinets need to be cut 15–20mm shorter so the kicker sits neatly against the wall. Measure behind the skirting if you can.
3. Ignoring the ceiling slope. Slab ceilings in new builds are usually flat. Timber-frame homes often have a 10–30mm fall across a 6m room. A bulkhead filler panel hides it; an exact-size overhead cabinet does not.

What to send us

• Wall dimensions at three heights (floor / 900mm / ceiling)
• A rough plan view with service points marked
• Photos of each wall with tape measures visible
• Photos of any unusual features (existing plumbing, bulkheads, bay windows)
• Your chosen finishes: board brand, decor code, handle style

Send that through the portal or email it to [email protected]. Your quote will be back inside one business day, and the production team will have already spotted anything that looks off.

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