Floor tiles around fitted kitchen? karndean?

[Boom78]

Hi guys,
I’m about to start on renovating my kitchen but need some guidance, the kitchen cabinets/units are fitted really well so planning to keep them but paint them by hand with a good primer and eggshell. New quartz worktop/upstands, sink, tap and handles will be added. The only thing I can’t get my head around is the flooring.

Currently we have some Matt black floor tiles but we hate them, they always look dirty and very dated. For ease I was thinking of laying karndean rigid core vinyl plank over them but it feels like a ‘get out’, I would prefer limestone or porcelain tiles but…

- the kitchen including the range is laid on top of the current black tiles
- whilst the plinths can can off (to help removal of old and instal of new) some of the end panels are locked in place (sandwiched) between units a bit like this:



Is it possible to rip out the old and get new tiles put in? How would a tiler get around these ‘fixed’ panels? Is karndean actually a decent idea?

[theposhboy]

To achieve a decent finish that's a kitchen out job, do the floor and reinstall. Trying to dig out tiles inplace will risk the end panels getting butchered and trying to lay a tile under it will.never end well.

[Lefty]

Funny we were just looking at karndean yesterday and picked up a catalogue for a very similar reason - we put in a new kitchen over ceramic tiles last year and have the same problem. We actually went to look at amtico but I wasn’t particularly impressed with it. The Karndean stuff seems good quality and I like that the vinyl tiles are individual pieces and a huge range of patterns, colours, sizes etc gives you almost infinite possibilities. Seems reasonably easy to work with.

It’s expensive though and I think what we really want is stone and anything else will be second best (and karndean not much cheaper) so i think we’ll end up going down that route.

[RicksAlfas]

We had porcelain tiles in our kitchen and had Karndean laid over the top. The installers used a self levelling screed first. We couldn't move the cooker and a corner seat so they just cut up to them. It's a very good flooring as it is much warmer than our old tiles and not as slippy when wet. It has worn extremely well. Only disappointment has been in the glazed porch where it has faded in the sunlight.

[troika]

We re about to re do a kitchen. Have had karndean and amtico in the past, and the current quickstep alpha range of solid floor is head and shoulders better in terms of finish.