How often would you replace
Discussion
I’m looking ahead and trying to get a sense of how often people typically refurbish or replace things in their homes.
My house is all fairly new at the moment, but I know over time things will start to wear out or go out of style etc and I’d like to stay on top of maintenance rather than let it all pile up.
I’m thinking of things like flooring, kitchen and bathrooms, repainting, windows, even white goods and furniture.
My house is all fairly new at the moment, but I know over time things will start to wear out or go out of style etc and I’d like to stay on top of maintenance rather than let it all pile up.
I’m thinking of things like flooring, kitchen and bathrooms, repainting, windows, even white goods and furniture.
marksx said:
When it's broken and can't be fixed. But I'm a tight Yorkshireman 
Haha. Probably the best way!!My thoughts were..
Kitchen and bathrooms ideally every 10 years but max 15 years
Painting and decorating I was hoping 10 years but now I m thinking 5 to 10 years grrr
Carpets between 5 and 10 years. Probably follow the redecorating
The wooden windows and boards seem to be a bit tatty already so 3 to 5 years
White goods and furniture hopefully 10 years
Boiler.. fingers crossed 15 years.
When the mrs says so.
If you don t have a mrs and aren t trying to impress anyone kitchens and bathrooms last decades.
Window frames are worth maintaining if they need it. Boiler when it fails and isn t economical to repair.
I’ve got a midrange carpet that’s 10+ years old. I clean it with a diy wet vacuum. It’s had a lot of traffic but still looks ok.
If you don t have a mrs and aren t trying to impress anyone kitchens and bathrooms last decades.
Window frames are worth maintaining if they need it. Boiler when it fails and isn t economical to repair.
I’ve got a midrange carpet that’s 10+ years old. I clean it with a diy wet vacuum. It’s had a lot of traffic but still looks ok.
Puzzles said:
marksx said:
When it's broken and can't be fixed. But I'm a tight Yorkshireman
Haha. Probably the best way!!My thoughts were..
Kitchen and bathrooms ideally every 10 years but max 15 years
Painting and decorating I was hoping 10 years but now I m thinking 5 to 10 years grrr
Carpets between 5 and 10 years. Probably follow the redecorating
The wooden windows and boards seem to be a bit tatty already so 3 to 5 years
White goods and furniture hopefully 10 years
Boiler.. fingers crossed 15 years.
All your numbers seem way off actually!
marksx said:
When it's broken and can't be fixed. But I'm a tight Yorkshireman
Ditto people bang on about their environmental credentials yet move houses and 'refresh' alot. I know many people who feel the need to move every 5years and work on every house. A sort of 'trying to avoid what's boring in their relationship by distraction '...
Puzzles said:
Way off. What would you do then?
We ve already been 3 years and it doesn t need redecorating now, but it s certainly got a few marks.
I don’t think you need to plan ahead. Just address stuff when it needs it. We ve already been 3 years and it doesn t need redecorating now, but it s certainly got a few marks.
Our kitchen has had 3 redecs in 15 years but same actual kitchen for ex.
Badda said:
Why max 15 years for a kitchen? Also decorating 10 years? More like 3.
All your numbers seem way off actually!
My thoughts exactly.All your numbers seem way off actually!
Our kitchen and bathroom are 15 and 12 years respectively, and both still look great. Reckon they have at least 10 years left in them.
On the other hand, paint, especially in high traffic areas can look tired even after a year or two. Spending a couple of days with a tin on paint can transform a room. A very economical way of keeping a room fresh.
Puzzles said:
marksx said:
When it's broken and can't be fixed. But I'm a tight Yorkshireman
Haha. Probably the best way!!My thoughts were..
Kitchen and bathrooms ideally every 10 years but max 15 years
Painting and decorating I was hoping 10 years but now I m thinking 5 to 10 years grrr
Carpets between 5 and 10 years. Probably follow the redecorating
The wooden windows and boards seem to be a bit tatty already so 3 to 5 years
White goods and furniture hopefully 10 years
Boiler.. fingers crossed 15 years.
Badda said:
Puzzles said:
marksx said:
When it's broken and can't be fixed. But I'm a tight Yorkshireman
Haha. Probably the best way!!My thoughts were..
Kitchen and bathrooms ideally every 10 years but max 15 years
Painting and decorating I was hoping 10 years but now I m thinking 5 to 10 years grrr
Carpets between 5 and 10 years. Probably follow the redecorating
The wooden windows and boards seem to be a bit tatty already so 3 to 5 years
White goods and furniture hopefully 10 years
Boiler.. fingers crossed 15 years.
All your numbers seem way off actually!
I have no intention of replacing our kitchen ever.
Puzzles said:
Maybe I m off with the painting, but there s only two of us though and we re pretty careful.
With paint, white gloss yellows, colours fade and even the most carefully looked after homes will have ‘wear’ around doors, light switches and pinch points.Refreshing a room with paint. even one that looks OK makes a big difference.
With big ticket items such as a bathroom or a kitchen, buy the best you can afford and try and avoid fashion gimmicks and colour schemes that will date.
A lot depends on the style of house and your approach to decorating.
A new build with lots of high gloss surfaces with MDF furniture and media walls needs to look perfect to look as intended and very quickly looks crap with any visible wear whatsoever.
Our slightly shonky rambling old cottage was never perfect in the first place and with floor coverings and furniture made from real natural materials actually improves with a bit of wear.
Windows - not sure but not originals so probably 80s at best guess and still perfectly solid and well fitting.
Kitchen - also probably 80s, solid pine but has been given a refresh a few years back so should be good for another decade at least.
Bathroom - maybe 90s with new tiles a few years back to freshen up. Good quality plain white sanitary wear still looks fine.
Boiler - 1988 oil fired Stanley Superstar runs the hot water and radiators and does the cooking. Still providing reliable service and fits into the inglenook perfectly.
Flooring - original exposed floorboards in rooms with suspended floors and flagstones elsewhere will last indefinitely. Still have carpets in a couple of bedrooms but plan to ditch those at some point.
Furniture and woodwork - no MDF or veneered stuff if at all possible. It ages like milk and is difficult to repair. Proper solid wood every time.
A new build with lots of high gloss surfaces with MDF furniture and media walls needs to look perfect to look as intended and very quickly looks crap with any visible wear whatsoever.
Our slightly shonky rambling old cottage was never perfect in the first place and with floor coverings and furniture made from real natural materials actually improves with a bit of wear.
Windows - not sure but not originals so probably 80s at best guess and still perfectly solid and well fitting.
Kitchen - also probably 80s, solid pine but has been given a refresh a few years back so should be good for another decade at least.
Bathroom - maybe 90s with new tiles a few years back to freshen up. Good quality plain white sanitary wear still looks fine.
Boiler - 1988 oil fired Stanley Superstar runs the hot water and radiators and does the cooking. Still providing reliable service and fits into the inglenook perfectly.
Flooring - original exposed floorboards in rooms with suspended floors and flagstones elsewhere will last indefinitely. Still have carpets in a couple of bedrooms but plan to ditch those at some point.
Furniture and woodwork - no MDF or veneered stuff if at all possible. It ages like milk and is difficult to repair. Proper solid wood every time.
Think it all depends if you want to live in a showhoom or a home.
My last house was a family home with kids in and the damage they cause, nothing was new when we bought it, i just slapped some paint around the worst rooms , kitchen and bathrooms were fine and never touched them apart from replacing a broken shower once, When selling 10 years later i did the paint thing on the bits that needed it, and it sold for way over asking.
oh and one carpet in that time, but was badly worn when we moved in.
I did replace the odd appliance in that time, i think washing machine and dishwasher but only when they were knackered.
But the place always felt homely and looked good.
My view is just have a few grand saved for repairs, they always happen, and just live in it.
My last house was a family home with kids in and the damage they cause, nothing was new when we bought it, i just slapped some paint around the worst rooms , kitchen and bathrooms were fine and never touched them apart from replacing a broken shower once, When selling 10 years later i did the paint thing on the bits that needed it, and it sold for way over asking.
oh and one carpet in that time, but was badly worn when we moved in.
I did replace the odd appliance in that time, i think washing machine and dishwasher but only when they were knackered.
But the place always felt homely and looked good.
My view is just have a few grand saved for repairs, they always happen, and just live in it.
I reckon it depends on how well you design it.
I'm in the benchtop industry and its amazing how quickly certain styles date.
Gloss white/black panels, red splashbacks, anything beige, or even the wrong flooring choice.
Choose the right design though and you can stretch out how long things last. I recently went to repair a Corian top that was first installed in 1989. And other than new hinges and adding soft close drawer runners it was a well designed space.
I'm in the benchtop industry and its amazing how quickly certain styles date.
Gloss white/black panels, red splashbacks, anything beige, or even the wrong flooring choice.
Choose the right design though and you can stretch out how long things last. I recently went to repair a Corian top that was first installed in 1989. And other than new hinges and adding soft close drawer runners it was a well designed space.
My parents gas boiler is around 40 years old. Every year British Gas tell them to replace it, every year they don't!
Our kitchen was in when we bought the house 20 years ago, its beginning to show its age but has been painted, daughters room has been painted twice, other areas just once.
Windows were replaced 2 years ago, but that was because my wife said they needed it and paid. I dont think they needed it,
Our kitchen was in when we bought the house 20 years ago, its beginning to show its age but has been painted, daughters room has been painted twice, other areas just once.
Windows were replaced 2 years ago, but that was because my wife said they needed it and paid. I dont think they needed it,
Puzzles said:
I m looking ahead and trying to get a sense of how often people typically refurbish or replace things in their homes.
My house is all fairly new at the moment, but I know over time things will start to wear out or go out of style etc and I d like to stay on top of maintenance rather than let it all pile up.
I m thinking of things like flooring, kitchen and bathrooms, repainting, windows, even white goods and furniture.
Depends on how heavily the place is used.My house is all fairly new at the moment, but I know over time things will start to wear out or go out of style etc and I d like to stay on top of maintenance rather than let it all pile up.
I m thinking of things like flooring, kitchen and bathrooms, repainting, windows, even white goods and furniture.
If you've got kids and dogs things will be trashed in no time.
If there's just two of you, and you're middle aged and out to work 5 days a week, stuff lasts.
A couple of houses ago, we had a 25 year old kitchen that looked better than my neighbours' expensive 3 year old units.
Bathrooms that are ceramic tile, mirrors and china don't degrade much, MDF cupboards can start to look poor very quickly.
Painted walls can be good for 15 years if you don't trash them or move pictures around to show up the faded bits.
Carpets can last forever or 2 years.
If you're a fashion victim, it's past it before you've finished paying for it.
Some stuff is never really the height of fashion, but is less likely to be hideously out of fashion.
If your house gets a lot of sun, that can shorten the life of all sorts of stuff.
We've got some laminate floor which I think is 25 years old, it's fine for an office floor. The same stuff in a sunny dining room looked dire 10 years ago.
A lot of it is how you think about stuff. Some people are only happy with shiny new stuff of the latest fashion and really want a new build house at least every 5 years. Other people have more interesting things in their life than whether the sofa is a bit faded.
The worst thing I have found with carpets is to clean them. I don’t know what happens after that first clean, whether it’s a protective coating that’s removed or a sticky residue that’s left, but every time I’ve had them cleaned I’ve always replaced them after another 12 months or so. It seems to ruin them. Also, wool loop seems to last forever - we’re about five years on ours and they look new, unlike that soft touch saxony stuff which is wrecked after two years.
We've been in this house 12 years, half of that with 2 small children:
Kitchen - done when we moved in, but with cheap cupboard doors, so replaced those and kitchen tap and also repainted a few years ago. Kept the carcasses/worktop/floor etc.
Bathroom - done when we moved in, but with decent kit and still looks good now.
Painting and decorating - 5 to 10 years sounds about right.
We've had new carpets in every room, but only replaced one, and that was due to a flooding incident. The carpet fitters advised that the underlay should be replaced after 10 years.
We had the exterior painted in 2020 and were told it would last about 5 years, it is starting to flake a bit now, so that sounds about right.
10 years sounds about right we've replaced washing machine and dishwashers. I think I've replaced 2 elements in the oven, but the fridge, which we brought with us from our last places is still going strong at 18 years old. Just replace them when they break.
Boiler was new when we moved in, and is still going strong with a service every year.
One thing that you didn't mention is mattresses, that actually has a recommended lifespan mattresses, they are meant to be replaced after 10 years.
Kitchen - done when we moved in, but with cheap cupboard doors, so replaced those and kitchen tap and also repainted a few years ago. Kept the carcasses/worktop/floor etc.
Bathroom - done when we moved in, but with decent kit and still looks good now.
Painting and decorating - 5 to 10 years sounds about right.
We've had new carpets in every room, but only replaced one, and that was due to a flooding incident. The carpet fitters advised that the underlay should be replaced after 10 years.
We had the exterior painted in 2020 and were told it would last about 5 years, it is starting to flake a bit now, so that sounds about right.
10 years sounds about right we've replaced washing machine and dishwashers. I think I've replaced 2 elements in the oven, but the fridge, which we brought with us from our last places is still going strong at 18 years old. Just replace them when they break.
Boiler was new when we moved in, and is still going strong with a service every year.
One thing that you didn't mention is mattresses, that actually has a recommended lifespan mattresses, they are meant to be replaced after 10 years.
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