9 minute read
KITCHEN LARDERS: WHAT TO CONSIDER AND HOW TO INSTALL WITH HÄFELE
KITCHEN LARDERS: WHAT TO CONSIDER, AND HOW TO INSTALL
In an age when kitchen space is a premium, installers and designers are relied upon to advise how homeowners can maximise their storage options and make the most of every inch available. Installing a pull out or swing out larder – storage which fits in the slim gaps between traditional kitchen cupboards – is one way of maximising space, while also giving a kitchen an extra stylish feature.
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Homeowners might be more familiar with traditional kitchen cupboards and shelving, but larders can offer a more flexible solution. Configured to a user’s bespoke needs, capable of holding up to 100kgs Before fitting a larder it’s important to learn about the environment the storage is going into, to ensure the user is provided the right system for their needs, and will be able to access the items within it as easily as possible.
in weight and available in a variety of finishes, they are a highly functional addition to a kitchen. But as the popularity of larders increases and customers begin to seek higher quality performance and aesthetics, installers who aren’t yet experienced in fitting these systems might wonder how easily they can be added to their service offering.
In this article, Matt Lissaman, Regional Sales Manager at Häfele, manufacturer and supplier of larder systems in the UK – explains what installers need to know before fitting the newest pull out and swing out systems, and which services are available to make installing larders as simple as possible.
Before fitting a larder it’s important to learn about the environment the storage is going into, to ensure the user is provided the right system for their needs, and will be able to access the items within it as easily as possible.
Pull out larders, which brings a layered basket system out to the user from a cupboard, are great for kitchens where you want to maximise space, as they can fill slim gaps in between other cupboards. But they can cause a challenge in galley kitchens, for example, due to a lack of space, so a swing out larder – which pulls a set of stacked drawers toward the homeowner, with the door of the larder swinging out to lean against the cupboard next to it – might be best to use instead to overcome this issue.
For either system to perform at its best, you’ll need to consider the whole kitchen space and layout. For example, it isn’t recommended to put swing out systems – which open to 160 degrees – next to any appliances, in case they get damaged by continuous opening of the door. This is especially true for items like fridges and ovens, which have protruding handles. Pull out larders, meanwhile, generally require more space directly in front of the unit. As well as the 500mm needed to bring the system out of the cupboard, you’ll also need to allow an additional 400mm500mm to allow the homeowner to easily move around it.
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
Installers don’t need expensive tools or contraptions to fit larders; all you need is a screwdriver, drill, tape measure, pencil, spirit level and a combination square.
The key to installing larders correctly comes down to following the fitting instructions to the letter. For all the larder systems we
supply, whether it’s a Vauth Sagel pull out system or Vauth Sagel Tal Gate swing out systems, we provide picture-led fitting guides. These flag the most complex elements of every installation – those that don’t allow any room for manoeuvre, or which require a particularly unique fitting to achieve the best functionality.
Additionally, there are YouTube tutorials which detail the installation process of every larder system we sell. These video guides are extremely comprehensive and offer a step-by-step process that installers can easily follow. Vauth Sagel also has its own smart phone app to help with the installation of its larder systems, including CAD drawings and 3D videos of larder units so you can get a closer look at the detail of the fixtures and fittings.
We’ve tried to make it as easy as possible for installers to order and fit larder systems by putting all the components of pull out and
swing out solutions into a single set, with one order code. Once you’ve selected the style, height and width of a larder for a customer, we’ll combine every element of it together – including the top and bottom runners, the runner frame, the number of baskets required, and the clips and screws needed to fit the system.
PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
Larder systems are typically quite easy to install and shouldn’t take longer than around half an hour. And once you’ve done one,
you’ll know how to make efficiencies without compromising on the functionality.
Some manufacturers opt to have the systems built in their factories and ship them complete. Due to their weight when constructed, once these systems arrive on site it will require two installers to level and fit the larder. Additionally, larders that are packaged and shipped in this way will typically require extra time to tighten up fittings which will have come loose from the vibrations of the journey. As such, whether you choose to have individual parts sent to site for you to install, or you opt for a built system to be delivered, fitting will take approximately the same amount of time.
Our own range of Häfele larders have also been designed for kitchen refurbs and upgrades; existing kitchen cupboards which house traditional shelving can be removed to have our larders retrofitted, which is helpful for customers who can’t afford a full kitchen refit.
QUALITY AND SUPPORT
The 10-year warranties in place on Vauth Sagel products demonstrates we supply only the highest quality, and best performing solutions on the market. Vauth Sagel, for example, is renowned around the world for being a leading manufacturer of larder systems. As such, problems with pull out and swing out larders usually come from missing out some of the stages from the fitting instructions.
Extensive use of a pull out larder could cause the screws on the top runner to come loose over time, meaning the larder may drop and disengage from the runner. However, the fitting instructions state there must be an additional wood screw fitted, which completely locks the frame into place; it means that even if the adjustment screws come loose, the larder frame won’t move. It’s an element Vauth Sagel introduced for adjustability in the system, but to also make it extra safe without over engineering the original product or adding extra costs. If we visit a homeowner to check the system and can’t see the wood screw has been added, we know the installer missed this step in the installation.
Additionally, we’ll come across swing out systems that simply aren’t performing to their best ability, and the installer or homeowner won’t know why. For swing out doors to be completely functional, the runners must sit 35mm off-centre in the cabinet to allow for the crank on the swing out hinge. If the runners are fitted centrally, like they would be on a pull out system, the swing out system will catch and won’t work as intended.
We regularly visit show rooms to do demonstrations of larder installations on a regular basis, to ensure a business’ team of fitters have seen the systems come together first-hand before they go it alone.
But to add to this, we have a full suite of support services available to ensure installers fitting larders can access immediate help in a variety of ways, should they face a challenge. Our Häfele Assist team will try to diagnose an issue over the phone in the first instance, providing an assessment of the product in question with step by step guidance on how to solve the issue. And if this can’t be done, where possible they will simply visit the site to fix the problem there and then.
You can find out more about Häfele’s sliding door gear range:
I sincerely hope that all readers are well during these difficult times. My last article focussed on the numerous COVID related financial assistance measures that the government introduced from late March onwards. Those measures have in some cases ‘morphed’ quite significantly over the past few months but I would expect that most readers are now very familiar with the various schemes and have taken advantage of them where possible.
I would therefore like to spend some time in this article reminding readers of some of the follow-on impact of the above schemes which may have been overlooked or misunderstood in the urgency to keep businesses afloat. having assisted with the claim process. HMR&C
Dean Flood, Rowland Hall Chartered Certified Accountants
Tax treatment of Grants
The grants that have been issued to selfemployed workers will be assessable for tax within the taxpayer’s self-assessment tax returns in the year to 5th April 2021. Any grants received should be notified to your tax advisors although they may already be aware of this payments.
will also be reviewing the reported activity for that tax year to consider whether claims for the grant were legitimate, insofar as whether COVID 19 has had any detrimental effect on income.
Grants to employers under the Job Retention Scheme (Furlough), are also taxable income for the business. From an accounting perspective, the receipts should be netted against payroll costs incurred although we have seen incidences of clients wanting to show these as a separate income. Either way is generally acceptable, as long as the receipts form part of the taxable profits.
COVID related grants from local authorities are also taxable and should be shown as separate income within the business accounts.
VAT Deferral
The government scheme to defer VAT payments is now effectively over. VAT returns to the end of May 2020 are now due for settlement as per usual as the normal payment date is the 7th July which falls outside of the 30th June cut off for that scheme.
For those businesses that took advantage of VAT deferral for the earlier returns, it is important that you remember to reinstate your Direct Debits for the next return, if you typically pay through that medium.
Businesses should also plan ahead for the cashflow impact of settling deferred payments in the 1st quarter of 2021. HMR&C have yet to issue formal guidance on the mechanics of payment for those amounts.
Record Keeping
It is important that businesses keep appropriate records to support any claims made, especially in connection with the, often complicated, claims for ‘furlough’ payments. This paperwork should be retained for 6 years which is the recommended retention period for most accounting and tax records.
