Havering · London
Alcove Units in Havering
Wherever you are in Havering, we design and make alcove units for your room. We visit, measure and talk it through before we quote.
Alcove Units across Havering
Where we work in Havering
We design, make and fit alcove units for homes of every age. The lists below link to a page for each place.
Main places
Alcove units across Havering: what to expect
Some alcoves suit a full-height unit, with doors from floor to ceiling. In bedrooms, this often becomes a compact wardrobe or a place for bedding, and in a dining room a home for china and glass. At the design visit we ask what you plan to keep there, so shelves and rails go where they’re needed. We make alcove units from moisture-resistant MDF and strong birch plywood, with a painted finish, and people most often get in touch about somewhere to keep books and records and room to work in an alcove.
Before anything is fixed, we set the furniture level. Floors are often out of level, so adjustable feet or a plinth take up the difference, which keeps the lines straight. Only then is it fixed to the wall, with fixings chosen to suit brick, lath and plaster or plasterboard.
- You contact us with some details about the chimney breast and alcoves.
- At the design visit we measure each alcove at several heights, because period walls are rarely flat or square.
- You get a quote in writing for the units, materials and finish.
- In our workshop the units are made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, with a little extra left on the edges that meet the wall.
- On fitting day we level the units and scribe the edges so they follow the line of the plaster.
Quotes in Havering
We quote each job for the room it’s going into, after the design visit. Size, the number of doors and drawers and the internal fittings make the biggest difference to the price.
Why householders in Havering choose us
- Built in our workshop and fitted in your home
- Work across the whole of London
- Saturdays by prior arrangement
- Fitted tight to walls that are not straight
Ask for a quote
It helps to see the room before we come. Pictures of the whole wall, the corners and the ceiling line tell us a lot about the space, along with rough measurements. To share them, send us a few details through our contact form, and we will suggest a time for a design visit.
Around Romford
In Romford, that includes homes near Parish Church of St Edward the Confessor, Concordia Academy and Lodge Farm Park and the streets around them. Other local landmarks include The Moon & Stars pub (a few minutes’ walk east), Frances Bardsley Academy for Girls (0.8 miles east) and St. Edward's Church of England School (1.2 miles west). Romford has its own railway station: Romford station. Nearby you’ll also find The Brewery (within half a mile south-west) and Oldchurch Hospital (less than half a mile south). For a walk, there is The Chase Nature Reserve.
Living-room carpentry across Havering
Some living rooms across Havering are long knocked-through rooms; others are compact flats where one wall has to hold everything. Alcove units can take on either, from a pair of alcoves to a full wall. You choose the colour, and whether it is sprayed in the workshop or painted by hand.
The biggest shares of homes in Havering were built between 1919 and 1939 (about 36%) and between 1945 and 1972 (about 35%), on the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax figures for 2025. Each era brings its own kind of wall, ceiling height and floor, so it shapes the design from the first measurement. About 36% of homes in Havering date from between 1919 and 1939, in the VOA’s 2025 council tax stock figures. Interwar front rooms typically have a bay at the front and a chimney breast on the side wall, and alcove units are planned around both. Around a third of the homes in Havering (about 35%) were built between 1945 and 1972, on the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax figures for 2025. Post-war rooms tend to be simple shapes, often without a chimney breast, so alcove units often run along a full wall, fixed to suit the wall, which may be concrete or block.
Since August 2023, the Ultra Low Emission Zone has covered all of London, and TfL’s red routes have strict stopping rules, so access to homes in Havering is planned beforehand.
Romford: Living in a block of flats near Romford station? Then it’s useful to book the lift and tell the concierge before fitting day. For an older house near Parish Church of St Edward the Confessor, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units.
Flats, blocks and rented homes
If you live in a flat, getting the furniture in is planned from the start. At the design visit, we measure the stairs, the landings, any lift and the doors, so each section is sized to get through without a struggle.
Many London terraces have been converted into flats, which often brings a shared hall and tight turns on the stairs. We plan the size of each section around it, after measuring the route during the design visit.
What prompts alcove units
A chimney breast without its fireplace can leave a wall that feels unfinished. A pair of alcove units frames it and gives the wall a sense of order.
Here’s what alcove units can help with:
- Bowed walls and sloping floors
- Worn or badly fitted alcove units
- Bare alcoves beside the fireplace
- A desk that tucks into an alcove
Made for the room, or bought in a box?
Off-the-shelf units come in the colours the maker chose. We paint ours in the colour you pick, either spray painted in the workshop or hand painted. You can match the walls or choose a contrast.
Questions to ask before you hire anyone
- Whether they can show you real projects they’ve done
- Whether the quote follows a visit to your home
- A written quote that sets out the job
- Which materials they’ll use, named in the quote
Tips worth knowing
None of this takes much effort. What we’d suggest:
- Think about what you will store before we meet
- Note the sizes of large things you want to store
- Note any vent or air brick on the chimney breast
- Decide whether the units stop at the picture rail or run to the ceiling
Load the shelves evenly rather than piling weight in the middle. Books weigh more than most people expect, and an even load keeps the shelves straight.
Every so often, check that hinges and handles haven’t worked loose, and adjust any door that starts to catch.
What it is made from
Shelves
Shelves can be fixed in place or set on adjustable supports. Fixed shelves add stiffness to the unit, while adjustable ones give you room to change things.
Birch plywood
Birch plywood helps shelves stay straight under books over a wider alcove. We size the shelf for the span and the load.
Common questions about alcove units
Is an outside wall a problem for fitted furniture?
It can be done with some care: leaving ventilation behind and inside helps stop condensation. Damp treatment isn’t something we do, so any damp needs sorting first.
How is the price worked out?
Size, doors and drawers, what goes inside and the finish all affect it. We send a written quote after the design visit.
Can the two alcove units be different?
That depends on how you use the room. Alcoves are often different widths anyway, so each unit is made to its own measurements. They can share a style while doing different things.
Will alcove units block the chimney vent?
We plan alcove units so any chimney vent stays clear. Even a blocked chimney needs some ventilation to help keep damp away.
Should I send pictures?
Yes, they help. A few pictures of the room, from floor to ceiling, tell us a lot. To send them, fill in our short enquiry form.
Do you move sockets for alcove units?
Your electrician handles sockets and wiring. Ideally it’s done before fitting so the sockets line up with the design. We then plan cut-outs and cable gaps around them.
Are alcove units spray painted or hand painted?
You can choose a spray-painted finish from our workshop or a hand-painted finish in your home. Either way, the colour is agreed with you. Spraying gives a smooth, even surface, and hand painting is easy to touch up.