Effeti Kitchen – Quality of manufacture

It is usually the case in Italy that when one moves into a new home, it will not have a kitchen. Most Italians take their kitchen with them from house to house, so when they make the purchasing decision as to what type of kitchen they are going to buy, it is in the knowledge that the kitchen will be with them for a very long time – if not a lifetime! Effeti produce kitchens both to please and to last.

The kitchen is still very much the heart of the home in Italy and consequently entails very serious decision making processes. Apart from the look of the kitchen, the colour and the materials from which it is made, continuity of supply is obviously very important, so a manufacture like Effeti that has been producing stunning kitchens across four decades, would naturally be top of the list as a reliable supplier.

Life expectancy of the kitchen furniture itself would, therefore, be an important consideration; we have already seen that the style of the kitchen is timeless, so the quality of the manufacture must be paramount. Kitchens generate a vast quantity of heat and moisture and once this penetrates the fabric of the kitchen furniture, collapse is not far off. All materials used in the production of a kitchen, should therefore, be manufactured specifically to combat heat and moisture penetration and to offer strength and durability.

Great thought has gone into this at Effeti and there is not one element of the kitchen manufacture that has escaped scrutiny – let’s start with the feet: -

The Feet upon which the kitchen stands are made with ABS zinc plated metal, are adjustable and each foot is certified to support a weight of 100kg.

The panels that go to make the kitchen base units, wall units, larder units and housing units are manufactured from EI class wood particle panels with low emission IDRO type green formaldehyde which makes the furniture fully damp proof. The panels are coated on both sides with white 120g melamine paper, plus another paper barrier. The top, back and bottom edges of the kitchen units are lined with a 0.5mm melamine lining whilst the front edge is lined with pure aluminium. Carcasses are made from 18mm thick panels, shelves from 22mm thick panels.

The kitchen drawers and racks are manufactured by Blum and can be removed fully. The 30/45/60 cm wide drawers carry a load of 30 kg whilst the 90/120 cm wide drawers have a load of 50kg. All racks have a capacity of 50kg. Slide guides have been tested to 100,000 opening/closing cycles. The bottom of the kitchen drawers are 16mm board and the back and sides are made from steel, and are available in stainless steel upon request.

The kitchen door hinges are made by Salice from chromium plated metal and can be adjusted in height, width and depth. They have been tested for 200,000 opening/closing cycles.

Plinths for the kitchen base units are made from stainless steel with hooks attached to the back to fix onto the furniture. The bottom of the plinth is fitted with a rubber gasket that prevents dirt from getting under the furniture. The top has a little gap for air circulation which also helps cool household appliances – a ventilating grille can be added upon request.

The top part of the kitchen base units come with two fir-wood connecting fillets; fir-wood is highly resinous and is consequently damp-proof. The bottoms of under-sink units and tall units housing fridges or freezers are covered with an aluminium tray to protect from possible water leaks. Upon request it is possible to fit an inner stainless steel lining to protect sides and top.

The hooks on the kitchen wall units carry a load of 70kg. The shelf supports are made from chromium plated iron and the shelves can be positioned at three different heights. The kitchen wall cupboards can be opened to the left, right or transom. The wall units can house draining racks (the plate beneath the drainer is made from stainless steel and is slotted to allow air circulation) or extractor hoods.

The tall larder units can be completely removed from their housing. These units have been tested for 50,000 opening/closing cycles and will support 100kg.

The kitchen worktops come in a variety of materials and thicknesses – laminated (with stainless steel or wood edge), stainless steel (plain or with wood edging), porcelain (scratchproof and abrasion resistant, resistant to UVA rays), glass, marble, granite, Tecno white (glass and resin mixture) and crystallite (quartzite stone used with precious resins and pigments).

The worktop for Effeti’s latest design, L’evoluzione, is only 12mm thick; it is made of cellulosic fibre material impregnated with thermo setting resins and put through a high pressure process so the surface becomes non-porous and highly resistant. It cannot be damaged by water or steam or stained by oil or detergent.

Email: enquiries@michaelwrightfurniture.co.uk

Effeti Modern Kitchens