Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Barking and Dagenham · London
Becontree Alcove Units
For homes in Becontree, we make alcove units from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood. The finish is spray painted or hand painted, in a colour agreed with you.
- Bare alcoves beside the fireplace
- Standard units leaving gaps at the sides
- Shelving for books and records
Alcove units for your home in Becontree
From workshop to your room
Once the main sections are fixed in place, any doors go on and any drawers or lids are fitted. We adjust each one so the gaps line up and it closes cleanly, then checked again. The time the fitting takes depends on how many alcoves there are and how tall the units go, and your quote sets out the fitting days. Loft stairs in an interwar house can be tight, with a low ceiling at the top, so pieces for a loft room are sized for the narrowest point. The main stairs in houses of that age are normally straighter. Each section is assembled and fixed in the room.
- You get in touch and describe the alcoves you want to fill.
- At the design visit we measure each alcove at several heights, because period walls are rarely flat or square. Then we go through the design together.
- You get a written quote for the units, materials and finish.
- The units are made at our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, leaving a scribing allowance where they meet the walls.
- On fitting day we level the units and scribe the edges so they follow the line of the plaster.
How to prepare
- Get any new sockets or wiring done by your electrician before fitting day
- Take down pictures, mirrors and shelves from the wall
- Let us know where the boiler and meters are
Starting with a design visit
For a quote for alcove units in Becontree, tell us about the room on our contact form. Let us know the room and the rough idea, plus any rough sizes. Next comes a design visit, followed by a written quote.
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Alcove units for homes in Becontree
We make alcove units from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, each used where it works best. MDF gives smooth doors and panels that take paint well, and birch plywood is strong for shelves and carcasses. You can have a spray-painted finish from the workshop or a hand-painted one done on site, in a colour agreed with you. If your home has tired cupboards in the alcoves and alcoves that are wasted space, that is what alcove units are for, made from birch plywood and moisture-resistant MDF with a spray-painted or hand-painted finish.
Around Becontree, interwar houses or semi-detached and detached homes make up a good part of the housing. In a typical 1930s house, the front room has a bay at one end and a chimney breast with an alcove to either side, which decides where alcove units sit. Walls are often truer than in older houses, but they’re still measured carefully and scribed where they wander.
You get the quote in writing, so there is time to read it properly. It records the design, the materials and the finish we discussed.
- Where
- Becontree (RM9, RM10, RM8)
- Borough
- Barking and Dagenham
- Prices
- Quoted for your room
- How it starts
- A design visit: we measure and talk it through
- Where it is made
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Made from
- Painted MDF and birch ply
- Fitting days
- Weekdays (Saturdays if arranged)
- Enquiries
- The contact form
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Questions from Becontree
Do you make alcove units for homes in Becontree?
Yes. Becontree is one of the places we work, along with the rest of Barking and Dagenham and London. To get started, you can send us a few details through our contact form with some details.
Is parking a problem for fitting in Becontree?
It can be, depending on whether your street is in a controlled parking zone. A van may need a visitor permit, a pay-and-display bay or a suspended bay, which the council arranges, often with notice. Let us know what parking is near you at the measuring visit, and we’ll plan around it.
How long will the fitting take?
It depends on the size of the alcoves and what goes in them, and your quote sets out the fitting days. We’ll explain what to expect before we arrive.
Can you come on a Saturday?
Yes, by prior arrangement. Let us know when you contact us if a Saturday suits you best.
Does someone need to be home during the fitting?
Someone needs to be there to let us in. You do not need to watch us work, though we like to go over the furniture with you at the end.
Can you build alcove units for alcoves that aren’t square?
Yes. We measure each alcove carefully during the design visit, then the units are built in our workshop and scribed to the walls when we fit them.
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 let you change heights later.
Plinths and scribe strips
Most alcoves need scribing on both sides and sometimes at the top. It is what makes a fitted unit look fitted.
Could you do it yourself?
If you are handy, a simple shelf or a standard wardrobe in a square room is a reasonable DIY job. Sloping ceilings, uneven floors and lath-and-plaster walls make it harder, because scribing and the right fixings start to matter.
Off-the-shelf furniture can be a sensible choice. If the walls are straight and the space suits standard sizes, it often does the job, and it is quick to buy.
When you need someone else
It is worth being clear about where our work stops:
- Finding and fixing the cause of damp
- Electrical work, like new sockets or switches, which is for your electrician
- Removing or altering a chimney breast, which is structural work
If in doubt, you can get in touch through our contact form and describe the room. How it works.
What it’s made from
- Scribed side panels
- Birch plywood
- Panelled or flat doors
- Adjustable shelves
- Spray-painted finish
- Hand-painted finish
- Moisture-resistant MDF
Living-room carpentry in Becontree: local notes
Homes built between 1919 and 1939 make up about 76% of the housing in the area around Becontree, with about 13% built between 1945 and 1972, going by the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax figures. That matters for alcove units, as the build era decides whether a wall is solid brick, lath and plaster, block or plasterboard. Near the centre of Becontree, Historic England’s list includes Church of St Mary (Grade II), about 0.5 miles north. For a listed home, changes inside that alter its character can require listed building consent from the council, for instance removing or fixing into original panelling. An early word with the council’s conservation officer is the best first step. TfL’s Ultra Low Emission Zone covers every part of London, Barking and Dagenham included. That includes the vans that bring and fit furniture in Becontree. We plan parking and access with you during the design visit.
Close to Parsloes Park? Alcove units can be arranged to keep the window and the light clear. If you live in a period home close to St George's, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units.
Becontree is within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, about 2 miles south-west of Barking. Homes in Becontree are part of the area we cover for alcove units, as part of our work in every London borough. Our Barking and Dagenham coverage includes Becontree, along with the rest of the borough.
Every home in RM9, RM10 and RM8 is within our area for alcove units, from the main roads to the quieter streets. Streets in the area include Wood Lane, Eliot Road and Maxey Road, and homes on each of them are within our area for alcove units. The A1240 runs close to Becontree, so if your home is on a main road, mention it when you contact us. Neighbouring places we cover for alcove units include Dagenham (1 mile south-east), Becontree Heath (1 mile north), Castle Green (1 mile south-west), Dagenham Green (1 mile south) and Goodmayes (2 miles north-west). Across the rest of Barking and Dagenham, our area takes in Barking (2 miles south-west), Thames View Estate (2 miles south-west), Barking Riverside (2 miles south-west), Chadwell Heath (2 miles north) and Creekmouth (3 miles south-west).
Around Becontree
Around Becontree, we cover homes near Eastbrook pub and Robert Clack School and the streets around them. The closest station to Becontree is Chadwell Heath station, roughly 1.5 miles north-west. A little further out are Rush Green Hospital (1.6 miles north-east). Green spaces nearby include Dagenham Village Churchyard.
The problems alcove units solve
Sometimes it’s the clutter of a busy living room. Toys, games, paperwork and gadgets need somewhere to go, and closed cupboards hide them away. The shelves above can then stay tidy.
Alcove units can help with:
- Bowed walls and sloping floors
- A desk that tucks into an alcove
- Shop-bought shelving that does not fill the recess
- Toys and paperwork with no proper home
Eastbury Manor House, about 2.1 miles south-west, is one of the historic houses in the wider area. For a period home anywhere nearby, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units.
Before you hire any carpenter
- Where they’ll park and unload
- Real projects you can actually look at
- Which parts of the job need an electrician or a plumber
- How they’ll get the furniture into the room