Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Redbridge · London
Alcove units in Goodmayes, Redbridge
Cupboards and shelves built into the alcoves beside a chimney breast, designed for your room in Goodmayes. We measure, design and quote first, then make it in our workshop and fit it.
- Shelving for books and records
- A place for a small desk
- Alcoves that are wasted space
Alcove units for your home in Goodmayes
Looking after your furniture
The finish lasts best with a little care, whether it was spray painted or hand painted. These practical tips help:
- Check whether there is a vent in the chimney breast
- Bring the sizes of anything that has to fit in the cupboards
- Mention parking and access when we visit
- Think about what you will store before we meet
Fill the shelves gradually and spread heavy things evenly. Books weigh more than most people expect, so spreading them out helps the shelves stay level.
Every so often, check that hinges and handles haven’t worked loose.
How we make alcove units for Goodmayes
Alcove units are made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood. MDF suits doors and panels because it paints so evenly, and birch plywood is strong for shelves and carcasses. The finish is spray painted in the workshop or hand painted on site, in a colour agreed with you. Most enquiries start with shop-bought shelving that doesn’t fill the recess and shelving for books and records, and the answer is built in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, finished by spray or by hand.
If you live in one of the interwar houses or semis around Goodmayes, the living room may be a good size but with fewer recesses than a Victorian house. That leaves room for alcove units in the alcoves, along a full wall or around the chimney breast. Moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood keep the pieces stable, and the paint finish is agreed with you.
The quote names the materials: moisture-resistant MDF, birch plywood or both, depending on the design. It also says how the furniture will be finished: spray painted or hand painted.
- Where
- Goodmayes (IG3, RM8, RM6)
- Area
- Redbridge
- Prices
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- A design visit: we measure and talk it through
- Where it’s made
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Boards and paint
- MDF and plywood, painted to order
- When we fit
- Weekdays; Saturdays on request
- Get in touch
- The contact form
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
How fitting day works
With the carcasses fixed and level, any doors go on and any drawers or lids are fitted. Each one is adjusted until the gaps are even and it closes cleanly, and then we check it all again. How long fitting takes depends on the size of the alcoves and what goes in them, and we confirm the fitting days in your quote. Fitting day means carrying in the sections, joining them and fitting them to the walls. Spray-painted pieces come finished from the workshop, while hand painting can happen on site. Saturdays can be arranged.
- You send us some details about the alcoves and what you’d like in them, and we arrange a design visit at a time that suits you.
- We visit to measure the alcoves and go through the design, noting the skirting, picture rail and any chimney vent.
- You receive a written quote setting out the units, materials and finish, for you to read through at your own pace.
- Each unit is built in our workshop to the measurements we took, using moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- The units are fitted in your home and scribed to follow the walls. Then we go through the doors and shelves with you.
How to prepare
- Have your electrician move any sockets or switches beforehand
- Let us know where the boiler and meters are
- Keep pets out of the room and the hallway
Starting with a design visit
Every quote follows a design visit. We measure the space, check the walls and floors and discuss what you’d like, then send a quote in writing. The price comes in a written quote, worked out from the measurements and the design you choose. To book a design visit, drop us a line using the contact form.
Related advice
FAQs: alcove units in Goodmayes
Can parking be tricky on fitting day in Goodmayes?
It depends on the street, as many London boroughs run controlled parking zones. A van may need a visitor permit, a paid bay or a parking bay suspension, which the council arranges, often with notice. It helps to tell us about parking during the design visit, so we can plan the day around it.
Do you make alcove units for homes in Goodmayes?
Yes. We cover all of Redbridge and the rest of London, and Goodmayes is part of that. The first step is a design visit, where we measure and go through the design, followed by a quote.
Do I need to be at home on fitting day?
We need someone to let us in at the start of the day. It also helps to have someone around at the end, so we can go over the finished furniture together.
What if the wall is cold or damp?
An outside wall can be colder and damper than an inside one, so ventilation behind and inside the furniture helps, which helps avoid condensation and mould. Any damp needs sorting by the right specialist before fitting.
Are alcove units spray painted or hand painted?
We offer spray painting in the workshop and hand painting on site. A sprayed finish is very smooth and even; a hand-painted one is easy to touch up later. We talk through both at the design visit.
Will alcove units fit if my walls aren’t straight?
Yes. Most period alcoves are out of square in some way, so we scribe each unit to follow the wall. A plinth or adjustable feet set it level on a sloping floor.
Why people ask for alcove units in Goodmayes
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.
We are often asked to help with:
- Standard units leaving gaps at the sides
- Units that sit well with original features
- Alcoves that are not square
- Empty alcoves either side of the chimney breast
Eastbury Manor House, about 2.1 miles south, is one of the historic houses in the wider area. If your own home is a period one, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units.
Questions to ask before you hire anyone
- Whether they measure the room themselves
- Do they scribe the furniture to the walls?
- Where they’ll park and unload
- Whether you’ll get a quote in writing, not just a figure
What it’s made from
Moisture-resistant MDF
In an alcove unit, MDF gives smooth doors and tidy edges. Its moisture-resistant grade is a sensible choice beside a chimney breast.
Hand-painted finish
With a hand-painted finish, you see the colour in your own light as it goes on. Scribed edges and joins are painted along with the rest.
Goodmayes homes and alcove units
About 36% of the homes in the neighbourhood around Goodmayes went up between 1919 and 1939, and about 35% before 1919, in the VOA’s 2025 council tax stock figures. We take that into account at the design visit, since older and newer walls take different fixings. Entries on the National Heritage List near the centre of Goodmayes include Church of All Saints (Grade II), under half a mile south-west. Listing covers the inside of a building as well as the outside, so works that affect a listed home’s character, like removing original joinery, may need listed building consent. Check with the council’s conservation officer first. Red routes are run by TfL, with tight limits on where and when vehicles can stop. If you live on or close to a main road in Goodmayes, let us know at the design visit. It lets us plan the stop before fitting day.
If your children go to Goodmayes Primary School or a school nearby, shelving with deep cupboards below keeps books, games and school things in one place. Living in a block of flats near Goodmayes station? Then the lift, the stair turns and the front door all set the largest piece that can come in.
Goodmayes is about 5 miles north-west of Woodford, in the London Borough of Redbridge. From period terraces to newer flats in Goodmayes, we measure the room as it is and design around it. We cover places right across Redbridge.
Here we cover the IG3, RM8 and RM6 postcode area for alcove units. You’ll find streets here like High Road, Green Lane and Essex Road, and homes on each of them are within our area for alcove units. The A1083 runs close to Goodmayes; on busy main roads, unloading alcove units takes a little planning. We also cover Aldborough Hatch (1 mile north), Chadwell Heath (2 miles north-east), Becontree (2 miles south-east), Becontree Heath (2 miles east) and Castle Green (2 miles south). Across the rest of Redbridge, our area takes in Woodford (5 miles north-west), Ilford (2 miles west), Loxford (2 miles south-west), Wanstead (4 miles west), South Woodford (4 miles north-west) and Gants Hill (2 miles north-west).
Landmarks near Goodmayes
Our area takes in the homes around The Eva Hart pub and Mayfield School, among other places. There is a railway station in Goodmayes itself: Goodmayes station. A little further out are Goodmayes Hospital (0.9 miles north) and Redbridge Museum (1.7 miles west).
Flat-pack or bespoke?
It is worth being honest about cost: flat-pack is normally cheaper to buy. Bespoke makes more sense where the room is tricky, the space is valuable or you want the furniture to look built in.
Standard units come in set widths and heights, so there is often a strip of wasted space at the side or above. Fitted furniture is made to the room’s measurements, so it can use the full height and width.