Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Havering · London
Hacton Alcove Units
For homes in Hacton, we make alcove units from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood. Each piece is finished by spray or by hand, in the colour you choose.
- Cupboards in keeping with an older house
- Empty alcoves either side of the chimney breast
- Somewhere to keep books and records
Alcove units for your home in Hacton
Questions we are often asked
Is parking a problem for fitting in Hacton?
It can be, depending on whether your street is in a controlled parking zone. Depending on the street, a visitor permit, a paid bay or a bay suspension through the council may be needed, and suspensions often need notice. It’s useful to let us know about parking during the design visit, so we can plan the day around it.
I live near Upminster station. Is that in your area?
Yes. We cover all of Havering and the rest of London. To get started, you can get in touch through our contact form with a few details about the room, and let us know about parking and access at the same time.
How long are you in the house for the fitting?
How long fitting takes depends on the size and number of units, and we confirm the fitting days in your quote. Most of the making happens in our workshop, so the work in your home is about fitting and finishing.
Should I send photos?
Yes, they help. A few pictures of the room, from floor to ceiling, tell us a lot. You can send them when you drop us a line using the contact form.
Can you build alcove units for alcoves that are not square?
Yes. Most period alcoves are out of square in some way, so each unit is scribed to the wall on site. Adjustable feet or a plinth take care of a floor that slopes.
What do you do at the measuring visit?
We take full measurements, look at the walls and floors and work through the design together. We will also ask about access and parking, and afterwards we send a written quote.
Alcove units in Hacton: what you get
One alcove can be given over to a desk, with shelving overhead and storage underneath. It is a neat way to work from home without giving up a whole room. Desk height and depth are agreed with you, with a gap or hole planned so cables can reach the sockets. People normally come to us about shelving for books and records and tired cupboards in the alcoves, and the answer is built in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, finished by spray or by hand.
In a semi from the 1920s or 1930s, the front room typically has a bay at one end and a chimney breast on the side wall. Around Hacton, interwar houses, semis and detached homes make up a big part of the housing, so that layout is worth knowing well. We tend to plan alcove units along the chimney breast wall so the bay keeps its light.
You get the quote in writing, so there’s time to read it properly and talk it over at home. It covers the design, materials and finish agreed at the visit.
- Where
- Hacton (RM12, RM14, RM13)
- Borough
- Havering
- Price
- Quoted for your room
- To begin
- A design visit: we measure and talk it through
- Made
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Materials and finish
- Painted MDF and birch ply
- Working days
- Weekdays, and Saturdays by arrangement
- Contact
- Send us a message
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
How fitting works for alcove units
There is not much for you to do on fitting day. Someone needs to let us in, and it’s useful to have the room cleared beforehand, as we will have talked about at the measuring visit. From there, we protect the floors, bring the furniture in and get on with the fitting. The time the fitting takes depends on the size and number of units, and your quote sets out the fitting days. 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. Saturday fitting is possible by arrangement.
- You contact us about the alcoves you want to fill, with a note of the room they’re in.
- We come to measure and talk through cupboards, shelves, heights and doors.
- We put the design, materials and finish into a written quote, ready for you to check.
- We build the units in our workshop, using moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- We bring them to your home and fit them in place.
Preparing the room
- Check the building’s rules for trades and lift bookings
- Keep pets out of the room and the hallway
- Mention any parking restrictions on your street
Arranging a design visit
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, particularly with rough measurements. To share them, get in touch through our contact form, and we will suggest a time for a design visit.
Read more
Could you do it yourself?
The real difference is in the fit: scribed edges, a level base on an uneven floor and furniture that meets the ceiling, skirting and picture rail. Off-the-shelf furniture can’t typically do that in an older room.
It’s worth being honest about cost: off-the-shelf furniture typically costs less up front. Bespoke makes more sense where the room is awkward, the space is valuable or you want the furniture to look built in.
Practical tips
These points come up often when people plan alcove units. They’re worth knowing whatever the room:
- Look for a chimney vent that needs to stay clear
- Mention parking and access when we visit
- Book your electrician first if sockets need moving
- Make a rough list of what the cupboards need to hold
Do not let stored things block the chimney breast vent, even when the cupboards fill up. Air moving through the chimney helps keep damp away, which protects the units too.
If a damp patch appears near a unit, look into it early. The cause is a job for the right trade, not something paint will hide.
Is it time for alcove units?
Moving into a period house often prompts it. People who have just moved in want storage that suits the age of the house, and the alcoves are the natural place for it. It’s also a good moment, before the room fills up.
Here are some of the needs we are asked about most:
- Everyday clutter left on show
- Cupboards in keeping with an older house
- Old alcove cupboards that have seen better days
- Shelving for books and records
For a flat near Upminster station, check any building rules on lifts and working hours early, and the sections will be sized for the way in.
Before you hire any carpenter
- Have they thought about parking near you?
- Whether they measure the room themselves
- Can you see real work of theirs?
- Is it spray painted or hand painted?
Alcove units in Hacton: local notes
In the neighbourhood around Hacton, the largest groups of homes date from between 1919 and 1939 (about 42%) and between 1973 and 1999 (about 29%), going by the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax figures. Each era brings its own kind of wall, ceiling height and floor, so it shapes the design from the first measurement. About 42% of homes in the neighbourhood around Hacton date from between 1919 and 1939, according to Valuation Office Agency council tax figures (2025). Houses from the 1920s and 1930s often have a bay window and a chimney breast in the front room, and alcove units are planned around both. On TfL’s red routes, the rules on stopping and loading are strict. Where a home in Hacton is on or beside a main road, it helps to mention that during the design visit. We can then plan where the van will stop.
If you live near Hornchurch Country Park, alcove units can be arranged to keep the window and the light clear. For an older house near St Matthews Church Hall, picture rails and cornices give alcove units a line to finish at.
Hacton is about 3 miles north-west of Romford, part of the London Borough of Havering. We can visit homes in Hacton on weekdays, or on a Saturday by arrangement. We cover places right across Havering.
In RM12, RM14 and RM13, the process is the same as anywhere else in London. If your home is on a street such as Gerpins Lane and Berwick Pond Road, or close by, we can arrange a design visit for alcove units. We also cover the places around Hacton: Upminster Bridge (1 mile north), Hornchurch (2 miles north), Upminster (2 miles north-east), Wennington (2 miles south) and Cranham (2 miles north-east). We also make alcove units in nearby places such as Romford (3 miles north-west), Gallows Corner (4 miles north), Heath Park (3 miles north-west), Collier Row (4 miles north-west), Rainham (2 miles south-west) and Ardleigh Green (3 miles north).
Around Hacton
We fit furniture in homes around Sanders Draper School and The Optimist Tavern. The closest station to Hacton is Upminster station, roughly 1.8 miles north-east. Well-known places in the area include St George's Hospital (0.7 miles north-west). Not far away are Ingrebourne Valley.
Places near Hacton
Other services in Hacton
What it is made from
Spray-painted finish
Spray painting is done in the workshop, giving a smooth, even, factory-like surface. It suits a crisp, modern look as well as a classic one.
Birch plywood
We often use birch plywood for drawer boxes too, where strength matters. The edge can be painted or shown as a detail.