Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Redbridge · London
Alcove Units in Loxford
Few London rooms are perfectly square, and we scribe the furniture to follow the walls. We make alcove units for homes in Loxford, each designed at a visit to your home.
- Tired cupboards in the alcoves
- A place for a small desk
- Bare alcoves beside the fireplace
Alcove units in Loxford
Do you need alcove units in Loxford?
Where a fireplace has been blocked up or removed, the chimney breast can look bare. A pair of alcove units frames it and gives the wall a sense of order.
Here are some of the needs we’re asked about most:
- Shop-bought shelving that does not fill the recess
- Alcoves that aren’t square
- Alcoves that are wasted space
- Shelving for books and records
If your home is one of the older houses near St Luke's Church, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units.
Questions to ask before you hire anyone
- Will other trades be needed, and who arranges them?
- How the doors are hung and adjusted
- Whether the finish is set out in the quote
- Whether the quote follows a visit to your home
Alcove units in Loxford
A capped or blocked chimney should still be ventilated to help stop damp. Units are planned so any vent stays clear, rather than boxing it in. Any damp in the alcoves should be dealt with by the right trade before the units go in, as cupboards fitted over damp walls can suffer. We make alcove units from moisture-resistant MDF and strong birch plywood, with a painted finish, and people most often get in touch about room to work in an alcove and walls too uneven for standard furniture.
Homes in an area like Loxford can come from many different periods, so the walls behind alcove units could be solid brick, lath and plaster, block or plasterboard. That’s why every wall is checked during the design visit before the fixings are chosen. With a chimney breast, alcove units typically fill the alcoves; without one, they can run along a whole wall.
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.
- Location
- Loxford (IG1, IG11, IG3)
- Borough
- Redbridge
- Cost
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- Design visit, then a written quote
- Where it’s made
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Made from
- Painted MDF and birch ply
- When we fit
- Weekdays; Saturdays on request
- Contact
- Send us a message
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Also near Loxford
Also in Loxford
Fitting day, step by step
Fitting day follows a set order: floors are protected, the sections come in, everything is levelled, scribed to the walls, fixed and finished. At the end, we tidy up and go over the work with you. The time the fitting takes depends on the size and number of units, and your quote sets out the fitting days. London parking ranges from controlled zones to driveways and private bays, so let us know what applies at the measuring visit. For a flat, building rules on lifts and working hours are worth checking.
- You get in touch to say you’d like alcove units.
- A design visit follows, where we measure up and agree the layout with you.
- A quote in writing follows, with the finish set out.
- 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. Any scribing to the walls is done on the day.
Getting ready for fitting day
- Point out meters, boilers and fuse boards near the furniture
- Arrange any electrical changes with your electrician in advance
- Clear the walls of pictures and shelves
Getting a quote
Pictures help us understand the room before we visit. Pictures of the whole wall, the corners and the ceiling line give us a good feel for the space. To share them, get in touch through our contact form, and we will suggest a time for a design visit.
Read more
Questions from Loxford
Is Loxford in the area you cover for alcove units?
Yes, we work across Redbridge, Loxford included, and across the rest of London. To get started, you can get in touch through our contact form with some details.
I live near Barking station. Is that in your area?
Yes. We cover all of Redbridge and the rest of London. To get started, you can tell us about the room on our contact form with a few details about the room.
What affects the price of alcove units?
Every job is priced for its room: the size, what goes inside, the finish and how square the room is all count. The written quote follows the design visit.
Should alcove units go up to the ceiling?
It depends on the room and the look you want. In a tall period room, units can stop under the picture rail or the cornice. We agree the height at the design visit.
Do I need to be at home on fitting day?
Someone needs to be there to let us in. You do not need to watch us work.
Are alcove units spray painted or hand painted?
We offer spray painting in the workshop and hand painting on site. Spray painting gives a smooth, factory-like finish, while hand painting suits a softer, traditional look and is simple to touch up. We will help you choose at the design visit.
Flats, blocks and rented homes
A lot of London’s terraced houses are now converted flats, which often brings a shared hall and tight turns on the stairs. We plan the size of each section around it, once we’ve measured the way in.
Blocks of flats often have their own rules on lift bookings, entry systems and times for trades. Tell us about them at the design visit.
Loxford homes and alcove units
The biggest shares of homes in the neighbourhood around Loxford were built before 1919 (about 39%) and since 2000 (about 24%), on the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax figures for 2025. Knowing roughly when a home was built helps, because walls and fixings change from one era to the next. Entries on the National Heritage List near the centre of Loxford include Barking Station Booking Hall (Grade II), about 0.6 miles south. Works inside a listed home that affect its character, for instance removing original joinery or fixing into it, can need listed building consent from the council. Check with the council’s conservation officer first. TfL’s red routes have strict stopping rules. If your street in Loxford joins a main road, it’s worth telling us during the design visit. It lets us plan the stop before fitting day.
For a flat near Barking station, each piece is planned so it can be carried up and joined together in the room. Close to Loxford Park? A room that looks out on trees deserves a design that leaves the window alone.
Loxford is about 5 miles north-west of Woodford, in the London Borough of Redbridge. Homes in Loxford are part of the area we cover for alcove units. Loxford is one of the places in Redbridge where we make alcove units.
Postcode districts we cover here for alcove units: IG1, IG11 and IG3. Streets in the area include Dane Road, Eton Road and Natal Road, and homes on each of them are within our area for alcove units. Nearby, we also make alcove units in Ilford (1 mile north), Manor Park (1 mile west), Barking (1 mile south-east), Little Ilford (1 mile west) and Wallend (1 mile south-west). Across the rest of Redbridge, our area takes in Woodford (5 miles north-west), Wanstead (3 miles north-west), South Woodford (4 miles north-west), Newbury Park (2 miles north), Gants Hill (2 miles north) and Redbridge (2 miles north-west). Loxford is among the bigger places we cover in Redbridge.
What’s near Loxford
Around Loxford, we cover homes near The Barking Dog pub and Loxford School. For rail, the closest station is Barking station, about 0.6 miles south of the centre. A little further out are Barking Community Hospital (1 mile south-east) and Redbridge Museum (0.8 miles north-west).
Bespoke or off-the-shelf?
What you pay for with bespoke is mainly the fit: scribed edges, a level base on an uneven floor and furniture that meets the ceiling, skirting and picture rail. In an older room, standard units rarely manage that.
Flat-pack and off-the-shelf furniture has its place. In a room with square walls and standard sizes, it can work well, and it is quick to buy.
How it is made
Spray-painted finish
Spraying in the workshop means the units arrive already finished, in the colour agreed with you. Give the paint time to cure fully once fitted.
Shelves
How thick a shelf needs to be depends on how wide the alcove is and what it holds. For a wide span or heavy books, we use a thicker shelf, a lip on the front or a support.