Planning an Efficient Kitchen

Today’s kitchen has become an informal, friendly place to cook, eat, talk, and linger.  Keeping your kitchen up-to-date in design and style is always a good idea.  Of all the rooms in your home, remolding or sprucing up the kitchen pay back the most value at resale.  And being in a place with fresh style and functionality that suits your needs is the most important benefit in kitchen remodeling.  Well designed kitchen depends on these few considerations:  kitchen lay-out, countertops, floor and cabinetry, sink and faucets, storage, and appliances.

• Kitchen lay-out.  Since the 1950s, kitchen designers have used the “work triangle” configuration as a starting point.  The fundamental efficiency revolves around the triangle. The work -triangle traces the kitchen traffic with meal preparation and clean up.   The triangle refers to the placement of the three most frequently used in the kitchen:  the sink, the stove, and the refrigerator.  When you draw a line from the sink to the refrigerator and then to the stove, the length of that line should be between 12 and 26 feet.  The general rule is that the spatial relationship between the sink and the stove is most important, since these two areas are used most often during food preparation.  Each distance of the work triangle should measure between 4 and 9 feet in length.  Cabinets should not intersect any leg of the triangle by more than 12 inches.  Most importantly, major traffic flow should not move through the triangle.  These formulas can dramatically improve your kitchen efficiency and you will save time, energy, and miles of walking.

• Countertops.  Granite is the best thing when it comes to lasting value.  Granite is one of the hardest natural stones on earth, ranging in color from basic black to pink.  It has a cool, smooth, and wide- open work space, great for pastry making, easy clean up, and maintenance, and will never go out of favor.  Go for a countertop at least 3 centimeters thick with a pretty dropped edge.  Another eco-friendly and durable surface is recycled glass countertops.  They cost about the same as granite but can crack and chip if a heavy item dropped on the surface.  Damaged recycled glass countertop can not be repair.  Quartz is also durable, low maintenance, and has great qualities for kitchen countertops.

• Floor and cabinetry.  Choose medium shade natural woods that are not too light or too dark for floor or cabinets.  Medium priced woods such as maple, birch and oak are good choices.  Maple and oak mellow in color as they age.  Birch and maple take paint well.  Prime hardwoods such as cherry and walnut are known for their smooth grains and durability.  Cherry darkens as it ages and walnut lightens overtime.

• Sink and faucets.  Stainless steel is a popular choice for keeping the kitchen spotless.  Choose two or more large single basin type for more efficient cooking and clean-up, reducing steps, simplify the cooking process, save time and energy, more convenience, and more productive.  A high-arching, pullout or a pull down sprayer-faucet combination is handy and can add a professional touch to your sink.

• Storage.  Adequate storage is essential.  Select cabinetry pried in the middle range.  Roomy 42 inches wide cabinets are practical.

• Appliances.  Stove and refrigerator are the most used in the kitchen.  Stainless steel is the first choice for its resistance to nicks and scratches and is easy to keep clean.  Buy medium priced line that will fit your cooking and entertaining style and budget.  Top of the line stove top and costly appliances will not turn you into your favorite chef overnight.  Save your money for other investment.

We are requiring kitchens to perform better as we look into kitchen and cooking as a creative outlet, a healthy living counterpart, and a source of great fun.  As our socializing and family gathering moves to the kitchen, it is only natural that we want our kitchen to reflect our usage and our tastes.