1. Design wide walk ways. (Layout)
– Ensure your kitchen floor plan includes enough room between cabinetry and the island to easily move through the space. Generally, paths throughout a kitchen should be at least 36 inches wide. Aisles within the cooking zone should be 42 inches wide for a one-cook kitchen and 48 inches wide for a two-cook configuration. When planning adjust kitchen islands and peninsulas accordingly.
– The initial step to take is to set the kitchen layout before you even get into every detail. This entails considering where to position the kitchen main parts and components—the kitchen sink, countertop, fridge, table, and chairs. Make sure the whole layout looks structured and streamlined. You don’t want to have your layout cluttered and hope everything is in perfect order. By doing so, you can ensure the functionality and efficiency of your kitchen construction.
– As you can see, designing your kitchen is no easy task and requires a lot of consideration. The layout of your kitchen can be one of the most critical factors in getting your kitchen to function correctly and efficiently. Whether you plan to renovate your kitchen or design it for the first time, these tips will help you achieve the kitchen layout of your dreams.
2. Stay clear of corners. (Storage)
– An important kitchen design tip is to pay attention to corners when deciding where to place cabinetry and appliances. Plan space for the cabinet doors’ clearance and swing direction in your kitchen design to make cabinet and appliance doors fully functional. Keep appliances away from corners, and make sure doors won’t bang into each other if open simultaneously.
– If you have a tight corner to work around, consider opting for low-profile handles. Knobs, pulls, and appliance handles sticking out can make opening neighbouring corner cabinet doors difficult.
– After the layout, kitchen storage plays a crucial part. As there are many kitchenware involved and food items to store, you want to utilise and make ample space. For instance, you may want to consider overhead cabinets, more drawers, or enough shelves for your kitchen. When it comes to storage, your goal is to reduce the clutter in your kitchen. You also want to foster a safe environment that’s ideal for food preparation and cooking.
– As the kitchen is the room that will be used the most in your household, it’s essential to give it enough storage space. This can be achieved in different ways, whether it’s through cabinets or drawers or even through a small pantry. Storage will prevent you from running out of space and reduce clutter in your kitchen.
3. Play with floor patterns and material. (Flooring)
– The kitchen flooring is one part that shouldn’t be taken for granted. This is because improper flooring can compromise the safety of the entire household. As a rule of thumb, go for lighter and safer types of flooring materials. Light materials can create a light, airy space for your kitchen. They will also allow you to see spills and potential hazards on the floor. After all, when it comes to cooking, safety is a top priority.
– If you have young children, or elders, at home, nonslip floors are an important safety feature.
– If your kitchen is a heavy-traffic area, consider stone and tile, which are durable.
– If you anticipate a lot of dropped pots and pans, or other heavy abuse, ceramic tile could be a good choice as it resists dents and scratches.
– Heavy traffic and potential water stains don’t mean you shouldn’t go with wood. Prefinished wood floors can withstand both.
– If your kitchen is off the garage or pool, choose a flooring type that can withstand muddy boots and shoes and wet towels and feet.
5. Ventilation
A) Maximize natural light
– Before you think about supplement lighting, consider the sources of natural light in your kitchen. Some kitchens have very few if any windows, which means you’ll need to rely heavily on the supplement lighting. If you’re lucky enough to have windows, consider how you can let the light in as much as possible. If you’re renovating your kitchen, consider swapping out a solid exterior door in the kitchen to one with glass panels. Your window coverings also play a role in how much light you get into your kitchen. Choose lightweight window coverings to maximize the light. You can also lower the wattage in brighter kitchens. Darker kitchens might need higher wattage fixtures to provide enough brightness.
B) Focus on task lighting
– Task lighting is important in a kitchen. It’s the bright, focused light that goes over specific work areas.
Common places for task lighting include:
• Sinks
• Stoves
• Food prep areas
• Islands
An easy way to incorporate task lighting is to install under-cabinet lighting. It casts an even, bright light over your countertops, so you always have adequate illumination.
4. Lighting
A) Install a range hood
– Range hoods are the most effective way to improve ventilation in your kitchen. They are designed to quickly remove dirty and contaminated air from your home and either push it to the outside through a vent or recirculate it after filtering it through a carbon charcoal filter. There are several types of range hoods that you can choose from depending on your personal style, budget, cooking habits, and space in your kitchen. You can choose between ducted or vent hoods, ductless hoods, or downdraft hoods, and they can be mounted on the wall above your stove, under a cabinet or microwave, or suspended over an island cooktop.
The proper range hood will be about the width of your cooktop and have a powerful enough CFM (cubic feet per minute) to effectively clear the air in your kitchen.
– Turn your hood fan on and keep it on. Many people don’t turn their fans on at all because they find them too noisy. The noise level of a fan is determined by how much air it can pull from a given space, also known as its cubic feet per minute (CFM) rating. If noise is an issue, look for a hood fan with low CFM.
B) Use the back burner
– Some hood fans have a low capture efficiency. They may do a great job of collecting and expelling contaminants that are directly below them, but can be less effective at removing fumes that are outside the perimeter of the hood enclosure. By cooking on your stove’s back burners, directly under the fan, you can ensure maximum removal of smoke and grease.
C) Open windows while you cook
– If you do not have a range hood, try to keep your windows open while you cook. Opening multiple windows will create a draft that can push pollutants out of your home and bring in fresh air. If you have a window fan with an exhaust feature, turn it on to remove additional contaminants and improve airflow.