Remodeling Old, Small Kitchen

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by TwinbrookNine

I've had the curse of a small kitchen in an otherwise fine house, where I did a remodel. So, I'm an expert at this.


In a small kitchen, with limited cabinet space, taking out those cabinets could remove useful cabinet space. You can have a bar between the kitchen and dining room (sounds darling) - just install short cabinets (15" for example) above the bar, finish off the bases of those cabinets - perhaps with puck lights, and of course the drywall around them. In fact, it gives a more "finished" look. Countertop to ceiling openings in that location can sometimes look god awful, but in any case rob you of needed cabinet space.

This is a small kitchen, so make sure you carefully lay out the cabinets (base cabinets especially) so that you get optimal storage capacity. Drawers are important. Measure very accurately and use graph paper to lay it out. You'll find several configurations in most cases. Make sure you look at sinks carefully, paying attention to dimensions so you can plan that part optimally (too many people put a humongous sink in a dinky kitchen and waste counter space and limit base cabinet selection). In a small kitchen, always consider an 18" dishwasher. That 6" difference can sometimes offer a bank of drawers that you otherwise couldn't fit. On that note, find a line of cabinets that offer the most variety in widths - generally, 12", 15", 18". 21" then the usual 24", 30", etc. That way your possible configurations are maximized. Always consider a corner lazy susan base cabinet. They come in 33' and 36" widths in most cabinet lines. Incredible storage space for an otherwise dead end corner.


It's important to note that kitchen cabinetry and appliances are like living room furniture - designed for huge rooms; so, you may have to avoid "standard" sizes. For example, you can now get a French door refrigerater that's only 30" wide (they used to be all 36" or so). Huge sinks, huge refrigerators, and 24" dishwashers are a bane to small kitchens. Just keep that in mind and plan accordingly.

I jammed a U-shaped kitchen in a footprint that was 2 feet too narrow to do it. I had a window at the bottom of the "U" so I was kind of forced to stick with that layout with the sink at the window.

I recessed a countertop depth French door refrigerator into the wall. I recessed the dishwasher into the wall next to it. I recessed a lower box into the wall next to the dishwasher. The countertop on that side is 20" instead of the standard 24". As you say, I put lazy Susan base cabinets in both corners. It's still narrower than you'd want but I had no way of making it bigger.





If I had to do it over again, I would have hacked up the lazy susan corner boxes to put in a slightly bigger sink. It's a bit small for washing 12" frying pans. Otherwise, it was the best I could do with the space.

[TwinbrookNine]

Originally Posted by GeoffD

I jammed a U-shaped kitchen in a footprint that was 2 feet too narrow to do it. I had a window at the bottom of the "U" so I was kind of forced to stick with that layout with the sink at the window.

I recessed a countertop depth French door refrigerator into the wall. I recessed the dishwasher into the wall next to it. I recessed a lower box into the wall next to the dishwasher. The countertop on that side is 20" instead of the standard 24". As you say, I put lazy Susan base cabinets in both corners. It's still narrower than you'd want but I had no way of making it bigger.





If I had to do it over again, I would have hacked up the lazy susan corner boxes to put in a slightly bigger sink. It's a bit small for washing 12" frying pans. Otherwise, it was the best I could do with the space.

How often do you open the dishwasher AND the oven at the same time? And what if you did? It's laughable but not an issue.

Regarding sinks: I put a 17" single bowl sink (deep) with an 21" base cabinet. It was fine. I could wash any large pan in it without too much hassle. I had to downsize the sink in order to get counter space surrounding the sink (very important). My 18" dishwasher in that case allowed for a 15" wide drawer bank instead of a 12" one and also allowed for a corner lazy susan. That 6" extra was very effective. Those 15" drawers (with 2 deep drawers) provided an awesome amount of storage. It's these little changes from ordinary that can make a small kitchen very easy to work in. In fact, that small kitchen was the easiest, most step saving kitchen I ever worked in. Lots of counter space. The 18" dishwasher easily held all the stuff I cared to put in it. They cost a good penny more than a 24" but the resultant acquisition of a bigger drawer bank was more than compensation. Just remember, the kitchen designers at HD usually are oblivious to these things. They are programmed for 12' X 15' kitchens.


I really like that picture showing those cabinets over the bar. Very inviting; very tasteful. Very functional.

[margarets1]

Kitchens are extremely important rooms and functionality is key. I would suggest you draw out a layout of your current kitchen and post it in kitchens at gardenweb dot com. The folks there will help you design a functional kitchen. The price point of the house will help determine how much work and the price point of the finishes.

[davebarnes]

Hire a designer.
A few hundred $ will be worth it.