For most families, having an efficient kitchen is a necessity. It’s a functional space that your family takes advantage of on a daily basis. From cooking dinner to working as a space for children to study, the kitchen is one of the most-used areas of the home. As a result, efficient kitchen design is a necessity so no one is stepping over each others toes. These four ideas are fantastic ways of prioritizing efficiency in your kitchen design.
1. Wide Walkways
Being able to navigate your kitchen is essential for efficiency. This means that paths through the kitchen should be at least 36 inches wide so no one is bumping into one another. Additionally, paths within cooking zones should be between 42 and 48 inches wide.
Always remember to follow this rule even when planning out kitchen islands. This will allow for enough space to open appliances like the oven and refrigerator, while still giving you enough space to maneuver and not feel crowded.
2. Considering Safety
Having an efficient kitchen also means having a safe kitchen. If you have children, you ought to keep cooktop areas out of the way of the flow of traffic. You don’t want the kids accidentally running into handles or knocking over pots and pans.
It’s important to also remember that the refrigerator should be accessible to everyone in the household, not just whoever is doing the cooking. Keep in mind that corners can also be problematic—you’ll want cabinet and appliance doors to be free of any obstruction.
3. Within a Distance
For ideal kitchen design, think about how you use you will end up using your kitchen. For example, having your dishes stored close to your dishwasher means you have to take less steps to put them away.
Keeping all of your plastic containers together, and ideally next to the fridge, is a fantastic way of adding in another layer of efficiency. Keep knives and cutting boards near the prep space, and the pot holders and cooking utensils near the stove.
4. Doubling Up for an Efficient Kitchen
If you have children, you may want to include an accessible mini-fridge in your kitchen as well. This prevents them from accidentally getting in the way while you’re trying to cook but makes their snacks still accessible.
Double ovens are having something of a comeback lately, too. Double ovens are generally smaller to save space, but it also makes for a more efficient kitchen. They use less energy to cook the same amount of food because all that heat isn’t being lost inside a huge oven.
Having two cook spaces independent of each other also allows for the ability to cook two foods at different temperatures for different lengths of time.
Johnson Lumber will Design your Kitchen
We’ve been a solid fixture in your community for 100 years now, first as a lumber and millwork supplier, and now as your total building material supplier. We even design kitchens now. In fact, it’s one of our favorite kind of projects to take on. Our dedicated team of designers will help you create the kitchen of your dreams. We work with local manufacturers and builders to bring you the best Maryland has to offer.
Come visit our stores! Our Millersville and Edgewater locations are both open Monday-Friday from 6:30 AM to 4:30 PM, as well as Saturday from 8 AM to 1 PM. This is the best way to get an idea of what the products look like before you order them!
Follow us on Facebook for more updates. To contact our Millersville store, call 410-987-5200. Our Edgewater location can be contacted at 410-956-0400.
