Adding an outdoor kitchen to your deck can be just what you need to perfectly enjoy outdoor living right in your backyard. Ensuring your deck’s cooking space has everything it needs to provide the ideal setting for feeding your family or entertaining guests outdoors is essential. Here are some helpful considerations to make when designing your ideal outdoor kitchen:
Pre-Build Considerations
During the planning phase, it’s helpful to consider the following before settling on a design:
- Your Budget: It’s easy to go overboard with shiny appliances and accessories for your kitchen, but establishing a budget beforehand and sticking to it when choosing outdoor kitchen features will help to ensure you don’t end up with a design that breaks the bank.
- Safety Needs: Do you have small children? Are you planning on having guests over to enjoy your outdoor living space with their little ones in tow? The high heat and sharp utensils in your our kitchen can be dangerous to curious minds, so consider safety features that will keep your younger family members and guests from getting hurt.
- Navigation: Just as you would with an indoor kitchen, you want your outdoor space to be easy to navigate. Depending on the size of your deck or patio, you may need to limit the amount of large appliances you include in order to ensure the area is comfortable and efficient for your kitchen activities.
Assessing Your Outdoor Kitchen Options
Considering what you want and need in your outdoor cooking space will help you in choosing the right features and settling on a solid design for your kitchen:
- Kitchen Features: Luckily, there’s no shortage of different options when it comes to choosing the features to include in your outdoor kitchen. Some of the most popular things homeowners include in their outdoor kitchen designs are built-in grills, miniature refrigerators, sinks, cabinets, and ice makers.
- Countertops: If you’re looking to create a more luxurious space, granite, marble, and quartz countertop materials are all great options. Building on a budget? Formica laminate is an affordable yet durable choice.
- Lighting: Another essential feature for your outdoor kitchen, lighting is necessary to keep your space illuminated for those after-dark get-togethers and outdoor meals during seasons when the sun goes down in the early evening. Picking appropriate lighting can additionally help you avoid accidents in the kitchen and improve the functionality of your space.
Your Best Resource for Building Your Outdoor Kitchen
At The J.F. Johnson Lumber Company, we’re dedicated to providing the very best in deck and kitchen-building materials and supplies. From gorgeous countertops to engineered lumber, we can help you find the right building products to design your ideal outdoor cooking or dining space. Whether you’re looking to have a new deck built or you’re simply in need of some updated decking features, give us a call today.
