In order to rationally use every centimeter, you should seriously approach the issue of planning a kitchen set and the location of household appliances.
1. Design and dimensions
A small kitchen can be enlarged with visual effects: cool and light tones expand the boundaries of the room, a mirror will add depth, and light curtains allow maximum natural light to pass through.
The required minimum from sink to refrigerator should be 40-60 cm. This is enough to put food out of the refrigerator, and also so that splashes do not fly from the sink to the refrigerator.
Do not place the stove in a corner close to the wall or next to the refrigerator: it is better to leave a gap of 30 cm between them. The available minimum from the stove to the sink is 40 cm.
Of particular importance are the finishing and facades of the kitchen set. For a compact kitchen, laconic monochromatic glossy or matte facades are suitable.
Measure the available space carefully with a tape measure. Based on the measurements, draw a schematic floor plan or use the convenient online kitchen designer.
2. Arrangement of furniture
There are three most common kitchen configurations:
- Straight (Linear) – ideal for narrow spaces. The advantages of such a kitchen are obvious: everything is at hand, the working tops are as close to each other as possible, and the hanging elements can be placed in several tiers.
There is, perhaps, only one drawback: the lack of free space for the movement of several family members.
- U-shaped – makes it possible to make the most optimal use of a square room. The “U” scheme economically distributes the kitchen space and even allows you to organize a kitchen-dining room.
The corners of such a kitchen are maximally involved, and the layout is considered the safest. The working triangle is completely isolated from the through traffic, which is also important.
- Corner or L-shaped – this layout can be successfully used in square, and in narrow small rooms. It is versatile and very practical.
This arrangement of furniture and equipment makes it possible to use the window area, allows you to fully zone the kitchen into a cooking area and a dining area.
3. Working triangle
The working triangle is the route of a person’s movement in the cooking process – a sink-stove-refrigerator. When planning a kitchen, it should be equipped as comfortably and safely as possible.
And for convenience, the total sum of the lengths of all sides of the working triangle should be at least 3.5 meters and not more than 6.5 meters.
4. Selection of furniture
For a small and functional kitchen, choose compact furniture with convenient storage systems. Convertible furniture and narrow cabinets will not be superfluous. And to diversify the interior, choose products with elements of glass and chrome.
5. Installation of equipment
The dishwasher and sink must be side by side in a line, otherwise, it will be inconvenient to load the dishes. In exceptional cases, the dishwasher is positioned at an angle to the sink.
I always advise you to leave a small space on your workbench between the sink and the stove. If this is not possible, purchase a sink with a special metal wing.
If you have long curtains in your kitchen, install the gas stove no closer than thirty centimeters from the window – this must be taken into account when planning the location of kitchen equipment.
And in general, the place of the hob is at least 10 cm from the adjacent cabinet, and at least 5 cm to the back wall and the edge of the countertop.
For optimal operation of the hood, its width should not be less than the width of the cooktop, while the depth is not critical. But the minimum distance to the stove is at least 65 cm for electric, and 75 cm for gas burners.
Do not forget that the hood should “cover” the volume of the kitchen 10-12 times. You can calculate this value using the formula: hood capacity (cubic meters/hour) = (kitchen area x ceiling height) x 12.
For example, if you have a kitchen with an area of 10 square meters and a ceiling height of 2.7 meters, you will need a hood with a capacity of just over 420 cubic meters. m / hour: (10 × 2.7) x 12 = 324 × 1.3 = 421.
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