Does moving around your kitchen feel awkward? Does cooking a meal also feel like you’re getting your 10, 000 steps in? Sounds tiring! But it doesn’t have to be like that and nor should it. Effective kitchen design is all about efficiency, so cooking is faster, easier and more enjoyable. Here are some meaningful changes you can make to improve your cooking efficiency with a beautiful kitchen renovation in Langley.
Efficient kitchen designs
- Triangle
- Zoned/stationed
The first step in improving kitchen design is to take a good look at how it’s used. If only one person uses it for the majority of cooking, the triangle design works best. If more than one per person uses the kitchen at a time, a zoned design works best.
Triangle kitchen design
The triangle kitchen design gets its name from the placement of the 3 major elements used in meal prep: the fridge, the stove, and the sink. In this layout, these 3 are situated such that you don’t need to move very far to access them, ideally not farther than 4-9’. Additionally, these pathways are barrier-free, so, no islands, no storage bins, no chairs, or anything you would need to move around. Since it only takes a few, unobstructed steps to reach any element, cooking becomes faster and easier, thus, more efficient.
Zoned or stationed kitchen design
When more than one person uses the kitchen, the problem is getting in each other’s way. The solution to this is a zoned or stationed kitchen design. You can see this in industrial kitchen designs like hospitals, hotels & restaurants where efficiency is a must. There’s an area for food prep, an area for cooking, an area for cleaning up, and an area with everything needed for table setting.
For families who cook together, this arrangement allows each person to participate without disrupting the flow of another. It looks like this; cooking tools are in the cooking area; everything used for food preparation is within arms reach of that station; all items needed for cleaning up are near the sink, and everything for table prep is stored in its own zone. Everyone enjoys the shared activity yet works freely at their own station. Meal prep is inherently efficient, cohesive and fun.
Triangles and zones are two ways kitchen design changes improve daily cooking efficiency. For more ideas, or to discuss an efficient kitchen renovation for your Langley home, give us a call at: 604-533-4541.
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