How to Layout Kitchen Cabinets

A beautiful kitchen can be achieved with a few minutes of planning.

Redesigning your kitchen requires imagination and forethought. Creating a workable layout is best done on paper, before buying any cabinets. It is necessary to measure your walls and anything that must be in your kitchen, such as plumbing and electrical hookups, sinks and appliances before beginning to select cabinets. Once you have an idea of what the measurements must be, laying out your kitchen becomes a matter of selecting the cabinets that fit your remaining space and storage needs.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Tape measure
• Graph paper
• Ruler
• Pencil

1. Measure the walls on which you will be installing cabinets. Create a scale diagram of your kitchen on graph paper. If you are planning on including an island, ensure that it is small or far enough away from your cabinets to give you at least two feet (three feet to be ADA compliant) of walking room in between. Mark your water supply and any existing power and gas supplies for appliances.

2. Measure any appliances and other fixtures that will be in your kitchen. If you haven't bought appliances yet, allow 30 inches for a standard range, 36 inches for a large refrigerator, 24 inches for a dishwasher. A double bowl sink will need a 36-inch base cabinet.

3. Form a work triangle with the refrigerator, the range and the sink. These three objects are the most accessed areas in your kitchen. The National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA) guidelines state that the center points of the three objects on the work triangle should be four feet or more apart along straight lines. Having these three areas in harmony will make your kitchen easy to work in.

4. Consider your storage needs and any other appliances in the kitchen. If you have a built-in dishwasher, plumbing is easier if it sits right next to the sink base. Many people prefer to have a drawer cabinet next to the range to hold cooking utensils and pots and pans. National Kitchen and Bath Association guidelines suggest at least 12 inches of work space on one side of your range and 15 on the other.

5. Work out from the corners to fill in the rest of your cabinets. Consider any special storage issues you may run into--if you have a ton of cookbooks, consider using an open-fronted cabinet as a bookshelf. Got a ton of big pans? Consider a base with a rollout tray for pots and pans. Remember that most semi-custom cabinets are made in 3 inch width increments and they may not perfectly fit the measurements of your kitchen. You may need to consider using filler strips to take up any space not perfectly filled by a cabinet.

References

• NKBA Consumer Tips