Widespread Kitchen Ground Plan Concepts and Tips on how to Use Them

What’s the very best kitchen format on your residence? These kitchen ground plan concepts will enable you plan your kitchen transform to be good and space-efficient with our information to kitchen configurations together with L-shaped, U-shaped, galley, one-wall and extra kitchen layouts.

Get extra kitchen transform inspiration with our favourite kitchen earlier than and afters plus low-cost DIY kitchen countertop concepts and 22 methods to replace your kitchen island.

MOST POPULAR KITCHEN LAYOUTS
and Tips on how to Use Them

by visitor writer Juliana Gordon

Reworking your kitchen is an thrilling prospect and an enormous resolution that may change the texture of your complete residence. Your new design must replicate the constraints of your own home (together with sq. footage), whereas additionally offering you with the counter and cupboard house you’ll want to make use of the kitchen the best way you need to.

Earlier than you make the ultimate name, check out these six common kitchen layouts that householders and designers are utilizing to provide their houses a contemporary, new feeling. The 5 commonest kitchen ground plans are one-wall, galley, L-shaped, U-shaped, and G-shaped, and any of those also can incorporate a kitchen island.

First: The Kitchen Work Triangle / Kitchen Zones

One of many greatest concerns in a kitchen transform is the visitors and performance of the house. Enhancing your kitchen format to create a ground plan that saves steps and makes kitchen work extra environment friendly will enable you LOVE your kitchen! The important thing to an environment friendly kitchen ground plan is utilizing kitchen zones to type a work triangle.

What’s a piece triangle?

A kitchen working triangle is a design technique that claims that the three most important work areas ought to type a triangle between 1) the sink (and dishwasher), 2 ) the range/oven, and three) the fridge.

This triangle design maximizes effectivity by centralizing the workflow of the commonest kitchen duties, which is particularly vital for residence cooks in a small kitchen. (That’s me 🙋 and doubtless you!)

As you’re planning an environment friendly kitchen triangle (or “golden triangle”), listed below are the foundations designers comply with:

• Both sides of the triangle needs to be 4-9 ft — not too compact, however not too unfold out.
• No kitchen fixture (akin to an island) ought to minimize into the triangle greater than 12 inches. Keep in mind, that is about strolling visitors, not simply distance.
• The sum complete of all of the triangle sides ought to 13-26 ft – once more, smaller dimensions for fewer steps between zones.
• No different visitors patterns minimize throughout the triangle.

Now, bear in mind, these are extra like pointers anyway. 🏴‍☠️ Create a format and kitchen zones that be just right for you and the best way that you simply use your house. The kitchen triangle maximizes effectivity for ONE prepare dinner within the kitchen, so in case you are repeatedly cooking with a associate or host friends typically, the visitors patterns might be completely different. Bigger kitchens could have 2 triangles, the place every features a sink, a space for storing (fridge/pantry), and a prep/cooking space.

Is the kitchen triangle outdated? What about kitchen zones as a substitute?

Many fashionable residence cooks discover it extra significant to make use of the kitchen triangle as a place to begin and spend extra effort organizing the kitchen in zones for widespread duties. The 5 kitchen zones mostly used are:

• Consumables zone: the place you retailer most of your meals. This might be break up between and embody each contemporary meals (fridge/freezer) and different meals within the pantry or a meals cupboard.
• Non-Consumables zone: the place you retailer repeatedly used day by day dishes, glasses, silverware, and many others.
• Cleansing zone: your sink and dishwashing space. You’ll need to find your non-Consumable zone close to the cleansing zone.
• Preparation zone: the place you do most meals prep, akin to a bit of countertop or kitchen island. Embrace space for storing for chopping boards, knives, bowls, and many others.
• Cooking zone: range, vary, oven, and probably microwave space. The cooking zone and prep zone needs to be close to to one another. Embrace space for storing for pots, pans, and utensils.

Considering by way of work paths (together with the triangle) between these zones can assist you design a kitchen format that is smart for the way you prepare dinner and clear up. In your kitchen transform planning, hold these concepts in thoughts and take into consideration the way you’ll use the redesigned house. Typically, altering the location of simply one of many three fixtures (or one of many 5 zones) could make an enormous distinction.

The One-Wall Kitchen Structure

Essentially the most primary kitchen format is a one-wall kitchen. This easy kitchen ground plan places the entire counter tops, cabinetry, and home equipment on a single wall. This can be a good format for smaller homes, flats, studios, and lofts the place there’s little or no house accessible. Placing every part on one wall frees up extra room for eating house, and doesn’t block the home windows.

However what in regards to the kitchen triangle?

It’s primary geometry: a line is NOT a triangle. A single-wall kitchen can nonetheless create a “triangle” within the strolling paths of the prepare dinner — simply with longer paths between. This can be a time when it’s extra useful to htink in ZONES as a substitute of the kitchen triangle. The best technique to make a one-wall kitchen extra environment friendly for the prepare dinner is so as to add an additional workspace to type the prep space zone of the triangle.

Since there’s restricted counter house is offered, it’s a good suggestion to make use of a excessive eating desk that may double as an additional countertop. Additionally, contemplate a smaller rolling desk or kitchen island which you can simply pull out whenever you want an additional work floor and put away later to save lots of house.

The Galley Kitchen Structure

The galley kitchen, or walk-through kitchen, consists of two partitions with a walkway in between. It could possibly be open on only one finish, or open on each ends — a hallway kitchen, principally. This ground plan maximizes the house accessible in such a hall, and retains your cupboards and home equipment inside simple attain.

Galley kitchens additionally are inclined to section the cooking house away from the eating room and the remainder of the home, vs an open kitchen ground plan that’s widespread in L-shaped or U formed kitchens.

This can be a good kitchen format thought for use by a single chef, or two on the very most except the kitchen could be very lengthy. With workspaces on either side, a prepare dinner can simply arrange a primary cooking triangle work zone by having two parts on one wall and a 3rd centered between them on the alternative wall.

The downsides to a galley kitchen ground plan embody the shortage of room for a kitchen desk in between the partitions, and crowding if too many individuals are transferring via it.

The L-Formed Kitchen Structure

Additionally good for smaller kitchens, the L-shaped format thought places the kitchen workspaces on two adjoining partitions, forming an L. This design helps hold visitors out of the kitchen, kinds a pure triangle work zone, and provides you sufficient house for a eating desk and chairs (or an island).

This pure work movement setup makes an L-shaped kitchen format an awesome choice for smaller houses, together with remodels the place you take away a wall to open up the kitchen.

Having a kitchen wall that’s a minimum of 15 ft lengthy will assist hold issues inside attain in an L-shape kitchen ground plan, serving to you to prepare dinner extra effectively. If in case you have loads of room, you could need to contemplate a special format that might higher make the most of your house.

PICK A CABINET PAINT COLOR:

The U-Formed Kitchen Structure

The U-shaped kitchen design, typically referred to as a horseshoe, makes use of three partitions that type a “U” form. It’s format to make use of if you happen to want a big house to prep or prepare dinner on or when there might be a number of cooks in a single space.

Not less than 10 ft of house between partitions is required to make a U-shape kitchen ground plan a sensible choice, although you possibly can see the format in each small and enormous kitchens within the pictures.

The horseshoe design makes it simple to create work triangles for getting ready and cleansing, however particular care must be taken when contemplating the placement of cupboards and home equipment.

If cupboard doorways or home equipment are too shut to one another on the corners of the U-shaped format, the doorways will collide when opened. Having two corners additionally makes it vital to maximise the house in your nook base cupboards so you could have loads of storage with out useless house.

Kitchen Island Structure Concepts

The kitchen island is changing into a extra common selection in the present day. It consists of a free-standing workspace that gives extra performance to a kitchen and can be utilized in quite a lot of methods.

Home equipment, kitchen cupboards, and even sinks will be included right into a kitchen island, or only a easy countertop. They will additionally make good kitchen tables, or cell tables if they’ve wheels, supplied there’s sufficient room.

The G-Formed Kitchen Structure

Peninsula kitchens add an additional leg to a single kitchen wall. This transforms the house into an “L” form, or an present “L” form right into a horseshoe format, or from an L-shaped kitchen right into a P-shaped or G-shaped kitchen. This format is greatest for an oblong kitchen, and it may be scaled to suit kitchens of many sizes.

The peninsula supplies further countertop, cupboard, and equipment house. It additionally permits a number of individuals to collect across the identical space, maximizing the quantity of house accessible. Like an island, you possibly can pull chairs as much as the peninsula and use it as a eating desk.

Kitchen Structure FAQs

Have a query about kitchen ground plans? Depart us a remark under!

What’s the most useful kitchen format?

Whereas any kitchen will be useful, the L-shaped kitchen format is the best ground plan to create a piece triangle in a small house. An L-shaped kitchen can be probably the most versatile. For these causes, it’s the commonest and the preferred for smaller kitchens, particularly kitchens with adjoining eating rooms or open kitchens.

What kitchen format is common in small houses?

In small houses the place house is at a premium, a galley kitchen is the small kitchen format to decide on. This compact ground plan retains every part shut at hand.

In a small residence with somewhat bit extra sq. footage, an L-shaped kitchen is usually a good choice to optimize house for each kitchen and eating room wants mixed.

What kitchen format is common in giant houses?

For houses with giant kitchens, the very best kitchen layouts are U-shaped and G-shaped. These layouts profit from the house by including further base cupboards for storage and extra countertop house for meals preparation. Many giant kitchens even have room for one (and even two!) kitchen islands or peninsulas to maximise storage and dine-in house.

About The Creator: Juliana Gordon has cherished inside adorning since she was a toddler; you may at all times discover her rearranging the furnishings in her dollhouses. From a younger age, she knew inside adorning was her calling. Gordon acquired a level in inside design from the Rocky Mountain Academy of Artwork and Design, and presently plans and decorates homes for a bevy of non-public shoppers. She is extraordinarily passionate in regards to the design and residential enchancment business, and chooses to share her information on-line. Juliana contributes to a number of publications and blogs in her spare time, together with Kitchens by Wedgewood.

First printed 19 July 2014 // Final up to date 14 Apr 2023

Associated