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Building a New Home: 10 Common Kitchen Mistakes

By
Real Estate Agent with Platinum Realty, LLC KS# BR00012805
10 Common Mistakes in Kitchen Designs
One of the most popular rooms in a new home is the kitchen so it's important to get this one right. Treat yourself to a beautiful kitchen that allows functionality.

1. Storage
Try to think of all the items that require extra space.  The good china, containers, food storage, the broom, mop, trash, cleaners and accessories.  Decide what you want to store and where you want to store them. Place storage excessible to the use of it, like the spices by the cooktop. Also, consider the size and type of appliances you will be needing, the range, refrigerator, dishwasher, microwave, etc... Kitchen Cabinets

2. Efficiency
Consider the most efficient layout and design of elements in your kitchen for the way you cook and use the room.  Designers recommend grouping common elements in a work triangle. For instance, you could have a cooking, preparation and clean-up in the same area. Drilling down further would be having the clean-up work triangle such as the dishwasher, sink, counter space and recycling center close by. This provides for maximum efficiency. Your goal is to minimize the number of steps and avoid unnecessarily crossing the kitchen. Oh, and keep in mind how traffic flows through the kitchen. Keep the family out of your work triangle!

3. Safety
Safety should be a primary concern in the kitchen so carefully consider the potential safety hazards in your kitchen design. For instance, think about where an oven or range might be in relation to a hallway where someone might bump into something hot or an open door.  Look for a number of new products available specifically designed for increased safety.  

4. Visualization Problems
Visit a showroom to visualize how your kitchen will look with full-size appliances and cabinetry. Measure and walk the showroom to get a feel for what you want. Don't rely on your imagination for these important decisions.

5. Investigating Options
Check out what's new, don't let knowing cause you to miss what is available on the market. Take the time to investigate all your options and products. Find out the pros and cons. Remember the vacation you took and saw something you would like to have in your kitchen. 

6. Lighting
Lighting is one of the most under-designed components in the home and one of the most important. Lighting creates the mood of a room and provides illumination for increased safety. Use three forms of lighting: ambient, task and accent. Ambient lighting is what illuminates the entire room. Task lightingilluminates only one area for a specific task-such as undercabinet lighting focused on the countertop. Accent lighting is used to highlight an interesting feature or item.  Note: Do this before walls and cabinets are installed. Don't wait until the project is over to determine that your kitchen is too dark. The wiring needs to be installed in the walls, behind the cabinets.

7. Prioritizing
Decide what you what, then what you need in your kitchen. Prioritize your needs. Determine what is necessary and what you can live without. Oh, and don't forget to prioritize these with your budget.

8. Budget
It's easy to overstep your budget with, oh that's only a $20 increase and will look better. Try to stay within the budget you created, you made the decision based on what you can afford. This will help your builder create the design that works within your budget.

9. Changes and the Unexpected
Each time you request a change, there could be a delay and more certainly a cost. Try to control the number of changes that you initiate during new home project. If you really want to make the change, make sure the change is in writing and that it is signed by both parties before work begins. Ask for a revised timetable and budget in the event of any changes or unexpected occurrences.

10. Poor Planning
Start by critiquing your current kitchen. What works? What doesn't? Then ask yourself questions about how you are going to use the kitchen space? Will you have more than one cook preparing meals at one time? Do you prefer cooking a special type of cuisine that requires more counter or storage space? For the most effective kitchen design, you need to match your plan to your lifestyle to the way you actually work and live in the kitchen

Does this make sense?  Can you think of anything else you would add to this list?

David L. Britt
http://www.heritage.net/
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Other Posts for Building a New Home:
Framing, Level and Square
Structural Floor Supports
Basement Tips
Critical Construction Components
Common Mistakes

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