caliwag

Yes 1 1/2 or double bowl sink every time.  We are currently slumming it with a single bowl sink in the staitc caravan and when you find something you forgot to rinse, then the only place is the bathroom basin.

 

Also we are not having wall cupboards. Mainly because where the kitchen will go are two large windows to get the best view. We will also be having a  pantry off the kitchen for food storage.

 

Dishwashers are fine, ours probably gets used every other day, but they do NOT eliminate washing up. Plenty of stuff that can't go in them, e,g aluminium coffee pot, wooden chopping boards etc, so still a need for hand washing in the sink.

 

On the subject of "hub of the house" our new house will have the kitchen as part of the "familly room" combining a kitchen, somewhere to eat and somewhere to watch tv etc.  I remain to be convinces by this model of modern living. I really don't think I want to sit down of an evening in a room with the fridge, and worse, the dishwasher humming away. I expect I will mostly be using the separate proper living room for that.

I think that handleless kitchens are on their way out.  Handles are practical and proven.  A decent size single sink is often more practical than a 1 1/2 bowl.  I am not keen on people leaving dregs of tea.

 

On some of the plots in our current development we have the motor for the extracts in a plant room above the kitchen to reduce noise.  Also I always specify low noise dishwashers.

 

Whatever kitchen unit manufacturer you choose, you will end up with a row of chipboard boxes nailed to the wall.

I’m having the issue that we have the sink identified (triple Belfast from V&B...) and the biggest problem is getting a 900 Belfast base unit. 800 is standard, 900 seems to be a rarity...!

 

Our kitchen is also dining and a family room - agree that they do become the hub but there needs to be other quiet places to go. 

1 minute ago, PeterW said:

 

 

Our kitchen is also dining and a family room - agree that they do become the hub but there needs to be other quiet places to go. 

This is spot on, we loved the open plan style of our previous townhouse but needed the retreat of the snug. We have the same in the new place (albeit on a more useable scale) with 3/4 living zones connected together and then another upstairs lounge. 

Same(ish) with us: open plan kitchen diner, connected living room, and a completely separate snug. The snug is small - 3.5 x 4, from memory - but it gets used a more than just about anywhere else in the house. It's painted dark matt blue (even the ceiling), and has dark carpet and furniture, to try and keep it feeling, well, snug. 

1 hour ago, Mr Punter said:

I think that handleless kitchens are on their way out.  Handles are practical and proven.  A decent size single sink is often more practical than a 1 1/2 bowl.  I am not keen on people leaving dregs of tea.

 

On some of the plots in our current development we have the motor for the extracts in a plant room above the kitchen to reduce noise.  Also I always specify low noise dishwashers.

 

Whatever kitchen unit manufacturer you choose, you will end up with a row of chipboard boxes nailed to the wall.

 

The answer ti that one is to have a 1.5 sink where the big one *is* a decent size :-).

 

My 1.5 sink hobbyhorse is that the little sink must be on the opposite side to the drainer, then you can still do messy things without messing the drying potsnpans.

9 minutes ago, jack said:

The snug is small - 3.5 x 4, from memory

 

 How the other half live...

 

 

5 minutes ago, Ferdinand said:

 

The answer ti that one is to have a 1.5 sink where the big one *is* a decent size :-).

 

My 1.5 sink hobbyhorse is that the little sink must be on the opposite side to the drainer, then you can still do messy things without messing the drying potsnpans.

 

Double (normal) sink in the kitchen in lieu of a drainer. I've promised the wife a bath sized sink in the utility -  like that will ever happen. The kitchen 'fashion' for want of a better term I am seeing is 2 sinks on opposite sides of the kitchen. I've no idea why.

 

My cheap dishwasher and fridge are ok, its the cheap wine cooler that makes a racket but @caliwag where do you stand on washing machine in the kitchen?

3 minutes ago, daiking said:

 How the other half live...

 

Ah, sorry. That was thoughtless of me.  

1 hour ago, jack said:

 

Ah, sorry. That was thoughtless of me.  

 

Thought you meant feet , and it was a standing area.

Edited October 9, 2017 by Ferdinand

1 hour ago, daiking said:

 

 How the other half live...

 

 

 

Double (normal) sink in the kitchen in lieu of a drainer. I've promised the wife a bath sized sink in the utility -  like that will ever happen. The kitchen 'fashion' for want of a better term I am seeing is 2 sinks on opposite sides of the kitchen. I've no idea why.

 

My cheap dishwasher and fridge are ok, its the cheap wine cooler that makes a racket but @caliwag where do you stand on washing machine in the kitchen?

 

I think I stand it on rubber horse matting, or perhaps those interlocking hard foam exercise mats, which are in turn on something that makes it easy to slide.

 

Or behind a door.

 

Anything to keep the judder-judder-judder subdued.

 

Edited October 9, 2017 by Ferdinand

Great post @caliwag I wonder how we can arrange a larder - of which I am a great fan, in a passive house environment? We have provisioned the space in the new build but I have no ideas yet on how to ventilate / insulate it - but love the idea of marble shelving.

Are secondhand granite worktops useful for those shelves rather than marble? 

 

Probably a touch cheaper.

I'm covering all bases sink- wise with a double sink, double drainer.

 

https://www.manomano.co.uk/double-bowl-sink/double-bowl-20-stainless-steel-inset-kitchen-sink-2-drainers-1500-x-480-f01-2256786

16 hours ago, ProDave said:

 

On the subject of "hub of the house" our new house will have the kitchen as part of the "familly room" combining a kitchen, somewhere to eat and somewhere to watch tv etc.  I remain to be convinces by this model of modern living. I really don't think I want to sit down of an evening in a room with the fridge, and worse, the dishwasher humming away. I expect I will mostly be using the separate proper living room for that.

 

We have a large open plan kitchen, dining room and sofa area, and also a separate lounge. The open plan kitchen is very much the hub of the house - to the point I can honestly say I have never sat in the separate lounge in 9 months! I might going to make a point of using it at Xmas.

Thanks for all the comments...yes I 'live' in the kitchen, don't watch TV and indeed typing this in the bright and sunny end...it is of course a conversion, so most of it is by design plus I seem to be making something every day...green tomato chutney today (retired so I have that luxury...or chore, take your pick). With the 'trend' for reworking kitchens, I imagine there's loads of granite, and even slate, off-cuts for a larder. Essentially you need heavy weight, cool shelves, venting at high and low levels (don't forget insect screening) and sealed doors to avoid drafts in and out! I have designed a couple recently and it does work as long as 'someone' always closes the doors...grrr.

 

A couple of comments back I was asked washing machine locations, and other rumblers. I have used under-stair space more than once, and, given that a laundry generates most of its contents from bedrooms and bathrooms, I think, if starting from scratch, I'd consider a bathroom location, though drying is a further issue...relatively high energy, greater fire risk (!), and airing. One of the last houses I designed, I suggested laundry/drying/airing room/ironing/sewing room...don't know if it stayed like that...seems to me it would work, especially if the heating boiler was located there for airing. I lived in a so-called town house where the boiler was in a generous under-stair area, so we screwed open the window a sqeak, put up a hanging rail...hey presto, and no condensation.