Countertop Needed by a Refrigerator

Countertop Needed by a Refrigerator.

Countertop Next to a Sink

Engineered stone countertops, consisting of quartz particles with plastic binder and coloring agents. Installation in progress. Undermount sink opening is factory cut and polished. Basic opening for cooktop was cut by fabricator, but an additional 1/8 inch was trimmed in field to fit the pop-up vent. Thanks to our contractors for getting this in before Christmas. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Specify a minimum of twenty four inches of landing space on the counter on one side of the sink and at least eighteen inches on the other. If you are going to skimp on any of the recommended widths I would not recommend allowing this to be the space that is compromised. The sink is a highly used area in any kitchen.

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Watch For Door Conflicts

For optimum clearance; no entry, appliance, or cabinet doors should interfere with another.  This rule is often ignored. It is not as much of an issue if the kitchen is only used by one primary cook.

Have you ever been in a kitchen where everyone has to wait to get through a walkway when a door is opened. These conflicts can be watched for and eliminated in the design process so you don’t end up with that problem in your new kitchen.

If the option is available to accommodate this rule you will want to consider it carefully if you choose to ignore it.