We're remodelling our kitchen, and I'm looking for information about counter height and can't find much. When I look under "ergonomics", it's about wheelchair accessibility, not tall cooks!
Here's what I'm thinking: I'm 5'11", and DH, who does some of the cooking, is 5'9". Standard kitchen counters haven't changed in many years, and were designed with "average" women's heights of 40-50 years ago in mind. I'd like to raise the countertops, and it's possible and not too expensive, but the question is: How much? I'm wondering if 2" will be enough to make it more comfortable, yet not make it uncomfortable for "average" people.
I can't find any information online...yet. And I need to decide by Monday how to proceed on this issue. Anybody have any experience in this dept.? Any anecdotal evidence that it's worthwhile or not?
Susan Hartman/Dirty Linen wrote in news:TyjYd.3$ snipped-for-privacy@news.abs.net:
The architects I work for tell me this:
Stock cabinetry will result in a counter height at 36", and another
2" shouldn't be too disturbing to most people. If you decide to go with 38" counter height, you have two choices: either block out 2" at the bottom to raise the height, or spring for expensive custom cabinetry.
If you go with the 2" block out, you'll end up with a 6" toe-kick, and you'll need some sort of moulding to hide the junction of the block and the stock cabinets.
I'm only 5'8", but I wouldn't mind my kitchen counter being an inch highter, myself.
Susan Hartman/Dirty Linen wrote: > Any anecdotal evidence that it's worthwhile or not?
I have heard from people who've custom-built their kitchens that they hurt much less after cooking when they don't bend down to chop. Raising the counters is a personal thing
Having upper cupboards higher would be a chore for those shorter than
5'8". That's my height, and it's still difficult for me to reach the top shelf of a standard hight upper cupboard.
You also have to think of resale value. If you plan on living there forever, then by all means, don't worry about it. But if you should need to sell, other people might find higher counters a hindrance, because upper cupboards must also be set higher.
Boy, at 5'11", standard counter top height must be a burden. My grandmother was 5'9" and when grandfather built their last house, she had the counters raised. I remember how nice it was to work in that kitchen. :-)
You must also think about stove height.
Depending upon the design of your kitchen, perhaps you could have one work area that is higher than everything else? I could have done that arrangement in my current kitchen and not worried about the upper shelves, since it's only filled with "once-in-a-great-while" stuff. It's on a wall by itself next to the refrigerator, so would have worked in nicely had I thought of the idea. :-)
Higher counters would definitely be a factor for me. Because I'm so short, if a house came with anything higher than the standard 36" I would have to say no to the house.
I keep a little rubbermaid stool under my kitchen sink for anything I need from the top shelf in my cupboards and if they were any higher I think they would be only useful for storage of items that are very seldom used.
May I suggest a book for you? Building for a Lifetime, by Margaret Wylde.
If you build a "box" or blocks to set your current base cabinets on, it's generally not a major upheaval to move them up for you, and the next people can put them down again, if they want. Besides, you'll finally have cookie sheet and turkey platter storage.
We're thinking about building a new, accessible house fairly soon. One thing I *really*, *really* want in the kitchen is a variety of work heights so I can work standing, seated, or on a stool. Generally speaking, kitchen counters should be a couple of inches (2-3) less than the distance from the floor to your forearm when you bend your arm parallel to the floor.
When my mom needed some emergency bathroom remodeling, I raised her bathroom vanity almost 4" by setting it on a really rough carpentry job I did of four 2x4's and some angle iron, then ran some molding around the base. I had to buy a new pair of supply lines for the sink, and a longer piece of PVC outlet pipe. Total outlay was about $40, most of it some decent looking molding and a better grade of supply line. Everyone who's been in the bathroom has preferred it to the standard lower sinks (mom's 5'4", so she's the lady the bathroom and kitchen were supposed to be designed for!) When I sell that house, it'd probably take me about an hour and a half to take it back to "standard height", if that's what they want. Most of that time will be scraping caulk off the tile wall, and cutting a hunk out of that plastic outlet pipe. All of the plumbing I did was of the "if you can screw in a light bulb, or polish a shoe, you can do this" grade of difficulty. Depending on what sort of plumbing arrangements are under the kitchen sink, it shouldn't be too hard to move things up, though garbage disposals and dishwashers may complicate things a bit.
I've seen too many houses that got remodeled by the new buyer to worry too much about what someone else wants... I want what works for me.
And it doesn't necessarily apply to taller folks either. Osteopath's have suggested raising the height of kitchen work surfaces for decades now, but nobody ever seems to listen to them.
Commercial kitchen work surfaces are about 2 inches higher than their residential counterparts.
It is very inexpensive to raise your kitchen cabinets (at the time of installation) by 1-1/2 inches, by installing a framework of 2x2's on the floor where the cabinets will rest. Often you are looking at less than 15 dollars in materials to do this on a 24 foot long row of cabinets.
Your upper wall mounted cabinets should be raised the same distance the lower cabinets have been raised to facilitate the space necessary for standard sized countertop components, such as garages, taller appliances etc.
TTUL Gary
Susan Hartman/Dirty L>We're remodelling our kitchen, and I'm looking for information about
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