i have a 15" base cabinet with nothing in it at all. i could've gotten the dividers, but that would just mean i could fit less stuff in it.

it's just a big empty box. those photos above seem like a *lot* of wasted space to me.

I have a thin cabinet next to the range where I keep all the flat items like cookie sheets, pizza stones, trays and such. I don't use a divider though, b/c my cabinet is very narrow, so without one, it allows me to fit more in. As for very heavy ovenware, I put them in the corner lazy susan with all the small appliances, so everything isn't scattered everywhere.

I'm keeping the heavy stuff (pizza stone, cast iron large round griddle) in a small horizontal drawer beneath my ovens. I think it would have been hard to pull out heavy stuff that is stored in high locations. (It would only be a matter of time before I hurt my self somehow.)

For trays and cookie sheets, I use the tray dividers in the upper cabinets though. The dividers are removable so you could decide to just keep the open space where you want it.

In terms of the base roll-out that you show, you could probably request a shelf or roll-out in some of the space above it. Or maybe a partial shelf suspended from the top of the cabinet if you think you'll have really tall stuff.

jayne

I keep my racks and pizza stone in the ovens. Since I have 2, it is rare that I would need to take something out of both, but then I stick them in the utility room or garage for a bit and put them back.

My double griddle is stored beneath the bottom rollout in my pantry cabinet.

the slot between the fridge and the upper cabinets above it (provided you're not doing a built-in fridge) is also a great storage space for cutting boards, trays, etc.

we had our contractor do a hinged filler piece with the hinges on the inside, so when it's down, it just fills in the gap, but push on it and it flips up to reveal storage.

Here is my vertical storage:

It was originally 4 dividers extending from top to bottom. Even more wasted space than edlakin pointed out in the original pix. I had the cabinet builder add horizontal shelves. It's all permanent now -- nothing removable as they originally were. But it holding 2 broiling pans, 2 roasting pans with racks, cookie sheets from half-sheet size down and comparably sized cooling racks, two 14x14x2 bakers, my bread peel, a variety of trays and then all those cookie cutters and bannetons mashed up in the left corner. And nothing is so crammed (except for that left corner) that I can't get things out.

As lascatx suggests, keep your oven stones in your oven. It not only eliminates the issue of storage and potential breakage from handling, it greatly evens out the oven temperature when you open things to check on them or rotate them.

I have something similar to your second picture and as in your example, the dividers are removable. The cabinet is above my built in ovens and because the cabinet was built to line up with my 30" deep base cabinets it is HUGE. I can fit stuff in there double depth so all the large once-or-twice-a-year Thankgiving/Holiday platters are in the back and my everyday stuff is neatly sorted where I can get it easily.

I love that I have everything sorted out and it's so easy to find: cooling racks in one section, sheet pans in another, muffin trays in a third, regularly used glass platters and trays in another an so on. It doesn't look very full but believe me it's packed. The heavy duty oven drip trays are in the back behind the sheet pans. Foil containers and the rotisserie racks are in the drawer under the ovens.

I meant to add... don't do the pull out drawer thing unless you build the sides up to at least the height of the tallest item otherwise when you pull the drawer out, and especially if it's a full extension, all the trays will tilt even further and you'll struggle to push the drawer back every.single.time.

I wonder how I know LOL.

In my last kitchen I had something like the second picture above my double ovens and LOVED IT! The dividers were thin and removable, so no space was wasted. Lots of flexibility. The bottom and top had grooves actually cut into the wood for the removable partitions, so nothing protruded up as they do in your picture. One half was vertical dividers and the other consisted of horizontal shelves also removable. The bottom was flush with the opening, so sheet pans/cutting boards slid in and out easily.

In my new kitchen, my cabinet builder put in thick dividers, nailed in place. They're spaced too far apart, so everything falls slanted in the divider. I miss my removable horizontal shelves on one side to hold all my ceramic baking dishes of various sizes. My opening also has a small lip at the bottom created from the frame of my new cabinets. So to pull out a cookie sheet, I actually need to lift up a bit to get it out, or I hit that lip. Drives me mad, especially since this is a tall reach, even for me at 5'11".

My remodel is not done yet, and I'm having the guts of this cabinet redone. Go for a flexible system, and you'll be happy.

I don't have anything super heavy, like a stone. I am using RevAShelf wire dividers.

If you have your dividers relatively close together I don't think they need to be very strong to handle your heavy stuff. It will stand almost vertically, and so most of the weight will be on the bottom of the cabinet, not the dividers.

(Just like you can easily hold your big motorcycle upright even though you need a bunch of help to pick it up after it falls down.)

I don't think I would have any concern putting a pizza stone in with my dividers.

loves2cook4six - I laughed when I read you "ask me how I know" statement. I think the rolling tray/divider is out.

edlakin - great storage. I wouldn't have even thought of that.

imrainey - you are giving me some ideas of how to have both shelves and dividers.

I saw that some people mentioned keeping the pizza stone in the oven. Is this pretty typical? Are you leaving it in the oven even when you are cooking something that doesn't need the pizza stone?

Thanks everyone for the advice.

loves2cook4six, I love your divided storage. I am getting that in my new kitchen as well. I get to see my new cabinets tomorrow for the first time. I can't wait!!

I keep mine in the oven all the time. If something doesn't benefit from the direct heat I simply put it on a rack above the stone instead of on it.

You have to heat the oven long enough for the stone to come up to the oven temp. This is significantly longer than the oven indicator which is referring to the oven cavity. But once it's hot it will maintain the heat when the hot air evacuates each time you rearrange, baste, etc.

Meanwhile, it's fantastic for bread, biscuits and the bottom crust of pies. And when you don't handle it (other than to put it on a higher or lower rack, it doesn't face the risk of breaking.

Great idea Edlakin! Wish I had thought of it. Great use of what would have been wasted space.

We considered most of the options above. But in the end, we tried something much less expensive...we bought three "baking" dividers from Walmart and put them end-to-end on the removable shelf in the cabinet above our double ovens. Here's a picture:

The bottom "shelf" is perfect for oversize platters, garnish dishes (2-deep depth wise), and griddle.

The cookie sheets, cooling racks, etc are above the platters on the removable shelf. This is where I put the Walmart dividers. Some of the items are long (like the larger cookie sheets) and the 24" depth is great for that. I don't have anything behind them but if I need to I can put things back there.

This arrangement (platters on the bottom, rest on top) allows us to easily reach everything. You don't need to pull the cookie sheets, etc out from the top, all you need to be able to reach is the bottom. If the platters were on a shelf above the cookie sheets, etc, I'd need a step stool to reach them. [Note: I got this tip from the Forum last year! I think it was on the Tray Dividers thread (see link below)]

The extra oven shelves won't fit (too "tall" in each direction) so they will be in the pantry when it's done. (Right now they're in the FR leaning against the "old" refrigerator...which has yet to make it's way into the basement!)

BTW...I also put one another Walmart divider under my corner Prep sink in the left corner...it holds all my cutting boards in one of the normally inaccessible corners of a corner sink base. (No picture, sorry.)

Here is a link that might be useful: Thread: tray cabinets - top 1/2 wasted space

In my new kitchen, my cabinet builder put in thick dividers, nailed in place. They're spaced too far apart, so everything falls slanted in the divider. I miss my removable horizontal shelves on one side to hold all my ceramic baking dishes of various sizes. My opening also has a small lip at the bottom created from the frame of my new cabinets. So to pull out a cookie sheet, I actually need to lift up a bit to get it out, or I hit that lip. Drives me mad, especially since this is a tall reach, even for me at 5'11".

Boysrus--For an inexpensive & flexible fix, you could buy a sheet of that pink or blue styrofoam insulation (or use some scraps) and cut some spacers...narrow long ones for the floor of the cab (cut to fit snugly) so you can pull stuff out without hitting the face frame. And larger loose ones to fill some of the void between the dividers. Too bad that styro doesn't come in designer colors, though!

Our pizza stone, pizza peel, griddle, broiler pan and cafeteria tray (which I use to carry things to the outdoor kitchen) reside in an open (no shelves, no door) 12" base cabinet alongside the range. The plastic tray and wooden peel do a good job of keeping the heavy things from banging into each other.