How to retrofit deep pantry cabinets to make them more efficient
leftylee
4 years ago
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vpierce
4 years agojhmarie
4 years agoRelated Discussions
Retrofit Efficiency - Chance of Improvement
Comments (7)Thanks for replying! I figured it was mostly the building envelope (interface between conditioned and non-conditioned space). The local certified auditor moved up my appt and it was done over a week ago, so I'll get to see results tomorrow. >>> adding cellulose...it will make it tougher to air seal the ceiling plane. Yeah, bummer. It gets messy trying to move that stuff around. I know as there was already 4-6" of it up there and I did a lot of wiring (network cable, couple new electrical outlets, surround speakers, coax cable) before I added more. >>> Not sure what your "etc." included Nothing major: I sealed a couple attic-side holes where existing wiring when into walls, sealed gaps & supply registers where the boot meets drywall, added weather stripping on a few obvious windows, foam sheets behind outlet & light plates). I had a blower door test done a while back (for free by the city) and the inspector said it was the "tightest home he'd ever seen". Alas, they only left me with 4 thermal images for suggested improvements (two exhaust vents, one door weather stripping was old, and one supply vent). No other hard #'s that would tell me CFM leak rates or what not. Turns out the butterfly valves on exhaust vents were working fine, all the basic non-actuated valves show leakage as there is intentional air space around it, it is not air-tight, in order for air flow to open the valve up. The one vent was showing heat on one edge only, which I discovered was right up against attic wood framing, so I'm guessing it was conductive heat transfer. The last spot was clearly bad, as my garage & back doors have warped a bit and do not seal perfectly against the 10yr old weather stripping. Hopefully, the above blower door test was shabby & I did a crappy job sealing it ... gotta make that 10%! I hope you didnt put any of the UV block on well shaded South windows because that can actually hurt overall. Don't have any shaded south windows (yet). I planted some deciduous fruit trees so I'm hoping will help out in the next few years. What can it hurt, you mean during Winter time? That would make sense. I bet youre on a slab there but if not Yes, slab. I'll post my results when I get them. Thanks!...See More18' or 24' deep pantries?
Comments (15)Mine is 24" and there are times when I wish we'd either sprung for the pull out shelves or gone with a shallower pantry. Still, I do like my pantry. The one drawback to the pullout shelves is that some of them have a weight limit. We're even careful which shelves get the canned goods, and which ones get anything glass, as shelves held up by little plastic pins have a tendency to fall down. One hint with deeper shelves is to practice good rotation and also plan well, where things go. For instance, things that could go bad or that harden (syrups, honey) go in a different cabinet than the really deep pantry. Just some thoughts, DonnaR/CA...See MoreHow to store heavy pantry items in drawer/pantry pullouts
Comments (9)Blum has new full extension/ soft close drawer hardware. Old Runners: Blum 562 series - 75 lbs dynamic/100 lbs static Blum 568 H series - 110lb dynamic/125 lbs static - heavy duty New Runners: Blum 563 series - 90 lbs dynamic/100 lbs static Blum 569 H series - 135 lbs dynamic/150!lbs static My cabinet manufacturer was still carrying the old runners when my cabinets were ordered, Feb., 2013. I had the hardware for four 36" drawers switched to the heavy duty 568H series in March, 2014. The soft close on my dish drawer stopped working & through GW I figured out it was a weight issue. With the 568H runners installed, my drawers feel stable & the soft close works, although I do wish I had upgraded to the even heavier 569H series. My experience with my KD was overall very good but the company she works for didn't know Blum heavy duty drawer runners even existed. She contacted her rep at Woodmode/Brookhaven, who was also clueless. I had to provide them with part numbers. It seems to me that if you are going to sell 36" or wider drawers, you should advise your customer to purchase heavy duty hardware. I've attached a link with all the Blum info about part numbers, weight limits, etc. Here is a link that might be useful: New Blum Tandem Plus Blumotion Drawer Runners...See Morestructural changes for more efficient kitchen
Comments (40)Alrighty, here's an idea. I've moved a bunch of stuff around, but left the door and windows alone. This gives you a good sized kitchen with an island and prep sink. I left the window facing the fence alone. My guess is that it goes down lower than counter height, so perhaps a window seat would be cozy underneath. It would be a great spot to snuggle down and chat with the the cook, or to sit with a cup of tea and look up recipes. : ) I left the cleanup sink on the outside wall, but didn't put a window over it since you said the view that way wasn't that great anyway. Supposedly, we spend about 80% of our time on prep and only a small amount of time on cleanup, so some people don't miss the window over the cleanup sink so much. It lets you do something creative like this over the sink area if wanted. For the majority of the time you could prep facing the view through the dining room. I'm wondering if you'd need a support post connected to the island, or a large beam overhead. You could do a sink and DW in the island, but that wipes out a huge chunk of it that could otherwise be used for prep. Most of us prefer facing out for prepping than facing a wall for prep. I combined the function of the pantry with the office, giving it the view to the north rather than a fence. If you left the door open or did a pocket door, the kitchen could enjoy this video, too. I annexed the office for the bathroom, with a door to it from the entry and spun the coat closet. I like this option for a half bath, but if you truly use this shower regularly, I'm not so sure about it opening to the entry way(?) Since the linen closet is so deep, the back half could be turned into a bookshelf or closet for the dining room. Table linens? Cleaning closet? I do like how this plan connects the kitchen to the back yard without traffic going through the main work zone. It would be easy to grab something from the fridge or pantry and take it out to the deck....See MoreKD
4 years agoAvatarWalt
4 years agoDrawer Essentials
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4 years agoLeeann Hill
4 years agoNicole
4 years agoLeeann Hill
4 years agoNicole
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