Please Help With Built in Pantry Dimensions
anna see
5 years ago
Hello All,
Attached is my kitchen design and we are thinking of building a built in wall pantry with U shaped shelves, that is 18 inches deep, 48 inches wide and has a 32 inch door opening.
Does it make sense to have a smaller opening (the current 32 inch) or should it match the 48 inches?
I was also thinking of making my shelves 10 inches. Do you think this is too deep?
Any suggestions would be helpful. Thanks!
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Comments (14)
anna see
5 years agoRelated Discussions
Need help with shelf spacing for reach-in pantry, please
Comments (8)Hi Kay. Maybe my experience can help. I had to design my pantry with my carpenter standing next to me. I've never had any kind of good pantry storage so I didn't really know what I was doing. Like you, I wanted to maximize space for storage. Here's how mine turned out. Shelf height varies because I stood there trying to fit cans and boxes in to see what would fit. I started at the top figuring how high I wanted my first shelf to be for items I don't access daily then worked my way down. For the can storage, the shelves are spaced with 10.5" of open space. This allows for two cans stacked with enough breathing room to lift off the top can. Most other shelves are this same distance. My oils, vinegars, and other bottle storage needed to be taller so those are 11.75" apart. After all the figuring and shelf moving, I was left with a narrow space about 5.5". I decided to put that at optimum eye height to make sure I didn't lose anything in the back. This shelf works perfectly for loaves of bread and cereal out of the boxes. I was proud of myself for thinking "outside the box" (ha!) to think of storing daily cereal just in the bags. Boxed cereal overflow is stored on the top shelf. You can't see in the pic, but around to the left from the bread and cereal are many little canned homemade jams, fruits, and relishes. I love this shelf. **Caveat: This shelving was my cheap, need-shelves-now storage made from the off the shelf option at HD. I did want something more built-in and custom looking with painted wood shelves and without those ugly shelf supports. One day when the kids are older I'll tackle a pantry re-do. Also, I don't use as many canned and jarred items as shown here. A whole house reno made me turn to more pre-packaged foods than normal. And those paper plates in there make my cringe. Finally, my pantry is much better organized now....See MorePLEASE help me convert my desk into a pantry.
Comments (13)Gillylilly, Since your house is so new does that mean you think you can get matching cabinetry pretty easily? If you can... Right now you have that open storage on the uppers. If you were able to move the door on the left to cover the center storage instead so now you have the open cabinet on the left. Then you could pull out the open cabinet and the drawer set below them and put in a full height pantry with pullouts. So you'd need to pay to move the door, take down/cut down that newly open upper, pull out the drawer base and cut the ctop down, and buy/install the pantry from the original cabinet people so it matches well. Then you'd still have a small desk area for your computer and piles (I'm thinking 24"? but it's hard to tell from the photos, but an entire pantry of what? 12? 15? inches and all enclosed uppers for basically the cost of a single large cabinet and the labor for install and cutting the granite. You'd end up with a left over drawer set (maybe you need to replace a regular cabinet with some drawers somewhere else?). The second phase here could be that if you didn't want the knee hole any more you could buy a second set of office drawers and put the two sets side by side under the desk drawer. That will give you an area that is probably a little higher than the rest of the kitchen but that's usually more comfortable if you are going to be standing in front of it looking at the laptop at all. Just some guesses as to options since there are no measurements! Here is a link that might be useful: Example Cabinet...See MorePlease Help With Pantry Plan /X Post -> Home Dec, Long
Comments (37)I think I'd do 18" (or maybe 16") shelves on the lower part of the straight wall (R) with more shallow shelves above them - maybe 10". on the L side maybe counter depth for a good # of feet - with maybe drawers underneath? counter for mw, counter oven etc. that could end part way to the 'point' with shelves that are triangle shaped into the wall to be open shelves for a few larger pots or whatever. or at that end of the counter depth shelves cabs have a taller (end) cabinet like we often see as a 'broom' closet for a pantry ladder closet. The ladder would be right there when needed - but hidden. you could have the top part of it (above ladder height) as skinny horizontal shelves to slide your larger trays into. like the cookie sheet slots except horizontal. the first few ft of the wall to the R could have some hooks for dog leashes, coats / sweaters (or dust mops? if needed - or a grabber bar). but that would keep the entry area open so it doesn't feel cave like. from the end of the counter depth shelves/cabs on the R to the point area could be for the dog food bin and dishes. you could hang pictures of the dogs over their dish / food area so they can look at themselves while eating. without shelves running into the point area on the R side, it'd allow for open / standing space in front of shelves on the L side. you could keep a small ladder in there for reaching higher shelves - possibly hang on the wall toward the point area or lean on the wall (if not in a 'ladder closet'). Also, try to think of anything weird or weird in shape that you will want to store in there....See MorePlease Help With Pantry Plan / X Post -> Kitchens, Long
Comments (45)Maybe it is the way I have drawn it, but there is actually no issue with the door and cabinetry clearance as drawn. That said, I would still love swinging doors! And Cabinet guy said he will specify a super hard finish for the shelving paint. He buys the paint from a company here in GA who can duplicate the formula of any paint brand but it is formulated for the kind off sprayer booth he has and in different hides. It's as good or better than any factory finished paint I've ever seen. (Cabinet guy is an owner operator who took over his father's shop about eight years ago. He has one FT and one PT employee and they do one kitchen at a time, filling in waiting times with small projects like mine.) So I a, going to go with the painted finish and try not to let any future dings bother me. I guess that makes the darker paint a better option?...See More
PROHal Braswell Consulting
5 years agoMy read of the plan is the depth is limited by the window, and the side and front of the pantry are typical interior walls with a door on the front. This is an economical solution but does not make good use of space. You lose the wall width +- 4 1/2” adjacent to the cabinets on the left, you lose the same distance on the front wall.
I would do a pantry cabinet with at minimum adjustable shelves but preferably adjustable rollout trays and perhaps three drawers at the bottom. Maximum width without a middle stile is about 36”. This should allow room against the wall for a tall pullout broom closet. A filler would need to be adjacent to the wall to allow window clearance.
To me the choice is short-term savings or long-term space efficiency. Adjustable ROTs, even if they can’t be normal depth, will allow shallow height for canned goods, more height for cereal and taller height for paper towels.
Depending on needs, the bottom can be drawers that align with adjacent base cabinets.
salex
5 years agorantontoo
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoI put in two 33”wide x 17” deep reach-in cabs with adjustable shelves in my remodel...love them. I did not want the cost of pullout shelves and felt a reach-in would maximize storage for what I needed to store. Some would counsel that anything over 15” for a reach-in cab is dysfunctional, but I love mine! I think it depends on what you plan to store there.
I think you could use reach-ins in that 48” space but might consider two 24” cabs instead of one....I would be worried about door warp...but that is a cabinet makers area of expertise.
anna see
5 years agoanna see
5 years ago@Hal Braswell- yes you understood the design. I have a depth problem because of the window so we cannot do pantry cabinets. The only solution my designer could come up with is to make this built in pantry closet.
As of now, the door opening is 32 inches and inside will have shelves on either side of the 32 inch door, the back wall (48 inches) and on the 18 inch depth side so will I still be losing the wall width as you mentioned?
Given my space limitations do you think its better if I increase the door to 36-42 inches therefore having shelves on only two sides (the back 48 inch wall & the 18 inch depth wall) making it a true U shaped pantry closet?
I have attached some photos for reference.Thank you for your help!
rantontoo
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoanna see
5 years agoUser
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agofelizlady
5 years ago- PRO
Hal Braswell Consulting
5 years ago artistsharonva
5 years agolast modified: 5 years ago
grdnbeth
5 years agoIt will be fine!
Here is what I did bc it is around the corner from the main kitchen.
The shelves are custom insert made of melamine type material, easy to clean!
Good luck!
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