Are you planning to install a kitchen island and want to know the recommended space between the oven and the island? You’ve come to the right place, for we have researched this question and have the answer for you.
The minimum space between a kitchen island and appliances like an oven is 42 inches if only one person will cook in the kitchen at any given time. The minimum space becomes 48 inches if you expect at least two people working in the kitchen simultaneously.
Keep in mind that the space here is the minimum, which might not match the area you need in your kitchen. You are free to increase the distance beyond the minimum above, and we have tips to help you decide in the sections below. Read on!
Can I Install An Island In My Kitchen?
You can install an island in your kitchen with ample enough space. Your kitchen might look spacious enough, but installing an island can reduce that space considerably.
Most people don’t realize that kitchen islands are great at sucking up kitchen space.
A kitchen should be at least eight feet deep and twelve feet long to accommodate the installation of an island with the minimum dimensions.
At a minimum, a kitchen island should be at least two feet wide and four feet long. The depth should be at least four feet if you plan to install cabinets on both sides of the island.
If you plan to add chairs to your kitchen island, you will have to increase the width of your island by 15 inches. Increasing the size of your island will also increase the minimum floor area your kitchen should have to accommodate your kitchen island.
How To Determine The Distance Between The Kitchen Island And The Counters
The minimum values above might not work in your kitchen for several reasons.
You might have a large oven that occupies a large area when open. Similarly, your cabinets might have large doors that make it impossible to move through your kitchen when they’re open.
Follow the simple steps below to determine the space that you need between the counter and the kitchen island:
- Open your oven and cabinets. It will also make sense to pull out any cabinets' drawers or stove grills.
- Next, mark the space the doors occupy by placing artist tape on the floor where the doors reach when open. You can use a wooden plank or any straight edge and lay it flat on the outermost edge of the oven or cabinet door—Mark where the straight edge hits the floor.
- Stand behind the tape markings and determine the space you need to move around, even when the oven and cabinet doors are open freely. Mimic the movements you will make while preparing food behind these open doors. For example, pretend that you’re pulling out food from the oven and mark the space you need so that you can bend without hitting anything behind you. Increase the space if you expect at least two people to work in your kitchen simultaneously and make the same movements. Ideally, an oven should be in an area with no obstacles to opening it. A properly installed oven should never make you worry about hitting a counter behind you when accessing it.
- Mark the distance that you need with artist tape. This is the distance you need from your counter and oven to the kitchen island you plan to install. Remember to measure this distance from the tips of handles or knobs of the cabinets or appliances you will install on your new kitchen counter.
- Do the same thing on the other edges of your kitchen. If the adjacent edge of your kitchen is a wall, take measurements from there or use the minimum sizes above.
Determine If Your Kitchen Is Big Enough
After determining the distances you need, you can add the dimension of the kitchen counter you plan to install. The minimum kitchen island size is in an earlier section of this article.
Use the artist's tape to mark your measurements on the floor. This will help you visualize the area that your future kitchen island will need.
Extend the outer edges of the kitchen island markings. This will help you determine the minimum kitchen floor area you need to accommodate the kitchen island you plan to install.
How To Plan Your Kitchen Layout
Another factor to consider when planning your kitchen island is the activity zone triangle.
The three areas you will access the most when preparing food are the fridge, the sink, and the stove. Place an imaginary dot in front of these three appliances. This dot represents your position when you’re working with these three appliances.
Next, connect these dots with an imaginary line to form the activity zone triangle.
When planning your activity zone, you need to ensure that the distance between these dots is between four feet to nine feet of each other. Consider this if you plan to install a sink or a stove on your kitchen island.
Nothing should intersect the three lines of the activity triangle, and you should include this in the planning. This reduces the chance of an accident happening while working in the kitchen.
For example, ensure that none of the three lines intersect with the corners of the kitchen island you plan to install.
What Is The Best Kitchen Layout?
The best kitchen layout depends on the available size of your kitchen and the size of your house.
Below are five tried-and-true kitchen layouts you will find in most modern homes:
Pullman Kitchen
The name Pullman kitchen came from the passenger sleeping cars of the trains of the Pullman Company in the 1800s. These passenger cars were long and came to reflect the long, narrow kitchen layout named after them.
Nowadays, the Pullman kitchen is known as the one-wall kitchen since most of them are no longer narrow. You will often see the Pullman kitchen in a studio or loft house.
Some modern Pullman kitchens have a kitchen island that gives it a corridor reminiscent of our next kitchen layout type.
Galley Kitchen
A galley kitchen—or the walk-through kitchen—is another kitchen layout ideal for small spaces. It has two opposite walls with kitchen countertops and a walkway between them.
Galley kitchens are great for creating an activity zone with nothing blocking any of its pathways. Moreover, cabinet designs will be uncomplicated because you don’t have corner cabinets to worry about.
Unfortunately, galley kitchens are often not wide enough to accommodate a kitchen island between the opposite walls of kitchen counters. However, if you have a wide-open space on one end of your galley kitchen, you can install a small counter on that side.
L-Shaped Kitchen
The L-shaped kitchen layout is excellent at maximizing corner space and is the go-to design for small and medium-sized kitchens. It is characterized by countertops on two adjacent walls, creating the shape of an “L.”
The two legs of the “L” can be as long as you want. It is a great kitchen layout that will never experience kitchen traffic—unless you install a kitchen island. A kitchen island will cause this layout to lose its openness.
However, the open layout of this kitchen also makes it easy to install a kitchen island.
Horseshoe Kitchen
This kitchen layout is sometimes called the U-shaped kitchen. Three walls of cabinets, appliances, and countertops form the shape of a horseshoe in this layout.
Modern homes use a modified version of the horseshoe kitchen.
They modify an L-shaped kitchen by installing a kitchen island to make the third wall. The island may or may not be connected to the other two legs of the “L.”
This take on the traditional U-shape works well because kitchen traffic flows around the island, and your activity zone can move between two opposite sides.
Peninsula Kitchen
There are two types of peninsula kitchen layouts.
The first type is shaped like a “G.” It looks like a horseshoe kitchen with a small island connected to one of the walls.
The second type looks like an L-shaped kitchen with a small island connected to one of the legs of the “L.” The second type has an island too short to consider a horseshoe kitchen.
Peninsula kitchens work like a horseshoe or an L-shaped kitchens. However, installing a kitchen island on a peninsula kitchen is challenging because, technically, it already has one.
In Conclusion
The recommended space between the oven and the kitchen island is a minimum amount that serves as a guide. It is best to measure the distance you need based on the appliances and cabinets in your kitchen and their positions.
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