Key points in outdoor kitchen design
An outdoor kitchen can be as simple as a built-in grill station or as complicated as a deluxe dining area. When creating an outdoor kitchen, it’s important to consider a few key points. Kitchen placement, water, wind direction, and layout are a few of the components to think about when you’re in the planning stage. Ideally, you’ll collaborate with a landscape professional to help you plan and execute your dream kitchen.
An outdoor kitchen is a wonderful addition to your outdoor recreation area. Before it’s too late to implement them, here are a few things to think about.
Kitchen placement
Look for a spot that’s close to your indoor kitchen as you’ll need access to the amenities in the kitchen from time to time. Also, locate the room that will provide access to the outdoor kitchen. This room and the doorway especially will be seeing an uptick in traffic once your kitchen is completed.
Water, gas, electricity
To get hot water to your outdoor kitchen, the easiest method is to tap the irrigation system and install an on-demand water heater under the sink. To get continuous hot water, you’ll have to tap into the main inside the house, and so you’ll want to be close to the kitchen if that’s in your plan.
Also, make sure that you have a power outlet so you can run some of the most necessary appliances like a blender. Gas will have to be negotiated for your grill or rotisserie, and an expert can help you figure out placement for a kitchen with these in mind.
Wind direction
The smell of sizzling steaks is mouth-watering to most of us, but smoke billowing into the common living areas of your house or into the bedrooms is not as appealing. Check the prevailing wind direction in your area to get a sense of which way your smoke will be blowing most of the time.
Shelter
You will want to provide some relief from the sun in your outdoor kitchen because the sun gets hot in Sioux Center and Rock Valley. It’s one thing to be toiling over a hot stove, it’s quite another to be toiling over a hot stove under the hot sun. Create a permanent structure like a pavilion to provide shade and weather protection over your prep area and stove or grill.
Layout
Make sure you provide enough counter surface to prep and plate your meals before distributing them to your guests. With lighting as well, you’ll want to have some softer mood lighting to create a mellow ambiance for relaxation, but you’ll want task lighting so that you’ll be able to see what you’re doing while you’re cooking.
Outdoor kitchens can double the amount of entertainment area of your house, and it gives you multiple options to enjoy each season. Outdoor kitchens have a lot of variables, and you should rely on the expert advice of landscape professionals like those at Outdoor Elements. They can help you create and execute the outdoor kitchen of your dreams.