Work Triangle?

by Donna M
(Chicago)

I am just starting to design our kitchen and I am not sure our budget will allow for a designer.

We have been looking at cabinets, counter tops and lighting to get an idea of how much these things will cost so we can gauge if we can hire a designer.

We have visited local home centers and have spoken to their kitchen designers. We played with a couple different layouts but didn't like what they had come up with.

As they did, you also mention about the work triangle on the Designer Kitchen page. Is it really that important?

Really love the site. Lots of helpful information. Thanks.

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by: Tammy

Hello Michael,

Thanks so much for the comments. I totally agree. I think that you need to be comfortable within the space you are working as not everyone works the same way.

Thanks again
Tammy

PS Loved your website. I have added it to this page as a favorite kitchen resource. Lots of useful information for my readers!
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by: Anonymous

Hi
I am a designer and have a website with a page about the work triangle which may be of interest to you. Respecting the no HTML rule above I have not included the address here. To summarize briefly;
I think the w.t.is outdated and two simplistic for today's kitchens and modern lifestyles, however there are times when it is perfectly usable but more often than not it is impractical to apply. So, forget the work triangle and focus on the three main functions i.e. preparation, cooking and cleaning up and make sure that you have adequate space and easy access to all the things you need for each activity. Ensure that each area is convenient to the other,and often you will find that the work triangle appears automatically.

Good luck.
Michael
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by: Donna

Hi
Just wanted to let you know that we took your advice and finalized our design. We did not go back to the home center though.

We went to a local kitchen and design place and they came up with a great design that we liked and had the work triangle too!

We will have to post pics when it is complete.

Thanks for the assistance.
Donna
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by: Tammy

Thanks Donna. Hope you had a wonderful holiday. Ours was great. A little hectic but great none the less.

As we were preparing dinner in my mom's kitchen, I thought about the work triangle a bit more. One thing I realized that I hadn't thought or written about was when there a multiple people working at the same time.

There were four of us working and I realized that had the triangle not been in place in her kitchen, we probably would have spent more time bumping in to each other.

Just another thought.

Good luck and please let us know how you make out.

Tammy
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starstarstarstarstar 		Thank you
by: Donna

Tammy. Thank you. We are going to go back this weekend and start again.

Hopefully with a better understanding we can make it work with our design.

Will let you know how we make out.

Happy Thanksgiving.
Donna
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by: Tammy

Hi Donna. Thanks for the kind words.

The work triangle is an interesting topic of conversation for kitchens. I have dealt with designers who believe it is imperative to have the work triangle while others think it is much to do about nothing.

The ones who do not believe it necessary think it stifles creativity in the design.

The National Kitchen and Bath Association believes it is important and makes prep, cooking and clean up more efficient.

Perhaps we have some designers and architects in our readership that would like to share their opinion.

My take on it is that if you cook and spend a lot of time in the kitchen, then you should start your design with the triangle in mind.

If you eat out a lot and do not like to cook, then it really won't hinder you to not have a work triangle.

The the triangle goes from center of refrigerator to center of range to center of sink. The legs of the triangle are no more than 9 feet (which is about 4 steps for most people) so there is minimum travel between the stations.

Realize however that there are other factors that will play into making it efficient. Creating the triangle so that the traffic patterns flow outside the work area, avoid cabinet and appliance door conflicts and have a work aisle of 42" if possible.

Even if you choose not to use a work triangle, the items listed in the previous paragraph will help your kitchen be more user friendly.

Please keep us posted on your progress and feel free to post again if you need assistance.

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