Charles Gueli shares 7 Kitchen Remodeling Ideas and New Appliance Trends

1. If you're buying a "built-in" refrigerator (24" deep and surrounded by cabinetry) be sure to leave a space at the top for the heat to escape. If you don't, the compressor will burn out within 3 years. I suggest making the overhead cabinet come to the front, but make it shallow so that there’s an open space behind it. Then put a ducted grill in the ceiling behind the cabinet so the heat can vent.
2. If you have cabinets within 20” of a door or low window, running perpendicular to the door or window, you should use a 1” filler between the wall and the cabinets. Do this even though you’re getting custom cabinets. If you don’t, when your drawer is pulled open, it will hit the back edge of the door casing and you won’t be able to open it all the way out.
3. If your kitchen floor is being covered with new flooring, make sure that your dishwasher is raised to the same height as the new floor. Unless this is done, and once the new floor is down, there may not be enough clearance to remove the dishwasher for servicing. The only alternative will be to lift the whole countertop off the cabinets – a needless expense.
4. You want lots of windows in your kitchen, but you also need wall cabinets for storage space. What can be done to solve both the wants and the needs? Redesign the kitchen area to include a pantry room (essentially a large closet). Within the pantry, build a series of rolling shelves on tracks. (See Lundia Systems) This will give you plenty of storage capacity, while occupying a small portion of your kitchen area.
5. When buying new appliances, always look for the Energy Star rating. Appliances are made to last a long time. You can save a small fortune by buying the right appliance for the job. Don’t buy appliances that are bigger than you need.
6. In addition to appliances, you can conserve energy by buying food that is grown locally. The miles a food product has to travel greatly increases the impact on our ecology. The fewer the miles from the farm to the table, the better.
7. If you are having a wall oven installed below countertop level, be aware that small children could be exposed to burns. Wall ovens do not have to conform to the same temperature standards that regular ranges do. This is because they are designed to be installed above counter height.