Posted by admin | Cabinets | Posted on July 19th, 2011
Everyone needs storage cabinets. I think it is important to have some sort of storage cabinet or closet in every room of the house. Storage cabinets help to keep your belongings organized. Proper use of your storage cabinets can also help each room appear less cluttered.
There are many different types of storage cabinets. Some are built into the structure of your house. Others are free standing and are not integral to your house. Of the built in storage cabinets, some are flush with your walls while others are attached to the wall and stick out into the room. Although I have preferences amongst the different types of storage cabinets, all provide benefits and the use of them should be optimized.
The first thing you should realize is that the contents of a storage cabinet shouldn’t stagnate. A storage cabinet is not a place to store junk you no longer use. This is the biggest and most common misuse of cabinets. People end up storing older and sometimes broken belongings they no longer use regularly and these items sit in the cabinets taking up valuable space for years. Every storage cabinet should be emptied at least once per year. Anything that hasn’t been touched in a year should be given to the charity shop.
Bathroom medicine cabinets can be a terribly misused storage cabinet. These cabinets are full of cold medications, pill samples, sun screens, bug repellents, allergy medications, etc, etc. I bet that half the over the counter medications found in most bathroom storage cabinets is outdated. Empty that cabinet. Check the dates on everything and dispose of all outdated medications. Some medications are important to have on hand like Ibuprofen and anti-histamines. Make sure you have a new supply of these and get rid of everything old.
For reasons I could never understand some rooms were built without closets or storage cabinets. In the case of such rooms storage options will have to be added. The choice of added storage will depend on your tastes and budget. There are fabulous antique armoires and storage cabinets that can be picked up from boutique antique collections. Check your Yellow Pages for the contact information of antique dealers in your area. Equally functional and much less expensive options can be found at stores like Ikea or Home Depot or Lowes.
If you organize your storage systems, I guarantee that your house will quickly look less cluttered. Not only will your house be less cluttered but it will feel lighter. Organization systems are easy to put in place but first you must purge and rid yourself of old unused items. Use your cabinet storage capacity wisely and you will be happy that you did. The use of closet organizer systems and cabinet organizer systems will save you a lot of hassle.
Posted by admin | Cabinets | Posted on February 4th, 2011
There are different ways to approach the issue of how to provide this needed storage. Obviously, you have to work around the layout of the kitchen area.
In the case of having such a small kitchen that there is no room for a pantry cabinet, you will be restricted to using racks that hang over doors. These can be placed on closet doors, or doors leading to basements, in close proximity to your kitchen.
Another option to the door rack is a free-standing pantry cabinet which can be positioned near the kitchen. These can be found in any style and color you can think of. If you select this solution to your food storage problem, make it reflect your style and design preference.
Built-in Kitchen Pantry Cabinet
The most typical solution to finding a place for food storage is the built-in cabinet which matches the rest of your cabinetry. These cabinets are usually made either 12″ or 24″ deep, and the full height of the other cabinets (7 ft.or higher).
In the case of the 12″ deep cabinet, the interior is very straight forward. You should have 5 adjustable shelves, positioned to accommodate the heights of the products you will keep there.
Each shelf should have a specific type of product (i.e. beverages on one shelf, paper products on one, canned goods on one, etc.) Common sense will dictate that you place the tall items behind the shorter ones. Labels should not be necessary.
When dealing with 24″ deep cabinets, the problem of seeing and accessing what is at the back of the shelf needs to be addressed. In the event that your kitchen is existing and you are upgrading, there are several organizing accessories available. Rev-A-Shelf and K V are both good sources of quality products. Find full pricing and product lines by Googling these manufacturers.
These can get expensive (up to $ 2000, plus installation). I do not recommend buying racks that are attached to the doors of the kitchen pantry cabinet. These racks will become heavy, and over time you will have problems with door alignment.
Hinges will often need adjusting, and screws will loosen. Furthermore, these doors are usually higher than other cabinet doors and they are only 3/4″ thick. Seasonal changes in temperature and humidity will cause warping, which will be increased by the additional weight of the racks.
What I strongly recommend for both existing and new pantry cabinets, built-in or free-standing, is the pull-out tray. It is not only as useful as the other organizing systems, but it is also A LOT cheaper.
Trays are different from shelves in that they have lips all around the perimeter which keeps stuff from sliding off. The lip also provides a place where the drawer slide hardware can be attached.
The bottom tray should have HD (heavy duty) slides which can accommodate up to 150 lbs. This is where your large beverage bottles should be, so that you don’t have to lift the weight very far.
Other trays can have 100 lb.
slides, but ALL slides should be of the ball-bearing variety, and “full-extension” slides. The highest tray should be reserved for paper products and other light-weight items.
Butler’s Pantry
If you’re lucky enough to have a separate room for a pantry, you have 2 options. A Butler’s pantry is typically a work area. Therefore, upper and lower cabinets usually are made for storage, with a counter top to work on. This area might have a sink as well.
The other option is strickly storage on shelves. The greatest capacity is achieved with a rolling shelving system like those made by Lundia (Google “rolling shelving” to get more info).
This would apply only if you have 10 kids, have many relatives living with you, own a soup kitchen, or feed the neighborhood regularly. Otherwise, this option might be overkill.
Posted by admin | Cabinets | Posted on December 11th, 2010
Kitchen Cabinets
Pages : 159
The kitchen is the epicenter of modern American family life and the medias makeover darling. In spite of all this attention and excitement, the kitchen cabinet industry may very well be in for a sustained slowdown according to a new report by Specialists in Business Information (SBI).
After several years of accelerated growth, apparent consumption of kitchen cabinetry in the United States eclipsed the $ 14 billion mark in 2006. However, homeowners reigned in spending and homebuilders pared back on construction bringing harder times to kitchen cabinet manufacturers bringing the market down an estimated 13% in 2007. With economic uncertainty and a housing depression unfolding into 2008, its pretty clear that the immediate outlook for the kitchen cabinet market looks bleak. But the real questions are when will there be a bottom and how soon will growth return?
This report presents data and analysis on the U.S. market kitchen cabinet manufacturing and its prospects for growth. It explores the key economic and housing related indicators, end-user, product and market trends with expanded coverage of green factors, and competitive issues affecting the kitchen cabinet manufacturing.
Report data were obtained from government sources, trade associations and publications, business journals, company literature, and investment reports. Statistics describing the value of shipments for kitchen cabinets are derived from the U.S. Census Bureaus Census of Manufacturers and Annual Survey of Manufacturers, and are augmented by estimates and forecasts by SBI. In most cases, historical data are provided for 1998 through 2007, with forecast data from 2008 to 2012. Because some data are taken from the Census of Manufacturers, which is generated every five years for years ending in 2 or 7 (the last census being 2002), SBI occasionally includes 1997 to show an actual base. At other times, estimates for years falling between 1997 and 2002 were used.
Statistics describing the value of imports and exports for kitchen cabinets were derived from the U.S. International Trade Commission database. SBI defines the market for kitchen cabinets as apparent consumption, which is calculated as the value shipments, plus the value imports, less the value exports.
Other data analyzed in this report include several metrics describing residential construction and housing such as home improvement spending and new home sales.
Simmons Market Research Bureaus winter 2008 survey, based on a sample of over 20,000 respondents, provides the primary research data on consumer remodeling habits and kitchen cabinet expenditures.