Bay Area architect and author Arrol Gellner is one of my idols.
His syndicated column, Architext, appears in the San Francisco Chronicle and I always read it eagerly for Arrol's insights into design and architecture, building and remodeling.
In today's column, Save money on a remodel by planning for later upgrades - Part 2, he wrote:
"since the dimensions of built-in appliances are standardized, the old units can be easily removed and replaced with fancier stuff when money becomes available."
Dear Mr Gellner,
I have enjoyed your architectural columns in the Chronicle for years and highly respect your abilities, knowledge and talents.
However, I must call you on a teensy error in your otherwise wonderful column of January 26, 2008.
While I agree with all of your ideas for lowering costs in new construction and remodeling by buying modestly priced replaceable products and then changing them out down the road; you have given readers the wrong impression about "the dimensions of built-in appliances" being "standardized".
Would that such were so.
Every kitchen designer would leap for JOY at the thought!
This issue probably causes more costly problems, mistakes and delays than any other potential problem area in building and remodeling residential kitchens.
In fact, kitchen appliance cutout sizes vary all over the map.
The only place you are likely to find consistency is with the same manufacturer in the same year. And every manufacturer reserves the right to make changes within a model year, so we have to constantly be on our guard against such changes.
Here are the current cutout sizes for two commonly specified 27" built-in single ovens from KitchenAid and GE:
CABINET OPENING DIMENSIONS
KitchenAid
Single Oven Installed in Cabinet
A. 27" min. cabinet width
B. 1" top of cutout to bottom of upper cabinet door
C. 32" bottom of cutout to floor
D. 25-1/2" cutout width
E. 1-1/2" min. bottom of cutout to top of cabinet door
F. 27-3/4" cutout height
A. 23-1/4" min. cutout depth
B. 23" recessed oven depth
GE
Single Oven Wall-Mount or Cabinet Installation (in inches)
27" recommended cabinet width
Opening width 25" min. - 25-1/4" max
Opening height 27-5/8" min. - 28-1/8" max.
Minimum cabinet depth 23-5/8"
Recommended cutout location 32-1/2" from floor
Allow 3/4" for overlap over all edges of cutout.
Here is a Dacor Oven:
Cabinet Width 27”
Cutout Width 25 1/2”
Cutout Height 27 3/8”
Oven overlays 3/4” Each Side; 1/2” Top; 1/6" Bottom.
24” minimum interior cabinet depth.
Back of cabinet may need to be removed.
1/8” minimum clearance from appliance to adjacent cabinet doors/drawers.
Close, but no cigar. In fact, these three ovens are not swappable without alterations to the cabinets into which they are recessed. And, if clearances to doors are taken into account as well, they might not even safely fit WITH alterations.
Our clients, the consumers, don't help much either: they think they can change their minds on their appliances with impunity.
These issues constantly pose threats to the solvency and profitability of kitchen cabinet dealers and designers, since errors and delays are the bane of our existence, and very costly to boot.
Every time a client changes their choice of appliances after the design and drawings and specifications have been completed, there are myriad places in drawings and cabinet orders that have to be changed as a result. And all such changes have to be assessed for their impact on the overall design and fit of the rest of the products in the kitchen.
I have a caveat engraved on every set of appliance specifications I create that says:
NOTE: NO CHANGES ARE TO BE MADE FROM THESE SPECIFICATIONS WITHOUT NOTIFYING DESIGNER.
CHANGES CREATE UNFORESEEN PROBLEMS WITH FIT AND MUST BE ASSESSED FOR THEIR IMPACT UPON THE VARIOUS ELEMENTS OF YOUR DESIGN.
Such warnings are common on architectural plans the world over.
But when the designer is ordering and furnishing many thousands of dollars worth of cabinetry specially built to fit built-in appliances, the words take on special meaning.
Thank you for your great work and wisdom...and Architext!
Peggy Deras, CKD, CID
Response:
Dear Peggy:
Good call on pointing out that not all appliance sizes are
standardized. I was thinking more of push-in appliances such as
dishwashers, ranges, compactors and refrigerators and less about
appliances such as wall ovens and cooktops that require cutouts.
You're quite right to complain that the latter are "all over the
map", and this has caused me some grief in the past as well. Maybe
someday all of these will be as easily exchanged as a dishwasher is.
Keep up the good work on the blog, and thanks for taking time to write.
Sincerely,
Arrol Gellner
Architect
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Friday, January 25, 2008
Noi arisi pongal (Puli Pongal)
Noi arisi is nothing but broken rice, the rice used to make kanji. This pongal is rice cooked in tamarind water. It is a one pot dish. This is my Dad's faviourite. M paatti (maternal grandma) cooks this best. Even when my Mom cooks, it cannot match my paati's. Its probably because, paati always cooked on stovetop, unlike my Mom/self who takes the easiest route - pressure cooking.
You get broken rice , specially marked for Kanji. If you are unable to get it, grind the rice in mixie. Make sure it is just broken and not powdered.
Let me get into the procedure now.
Things needed
Broken rice - 1 cup
Tamarind - small lemon size
Turmeric - 1/4 tspn
Water - 2 cups
Salt to taste
Seasoning
Sesame oil - 1 tblspn
mustard - 1 tspn
chana dal - 1 tspn
red chilly - 3 nos
curd chilly - 3 nos (add more if you like it)
curry leaves - few
Hing powder - 1/2 tspn
Soak the tamrind in water. Extract the tamarind juice and add water to it so that tamarind plus water will be 2 1/2 cups.
Take the pressure cooker. Add oil and do the seasoning with mustard seeds, chana dal, red chilly and curd chilly broken, curry leaves and hing powder.
Add the tamrind water and turmeric.
Stir in the washed rice and salt.
Mix well. Pressure cook for 3 whistles.
Open it after 20 minutes. Yummy puli pongal will be ready. You can serve with papad or any vadams.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
More On Green Cabinetry
Laurie Burke, over at Kitchen Design Notes, has a great post today called "Not All Green Products Are Alike".
She details how some kitchen and bath products manufacturers are "greenwashing" their products in their advertising.
Suddenly! EVERYTHING is green!
I think we can all see that this is so. And I think it is a positive trend, even though the products may not be all the advertising says they are...right now.
This just means you have to be careful about what you believe and what you buy, if you are really serious about buying green.
But, really, that's nothing new. Is it? Today's shoppers have this wonderful World Wide Web at their disposal to research and learn all about products: The good, the bad. the UGLY, the lies, and the truths. If you can't get the truth from the makers, you can sure hear it from the users. Even concerted efforts to plant green stories can not silence detractors on the Web.
A while back I blogged here about Crystal Cabinet Works' efforts toward sustainability in their manufacturing processes: Green Cabinets by Crystal.
The thing that impresses me so about their effort is that they began it back in the early to mid 1990's. And it was not greenwashing either. They did it for the health of their employees, who were exposed to "all that stuff" day in and day out. They also did it for their surrounding community, in Princeton Minnesota, and their state, which was asking businesses to clean up the environment for residents and workers.
So, while their Green-Core cabinets are at the cutting edge of green cabinetry in the U.S., their catalyzed varnish finishes have been water-based for years and thus healthier for their employees and the people who buy their products...Green-Core or not! And their particle board, plywood and MDF, are also low-VOC and low-formaldehyde for the same reasons. In fact, every component of their manufacturing process, from the lighting to hybrid vehicles driven by employees and scrap wood used for plant heating, has been examined to make it the best possible choice for a healthy environment.
Another company that has been doing green cabinetry for a lot longer than it has been "fashionable" is Neil Kelly Cabinets, up in Portland Oregon. They were the first company in the U.S., to my knowledge, to make a green cabinet box.
Neil Kelly has a responsibility to continuously improve our products and processes as we work toward the goal of becoming a sustainable company. We will make our business decisions taking the environment, product quality, service quality, and profitability into account. We will continue to educate ourselves as new information and technology become available. We will partner with our suppliers and trade-contractors to share information and resources toward this goal. We will work to make our industry more sustainable as we work to make ourselves more sustainable. We understand that a healthy future for our children and grandchildren demands that we honor this pledge.
To help us achieve the goal of sustainability, we will:
Strive to educate ourselves and our clients about sustainable products and practices
Strive to meet the criteria of The Natural Step as we make choices for our business
Strive to reduce our energy use
Strive to promote and use products that are sustainable
Strive to reduce our waste
Strive to reuse and recycle as possible
Strive to design and build in a sustainable way
Strive to be a leader in our industry in this regard as we do in other areas
Now I have never been a Neil Kelly Cabinets dealer like I was once a Crystal Dealer, so I don't have intimate knowledge of their products. But as a kitchen designer I know and respect the Certified Kitchen Designers who have worked with Neil Kelly for years and what inspired Kelly to go the extra distance toward sustainability long ago.
I'd be interested to hear about any other cabinet manufacturers or large shops building green cabinets with green finishes in green factories in the U.S. and abroad. If you know of one, please let me know too....Long post. Sorry.
Peggy
She details how some kitchen and bath products manufacturers are "greenwashing" their products in their advertising.
Suddenly! EVERYTHING is green!
I think we can all see that this is so. And I think it is a positive trend, even though the products may not be all the advertising says they are...right now.
This just means you have to be careful about what you believe and what you buy, if you are really serious about buying green.
But, really, that's nothing new. Is it? Today's shoppers have this wonderful World Wide Web at their disposal to research and learn all about products: The good, the bad. the UGLY, the lies, and the truths. If you can't get the truth from the makers, you can sure hear it from the users. Even concerted efforts to plant green stories can not silence detractors on the Web.
A while back I blogged here about Crystal Cabinet Works' efforts toward sustainability in their manufacturing processes: Green Cabinets by Crystal.
The thing that impresses me so about their effort is that they began it back in the early to mid 1990's. And it was not greenwashing either. They did it for the health of their employees, who were exposed to "all that stuff" day in and day out. They also did it for their surrounding community, in Princeton Minnesota, and their state, which was asking businesses to clean up the environment for residents and workers.
So, while their Green-Core cabinets are at the cutting edge of green cabinetry in the U.S., their catalyzed varnish finishes have been water-based for years and thus healthier for their employees and the people who buy their products...Green-Core or not! And their particle board, plywood and MDF, are also low-VOC and low-formaldehyde for the same reasons. In fact, every component of their manufacturing process, from the lighting to hybrid vehicles driven by employees and scrap wood used for plant heating, has been examined to make it the best possible choice for a healthy environment.
Another company that has been doing green cabinetry for a lot longer than it has been "fashionable" is Neil Kelly Cabinets, up in Portland Oregon. They were the first company in the U.S., to my knowledge, to make a green cabinet box.
Neil Kelly has a responsibility to continuously improve our products and processes as we work toward the goal of becoming a sustainable company. We will make our business decisions taking the environment, product quality, service quality, and profitability into account. We will continue to educate ourselves as new information and technology become available. We will partner with our suppliers and trade-contractors to share information and resources toward this goal. We will work to make our industry more sustainable as we work to make ourselves more sustainable. We understand that a healthy future for our children and grandchildren demands that we honor this pledge.
To help us achieve the goal of sustainability, we will:
Strive to educate ourselves and our clients about sustainable products and practices
Strive to meet the criteria of The Natural Step as we make choices for our business
Strive to reduce our energy use
Strive to promote and use products that are sustainable
Strive to reduce our waste
Strive to reuse and recycle as possible
Strive to design and build in a sustainable way
Strive to be a leader in our industry in this regard as we do in other areas
Now I have never been a Neil Kelly Cabinets dealer like I was once a Crystal Dealer, so I don't have intimate knowledge of their products. But as a kitchen designer I know and respect the Certified Kitchen Designers who have worked with Neil Kelly for years and what inspired Kelly to go the extra distance toward sustainability long ago.
I'd be interested to hear about any other cabinet manufacturers or large shops building green cabinets with green finishes in green factories in the U.S. and abroad. If you know of one, please let me know too....Long post. Sorry.
Peggy
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