If you're older than 25, you've no doubt heard of the kitchen triangle. Whether it's when you've designed your own kitchen or your parents shouting at you telling you to get out of the work triangle. So what actually is it?
90% of homeowners believe the kitchen is the most important room in the home. And the remaining 10% would agree it's the busiest and has the most traffic in the home. This is where the work triangle came about and having a dedicated area for cooking is essential in high traffic rooms like the kitchen. Whether you love cooking, entertaining, or just want a work area, having an efficient and easy-to-navigate kitchen space is so important.
When designing your kitchen, thinking about the kitchen triangle is definitely something to think about.
Work on optimizing kitchen layouts was begun in the 1920s by Lillian Moller Gilbreth, an industrial psychologist and engineer. Gilbreth's Kitchen Practical was unveiled in 1929 at a Women's Exposition based on Gilbreth's research on motion savings. The kitchen triangle was developed in the 1940s to address the efficiency of the kitchen space between the major work centers: Cooking (range), Preparation (sink/dishwasher) and Food Storage (refrigerator). It was designed to maximise the efficiency when cooking and it's still used by most kitchen designers today. According to the rule, the sum of the work triangle shouldn’t be more than 26ft, with each “side” measuring between 4ft and 9ft.
Like most ideas, some argue that the kitchen triangle is a bit dated. After all, kitchens and technology have developed so much in the past century, so as kitchen designs have changed so has the concept of the kitchen triangle.
Kitchens have gone from closed spaces dedicated to cooking to now much larger rooms with kitchen zones, eating zones and if you have the space, a living zone. As technology and the number of options you can choose from in a kitchen increase, designing your kitchen is now so personal to you. Our team of designers still use the work triangle in mind but use a more up-to-date version that is more zoned and open.
If you have a small kitchen space, then definitely the kitchen triangle is still a good starting point for you.
The layout has been a popular option and rule for nearly 100 years now, so it clearly has many benefits. Most of it will help you organise your kitchen based on cooking and efficiency. The kitchen triangle rule will make preparing food and cooking a smooth and easy process. Especially in a busy household, having some structure to your kitchen space is recommended and the triangle will give you a designated area for cooking, cleaning, and retrieval of food.
We strongly believe that the work triangle rule is still a great way to start when designing your kitchen. It's a very useful tool to start and then tweak from there depending on your space.
Are you planning a kitchen revamp or extension? are you trying to plan what you would do with your kitchen living space? If so, have a look at our kitchen collections, with so many different styles, finishes and colours you can choose from, we're sure you will find your ideal look with us.
If you are struggling or have any questions, please get in touch with the team and one of our design experts will be happy to assist you.
Give us a call today on 01943 817477 or email us at [email protected] to speak to us directly, or you can fill out our online form and one of the Wharfedale Interiors team will respond as soon as possible.
