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The kitchen/laundry area needed to be reworked to incorporate updated appliances, a doubled door refrigerator, corner sink and dishwasher. Ideally, the distance between the three critical elements in a kitchen - the stove, the refrigerator and the sink - should be somewhat equal distance from each other. Essentially, no changes were made to the location of the gas line, plumbing lines and 220 outlet in the kitchen, even though the stove and refrigerator were further from the sink area then in a optimal triangle. A number of different configurations were considered; however, none of the options were enough of an improvement to warrant the additional expense of moving all the plumbing. A small closet was taken out to enlarge the cooking area. Precut granite back splash is available in 4" widths. The outlets would be more noticeable against the painted walls. An 8" back splash (with black outlets & switches) was used to provide a cleaner look and give the working surfaces added protection from spills and splashes from food preparation. Current code requires a considerate number of outlets. A popular solution to save space is to install a microwave/fan on top of a cook top. A regular fan was installed because the microwave/fan would be too high over the cook top for most young children to use. Additionally, the upgraded fan provides a stronger draft.
KITCHEN
The original bath consisted of separate shower and tub. The tub was in excellent condition, no replacement was necessary. The water closet was moved from next to the window to where the old shower had been providing more valuable space to expand the vanity area. A shower was added to the tub area. An 18" wide vanity was used. A 21" vanity is more readily available. Kohler has a number of under mount sinks that fit nicely in an 18" vanity. A pedestal sink would have been less bulky but would have provided less counter space. A mirrored medicine cabinet (rather than a simple mirror) is also more desirable to provide storage. The City of Palo will allow a regular light fixture (instead of a fluorescent), if the switch for the light fixture has a automatic shutoff mechanism
LAUNDRY
BATH
The laundry area had to accommodate a washer, dryer, hot water heater and a sink. The space is simply too narrow to install a set of regular size washer/dryer. In fact, the vent for the dryer made it impossible to install even the smaller, efficient appliances side by side. With just one bathroom in the home, a small single sink "bathroom style" vanity and the medicine cabinet gave this space some versatility as an additional area for kids to use in the morning.
WILTON AVENUE REMODEL PALO ALTO