Bad kitchen door layout advice needed

emily_walker1

Firstly we have only very recently moved into this house therefore not our design fault and it is a renovation project

Our kitchen door opens into the utility and leaves the kitchen and utility door overlapping each other as per pics. We want to keep the utility.. even removing the utility door would still create the same issue. 

My question is.. does anybody know any practical solutions to resolving the issue. We are planning to renovate the kitchen so open to ideas.. the other problem we have too is the staircase is close to the kitchen door from hallway.  So im not sure opening the door the other way is practical as can block staircase..Ive added floor plan and pics.

we can access the kitchen through the living room but don't want this to be the only option. 

any ideas appreciated and thanks for your time. 

emily_walker1

I should add the doorway into the garage doesnt exist

tacpot12

You have a few options: 

1. Block up the kitchen door and use the door from the dining room to access the Kitchen. This will probably drive you mad, but it does address the problem of the kitchen door being too close to the stairs.

2. Change the Kitchen door so it is hung from the left hand side rather than the right. This will probably also drive you mad as it will make the route into the kitchen quite tight as the door won't be able to open beyond a certain point due to the units behind it. 

3. Change the Kitchen door so it opens outwards. Unfortunately this creates the risk that someone coming down the stairs has the door opened into their face just as they reach the bottom of the stairs. 

4. Remove the door. The issue with this option might be cooking smells, but all the other rooms have doors so the problem might not be too bad. A Positive Input Ventilation (PIV) system could also be installed that would push any warm/moist/smelly air out of the Kitchen windows rather than permeating the house. If you have any mould or damp problems anywhere or there is no extractor fan installed in either the kitchen or bathroom, a PIV system could provide other benefits.   

5. Use special hinges and move the utility room doorway slightly so that you have one shared door for both the Kitchen and the Utility room. The door could be shut so that the utility room is closed off from the Kitchen, but the Kitchen is open the to house, or the Kitchen can be closed off from the rest of the house but the utility room is open from the kitchen. (I'm not sure I've ever seen this done before but you will be able to get the sorts of hinges that are needed). 

6. Fit different hinges that have a stop built into them to stop the Kitchen door opening more than 90 degrees. 

Mojisola

As you're going to be renovating the kitchen, could you install a sliding door from the hallway into the kitchen? 

missimaxo

Change the layout of the kitchen slightly, lose some unit near the hob and move the utility door down. Again not a great solution but a kitchen designer may be able to suggest a different layout 

missimaxo

Or go to the utility through the conservatory and get rid of the door completely. You could even add a new door into the garage from the hall, put in the missing door to the garage and access the utility that way.

theoretica

Another option would be to replace the kitchen door with two half width doors - so hinged both sides.

A sliding door for the utility room?  But the kitchen door would still be in the way if you want to go in to the utility room without closing it.  Or a sliding kitchen door too - kitchen door slides into utility room, utility door slides along wall.

If you think about making the kitchen door open outwards I would suggest glass would be safer so you can see who you might hit.

emily_walker1

Thank you for your ideas I'm considering all of them. 🙂

bpj

Is the problem just that the door blocks access to the utility when open?

Personally I think I'd just get into the habit of closing the door behind me. If that doesn't stick you could install rising hinges or some other door closing mechanism perhaps?

Jeepers_Creepers

Based on my last two houses - and that fact that my very traditional in-laws also ended up doing this (my jaw is still on the floor) - the answer is very simple.

Remove the kitchen door. Keep the UR one.

The existing kitchen is already ok, but I'm assuming - since this is a reno job - you'll be updating it (even if it means simply remove that sheepskin coat...)? In which case, you are - honestly - going to want to be seeing in there in passing. It will add to everything, the hallway, everything.

Rosa_Damascena

Jeepers_Creepers said:

Based on my last two houses - and that fact that my very traditional in-laws also ended up doing this (my jaw is still on the floor) - the answer is very simple.

Remove the kitchen door. Keep the UR one.

The existing kitchen is already ok, but I'm assuming - since this is a reno job - you'll be updating it (even if it means simply remove that sheepskin coat...)? In which case, you are - honestly - going to want to be seeing in there in passing. It will add to everything, the hallway, everything.

Wouldn't work for everyone though. I'd hate not to be able to shut kitchen smells away from the rest of the house. If the OP doesn't like open plan I'm not sure this is the remedy for her.