Solve my kitchen layout problems!

[21stCenturyBreakdown]

Hello wise Mumsnetters - please help!

We recently bought a house with a decent sized kitchen, but an awkward shape / layout. Hopefully a diagram is attached…

We’re not looking to re-do the kitchen any time soon (it’s not that old and is in relatively good condition) but at the moment it doesn’t entirely meet our needs and we have some money for a few changes. The problem is that we can’t think of any solution that achieves all the things we want! Our goals are:

1. More storage space
   

1. More freezer space (we have a tall integrated fridge freezer with a 70 / 30 split - the freezer is too small, but the fridge is far bigger than we need)
   

1. Seating (ideally a breakfast bar rather than a table)
   

1. Somewhere suitable to put the bin
   

We’ve come up with a bunch of ‘almost’ solutions but are really struggling for ideas that tick all the boxes. The ideas so far, in case that helps…

- Replace the fridge freezer with an upside down one (so 70% freezer, 30% fridge). Put a breakfast bar above the radiator and cupboards above that. Bin goes to the right of the door. Achieves all 4 goals! Except the fridge freezer I’ve described doesn’t seem to actually exist :(

- Put a free-standing fridge freezer next to the radiator and turn the integrated one into cupboards. Bin goes to the right of the door. Solves 1, 2 and 4, but there's no place for seating.

- Put a free-standing fridge freezer next to the radiator and turn the integrated one into cupboards. Put a breakfast bar along the wall to the right of the door. Solves 1, 2 and 3, but then the only place for the bin is next to the radiator - nope!

Any bright ideas?

[Lemonski]

Do you have anywhere else in the house thats easily accessible to put a freezer. You say the fridge freezer that suits your ideal does not exist but would a fridge and seprate freezer work for you?

We have lived in army housing and had to be very imaginative in the past as the kitchens are dated and not made for lots of white goods.

I have always found that I dont actually NEED the freezer in the kitchen. We have had it in an understairs cupboard, Dining room cupboard and several garages. We now have our own home with an integral garage and the freezer lived in there.

We have a larder fridge because I like a large fridge but you could get a smaller size to suit your needs or even an under counter one.

[SwedishEdith]

Could you have a 50/50 Freestanding FF where the integrated one is now?

I wouldn't put a FFA near a radiator.

[RandomMess]

I would consider an under counter fridge and under counter freezer. You could have shelving above the end one that is currently the fridge/freezer.

[Sidge]

I'd move the radiator to the other side of the door and put a narrow ladder radiator in. You don't need as much heat in a kitchen as you think.

Utilise the wall where the radiator was and the blank wall with a U shaped arrangement incorporating a breakfast bar, and cupboards with an integrated bin and separate fridge and freezer.

[SwedishEdith]

Yes, Sidge's idea is much better.

[21stCenturyBreakdown]

Thanks all for the ideas - much appreciated!

Yes, a separate fridge and freezer would be ok if we could figure out where to put them - as RandomMess says, one would be able to go in the same space as now so it would just be the other one that needed a home. No garage or understairs cupboard unfortunately, but will think about other possible places.

A freestanding fridge freezer in place of the integrated one might work, depending on how easily we could deconstruct the unit (would need to leave the right side intact and undamaged as it's also the left side of the cupboards).

I like the idea of the ladder radiator - DH says that keeping it to the left of the door would be a lot cheaper than moving it to the right though (due to where other pipes and radiators are). That would limit the theoretical U-shaped arrangement a bit but would still give us more options...

Some great things to think about, thanks everyone!