Wall cabinets 77cm above worktop - is this too much (with photo)?

[jellybean30]

Our new kitchen is being built and I'm having a panic about the distance between the wall units and the worktop. It's 77cm.

The wall units are only on the left side and the top of them align with the fridge freezer. The FF has a little cabinet on top of it. See photo. The cabinet is 40cm tall.

Is 77cm too big a gap? We're both tall and I don't mind using a step to access the higher shelves within the wall cabinets. I just don't want the kitchen to look odd. The ceiling is very high so that's not an issue.

Help!

Why don't you have the taller wall cupboards? They usually do them in two heights.

@jellybean30

I have unfortunately. IKEA carcasses and (very expensive) custom fronts. So a bit late to get new ones

I like the idea of a bigger gap and I think it gives you more space to work, or put tall appliances on the worksurface if you need to - such as a blender / bread machine - and still have access to them.

I always find it feels a bit cramped between the work surface and wall units in traditional set ups. I think it may well work fine in real life - And as you are all quite tall, you will be okay to reach into the cupboards.

The idea by Pigletjohn of a small shelf below if you feel you need something to break up the gap is perhaps a good way to go. But I think it will probably look fine and you'll be pleased to have an extra bit of space and airiness in the design.

I would do as you mention and reduce fridge/freezer cabinet by 20cm and line up with this lower height. It seems easiest and you could use baskets or similar along the top if extra storage is needed.

@TulipsfromAmsterdam oh I love the baskets above the wall unit idea. Some will say it's a grease trap I'm sure but in theory it sounds nice!

@alexbury the shelf under the unit idea is good, but the picture I attached doesn't show that we plan to have two rows of shelves on the other side of the room (made by the same people who made the cabinet doors), so might be strange to have two types of shelving.

You say you don't mind using a step to access the cupboards, but that's no way to plan a kitchen. The tail is wagging the dog here.

As a short person I didn't realise people didn't use a step as standard, my entire family have step stools in their kitchen for this purpose.

@JaninaDuszejko

You say you don't mind using a step to access the cupboards, but that's no way to plan a kitchen. The tail is wagging the dog here.

As a short person I didn't realise people didn't use a step as standard, my entire family have step stools in their kitchen for this purpose.

Same here. I can manage the bottom shelf but we have a stool ready for me to access all other shelves otherwise our wall cabinets would need to be comically low

I’ve had a measure of ours. The bottom of our cupboards is

My builder is coming back tomorrow to discuss next steps, so I'll get his view too. He's already attached the wall cabinets to the wall but I'm hopeful he won't be too cross about repositioning them as it's only 3 units.

@jellybean30

It's being fitted so it's a bit late now to get different units. The alternative is to not have the top cabinet in the FF, or make it a smaller cabinet, and have the wall cabinets lower down. If the whole cabinet were removed, the distance would become 37cm - too small. So maybe make it a half cabinet? So 57cm gap.

All this would be very expensive so I want to make sure it's the right thing to do!

Ours are about 57cm higher. But that's partly because we have very tall upper cupboards (900mm) and cornicing on top of them as well, and we need to clear the coving where the wall and ceiling meet. I'm short, too. If you're tall, and want to work on those surfaces without getting a face full of cupboard, you might want them higher than me.

@JaninaDuszejko

You say you don't mind using a step to access the cupboards, but that's no way to plan a kitchen. The tail is wagging the dog here.

As a short person I didn't realise people didn't use a step as standard, my entire family have step stools in their kitchen for this purpose.

Quite. We have a gap about 57cms, and I can really only reach the bottom shelf without perching on something.

Can you not ask the people who built the other shelves to build some extra ones so they match?

If you have trouble reaching the top shelf, the is really handy.

They retail at around £250 so get the double shelf, not much dearer than a single, and 600mm width, about the same as a narrow one.

Sometimes you see them cheap on ebay from people who ordered but don't like them, or are having a stock clearance. They fit inside standard wall cabinets.

I haven't seen other brands but Blum or Hafele are good manufacturers of kitchen unit gadgets.

I just had to go measure mine, it’s a 70 cm gap. I’m five eight and can reach the first two shelves but for the top/third one I can just finger tip reach and use a little step thing I keep in the cupboard if I want something at the top and back.

However the upstand is 12 cm, which is probably why it doesn’t look very high, as it gives an optional illusion of the gap being between the top of the upstand and the bottom of the cupboard which is 58cm.

However the kitchen is about twelve foot ceiling height in its lowest part and about thirty foot in its highest, so making it 12 cm higher than average and in like with the fridge freezer worked for the room. And as said made it feel more spacious underneath for using the worktop.

In looking at it, 77 does seem a lot to me, I don’t think I’d have wanted mine 7cm higher,

@JaninaDuszejko I use a step stool too because I am super-short, but I still think it's ridiculous to plan a kitchen so that a 5'10" person would need to do so.

OP I think your cutting down idea is good, though think about how you'd actually use a 60cm deep cupboard, that high up, that's only 15cmish high itself once you've allowed for top and bottom panels. Would it work better if you put a false back into that cupboard about 30-40cm in, so things can't get lost at the back?

Re different sorts of shelves, I think we could help you make that work if you shared what current shelves and cupboards look like. IKEA has a lot of this sort of aesthetic.

I don't think your builder should be that hacked off at having to move the cupboards. They should have clocked that these are short cupboards fitted too high, and checked with you.

Our new kitchen will have then upper cabinets around that height from cabinets.

I didn’t want any high cabinets as hate them in face and imposing. But small kitchen meant needed for storage.
Ours will go right to the ceiling (250cm high).
They will have a lower narrow shelf underneath.

I think it’s fine. Dh is tall, I’m 5’5. They won’t store any day to day stuff, more like wine glasses we only use at Xmas, picnic stuff, spare large platters for events and similar. So I have no issue using step to reach if needed. These are currently stored ontop of cupboards anyway so still need a step ( and everything gets dusty atm).

I think our worktop is higher than usual as well, as will be 93cm from floor. Did that in utility and it’s much better.

I’d go with your suggestion of cutting down the unit on top of the ff

I have a 70cm gap in my kitchen, above the main workspace and the hob. I never feel hemmed in, or bang my head in the cooker hood. The cupboards are used for mugs and glasses so it's rare that I need to stand on my tip-toes to get right to the back.

In contrast, the gap in my utility room is 50cm. Easier to access the back of the cupboards undoubtedly, but the workspace underneath feels much less pleasant to work at, and if there was a cooker hood it would be in the way.

So I am definitely happy with the large gap in the kitchen (advised by the fitters).

I think it will be fine (I'm almost 6ft). They may feel like 'top boxes' and I think it's elegant and will be proportionate with heigh ceilings.

I've specifically gone for taller base units (standard is 90 cm and I'm going for 95cm) + 3cm worktop thickness then a gap of 65cm. The bottom of the wall units will be 163cm. Assuming you're going for standard base unit height they are comparable (90+77=167).

I'm putting a shelf underneath as others have suggested.

Thanks all. I've decided to go with cutting the top cabinet in two. The gap will there be 57cm.

I'm wondering whether to order a pelmet at the same time as ordering the new cabinet door? It's a traditional style shaker kitchen, white marble style stone worktop, Zellige tiles. I can't see under the units if the gap is 57cm (so pelmet not strictly needed to hide lights etc.).