Renovation 4th Edition

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Renovation 4th Edition Page 83

by Michael Litchfield


  Plumb the tankless unit and screw it to the

  wall, being sure to insert a vibration-suppression

  gasket between the unit’s metal housing and the

  wall. To connect water pipes, start by screwing

  water valve assemblies to the union couplings on

  the bottom of the unit, then connect the sweated

  leads to house supply pipes.

  On the other hand, if your water-supply sys-

  tem is flexible PEX tubing, it will employ com-

  at right center, the gas installer has added a new leg to feed the tankless water heater under the

  pression fittings rather than soldered ones. Note:

  house. To the coupling below the blue shutoff lever, he will attach CSST—a flexible, code-approved

  PEX may need a transitional fitting to attach it to material that is more easily routed than galvanized or black steel piping.

  plumbing

  355

  turning on the gas, spraying soapy water on

  joints, and looking for active bubbling.

  venT pIpes

  Vent pipe diameter, maximum vent length, pitch,

  clearances, adapters, etc., will be specified in the

  installation instructions, so read them (and local

  code requirements) closely. If the heater is

  installed indoors, you may vent it up through a

  roof or out through an exterior wall. As a rule of

  thumb, keep vent runs as straight as possible—

  on the outside, the end of the vent

  the fewer bends the better.

  pipe is covered by a rubber flange.

  In the photo sequence, the tankless water

  heater was installed in a well-ventilated crawl-

  space. The location was optimal because a “wet

  The 5-in. concentric pipe shown here pitches slightly

  wall” above serviced both a kitchen and a bath-

  downward toward an exterior wall so combustion

  P R O T I P

  room, but venting a concentric pipe with a

  condensation will drain away from the heater.

  5-in. outer diameter (O.D.) up through the roof

  after you’ve made all gas,

  would have been impractical. So the installer

  water, and electrical connections

  placed an elbow atop the unit and from it ran

  with a simple rubber flange that slides over the

  and turned the tankless heater

  vent pipe to the nearest exterior wall, maintaining end of the pipe, which can be caulked to the sid-

  on, run the hot water and use a

  a 1⁄4-in.-per-ft. pitch downward toward the exterior. ing. You can also dress up the termination with a

  digital thermometer to check the

  That slight downward pitch is necessary to allow

  mounting plate. To keep rain from damming up

  at-faucet temperature and com-

  condensation in combustion gases to run away

  behind a mounting plate, however, honor the

  pare it with the temperature set-

  from the unit and drip outside. (A tankless water

  First Rule of Flashing: Fit the top of the plate

  ting on the heater control panel.

  heater has a combustion fan that pulls air into

  under the siding course above and over siding

  Check water temperatures at all

  the burner; that same fan gently expels exhaust

  courses below.

  fixtures the water heater serves.

  gases, even though the vent pipe has a slight

  downward pitch.)

  At the exterior wall, trace the O.D. of the pipe

  onto the sheathing, and drill a hole in the cen-

  ter—through the sheathing and siding—to locate

  the opening outside. Vent kits typically come

  cssT gas-supply

  control panel

  line

  cold-water inlet

  Hot-water outlet

  3⁄4-in. union

  union

  gas shutoff

  Temperature- and

  pressure-relief

  (TPR) valve

  drain

  gas valve

  Water shutoff

  a close-up of connections.

  356 Chapter 12

  Kitchens

  13

  and Baths

  No other rooms are renovated as often as

  kitchens and bathrooms, in part because we’ve

  changed the way we live. In the old days, home-

  owners regarded kitchens and bathrooms as drab

  utility rooms, best situated at the back of the

  house, away from guests. Times change. These

  days, if you throw a party, everybody hangs out

  in the kitchen. Bathrooms aren’t exactly spartan

  anymore, either. Today’s kitchens and baths con-

  tain so many cabinets, counters, fixtures, and

  appliances that it takes careful planning to make

  them all fit—and still have room for people to

  move around. This chapter will help with that.

  Kitchen Planning

  The best kitchens can accommodate your per-

  sonal tastes and lifestyles as well as your physical

  characteristics, such as your height.

  What goes on in your kitchen?

  Start planning by imagining a day in the life of

  your kitchen, being as specific as possible about

  the activities—and the actors. Do you want a

  sunny spot to have coffee, read the paper, and

  wake up? Will the kitchen table double as a desk

  for homework? Or will the kitchen be a com-

  mand center in which you field calls and arrange

  after-school carpools while tossing the salad?

  Keep a notebook in your present kitchen and

  jot down observations about what goes on—as

  well as a wish list for what you’d like changed.

  Many entries will be cooking specific: Is there

  enough storage and counter space to prep several

  dishes? Does the cook like company? When you

  entertain, how large is the crowd? Is there a con-

  venient place for cookbooks? Such consider-

  These days, adventurous homeowners can assemble and install good-looking kitchen cabinets on

  their own. This set of IKEA® cabinets is chronicled on pp. 368–371.

  357

  standard cabinet dimensions

  zzzzzz Figuring dimensions

  E

  reference*

  space

  dimension (in.)

  a

  height above the finish floor

  F

  kitchen countertops

  36

  bath vanity countertops

  

  32–34

  B

  base cabinet depth

  

  24

  D

  c

  height and depth of kickspace

  

  4

  G

  d

  Wall cabinet distance above:

  standard countertop

  18

  sink and cooktop

  

  30

  A

  e

  depth of wall cabinet

  

  12–15

  f

  typical wall cabinet height (8-ft. ceilings) 

  30

  C

  G

  highest usable shelf

  

  80

  B

  * Letter refers to “Figuring Dimensions” at right.

  ations will be useful in evaluating your kitchen

  counter and cabinet spac
e

  and establishing priorities for the new one.

  Meal preparation consists of food prep, cooking,

  and cleanup, ideally with counter space for each

  cabinet heights and clearances

  job. Prepping the food—washing, cutting, and

  Over the years, architects, appliance designers,

  mixing—takes the most time, so give as much

  and builders have adopted a set of physical

  space as possible to counters near the sink and

  dimensions that, in theory, make kitchens safer

  the cooktop.

  and easier to use. As shown in “Figuring Dimen-

  Sink counters should be 24 in. wide on each

  sions” above, these dimensions work for most

  side of the sink, though 36 in. is better, allowing

  people but in the end may not suit everybody. As

  plenty of room for food prep and the air-drying of

  a rule of thumb, a counter is the right height if

  pots and pans. Because dishwashers are 24 in.

  you can place your palms flat on it, with a slight

  wide, they fit neatly under a 24-in. counter. If the

  bend to your elbow. If the standard counter

  kitchen is tiny and there’s no undercounter dish-

  height of 36 in. above the finish floor isn’t right

  washer, 18-in.-wide sink counters are minimal.

  for you, lowering or raising it an inch or two may Have a splashback behind the sink.

  do the trick. However, if you’re thinking of selling

  the house fairly soon, your ideal counter or shelf

  Cooktop counters should be at least 18 in. to

  height may not appeal to the average buyer.

  24 in. wide on both sides of the unit, and at least

  Equally important are the clearances needed

  one side should be made of a heat-resistant mate-

  to move easily in a kitchen—clearances that

  rial. Placing a stove on an exterior wall keeps

  homeowners frequently overlook when laying out exhaust-fan ducts short, but never place a gas

  new kitchens. Be sure to allow enough room to

  stove in front of a window because a draft could

  open cabinet doors fully and still walk around

  blow out burners. The wall behind a stove should

  them. Traffic lanes through work areas are vital

  be washable.

  because cooks frequently handle hot, sharp, or

  By the refrigerator, next to the latch side, have a

  heavy objects. Keep a 60-in. minimal clearance if counter at least 15 in. wide so you can place

  the work area doubles as a corridor. Ideally,

  things there as they go in and out of the fridge. If

  though, family traffic should bypass the cooking

  the refrigerator and the sink share a counter, the

  space. If a kitchen has two or more doors, you

  space should be 36 in. to 42 in. long. Because this

  may be able to reroute that unwanted traffic by

  counter is typically a food-prep area, you’ll need

  eliminating one of them while gaining counter

  a large surface to store countertop appliances.

  and cabinet space in the process.

  358 chapter 13

  Minimum kitchen

  Work-space clearances

  33-in.-wide sink

  zzzzzz recommended counter space and clearances

  space

  dimension (in.)

  in front of base cabinet

  

  36

  between base cabinet and facing wall  40

  between facing appliances

  

  48

  Work space plus foot traffic

  

  60

  18 in. to 36 in.

  24 in. to 36 in.

  Dishwasher

  under counter

  CoUnter outlets

  Kitchen counters 12 in. wide or wider must have

  at least one electrical receptacle to serve them.

  all points on a counter must be within 2 ft. from

  Each work area—food prep, cooking, and cleanup—should have adequate

  a receptacle, and all counter receptacles must

  counter space so a cook can work efficiently, with enough clearance

  have Gfci protection. chapter 11 addresses this.

  to move safely. Counters with dishwashers underneath must be at

  least 24 in. wide; otherwise, 18 in. is the minimum. See “Minimum

  Kitchen Work-Space Clearances” at left.

  Cabinet space has few rules. The best indicator

  of how much cabinet space you need is the num-

  ber of appliances, bowls, and paraphernalia you

  own. Or use this rule of thumb: Figure 18 sq. ft.

  zzzzzz common kitchen layouts

  of basic storage plus 6 sq. ft. for each person in

  the household.

  layout choices: Work areas

  The person preparing and cooking the meal moves

  primarily in a space bounded by the refrigerator,

  the stove, and the sink—the so-called work tri-

  angle. When laying out such work areas, designers

  try to keep the distance traveled between the

  three points within 12 ft. to 22 ft. Three of the

  layouts shown at right feature a work triangle.

  L-SHAPE

  The fourth is a single-line kitchen, but the dis-

  U-SHAPE

  tance traveled should be roughly the same.

  U-shaped kitchens are the most practical

  because they isolate the work area from family

  traffic. Because cooks spend a lot of time rinsing

  veggies before dinner and washing pots after, put

  the sink at the base of the U, with the refrigerator

  on one side and the stove on the other. If one per-

  son preps food or washes while the other cooks,

  their paths won’t cross too often. If possible,

  place the sink beneath a window so the eye and

  the mind can roam.

  L-shaped kitchens are popular because they

  allow various arrangements. That is, you can put

  a dining table or a kitchen island in the imagi-

  GALLEY

  SINGLE-LINE

  kitchens and baths

  359

  nary fourth corner. However, this becomes a

  somewhat less efficient setup if one leg of the L is

  kitchen lighting basics

  too long. Again, position the sink in the middle.

  kitchen lighting should be a combination of natural light (windows), general

  Galley kitchens create efficient work triangles,

  lighting, and task lighting to illuminate specific work areas. For light that is both

  but they can become hectic if there’s through

  warm and efficient, combine incandescent and fluorescent bulbs. Warm fluorescent

  traffic. If you close one end of the galley to stop

  lights are another option.

  traffic, the galley should be at least 4 ft. wide to

  General lighting can come from overhead fixtures, recessed ceiling lights, track

  accommodate two cooks. To avoid colliding

  doors, never place a refrigerator directly across

  lighting, or perimeter lighting. Mount ceiling lights 10 in. to 12 in. out from cabinet

  from an oven in a tight galley kitchen.

  faces to illuminate kitchen surfaces evenly, while minimizing shadows cast by wall

  cabinets or by people using the counter. For an average-size kitchen (75 sq. ft. to

  Single-line kitchens, common to small apart-

  100 sq. ft
.), ceiling-mounted general lighting should total about 200 watts incan-

  ments, are workable if they’re not longer than

  descent or 80 watts fluorescent; if there’s recessed ceiling lighting, four 100-watt

  12 ft. and there’s a minimum of 4 ft. to the oppo-

  incandescent bulbs should be enough. For larger kitchens, figure 2 watts of incan-

  site wall. Compact, space-saver appliances can

  maximize both floor and counter space.

  descent or 1 watt of fluorescent light per sq. ft. of kitchen area.

  Task lighting over sinks and cooktops should be at least two 75-watt incandes-

  Islands are great in multiple-use kitchens, for

  cent bulbs or two 30-watt fluorescent bulbs. ideally, task lighting should be placed

  they can provide a buffer between cooking tasks,

  behind a face trim board of some kind so that the bulbs shine more on the work sur-

  a place to eat breakfast or read, or a place to sit

  face than in one’s eyes. to illuminate countertops, task lighting is often installed

  and talk with the cook. Make the island roomy,

  with at least 10 to 12 sq. ft. of open counter

  under wall cabinets, hidden by a face board or a cabinet rail. low-voltage halogen

  space, so someone hanging out won’t be in the

  “puck” lights or slimline fluorescent bulbs can be shielded by a face board that’s

  flight path of hot dishes coming and going.

  only 11⁄4 in. high. in general, under-cabinet lights should be two-thirds as long as

  the counter they illuminate. (see also “kitchen lighting” on p. 378.)

  kitchen cabinet layouts

  Once you’ve chosen a work layout that you like,

  make to-scale floor plans: A 1⁄4-in. to 1-ft. scale

  provides a good amount of detail for a single

  room yet still fits on an 81⁄2-in. by 11-in. sheet of

  graph paper. Include windows, doors, appliances,

  and cabinets. You may find it helpful to cut to-

  High point of floor—

  scale rectangles to represent the refrigerator,

  zzzzzz adding cabinets, refining the layout

  start install here.

  241/2 in.

  sink, and cooktop. If you cut them from differ-

  ent-colored paper or label each piece, you’ll have

  30 in.

  42 in.

  36 in.

  36 in.

  an easier time trying out your layouts.

  Basic layout. Refining the layout is a fluid pro-

  cess, but a few spatial arrangements are so com-

  mon they’re almost givens. Place the sink under a

  Fridge

  Corner

  36 in.

  window. Don’t put a refrigerator and a stove side

  cabinet

  Double-door

  base cabinet

 

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