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laurajane02

Can my corner kitchen cab open to powder room?

laurajane02
11 years ago

Hi GWers,

I'm just considering my corner kitchen cabinet choices and I'm revisiting the idea that I could access 1 corner cab from an adjacent room. For me, that would mean accessing it from the powder room.

In the powder room, I'm just planning to use a pedestal sink + toilet (obviously). Those drawers would be nice for extra TP etc.

Anyway, do I have the space? I don't really know how much room I need around a toilet or sink. The main floor isn't framed yet (that starts this week) so I could still switch to a pocket door.

I just went outside and took those measurements, so that's how much room I have between interior walls.

Here's my plan:

Comments (7)

  • Alex House
    11 years ago

    Your toilet is smack in the middle of where your cabinet doors should be.

    If you're going to do this then the framing of the wall needs to accommodate an opening.

    The fixture placement in the powder rooms needs to accommodate the cabinet door swing. Alternatively, you can install a sliding door.

    If your fixtures can't be moved then access to the cabinet space will require you to get down on your hands and knees, with your face next to the toilet bowl, in order to get below the water reservoir tank so that you can reach into the cabinet space, likely meaning that whatever you store in there will not be an item that is used frequently.

    I think it's certainly doable, but if you don't redesign your powder room then it will be awkward access storage.

  • laurajane02
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Thanks for the reply. I'm sorry, I should have been more specific. Consider the space a blank slate in terms of fixture placement. Nothing has been roughed in yet, so I can still leave a hole in the wall for drawers if necessary.

    Could the sink and toilet go on the 5'8" wall together? Could they go across from each other?

    I won't do it if the layout will be awkward.

  • Alex House
    11 years ago

    Why not do a vertical mirror image of your powder room and then place the toilet along the computer desk wall.

    Have you thought about simply extending the powder room into the space where the corner cabinet sits? This means that you have each run of cabinets ending at a wall and you can place a wall cabinet there or shelves or some art, meanwhile you can have a sliding door in the powder room and have a floor to ceiling deep cabinet.

    The only benefit that I see from your current configuration is that you get counterspace in the kitchen corner.

  • Alex House
    11 years ago

    Powder room door should swing out and this then gives you added safety along with more design flexibility in the space.

  • User
    11 years ago

    A header would have to be framed in the wall for opening access. And he toilet would have to be moved. Yes, with a small pedestal sink, there is room for the toilet and sink on the bottom wall. But, also, that wall would have to be framed as a wet wall, which is thicker than the standard 2x wall in order to hold the pipes. IF you can manage to change all of that, then yes, you can access the kitchen corner from the bath.

    But, will the office be in use at the same time as the bath? You won't have any noise buffering from that like you would if you put a closet in between them. Will the corner cabinet be sealed air tight from the bath? Even with a good bath fan, odors could be a concern traveling into the kitchen. Not very appetizing while entertaining or making dinner.

  • laurajane02
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    live_wire ~ Thanks for making the point about the odors. I think that's enough reason for me to nix the idea.

    Alexhouse ~ I see what you're saying about extending the wall out, but my kitchen isn't huge, so I'd prefer to have the square footage in the kitchen as opposed to the powder room.

    If either of you are still checking this thread, how would this powder room be best arranged assuming no drawers accessible on the kitchen wall? It sounds like the door should swing out? Then should I move the toilet to the top wall so that it is not so visible to people walking by? And the sink on the kitchen wall?

    Thanks so much for helping!

  • Alex House
    11 years ago

    Do you have an upper cab in the corner?

    If you replace the corner unit(s) with the extended wall, then you eliminate the odor issue, you maintain the sound barrier that a wall provides and you gain full height storage from the powder room at the cost of a corner base unit, a corner upper unit and the counterspace. Your other cabinet runs are not interrupted and you don't lose any other space other than what the corner cab occupies.

    You note that your kitchen isn't huge but you're willing to completely block off the storage from the corner unit in order to avoid the air infiltration issue from the powder room meaning that what you lose by extending the wall amounts to corner counterspace and upper cab storage.

    Door swing out is helpful if someone passes out in the tiny powder room and their body is blocking an inswing door.