Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
themi_gw

how critical for landing space on both sides of prep sink

themi
9 years ago

Hi All,

So, I've read all the guidelines on landing space, but want to hear from those with a prep sink with minimal landing space to one side.

I will have a 7x4 island. The prep sink I want to install is 30"W. Centered on the 7' side of the island would be visually appealing for symmetry, but it breaks up the counter (prep) space leaving me with about 27" of counter run on each side of the sink. It would be more practical, I feel, if I put it flush to one side with maybe only a useless 3-4" boarder on one side, then I have a nice 45" -ish counter run, creating a huge prep area.

Will I be sorry that I don't have landing space on the opposite side?

Kitchen will also have a main clean up sink and small bar sink, so there will be no shortage of other sink options.

Comments (12)

  • sjhockeyfan325
    9 years ago

    30" for a prep sink? I'd rethink that before deciding whether to center it or not (I wouldn't center it, but then I love my 10' island prep space unimpaired by anything).

  • themi
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Hi sjhockey - I'm guessing you think 30" is too big? It will serve as a second clean up area also as it will have a dishwasher... Ideally I would have gone with a 25", but they didn't have any that matched my main sink (Kohler Whitehaven)

  • muskokascp
    9 years ago

    I have a 10 x 5 island with the Kohler stages 33" sink far to one side. There is only 7" of counter to the one side of the sink. The fridge is on the wall facing this end of the island and the 7" is a perfect size for placing things I'm taking out of the fridge. With so much prep space to the one side of the sink we don't miss the space on the other side.

  • blfenton
    9 years ago

    My opinion is that as long as the prep sink is at the correct end for your working i.e. part of the work triangle for fridge and stove and that it is placed depending on whether or not you work to the left or right of the sink (or can be trained to work the other way like I did) then the small landing space on one side is fine.

    I would way rather have one large prep area than two smallish ones.

  • martinkk333
    9 years ago

    My island is about 5 x 7. (W intended for it to be 4 X 7.) I have a 18" x 18" prep sink I only have 13" on one side of the prep sink. It works very well for us. We use the prep sink for ice water and filling the coffee machine as well as prep. The area on the end is wide enough for even large items. Hope this helps.

  • malhgold
    9 years ago

    Here's my island set up which I believe is similar to what you are asking. I rarely use the space to the right of the sink and would rather have a large expanse on one side. My prep sink is 30" also because the plan was to use it for both prepping and clean up of large items that weren't going in the dishwasher. My clean up sink(to the right of the range) is only 24" as it's mainly used for dirty dishes. This set up works great for me.

  • Cloud Swift
    9 years ago

    Ours is a bit under 19" wide (inside dimension - not including the flange) and that seems pretty big to me for prep tasks.

    We have it on the island corner with about the same distance from the side of the island as from the front. The faucet is on the inside corner of the sink. Sometimes two people use it for prep at the same time - one working next to it on the front of the island and the other next to it on the side of the island. Or someone can use it to wash their hands without getting in the space of someone prepping.

  • sherri1058
    9 years ago

    My island is 8' long. I have my dishwasher to the left of my 36" sink cabinet, and a 36" cabinet to the right of the sink which leaves me with 38" of counter (which my DH also insists on using as a drop for ipad, iphone, glasses, wallet, etc. etc.). It is one of the things I like least about my kitchen - the lack of continuous prep space on the island - which is where I do all my work.

  • sjhockeyfan325
    9 years ago

    Laughable's setup sounds perfect to me (including the sink size). We had a much smaller prep sink (I think it was 15" and it worked for us) off to the side of our major prep area (prep sink - counter - cooktop). It was great to have the water source there, but also great to have about 4-5' of uninterrupted space to work.

  • lascatx
    9 years ago

    Your island will be a similar size to mine but mine is just over 3 feet instead of 4 ft wide. My prep sink is to one end but with a landing space on the end that is very much needed. Ours is similar to laughable's. That part of your plan is fine, but I would make sure the 30" sink and split DWs are the best plan gfor your kitchen.

    We considered putting a second DW in the island but decided to put one either side of a 30" sink on the outer wall. I have seen comments from folks who find that DWs in different areas can lead to a lot of running around the kitchen, searching for items and/or inefficient use of the DWs. I felt that was likely to happen for us too. As it turns out, I prefer having the island for prep and the two DWs together. Tends to keep my cooking area cleaner and neater too, but I can still rinse or wash a bowl or something if I need to quickly reuse it. Just letting you know how it has worked for me and others (I think rhome410 had the split once and hated it, but I do remember that she kept the DWs together in her new kitchen based on someone's prior experience). Think about it since that is not something you can easily change.

    My prep sink is only 16" and it is good. I was afraid of losing too much workspace, so didn't go larger. I would go to 18" -- maybe 24" if I were going to do it again, but I wouldn't want to lose 30" of my prep space -- maybe if you had a 10-11 ft island. That territory is prime space. I do love my 30" main sink, but my kitchen isn't large enough for two of them.

  • themi
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Wonderful - thank you all for the insight! You have confirmed my feelings that an expansive prep space is key. I am going to offset the sink to the side to get my 4' of uninterrupted prep space. The flow will be nice from fridge to prep area to prep sink to cook top on opposite wall. The stove is not centered on the island anyway, it's flush to the edge of the island where the prep sink will be.

    Maybe not the absolute most visually perfect, but not offensive either. And, more importantly, I think the practical flow will be much more appreciated by me in the long run.

    THANKS!!!!!