Kitchen Planning - Opinions and Criticism

But because of the balcony door, no docking island is possible here.

I especially find the SbS unfortunate, as its depth causes a lot of unrest in the wall row. Especially since the cabinet next to it also contains an appliance.

Can you not imagine swapping the SbS, for example, for a large built-in refrigerator and a smaller built-in freezer (or possibly a freezer in one of the storage rooms... is there still space there)? That would also bring about 30 cm more usable workspace in the sink row.

The cooktop should definitely be asymmetrically installed on the island. So rather in a 100 cm unit on the far right or left side, and then a 60 cm and 40 cm base cabinet with a waste system, if you want it on the island.

The cooktop should definitely be placed asymmetrically on the island. So rather in a 100 cm unit all the way to the right or aligned to the left, and then a 60 cm and 40 cm base cabinet with a waste system, if you want that in the island.

The problem with this is that grease splatters or entire pans often end up on the floor when the cooktop is installed right at the edge.

You can extend the island despite the balcony door. Although not all the way to the wall, it could be done in such a way that enough space is left for the vacuum cleaner nozzle to just fit through. The 2nd element would then not be openable, but you can clean it from the outside. I don't want to impose this on you, just show you the possibilities.

You, I can’t judge, much less presume to judge, where there are losses, since I don’t know your habits. I can say that we(!) are not making a freestanding island, but one that ends at the wall, because we cook a lot, always stand in the same spots in the kitchen, never here, there, or somewhere else, and a walk-around island would be a waste of space given our usage pattern. That’s what I mean by form follows function. Currently we have a freestanding island. We can approach it from every side. But we don’t. Always from the same two sides. The two passages don’t benefit us, but the missing space on the island annoys us every time we cook elaborately.

Even if it might not seem so, I take every one of your suggestions into account and think about them. On the other hand, of course, you see it through your own perspective. How many people are you? And if you often cook with several people and also like to cook elaborately, you naturally have completely different demands than I do. I want a solution for myself that looks good and fits 90% of my usage (1-2 people). More never hurts, of course I see that as well. But I prefer to make a functional compromise (and that’s complaining on a high level, because my current kitchen offers much less space) rather than an optical one, because I "see" the kitchen much more often than I will use it. But I’m currently considering enlarging the island again.

But due to the balcony door, a docked island is not possible here.

I find the SbS particularly unfortunate, as its depth causes a lot of unrest in the wall unit. Especially since the cabinet next to it also contains an appliance.

Can you not imagine swapping the SbS, for example, for a large built-in fridge and a smaller built-in freezer (or maybe a freezer in one of the storage rooms .. is there still space there)? That would also bring about 30 cm more usable workspace in the sink area.

So rather a 100 cm unit far right or aligned to the left and then 60 cm and 40 cm base cabinets with a waste system if you want that in the island.

Thanks for your contribution. I’ve thought about the SBS several times and keep coming to the conclusion that I want to keep it. I just think ice cubes and door-in-door are simply great. But I will reconsider the idea.

What exactly makes the appliance next to the SbS worse?

In my opinion, the base cabinet with the waste system makes the most sense right at the island, doesn’t it?!

The problem is always that grease splashes or entire pans tend to end up on the floor when the cooktop is installed right at the edge.

Yes, an important point, since there is parquet throughout.

You can still extend the island despite the balcony door. The second element just wouldn’t open, but you can clean it from outside.

The second element can’t be opened anyway; I’m just playing around with the idea.

Another question...
how deep should an island be at minimum?
It should be possible to have pull-outs on both sides.
We are currently planning with 1m.