Pros And Cons On Open Kitchen Concept – Socializing with guests while cooking, keeping a watchful eye on kids, and extra light. These are some of the advantages of an open-plan kitchen that make it more and more popular among homeowners.
But are there only positive features? Is this type of kitchen flawless? Well, there is nothing perfect in this world and this rule applies to the open kitchen concept as well. It has some downsides that one should consider when planning to connect kitchen, dining, living into one single room.
Here is a breakdown of the pros and cons of an open layout. Read on – Pros And Cons On Open Kitchen Concept
Advantages Of Open Kitchen Concept
1. Socialising
If you are a sociable person, you know how boring it is to prepare a meal alone. With an open-plan kitchen, you get the chance to communicate with your family members and guests while cooking.
The lack of wall barriers helps you see your chatting partner and hear better what they say. This makes the conversation more enjoyable and natural.
2. More control over kids
Kids can do many naughty things in the living or bedroom while you are busy cooking. The open-plan kitchen allows you to regain control of the younger generation. This way, they will be less likely to misbehave and you will be able to intervene fast if an accident occurs.
Moreover, the open layout improves the communication between you and your kids. This will greatly increase mutual trust and help you become closer friends. Also, they will be able to ask you questions while doing homework.
You will not have to travel from kitchen to living over and over to help them solve maths exercises. You will be able to answer their questions while not leaving the cooking area.
3. Extra light
Walls are good noise insulators, but they are also a barrier to light. By removing the walls, you will see the light invading each corner of your immense room. The extra glow will improve your cooking experience and help you save on the energy bill.
4. Cleaner kitchen
The additional light helps you to keep your kitchen surfaces in spotless condition. You will find it easier to notice the food crumbs on the floor and the tiny grease spots on the countertop.
5. Cooking together
Many hands make light work. An open-plan kitchen allows the whole family to participate in meal preparation given more space of maneuver.
This strengthens the bond between family members and gets the meal ready faster. A closed kitchen allows for one or two cooks to work together given the limited space.
Disadvantages of Open Kitchen Concept
1. Distraction
In an open layout, you can face many distracting factors. If you want to focus only on cooking, the sounds in the adjoining rooms may not allow you to do it. This can be the loud TV, the family members’ chatter, or the playing kids.
A closed kitchen is much better at helping you to concentrate on preparing the meal. As a result, you will finish the meal faster. Distracting factors may also make you skip a step from the recipe or forget to add an ingredient. This might eventually negatively affect the taste of food.
2. Lack of privacy
For some people, a kitchen is a place of retreat where they can reunite with themself. It’s a place of losing yourself in cooking to forget about daily struggles and get rid of negative thoughts.
The kitchen loses this role, though, once you turn it into an open-plan space. There will be no walls and doors to ensure your privacy anymore.
3. Smells spread all around
Lack of walls means no barrier for light, no barrier for sound, and no barrier for smells. In an open layout, the cooking (and not only) smells spread quickly all around the adjoining rooms. There is nothing bad in having the coffee aroma or the roasted chicken smell traveling all around the house.
After all, it increases the appetite of your family members and somehow lifts their mood. Food makes people happy, it’s not a secret.
But what about other smells that might appear in the kitchen, like bleach, dish detergent, and burnt grease? Would you be happy feeling them everywhere in the house?
The answer is no. But you can’t do anything with it. Everything has its upsides and downsides, and if you choose the open-plan kitchen concept, you have to accept it.
4. Kitchen noise
We have mentioned the sounds from adjoining rooms that might distract you from cooking. Well, it works the other way around too. There are many noises you make while performing different kitchen tasks.
They include cutting vegetables, frying, washing dishes, using the blender, and other noisy appliances. Your family members might not be happy hearing these sounds.
5. Transfer of heat to adjoining rooms
A busy kitchen can turn into a scorching hot environment. Here the walls and door play the role of a barrier that stops the heat from traveling to other rooms.
In an open-plan kitchen, though, there are no obstacles for heat, making it invade the adjoining spaces. An air conditioner can solve the issue, yet it will affect your energy bill.
6. Longer distance between cabinets
An open kitchen concept involves a large kitchen space, with cabinets, counters, and appliances widely dispersed. This gives more space for maneuver and allows for more people to cook at the same time.
However, this also means a longer distance to travel from one cabinet to another or from oven to refrigerator. As result, you lose precious time. A closed kitchen is usually smaller and has all its cabinets and appliances crammed together. This ensures you have everything you need in easy reach.
Final thoughts
So, what are the pros and cons of the open kitchen concept? The open kitchen concept is not as ideal as many people would like to think. It has both positive and negative sides which you have to consider before choosing your kitchen layout.
The downsides are not catastrophic, but they can generate a certain level of discomfort. Make sure to investigate each con of the open-plan kitchen to determine how much it might affect you.