first of all, thanks for the link. i've never seen that site before. i think appliance garages can be very useful and even add to the functionality of a space. i've never been one to keep appliances anywhere except where i use them. i have my kitchenaid mixer in a lower cab in our temporary house and i never use it. that thing is heavy! i had one appliance garage in the old house and i loved it but it wasn't enough. i've moved on to a baking center which is more like an armoire for all my sometimes-used appliances in the new kitchen and i can't wait to use it. that said, my vote is a YES to the appliance garage. i think besides sometimes looking great, they also keep things neat and dust free.

when not to use them: i had two garages installed in a cabinet between my fridge and freezer that already has doors. yes, i went mad for doors and i got a little stupid. needless to say, they're coming out. silly, and a terribly embarrassing faux pas!

my very silly mistake. stupid, really.

{{gwi:1475532}}

Appliance garages are often impractical somehow.
There is something difficult about the space they define.
I'm not sure if I'm describing it clearly.

Large drawers don't have that problem.
The fact that you have to lift something out of the drawer doesn't seem to hinder.

I think the concept is more attractive to personalities who desire calm, hate apparent disorder, would rather have fixed places than flexible ones, and are reassured by having things in very predictable places. Is that you?

It's not me. Very little stays put in my kitchen. Have to be flexible or I'm in jail. I only considered a garage for a short time, then decided I'd rather look at my small appliances and pull and push them into working positions for the project at hand. My countertop beverage area swells and retreats; my blender and mixer and food processor swap places and move forward and back. My toaster gets stowed in a cab when we have dinner guests. And space for houseplants and bouquets also advances and retreats on the countertops depending on the season and the specials at the store. I would hate to deny them space because they bring me so much joy.

I love my microwave cubbie, if I had more counter space ie: larger kitchen I would have done another for coffee pot/toaster oven. I like the clean uncluttered look of the counters. There are alot of great photo's of them on this site!

I personally don't like the accordian-looking ones (don't know what they are called) but the door style ones pictured here are nice IMO. We are planning 1 or 2 for some cabs that come all the way down to the counters - prolly to store the toaster and coffee supplies, similar to how SWHITE10 did. While i'd love a baking center, I don't have the room for it in my kitchen, so my Kitchen Aid will just sit out on the counter. It is too heavy to move that thing around. I have an old pro white one that some day I'd love to upgrade to one of the new pretty colors - than I can call it an "accent" piece :) But for now, despite the fact that it is nearly 12 years old, it is still going strong.

I think they look nice but I decided against one because I knew my family would leave the doors open all the time. It would defeat the purpose.

Like florantha above, I also like the flexibility of not having to put things in one location, and I'm not a neatnik. I'd probably also bang up the sides of the cabinet getting the appliances in and out. I've got my most used small appliances, the food processor and mixer, on the counter in the corner between the sink and cooktop which is my prep area and has plenty of room. I love being able to slide the fp and mixer in and out several times as I'm putting a meal together, without having to move away from this area.

I had considered putting an appliance garage in this location, but decided I'd rather have all of the space unencumbered. I also figured that since this was a high-use area, that I'd be wiping the counter off a lot. That would mean lots of dampness around the edges of the sides of the cabinet sitting on the counter. Seemed to me that before long it would look sort of grungy, and I expect to keep these cabinets for a long time.

Anne

I'm another one that likes the flexibiilty - but I have an abundace of small kitchen appliances too.

I have one with the accordian-style door (I think it is called a tambor?) Anyway, I am not a fan of the tambor because it sometimes gets stuck and I think looks a little cheesy. Would have been nicer to have an actual door (like the lift-up ones that PP have shown). I love it in the corner for hiding clutter - we shove the toaster and blender in there along with a loaf of bread and its nice to have them out of the way. Its also a nice hiding place for other random things.

I originally had 2 garages - the corner one which I kept and then a longer one which I removed. I like the look of my mixer and my baking canisters so I took the tambor off the long one to create a "car-port" of sorts and now they are just out for everyone to see. :)

We have 2--one in a corner and one at the foot of our peninsula. We have doors on both which is fine in the corner but a little awkward on the peninsula--but not so awkward that I regret the decision.

I like keeping most-used appliances out and ready to use--2 blenders, small toaster/convection oven, coffee maker and grinder, KA mixer. I store lesser used appliances in the appliance garages (rice maker, food processor). The thing I like most about the garages is the sheer amount of storage. I store potatoes next to the rice maker. I also keep tall bottles of vinegar and oil there--that way I don't have to adjust the height of the shelves in the upper cabinet just for a few extra tall bottles. We also store our roll of paper towels in the appliance garage. We don't use them a lot so they don't need to be out but they are handy when we need them fast. The garages also serve as a spot to temporarily store items if I have overflow--i.e. handy far extra bags of corn chips or loaves of bread (I can stash this type of stuff on top of the appliances.)

kateskouros--that's a really handsome cabinet. I can understand why you went door crazy. I love seeing cabinetry within cabinetry. Maybe it's not the most functional set up, but seeing that type of organization feels deeply satisfying.

AngAx, I think your cubby for canisters and mixer looks wonderful.

swhite and cjc--you both have beautiful cabinets.

I loved having one in my past kitchen and wish I could have worked one in for the new kitchen (different house). What I liked was having that big kitchenaid mixer on the same level as the counter...just needed to pull it forward. I'd have NEVER used it, if I had to lift it up and out. I've had to settle for an appliance lift cabinet at this kitchen...unfortunately my KA is nearly 20 years old and no longer pretty enough to want to leave out on the counter.

I also had one for the toaster oven and while, I will say that it was almost ALWAYS open, I did like that I could close it and make the kitchen look model neat on the rare ocassions it mattered.

Zelmar - can you post a picture of your garage at the end of a peninsula? I am thinking of doing the same thing. I was thinking of storing mail, magazines, paperwork inside mine.Also, adding plugmold to the back of it so it can also serve as a charging station. Thanks

Hi LRy511,

It's a bit difficult reaching into the peninsula appliance cabinet because we can't stand right in front of it. The peninsula is a busy spot and there are usually items on the counter which hinder me from opening the doors wide. But even so, the space is very useful (and a great place to quickly stash clutter when necessary.) The door on the corner garage works better since things usually don't get placed down in front of it.

{{!gwi}}

Wow, wonderful kitchen zelmar! I have a stand alone peninsula which I want to put a appliance garage for my "stuff"
Here is a picture how it looks now. I would like to get rid of the upper cabinet and just have a garage maybe put some stone or nice wood on top. Picture above maybe a mini-pendant light? It is definitely accessible from both sides.

Had a meeting with my GC today and he proposed recessing the beam running through my kitchen. I hope the DH will go for it.

I absolutely LOVE my appliance garage. It was one of my primary requirements in the remodel. I do not, however, like tambour doors so I had to look high and low to find manufacturers that would do a lift up pocket door.

I use certain applainces A LOT. So keeping them on the counter is a requirement for my cooking style. But I hated having them sit out, cords jumbled up, looking, well, sloppy all the time.

So, the garage gives me the best of both worlds. Appliances are hidden but handy. My garage is at the wall end of my peninsula which is my main work area. It occupies a space which would be mostly not useful were it not for the garage.

Pix are in the FKB.

Thanks everyone for sharing your advice on appliance garages -- it seems that most people who have them love them! I especially enjoyed the pictures of all the different kinds and discussions of how you actually use them. This has been very helpful.

Chiming in a little late--

I like appliance garages IF they are placed so as not to interfere with or limit useful countertop workspace.

That said, there seem to be two kinds of appliance garages. The first is for machines that are used in place, like cjc's microwave or swhite's coffee station. Yes, this limits the kitchen's flexibility, but how many people regularly move around their microwaves, I wonder?

My microwave is in such a garage, and if we decide to do away with the microwave completely (a real possibility) then I could store anything I wanted there. It's just another cabinet, that happens to have an outlet and a tilt-up door.

The second type is for tools that get brought out for use and them put away after. Why is this less flexible than storing it on the counter? I can use my blender on the counter next to the garage (easiest) or I can carry it across the kitchen. It just happens to have a convenient storage spot off the counter when I'm done. Whether this storage is a counter-level cubby or a drawer or a pantry shelf, I don't see that it locks the cook into particular tasks in particular places.

zelmar's post from yesterday ofternoon is great. It illustrates the big problem. One garage works well, and why. Another garage not as well, and why. Its doors and its placement with respect to the most used counter area.

Those of you who have pull-out trays in your appliance garages - like white - is that a good feature? Would it be just as easy to slide the appliance out on the counter? Does the rimmed tray make cleanup (spilled coffee etc) a pain or is it better because it contains the mess?

HUGE AG fan! Before getting one I hated the idea and the few I saw were filled with stuff they wanted to get out of the way.

Here's a link to mine. The trick is to put at least four outlets inside plus a good light. Plug in the appliances and arrange them so when you pull each one out it's plugged in and ready to use.

I use mine daily taking out the KA Pro coffee grinder, KA mixer and an espresso machine.

Here is a link that might be useful: my appliance garage 4th post down.

The pull out tray is great--everything fits on it and I don't have to move stuff around to get to one thing or another. I do, however, have to pull the coffee maker out to fill it with water, but that has not been a problem at all for us. I do leave the door up overnight so that the coffee can brew in the morning--I don't want to worry about heat build up in the garage. My other garage has not been in use because the Blum hardware had to be specially ordered because of the size. The one I'm using now was originally supposed to house my toaster oven, but the toaster oven I have now is too big. Likewise, the other appliance garage is supposed to be for the coffee maker, but the tray is too small for my current coffee maker. I just swapped and have the toaster oven on the counter. I'm not sure what I'll use the little garage for--probably the blender.

FWIW, we have one in a corner and use it to store lesser-used appliances (crock pot, blender, etc.) at the back and coffee and grinder up front. It has a solid, lift-up/slide-back door, no tray. I love it!

Our designer suggested that we get rid of it - she says it dates the kitchen and, since the kitchen is very small, opening up that corner could make a big difference in how it looks and feels.

I don't know how we can install new tops and backsplashes without taking it out, so it will probably have to go anyway. No idea where we'll stash everything hidden inside!

You can also get an appliance chamber in stainless steel. Ever since I saw and fell in love with one of these I've decided that they are not "appliance garages" they are "appliance chambers" (as they were calling it then.) It sounds so much more sophisticated and snooty, lol! :-)

Here is a link that might be useful: Viking appliance chamber

miele has a similar product as well if one wants to put regular microwave to be behind nice front door:

Here is a link that might be useful: decorative lift door

The tambour roll-up appliance garages have declined in popularity recently due to issues with the "garage door" functionality; they can stick after a time.

Many times the hardware that allows the tambour to go up and down can be adjusted, but you might have to be a bit of a contortionist to get the job done.

The idea of the appliance garage is still one that has appeal since many people want to hide their counter clutter. Today's answer is versions of the appliance garage that use doors that can either hinge and open just like other cabinets, or as others have pointed out, they can be made with lift-up doors that retract and tuck-out of the way.

The side opening versions provide the most interior space because you don't have hardware hidden inside taking up room.

Here is a link to one with side-opening doors. (cabinet on left side that sits on the counter)

Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen with side-opening, hinged appliance garage

My cabinet company only offers a flip up door which I don't want because it would lift up right in front of glass front cabinets above - AND - block access to those dishes.

I thought about a pocket/slide-back door but that would protrude onto the counter about 3-5"

mnerg - you mentioned a tilt-up door. Can that tilt up and then slide in? Would I just order an extra cabinet door and fit it with the right hinges and glides? My space is 36" wide by 18" high and 18" deep.

I really want to hide the microwave and the coffee maker since I only use them 1-2 times a day.

Does anyone know if you can have a corner appliance garage with double hinged doors that retract? I've seen them on a straight cabinet, but would really love them on my corner upper cabinet. Is there any reason the hardware wouldn't work if the track just ran along each inside edge of the cabinet?