It'd be a lot cheaper to do a shallow cabinet. I think the Rev-a-Shelf 8" pantry pull-out we used lists for $1000. A shallow cabinet adjacent to the fridge seems more flexible for arranging stuff too.

That's what I suspected. Thanks, mayflowers. We switched our plan from a 48" gas rangetop to a 36" induction, so it occurred to me that we can now put in a broom closet to the side of the refrigerator rather than a pull-out closet in another location. It's a win-win, because I prefer the shallow cabinet over the pull-out.

How deep do you think the closet needs to be? Six inches? Less?

We made one like that but it's about 10" deep. We put shelves in ours which you might want to consider purchasing in case you change your mind about how to use it. My husband always had his things thrown all over the kitchen so this is his "office" for now, but it can certainly be used for groceries (with shelves) or brooms (without). You also need to decide how you want the "front" to look. Here it is plain, and might make the fridge cabinet look uneven from the front. We put "doors" on ours so it matches the rest of the wood that faces that way.

We're doing the exact same setup as pictured above (though I wouldn't put a mop in such an enclosed space). Cabinetmaker suggested 6 inches - that way we can store stuff on the shelves above (as picture).

The cabinet style is more functional - easier to access and more efficient storage, imo.

Just the broom? Should the vacuum be in the same place too?

I would want a spot for a small vacuum too.

If you now have 12" available, you could have a 12" deep cabinet, with 8" deep shelves, then hang brooms and dustpans on one door, and have 4" deep shelves on the other door for small items. Leave a few feet at the bottom empty, for storing a small vac and bulk packages of paper towels, etc.

You could put an outlet there for a dust buster. We put a phone jack and usb plugs in ours as well to keep things hidden.

I'd do as deep as your space allows. Storage space for a stepstool?

I asked because I have a broom, a mop, a vacuum cleaner, feather dusters, and a Hoover floormate (a wonderful concept for hardwood floors).... And an ironing board, and an iron and a steamer all of which needed to find a happy home. Collectively they take up a lot more space than I was anticipating.

I had a Black and Decker Dust Buster I don't recommend them under any circumstances the consumer cannot replace the battery. If you elect to get something that requires recharging, be sure and find out what the battery situation is before you buy.

Hi Cheryl!

I love this! Thanks, because your brainstorm totally helped me envision what this could look like.

My kitchen has a sorta weird "bump out" that is the housing for the furnace. I'm switching my HVAC system to a mini split and getting rid of the current (non working) furnace. I'm not doing it for this reason, but I had thought I could put a utility closet there. I have a house with literally zero storage. The previous owners even ripped out all the closets in the bedrooms (don't ask).

Currently, my brooms, Swiffers, etc. are on the wall in the hallway on one of those grabber strip thingys that are great in a garage (don't have one), or a shed (don't have one), or a laundry, mud, or utility room (you guessed it--don't have those), but isn't exactly the aesthetic look I'm going for in my central hallway! ;-) My vacuum and Bissell sweeper are just randomly stationed in my library--the old master that I'm trying to make look dignified and calm.

But I've had a bit of trouble conceptualizing it. Cheryl, thank you so much for this post!!! I'll have a lot of room available, 18" x 24" I think, so I want to put the vacuum in there, an outlet for the Bissell and dust buster, the brooms, swiffers, dustpans, etc. But I also want to put in shelves because, naturally, there is no storage in my bathroom, which is just on the other side of the furnace.

Again, thanks for sharing your brainstorm and the inspiration photo! You've helped with a critical design decision, to say nothing of the joy I'll feel in having some actual storage!!

Best of luck with your new kitchen--I'm sure it will be beautiful!

Sincerely,

Debbie

Debbie B., oh, what fun that this thread helped you with your design. This community is such a great resource!

romy718, I hope I can fit the step stool in there, too! I'm "height challenged." :)

mama goose_gw zn6OH, I used those other 6". LOL. One decision cascades others. When two people (who understand our household) in as many days asked if we were putting in a second dishwasher (something I wanted to do, but the BF thought was crazy pants) I decided I was somehow squeezing in a second dishwasher. So, now I am foregoing upper wall cabs on the range wall and instead putting 30" ones on each side of the window of the sink wall. Counter to ceiling with a set of 3 drawers below the doors/shelves on the left side and an appliance garage below the doors/shelves on the right side. This will move the glasses from a base cabinet to the right of the sink to the upper wall cabinet to the left of the sink/dishwasher and above the base drawers housing the tableware. And because I'm sacrificing a 36" drawer bank, I am putting a Super Susan in the corner which will require some of those inches recovered by downsizing the rangetop to an induction cooktop.

I have other spaces to store the vacuum. We have a dust buster type handheld vacuum, but we rarely use it. I believe it's been pulled out once in the past 12 months. I guess it would make sense to ask for an electric outlet in the closet in case someday down the road we sell the house.

One of the three drawers in the countertop "hutch" will be a dedicated charging drawer with USB outlets. We will also have a command center at the other end of the kitchen where iPads and the laptops can be charged. The command center will have mailboxes, a bulletin board, and a magnetic board, a file cabinet, and space for the printer and paper shredder.

crl_, thanks for the pictures. That was fun to see.

Thanks to everyone for your input. We talked to the cabinet guy today and he confirms that going this route rather than a pullout is a big cost savings.

Cheryl--girl, how much cooking are you doing that you need two dishwashers? Haha, just teasing--I think it's great that you're getting what you want in your kitchen!! I agree that it would be smart to put at least one outlet in your utility closet. It's less expensive to do it now than have the electrician make a separate trip out later. I'm hoping you'll post a reveal when your kitchen's finished!! And maybe some before and during photos?

I've been dealing with my own kitchen nightmare this week. I bought this old fixer upper and the whole electrical system is fading fast. The other day we plugged a microwave into an "iffy" outlet and tripped the circuit. Unfortunately, it blew every outlet on the wall, including the one for the refrigerator! Once I confirmed there was no coming back to life for those outlets, we had to find an alternative outlet for the fridge. I decided the safest thing to do was to plug it into an outlet on a wall where we get consistent power and never trip the circuit breaker...so now we have a very attractive (haha!) orange extension cord going from the kitchen through the middle of the living room. OK, hideous, but we have cold food. I can't afford to rewire the whole house until September, so until then, it is what it is. Joy (my daughter) is freaking out because in two weeks we're having a garden party and about 15 ladies will be here. I told her our friends will still love us despite the orange extension cord. :-)

practigal--my "dust buster" is actually a Dirt Devil. I love it! I never thought about battery replacement; good tip!

crl_ nice photos! I really like what you did!

beenzmail, I think you were the first person on this thread to suggest putting outlets/usb in the utility closet. Thanks!

Hey, do you guys all know about "whole house surge protection"? Basically, for not a huge cost, your electrician can do something at the electrical panel (don't ask me the specifics, I'm not an electrician) that makes every outlet in your house a surge protector! You never have to plug your electronics into a surge protector again. An electrician over on the electrical wiring forum told me about it, and I checked it out, and when I get my house rewired in September, I'm definitely getting it! Just wanted to pass the info along in case any of you are interested. :-)

Sincerely,

Debbie

Debbie, we added the surge protection thing you are talking about, and yes, the cost was very minimal. It got rid of a huge mess by our computer. Good luck!

"girl, how much cooking are you doing that you need two dishwashers?"

Too much! I cannot believe how many dishes 7-8 people can generate. It's insane. Weekdays the dishwasher gets run daily along with lots of hand-washing larger items. Weekends it's usually run twice daily, sometimes even a third time. Last night we had a dinner party, so it was run twice to handle the prep during the day, once afterwards and again this morning before everything was washed. Plus we were hand-washing big things all the way through.

Your kitchen nightmare sounds...like a nightmare. Oiy. I don't envy you. I've had to do things like that in the past and one gets through it, but ugh. Feel for you!

I did not know about whole house surge protection. I'll have to ask the BF if he knows about it. :) We are updating the electric panel at the same time as the remodel, so maybe this is something he's been planning? Thanks for the info. :)

Yes, the panel upgrade will include AFCI and Surge Protection. :)

As I understand it, a whole house surge protector isn't integral to the panel, but rather attached at the panel itself. Also, as I understand it, once they are set off they have to be replaced, but I might be wrong about that.

Great thread!! Perfect timing!! We are building a new home and so I was deciding between pull-out or shelve for broom closet. Planning to go with a cabinet instead of a pull out. Now my question is how wide would I need the closet to be to accommodate all my cleaning needs.

This broom closet will be in the kitchen in line with the kitchen cabinets. So the depth of this broom closet will be 24" deep. Now need to decide on the width? I plan to have a vacuum cleaner, duster, step ladder, broom, swifter dry mop.

So the step ladder (20" at the widest) can be hung on one side of the cabinet while the broom, mop, duster etc. can be hung on the other side of the cabinet. Maybe a peg board inside the cabinet, to hang different things. The old upright vacuum I currently have which works great for $50! - is 16" wide and sits on the ground. Maybe I will upgrade to one of the Dyson stick vacuum that plug unto the wall straight up - so will definitely have an outlet or two in there.

Advise please. I see at the very minimum I need 16" for my upright vacuum.