How do you use it now? Ours is currently located far from the sink, which helps removal and is more centrally located to the house, but I find myself hauling it closer to the sink when I prepare vegetables/fruits/shrimp/things of that sort. I think we will locate it closer to the sink in our remodel.

If you cook, you use the trash 1000 times for every once you actually take it out, and when you cook you’re usually between the sink and the range. So I vote for that.

Those are great suggestions! I will place between sink and range. Thank you.

I vote for closer to the sink but worry about the range. I've had a customer who uses her oven a lot come back and say that sometimes, like during the holidays when she bakes a lot, she gets a faint odor from the garbage, which is butt up against it. I also don't like the idea of having my garbage pail with it's germs next to where I cook.

I can't imagine it any place not proximate to where I prep and cook because that's when I need to access trash frequently.

The trash belongs in the prep zone for most people. Where that prep zone is located in your layout, depends on the layout. But, on an island, or between the sink and cooking zone is usually the best spot.

Those who place it out of the prep zone usually use Rachael Ray’s trash bowl method during prep. And they also generally use the kitchen trash as the catch-all trash for a large majority of the home. They want it on the periphery of the kitchen or prep.

i do mine trash / sink / dishwasher. it doesnt matter whether left to right or right to left. but it allows easy post dinner clean up. dirty plates arrive to the counter on the trash side. person can scrape plate. dishwasher loader can rinse in the sink if necessary, and spill ice cubes into the sink, then load the dishwasher. no crossing traffic.

the order for the 3 will depend on which direction dirty plates arrive from, and best prep location.

We have a compost bin, so most stuff going into the trash is after a meal rather than during prep. Thus, it works well outside the main prep zone, where it's also convenient for household use (especially since we have a double with recycling in the back). We also have a disposal. You must know enough about your own usage of the pull-out you have to judge whether it would be convenient for you to put it at a further distance or whether it would make you mad. There's no single right answer.

I have mine close to the sink, but it's at the end of that run of cabinets, which gives me the best of both. Easy removal and out of the main work area, but close to sink for prep.

I have my dishwasher to the left of my sink and the pull out garbage to the right. It is the perfect situation for Cleaning dishes and putting into the dishwasher.

Most trash is generated at the sink area. Think about it a minute. Canned goods are generally rinsed before tossing away. Wrapped veggies are generally opened at or near the sink. If you can, try putting the trash mechanism in the sink cabinet.
Double trash below sink

Mine is to the left of the sink.

New build-on the island>> working left to right side.. DW/sink/2 trash pullouts/with 2 compost bins,which has a metal cover when closed & then the MW Drawer.

A few photos of my remodeled kitchen for perspective... our trash is the compactor next to the microwave on the working side of the island. It was originally where my dishwasher is now. I like it MUCH better in my island because it's right at my main prep zone, it's directly behind me when I'm at the sink, and it's directly behind me when I'm at the range. We have enough walk space that it's rarely a problem for family members to throw stuff away when I'm working in the kitchen. The only time it can be an issue is when I'm heavy into my prep and I leave it propped open, as I'm prone to doing while working, and someone wants to squeeze by in that corner. That's when I get to shooing people out of my kitchen... I don't like a crowd in there when I'm working anyways. LOL! But even my grown and nearly grown children have independently commented that our remodeled kitchen flows so much better and they specifically sited the location of the trash. (I rarely shoo anyone out of my kitchen in reality... sometimes my hubby wishes I didn't keep the trash open when I'm working, he's the only one who complains... I lovingly smack his hand with a spoon and shoo him out. I'm old enough to not want to change my ways in the kitchen. LOL!)

Ours is next to the sink but we also have a larger trash can for recyclables in the walk-in pantry.

Trash & recycle pullout -- in the (primary) Prep Zone! My biggest regret is that I put my trash/recycle pullout in the Cleanup Zone...across a 6' aisle from my Prep Zone! Far, far more trash & recycling waste is "generated" while prepping than any other task...and for a much, much longer period of time.

During cleanup, you spend, what, 5 or 10 minutes at one time scraping dishes and loading them into the DW? When prepping, you spend more like 30 or 40 minutes (or more) preparing a meal and you generate trash & recyclables to dispose of throughout that time.

Buehl's got a point. It really depends on what you can recycle. Our town currently only recycles paper and aluminum. Neither of which are used all that much in our food prep but are frequently the items (mail, soda & beer cans) that someone is going to traipse into the work zone to discard.

Our last home had single stream recycling so we just put the giant wheeled city recycling bin outside on our deck, on the other side of the slider to the kitchen. Made it very easy, take a few steps, open slider, toss directly in the bin, close slider... roll the full bin to the curb once a week.

Hmm

Some options...

I'm the odd person out on this one I guess. I like the convenience of having my trash can next to my stove (I have a free standing range that is underneath a big open vent much like a fireplace used to cook in). Especially when I'm making omelets or other egg dishes, I tend to just crack the eggs right into the pan not into a dish first, so I can just toss the egg shells into the garbage. For a while I tried it at the sink area but I found myself putting the empty egg shells back into the egg carton instead of the trash (I'd tell myself I would put them in the trash later). I can also just toss the empty cans when I'm using them right into the garbage after adding them to the pot. I use a garbage bowl, tho not one specifically made by Rachel Ray - it's just a big plastic mixing bowl - when I prep fresh veggies for salads or prepping meat, or baking. Sometimes I just use a plastic grocery bag. Then take it to the big can by the stove.

Hi Tara, You are likely not alone! Your comment is exactly why I stopped stocking sinks years ago. Every person is different and everyone uses their sink differently, hence every sink I build is designed with the end-users.

Like Tara, I guess I'm against the grain. I prep while I cook--and I cook a lot. It only takes me a second to wash veggies, but a lot longer to chop them and I do that right next to my range so I can drop things in the pot/pan as I go or into prep bowls that are then right at hand. And I never wash garlic and onions, which I cook with almost every single time. So I'm thrilled my pullout is at the end of my peninsula, to the right of my cooktop with a good run of counter in between and the fridge behind me--the sink is on the other side of the "L." And since it's at the end of the peninsula near the kitchen entry, it's easy for people to scrape their plates there before carrying them over to the sink.

I guess the moral of the story is: do what feels right to you!

I fully agree. I always find it intrusive when a designer imposes design features without getting to know their client's habits, methods of food prep, clean up, entertaining, etc. well.

This thread is 2 years old, I’d hope the OP had figured it out by now.

Hi All,

Im the original poster. We ended up placing the garbage cabinet at the end if the peninsula. There are many reasons I like it there. However, the biggest issue is when the dishwasher is open and you’re cleaning up and loading the dishwasher-you can’t open the garbage bin! I wish I thought of that! Maybe it will save someone else the frustration.

@Rachiele Custom Sinks do you possibly have links to those below the sink trash pull outs? That is exactly what we are looking for in our current reno. Thanks!

Of course! Here is a link to the ones we use and love: https://www.rachiele.com/doubletrashmechanism.aspx