Challenging Space: My kitchen
Photographed above is the kitchen in my city apartment. Most would look at this photo and assume I am lucky for having an abundant amount of storage space, however I find most of the space to be unusable or a frustrating annoyance. As you can see there is plenty of space on top of the cabinets to store items due to my high ceilings, yet this space is completely inaccessible for my 5'2'' self. Even with a step stool I would have trouble reaching that height. That is of course if I first go through the trouble of trying to maneuver the step stool in the small kitchen area. Inside the cabinets there are 3 shelves, only 1 of which I can reach without jumping, kneeling on the countertop, or using a step stool. I have also found it useful to open the cabinets below the sink and use the ledge as a step (which is probably not the safest tactic). In addition, as you can see the top of the refrigerator is also used to place frequently used items. I'm usually able to reach these items but not without stretching and sometimes standing on my tip-toes.
Overall, it is easy to see that this area contains many potential barriers, especially for someone that is shorter than myself or restricted to a wheelchair. Although I may find it bothersome to use a step stool, jump, or climb to reach the items I need, I am still able to do so, whereas others may be unable to rely on such maneuvers. Thus, it is clear that this kitchen is not Universally Designed.
I totally agree, Ashley. My NYC apartment kitchen has similar hard-to-reach cabinets, and although I am pretty tall, I also struggle to reach them. It’s definitely frustrating to have a lot of storage space, but not be able to access it or at least easily access it. At least as you stated, you are capable of maneuvering your way around, and utilizing other items to help you reach up high, and similarly, I can stand on my tip-toes and usually reach the highest shelves in my cabinets. I wonder, though, what would a person in a wheelchair or someone who is not capable of standing up straight do? How would they reach the highest shelves, or in your kitchen, the area above your shelves? It seems that your kitchen, as well as mine, is not aligned with the 7th principle of the ‘7 Principles of UD’ titled “Size and Space for Approach and Use”. This is because the designs of our do not provide the ability for all people to approach, reach, manipulate, and use all aspects of them, regardless of a user’s body size, posture, or mobility. Maybe designing the kitchen with more cabinets closer to the ground, or constructing a separate pantry for storage would be a solution to this UD Challenge.
ReplyDeletedesigns of our kitchens*
DeleteI love that you found the cartoon! I also swiped the second one to share with my special education team. I think anyone with a kitchen can relate to cabinet woes. I am a little over 5 ft. 6 inches tall and still have difficulty reaching some of those upper level cabinets or spaces. It's ironic because when I am home with my family, I'm usually the one asked to help out in reaching things. Everyone struggles to find more space and utilize the space we do have, but I suppose short of electric rotating shelves (which are probably only found in multi-million dollar listings), I can't even think of how to alleviate this problem. Most people use the upper shelves for the uncommon goods or dishes, but you still need them eventually or you wouldn't keep them, right? I am looking at my kitchen now and noticing all the small details that would make our kitchen frustrating. The small but challenging change in floor levels, the fact that pots, pans and all that fun stuff takes up all of the lower cabinet space. Dishes would be hard to reach. Opening the refrigerator would be nothing short of a nightmare. How to solve this dilemma though? I hate to say that I would probably become a seamless fanatic, and my savings would go right out the door with the delivery person.
ReplyDeleteAsh,
ReplyDeleteTo be honest with you, step stools scare me too. I'm 5'8 and I can barely reach most of the things in my cabinet. Things get left up there to rot and die. I think that having something to help reach those items that are higher would be helpful. Something sort of like the dinosaur grabbers that we used to use as kids. However, this is simply a functional tool to use to get around a problem, rather than creating a universally designed kitchen. Additionally, I think that safety in the kitchen is extraordinarily important as things like fire and knives are everywhere. I think having a tool of some sort that would let you know where everything is would help all people. At least we would not have to spend so much time looking through the cabinets.
Hi Ashley,
ReplyDeleteMy roommates and I have a similar problem in our kitchen! We do have cabinet space, but most of the cabinets are way too high for us to reach. We are able to use a stepladder to help us reach the high cabinets. However, not all individuals are able to use a stepladder in order to reach higher spaces. This design goes against many of the principals of universal design. Under principle one of universal design: equitable use, this design is not useful and not marketable to people with diverse abilities.
A solution that I was thinking about and one that you listed in your after photos was equipping these homes or apartments with an extended arm grabber. This would help the design become more simple and intuitive to use, which describes principle three of universal design. By adding an extended arm grabber, the design would then eliminate unnecessary complexity. It would also help the design become more equitable for users. The design would become more appealing, effective, and useful for more individuals.