Many of today's elderly and physically disabled may face special challenges working in the kitchen. Items stored high in a tall cabinet or low in a bottom cabinet may be difficult for them to access as they may not be able to reach high or stoop low. People in wheelchairs may have difficulty reaching these same areas as well as accessing the sink and appliances. There are many special needs that should be addressed when designing a kitchen for the physically disabled. Fortunately, there are many ways the kitchen can be made more functional and barrier free for these people. The art of designing homes for these special needs is know as Universal Design. We offer a number of books written specifically on the topic of Universal Design that can offer many great ideas and guidelines for the best design. You can view a list of these books at our Kitchen Design Bookstore.   For a quick overview of ideas in designing a wheelchair friendly kitchen, read the article Kitchen Design For The Wheelchair User   You should definitely read and study the National Kitchen and Bath Association's "40 Guidelines for Kitchen Design". They offer many great solutions for designing for the disabled. You should study all 40 guidelines, but a list of guidelines dealing specifically with ways to plan for the physically disabled can be viewed below. Guidelines For Planning For The Physically Disabled Use your browser's Back button to return to this page after viewing each guideline.   Guideline 1 Walkway Clearances Guideline 5 Walkway Clearance For Seating Area Guideline 10 Efficient Storage Organization Guideline 13 Knee Space Clearance Guideline 14 Floor Space Clearance Guideline 18 Cooktop To Vent Clearance Guideline 21 Microwave Placement Heights Guideline 22 Countertop Heights Guideline 32 Tall Cabinet Location Guideline 33 Seating Area Clearances Guideline 35 Control Handles Guideline 36 Wall Mounted Control Heights Guideline 37 Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters Guideline 38 Smoke Alarm & Fire Extinguisher   At no additional cost, we are happy to modify any of our cabinets to better accommodate anyone with a physical disability. We can lower heights on base cabinets, enlarge the toe kick area at the bottom of the base cabinet to make room for wheelchair access ( See Fig. 1 & 2), or design kneespaces or open areas for wheelchair access. We can also build base cabinets to accommodate the microwave oven, build special cabinets to raise the dishwasher, or vary opening heights in oven and pantry cabinets for easier access. Cabinets can be built with drawers that extend further for easier access or without doors and a finished interior. This eliminates open doors getting in the way of wheelchair access. We can build special sink bases with no bottom so a wheelchair can roll up under the sink when the doors are open, but looks normal when doors are closed. Whatever the special need, we can usually modify a cabinet to be more user friendly for someone with limited access. Please contact us to discuss any special needs you have in this area. We will be happy to help.     Standard Base Cabinet Universal Design Base Cabinet     Standard base cabinets are 34 1/2" tall (36" with Countertop) The toekick area is 4" tall and 3" deep. We can vary the height to any lower amount for easier access. The toe kick can be increased up to 9" tall and 7" deep for wheelchair access.   Be sure to visit our Kitchen Bookstore and Kitchen Accessory Shop You will find hundreds of items at discount prices & on-line ordering Cabinetry Direct Box 6114 Nettleton, MS 38858 Toll Free877-963-2050 Local (662) 963-2059 Fax (662) 963-2047   Copyright © 1998-2007 Cabinetry Direct   All Rights Reserved  Home Page Contact Us Site Map Privacy Statement