Having an attached garage is convenient in many ways. Many homeowners who are just building their homes choose this solution, but have you ever wondered why the garage is close to the kitchen?
Kitchen proximity enables homeowners to carry groceries in and take the garbage out easily. Most kitchens have floor tiles, which are easy to clean after walking in the house while wearing dirty shoes. The third reason is safety.
If you are considering this option, think about your lifestyle and desires, because everything has specific pros and cons.
Advantages of Having an attached Garage near the Kitchen
Convenience
Grocery shopping is a weekly activity for many homeowners. For those with large families, shopping and going out of the house multiple times a day is a big part of their lives.
Imagine yourself going to the grocery store, buying food and other necessary items for your family, and going home. Imagine that it is a rainy day, and you are wet and cold. When you finally come home and park the car into the garage, you have to carry all that inside, and walking through a hallway, living room, dining room, all the way to your kitchen is impractical. This is especially true if you can’t carry everything at once.
When the garage is on the house’s kitchen side, and there is a connecting door, you can quickly get in, straight into your kitchen, and leave the bags there.
Now let’s get back to the dirty and wet shoes. Walking all over your nice and expensive carpet is not an option. Getting straight into the kitchen enables you to take off your shoes and easily clean the floor. Mopping tiles is fast, efficient, and you will often clean your kitchen more than other areas in the house because kitchens get dirty from cooking.
Taking out the garbage is one more advantage. If something is leaking, you will not stain the carpets or floors in other rooms.
Safety
Many people often overlooked this, but when the house and an attached garage are built up to code, the garage has to have fire protection. This rule can vary across the country, but usually, the wall that separates the garage from the house has to be fire rated.
When you think about it, it is logical. Cars contain fuel; many homeowners use their garages as storage spaces for lawnmowers and all kinds of flammable liquids. The connecting door has to have the same fire features.
Another place that is a fire hazard is your kitchen. Having a fire-rated wall and door enables you to get out safely. If a kitchen fire happens, you can safely get out of the house through your garage. The same goes for any door leading out of the house from the kitchen, but most homes do not have such an option.
Some homeowners think that an attached garage means that burglars can easily find a way in, but if you close and lock the door, or have any simple alarm system, you are not more vulnerable than homeowners without a garage.
Disadvantages of Having an attached Garage near the Kitchen
As convenient as it seems, this concept still has some disadvantages. Depending on your lifestyle, having a garage next to the kitchen can be either the best thing ever or a considerable inconvenience.
A Dirty Connection
Some homeowners don’t like the idea that they come in from the garage, which is often considered dirty, straight into the kitchen, where they prepare food.
Many people have different outdoor hobbies that include all kinds of equipment. After a fun day outside, they come home in dirty clothes, carrying numerous things that shouldn’t be near the kitchen and food preparing areas in general. If you are one of those people, having a garage close to your kitchen can be very inconvenient.
Pet Owners Beware
The same goes for pet owners. Having a wet or dirty dog running straight into your kitchen and shaking off its hair is not something that many people would enjoy.
Fumes and Pests in the Kitchen!
The third problem is the fumes. When you park your car and turn it off, you will close the garage door and open the house door. The remaining gasses can come in and smell bad. Sensitive people could even have health problems. Ensure the connecting door is airtight and ventilate both the garage and the kitchen after you park your car.
Some homeowners like to keep their main garage door open during the day, especially if they frequently go in and out with their cars. Thus, some people may be afraid that pests and insects could find a way into the garage and quickly end up in the kitchen.
Keep in mind that the connecting wall has to be insulated. The garage can become very hot or cold due to the lack of insulation suitable for living areas. It will cause heat loss and increase your electricity bill. To avoid it, insulate the garage, and you won’t have to worry about it.
A Case for Compromising
Some homeowners would like to have a garage near the kitchen for convenience, but they are worried about dirt, mud, and similar problems.
To overcome these issues, you could add a small mudroom or similar area to create a zone between the kitchen and a garage. You can leave your shoes, jackets, umbrellas, and similar items there, before entering the kitchen.
The same goes for cleaning your pet or taking dirty items inside. If you haven’t built your house yet, think about the floor plan. Maybe you can incorporate the entrance from a garage in between the kitchen and some other room so that you can turn both ways after you enter the house.
It will make your grocery shopping easy and keep the kitchen area clean. There are numerous options, and you should think about what suits your needs and what is realistic to expect when it comes to design and construction.
Of course, all these predicaments are not relevant for those houses that have kitchens upstairs.
Closing Thoughts
Overall, having a garage near the kitchen has numerous benefits, and many homeowners find it very useful. If that weren’t the case, this concept wouldn’t be so popular. There are valid reasons in favor of this concept, and by doing small modifications, almost anyone can benefit from it.
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