Corner base cabinets are notorious as dark, difficult-to-reach storage space. Useful corner storage requires some pretty fancy hardware to make the space work. There are a variety of solutions, some better than others. But is is possible to make a corner cabinet effective storage with just a little thought and prior planning.
Omit the Corner Cabinet
Perhaps the very best way of dealing with corner storage is to not have any. Corner storage can simply be eliminated when the other storage in the kitchen is sufficient. Two cabinets are butted up to each other ("dead-ended" is the technical term) leaving the corner empty. The resulting "hole" in the cabinets is concealed by the counter top.
That "hole" does not have to be wasted space. We use it as a place to put utility items such as in-line water heaters and low voltage transformers — things that are usually stashed under the sink. We have even used it as a kennel for the family pooch. The only limitation is that there has to be access from the back in case something has to be repaired. An access panel in the wall is usually all that is needed.
But if you need the additional storage in your kitchen, then just omitting corner storage may not be an option, so read on.
"Easy Reach" Cabinet
The simplest option is just a cabinet with adjustable shelves. Frequently marketed as "Easy Reach" cabinets, they are anything but. Access is through an tiny L-shaped door set into the corner of the cabinet. Only the front 10" or so of each shelf is actually useful. In most cases, the only way to retrieve anything in the back is to crawl in with a flashlight. Typically found on lower end cabinet lines, the sole advantage of this corner treatment is its simplicity and low cost.
Lazy Susan Cabinet
Photo: Rev-A-Shelf.
Installing a lazy susan turntable in a corner cabinet greatly enhances its usefulness. Anything stored in the back of the cabinet can be brought 'round to the front with a little twist of the wrist. But there are some disadvantages. Fitting round lazy susans into square cabinets means that there are dark corners where things that fall off the turntable can get lost. Fortunately, there are a couple of simple solutions to this problem. One is to make the cabinets round to fit the turntable. Another is to fit individual turntables on adjustable shelves — often called "super susan" cabinets. We like this solution better than round cabinets that tend to be flimsy (thick wood does not bend, so thin plys are used — these are usually not very strong.)
There are a lot of different kinds of lazy susan. Some attach to L-shaped cabinet doors so the doors rotate with the turntable. They tend to get jammed up more often than other styles and work best with inset doors. For overlay doors, free-standing units are the better choice. Free-standing turntables can be notched or beveled. The notched style fits L-shaped doors, and the beveled variety fits a 45-degree corner door (the preferred style — it provides more storage).
Turntables are also made in a variety of materials. The least expensive is the common white PVC plastic product. Metal and wood units are considerably more expensive — especially stainless or hardwood finished to match your cabinets (a total waste of money). Actually, PVC is, in this instance, the better product. It is lightweight, tough, easy to clean, simple to adjust, and cheap. It is unquestionably ugly, but it's hidden most of the time behind your nice hardwood doors, so what does it matter?
Blind Corner Cabinet
Photo: Hafele
Another solution for the corner is a blind corner cabinet in which one cabinet is simply tucked behind another at a corner.
There are a variety of mechanisms used to make these work as storage. The simplest involve a semi-circular tray — commonly attached to the door — that swings out into the room. Others are true Rube Goldberg-ish devices. When the cabinet door is pulled straight out, two large wire trays attached to it appear. Then swinging the door to the side pulls out two more shelves that were hidden in the corner. This makes use of virtually all of the space in the cabinet as storage, compared to the trays (that use about 50% of the space), but at a cost of some convenience and about $800.00 US before installation — and installation is no walk in the clover.
Corner Drawer Cabinet
Another way to use a corner is to fill it with drawers.
Some complain that drawers waste space. We disagree. A bank of four corner drawers provides nearly as much usable Photo: Blum
Click to EnlargeWe dislike doors on lower cabinets for a variety of reasons — and this dislike extends to doors hiding lazy susans rather than shelves.
(For more information, see Mise en Place: What We Can Learn from Commercial Kitchens.)
Full extension, 8-piece slides are used on better cabinet drawers.
Full extension slides, invisibly mounted beneath the drawer are used on the best cabinet drawers. These feature sure close/soft close technology that softly but surely closes the drawer when it is within 3" of being fully closed. Undermount slides add about 1-1/2" to the storage capacity of a drawer, so over a typical 20-drawer kitchen, this is equivalent of getting one extra drawer.
Full English dovetail drawers are usually considered the best construction, but locking mitre and pegged joints are equally strong and less expensive to manufacture. Most custom cabinetmakers no longer make their own drawers, but order them from drawer specialists like Top Drawer that produces drawers on a massive scale for less cost.
Is it paint or is is Thermofoil? For the look of painted wood in a finish that is easy to maintain and extremely hard to damage, try Thermofoil. It never needs repainting.
Even the toe kick area under your cabinets can be used for storage.
Coated wire shelves pull out into the room for easy access to the gobs of stuff inside this tall pantry.
