Updated Final Final Final Plan

Got some more feedback, and after doinking around for a while have come up with the following "final" plan. Decided to get the fridge outside of the "U" as there is only room for one person in there.

I put the kegerator in there since that is only accessed to change the beer every few weeks. I should still be able to run the tap to the same location with a short length of insulated tubing under the granite. I turned the tap 90 degrees so people can pour a beer without needing to go inside the "U".

This shows the view from the bar counter side. These are the exact stools we have (gotta love google) - the height is good.

View from the other end. The fridge should look good out there. I am a little worried that the door (glass) will get broken by a baseball, but we'll deal with that when it happens......

Aerial view.

I shortened the deep counter by a couple inches. Overall this is a much more usable plan, and fits in well on the deck, still leaving plenty of room for the table and chairs.

Final Plan

I have finalized my plan after much late night tweaking of details. I have gone back to the 42" grill instead of the 54". Primarily due to lack of counter space if I get the 54, but the $1,300 price difference had something to do with it also.

The components in the drawings are not exact (these are Kitchenaid models that were available online in the sketchup library), but they are approximately the same size.

There will be double doors under the grill for storing junk like the grill cover and other things that spiders can turn into homes. Below the double side burners will be utility drawers which are for BBQ tools etc - hopefully they are more spdier resistant. By dropping down to the 42" grill there is plenty of counter space on either side of the grill.

This shot shows the counter area - It ends up as 8' wide, which should comfortably seat 4, even if two of them are my kids. I currently have 3 aluminum counter height chairs, so I need to find another one of those from wherever it was that I bought it many years ago. No doubt is it discontinued and it will cost me a small fortune to find one that matches.

And this final picture provided some of the inspiration. It's from the Lynx grill catalog, which are the components I am using. I'll go with a darker granite than they did, but this is the basic look I am shooting for. That is teh exact grill and double doors. the drawers on the left will go below the burner. The burner I am using is different from the one they show.

The good news is that I got close in Sketchup. Now the big question is whether I can get close in the real world!

Plan B++

Did a few more late night tweaks to the edges and corners to really think through how the granite and tile come together in all the tricky spots!

This is the stuff that will make the real thing look either great if I get it right, or crappy if I get it wrong. And it's much easier and cheaper to change it in Google Sketchup vs having granite recut (especially if they need to make it bigger).

This one shows the new granite corners alongside the stone tile. I have been using my dad as an artistic/architectural advisor, which has the benefit of being much cheaper than using someone who knows what he is talking about.

I'm pretty happy with this layout, and tonight I'll add in the grill and other components to see how it looks when it's stacked with shiny stainless steel.

Plan B+

Here's some updated plans for the kitchen. This one will fit perfectly on the deck, and the granite is now on and I worked out some of the tricky corners/edges, and centered things appropriately. I also deciced to go big (ie. 54") with the grill - That way I can get the one with the built in searing unit and still have enough regular grill space. Sure it costs more, but who's counting (not me, and hopefully not Liz either....) - It's going to be a little over the top but I think it is starting to look pretty cool.

Tomorrow I will add the tile, add in grill etc, and then put in some under counter lights and teh arbour/pergola.

Hot Tub & Fridge Door

Realized I hadn't posted any pictures of the hot tub. It is in and working. I had to cut down some fence but that was all painless enough. It is a big tub, with room for the whole family and then some. It claims to seat 6-7 adults, but they would have to be close friends for that to be true - Now I am all for it if I get to choose the other 5-6 people who are in it with me.

I also got the white door trim on the fridge painted. It came out pretty good. You can tell it is not real stainless, especially as it is right next to real stainless, but it looks good enough. Once it is built in you will not notice. I still need to paint the hinge bracket piece on the bottom right. I did the door and the grill beneath the door, but missed that bit.

I also marked up the Plan B dimensions on the deck, which you can just see in this picture. With a few tweaks it is going to fit perfectly. I am going to make the adjustments, get management approval from the wife when she is back on Wednesday and then place the order. Then things start to get real and I will have a garage/yard full of kitchen parts unless I get my act together.

Plan B

After looking around at some more BBQ designs I am looking at something a little more interesting. Not going completely crazy and throwing in hard stuff like curves and the like, but this one should be a bit more fun.

Instead of just an "L" I have made it a "U". There's still the seating area (at the bottom of the "U", but it's now counter height VS bar height (which will match the chairs we have much better). It's 8' wide, so there is room for 4 people sitting there.

I added a split bar section on the new section of the "U" which will be the place to lean on whilst enjoying a pint of Belgium's finest beer - I also extended the top of the "U" with a small bar section just to balance things out. The beer keg will be in the short "U" side, and the beverage fridge going in the bottom of the "U"

I need to chalk it out on the stone deck to check it's not too big and that we'll still have plenty of space between the bar and the dining table.

Assuming it fits I am going to go ahead and order the BBQ island framing kits this week. then the fun begins!