7 Tips & Tricks to Help You Get Your Outdoor Kitchen

Create Your Dream Outdoor Kitchen

You know you can't quit thinking about an outdoor kitchen. But, the more you look and research just adds more and more unanswered questions. All you genuinely need is a guide with years of experience and insight to answer all the questions and make the dream come true. Until you're ready to contact that guide, here are some tips and tricks to help you. 



#1. Comfortable Surroundings

Your outdoor kitchen is an extension of your indoor space. When designing the outdoor living area, you will want it to match your outdoor landscape. Your entire home is a representation of your lifestyle, and the visions for each space should work to complement one another.

It is essential to think about how many people will be enjoying your outdoor kitchen space at any given time. Do the colors need to match a theme? Or will there need to be accommodations for children as well as adults? All things to consider when designing a comfortable outdoor kitchen and living space. However, the most significant factors in any project are the available space and overall budget. It is essential to keep those in mind every step of the process.

#3. Appliances Play a Big Role

When designing your outdoor kitchen, the appliances play the most substantial role in the layout. You have only five main things to consider for most indoor kitchens. But, for your outdoor kitchen:

• Gas Grills
• Pellet Grills
• Charcoal Grills
• Griddles
• Side Burners
• Smokers
• Pizza Ovens
• Refrigerators
• Kegerators
• Ice Makers
• Bread Warmers

And, you still have to consider all the options available for storage.

When evaluating your space, take the size of the grill you want and add 16" to each side and an additional 16" between all other cooking components, and you will find yourself eating up a ton of real estate. To calculate how much space you need for stuff going under the countertop:

1. Take the width of the item, for example, a fridge or drawer insert.
2. Add 6" between all the components you're dreaming of and at each end
3. Add that number to the total length of the cooking components
4. And voila, it's 30 feet long, and you only have 12 feet of space.

#4. Choose Climate Appropriate Materials

When choosing the materials for your outdoor kitchen, it is crucial to consider the climate that you're in. The stuff that you want should have the ability to withstand the environment, including high humidity, moisture in the air, salt content from the oceans and waterways, and even chlorine from pools.

When appropriately prepared for installation, Stone and Tile are great selections for finishes because they are low maintenance and durable in almost all environments. Additionally, these materials are flexible and can fit your outdoor kitchen in a variety of areas, including back-splashes, columns, and more. At HL Posey Builders, we work with many materials and make recommendations to best suit your needs, including weatherproof cabinetry like NatureKast, John Michael Cabinetry, stucco, concrete, and more.



#5. Adding Ambiance

One of the first steps in creating a beautiful outdoor ambiance is with lighting. It can assist in setting the mood for entertaining. Cypress and wood ceilings create warmth. Pergolas and trellises are fantastic structures for adding ambiance, and lights can also be hung around them and create a beautiful gathering space near your outdoor kitchen. Sometimes ambiance can come naturally as tiki torches and candles, which can also repel those pesky mosquitoes!

You can create other gathering areas by adding a fire feature to your outdoor living room. This could be a custom outdoor fireplace, an eat around fire pit or fire bowl to compliment your entertainment area.

#6. Set Your Budget

As part of your initial planning, it is essential that you set an overall budget for your project. Don't be afraid to share your budget upfront with a good designer or builder. Knowing what you want to spend on your outdoor kitchen will give them the best idea for materials, appliances, and layouts that fit your needs. If you just don't have a clue what your dream will cost, that's OK. An excellent guide will design it and price it for free. As I like to say in these instances, one of three things will happen. I'm going to either:

1. Shatter your dreams
2. Make you dream bigger
3. Or we need to modify the dream.

At HL Posey Builders, we can always determine what works best for you and your budget. And can find the most value for the money you are spending. 

#7 Choose Experienced Builders

It is time to start designing your outdoor kitchen project. HL Posey Builders is your guide. We've done all the research and stay on top of all the industry changes. We have the experience, and we treat you like family - meaning, good healthy discussions and confrontations make relationships strong and trusting. We always tell you when we love something and believe it to be our duty to let you know when we don't like it. We're courteous and friendly and listen more than we talk. 

If you live in the Marco Island, Naples, Bonita Springs, Estero, Fort Myers, Sanibel Island, Captiva Island, Cape Coral, Alva, Labelle, Punta Gorda, Port Charlotte, Boca Grande, Venice, Sarasota, Lakewood Ranch, St. Pete, Clearwater, Dunedin, Safety Harbor, Palm Harbor, Oldsmar, Wesley Chapel, Tarpon Springs, Tampa, or even Atlanta, Nashville, or Greenville, Charlotte or Savannah, SC areas give us a call to get started on your outdoor kitchen project.

The outdoor experts at HL Posey Builders have taken the worry out and put the fun back in choosing the right materials, cabinets, and outdoor appliances for hundreds of people since 2007. Call Now at 239.893.3700 or email Elena at Elena@hlposeybuilders.com and get your perfect backyard hangout with an outdoor kitchen.