The Genius Storage Solution For All Your Counter-Dwelling Kitchen Appliances

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Making the most of your kitchen space often requires one to get creative in order to maximize efficiency and aesthetic appeal. You don't want small appliances cluttering up the counter, but you also don't want to put everything away in cabinets so that you need to pull out and plug in appliances for every small task. Won't it be great if appliances would just remain out of sight, and then effortlessly present themselves when needed? One way to go is the pricey, high-end route and upgrade to sleek appliances like the modern cooktop that's completely invisible. Alternatively, for all the small appliances that you want to have easy access to but don't want cluttering up your kitchen counters, consider installing pull-down shelves in some of your kitchen cabinets.

There are several benefits to pull-down shelves, from increasing practical storage to making it easier to store appliances in higher shelves. You can consider them to be a step ahead of pull-out shelves, which are an ideal cabinet upgrade for those hard-to-reach areas, but don't make use of a kitchen's abundant vertical space. Pull-down shelves, on the other hand, make cabinets that would otherwise be too high to use without a footstool into easily accessible storage for everyday kitchen items. You can get a simple drop-down style shelf or a larger multi-shelf unit that can hold heavier objects or small appliances. Since pull-down shelves generally have more complex mechanisms than slide-outs, it may translate to a higher cost. However, there is still a range of options available for different budgets, and you can choose just how simple or complex you need the pull-down shelf to be, depending on your needs and how much you wish to spend.

If you only want to use your pull-down shelf for storing small appliances, then get a medium-sized pull-down shelf that is sufficiently large and can bear the weight of the appliances you want to store. These work well for small kitchen electrical tools like coffee grinders, Nutribullet-style smoothie blenders, sandwich makers, and more. Be sure to check the weight capacity of the shelf. Models like the Hasanen two-tier pulldown shelf can hold up to 26.4 pounds, which is sufficient for supporting small appliances.

For weightier appliances, consider getting a more robust model. While these can often run close to the four-digit price mark, the Kitchen Organizer heavy-duty pull-down shelf is easy to install and has a simple up-down motion, which reduces the chances of objects moving from their position when the shelf is accessed. This is also a good option for narrow kitchens. For those looking to save money on a kitchen remodel, there are pocket-friendly pull-down shelves that can be bought for under $100, like the Ahulin Drop Down Shelf. However, with a weight capacity of just over 13 pounds, it may limit the kind of appliances you can place on it and would be more suited to small kitchen items.

Since pull-down shelves essentially aim to use vertical space for kitchen storage that would otherwise be too inconvenient to access, another way to achieve such space efficiency is with a pull-out step. This can be integrated into floor-level cabinetry and should form a sturdy surface to stand on when pulled out. Consequently, this allows one to stack appliances like ovens and microwaves on higher shelves, since the pull-out step makes them much easier to reach.