Opening the kitchen to the light

Why do so many owners want an open kitchen?

In apartments built along the coast a few decades ago, the kitchen was often a separate, narrow room with a small window onto a light well, while the living room enjoyed the terrace and the view. Opening the kitchen brings that light in, lets the cook take part in the room and makes the apartment feel larger without adding a square metre.

It also suits the way many people use a holiday home: guests together in one space, meals prepared and eaten in the same room. The article open-plan kitchens: pros and cons covers the other side of the argument.

Can any wall between kitchen and living room come down?

No. The first check is whether the wall carries load from the floor above or forms part of the building’s structure. In many apartment blocks, partitions between rooms are not structural, but some are, and appearances can mislead. If there is any doubt, we ask you to have it assessed by an architect or building surveyor before work starts; altering structure also needs the community’s agreement and the appropriate municipal permission.

We do not decide on structural questions ourselves. Our part begins once it is confirmed that the wall can be removed or opened, and how.

What is usually hidden inside that wall?

Kitchen walls carry more services than most: water and waste for the sink, sockets on both sides, sometimes a gas pipe, sometimes the extractor duct. All of these need new routes before the wall is removed. A sink on that wall usually moves to a peninsula or island, which means bringing water and waste through the floor or along another wall.

We map every service during the visit so the quote reflects where each one will go. Electrical and any gas work is done by authorised partner installers coordinated by us.

How do you deal with cooking smells in an open space?

Extraction becomes more important when the kitchen is no longer behind a door. An extractor ducted to the outside is the most effective option; a hood over an island needs a duct route through a ceiling, which often means a new plasterboard ceiling or bulkhead. If ducting outside is not possible, a high-quality recirculating hood is the alternative, and owners should expect some cooking smells to reach the living area.

We plan the hood position and the duct route before the kitchen layout is fixed.

Island, peninsula or a simple open wall?

An island needs space all round, usually more than many apartments have, plus services through the floor. A peninsula attached to one wall gives a similar breakfast bar with simpler services. Sometimes the best answer is a wide opening with a low counter, which keeps some separation and part of the wall for units.

We draw the options to scale with you, including the walking space around each one, before anything is ordered.

What happens to the floor and ceiling where the wall was?

When a wall comes out, it leaves a strip of bare slab between two floors that rarely match. The usual solutions are a new floor across the whole open space or a deliberate threshold detail. The ceiling may also show a scar where the wall met it, or a beam that has to stay. A plasterboard ceiling can hide the duct, integrate lighting and tidy up the line.

Floors and ceilings across the wider home are explained on our sister site for finishes, floors and plasterboard.

How is the work organised?

Strip-out of the old kitchen, careful removal of the wall once it is confirmed, temporary capping of services, new service routes, plasterboard and ceiling work, floor, finishes, then the new kitchen and appliances. Dust is the main nuisance, because a wall coming down creates more of it than any other stage. We seal the rest of the property and clean daily. Debris from the wall leaves in bags along a route agreed with the community, and the lift is protected if the building has one.

The kitchen sequence guide sets out why each step comes where it does.

Is an open kitchen right for every property?

Not always. In a small apartment where the living room is also where someone works or sleeps on a sofa bed, a closed kitchen keeps noise and smells contained. In a property let to short-stay guests, an open kitchen can make the space more attractive, but also more visible when it is untidy. Families with young children often like the open view; people who cook a great deal sometimes miss a door they can close.

A middle path is a glazed partition or a sliding door that keeps the light but closes the kitchen when needed. It still needs the same checks on the wall and the services, but leaves the choice to you every day. We are happy to price both an open and a semi-open version so you can compare.

What do you need to quote an open-plan kitchen?

Photos of the kitchen, the living room and the wall between them from both sides, the approximate floor area of both rooms and the floor the apartment is on. If you have building plans, send them; they help us see which walls are likely to be structural, though they do not replace a professional check. We reply with a first assessment and then visit. For the kitchen itself, see kitchen renovation.