"Get a Lift in the Kitchen" By Patti D. Fleetwood, Fleetwood Communications As seen in TecHome Builder, March/April 2002 Although lift installations in kitchens are not commonplace, affluent clients with large kitchens offer the best opportunity for such an add-on.

Looking to add that unique touch to the kitchen in the new homes you are building? How about utilizing a motorized lift? No, I don't mean to suggest going out of your way to add a TV to the kitchen, but perhaps installing a lift system for other uses, such as appliances or a bar cabinet. I know, we've all seen numerous examples of motorized lifts being used in the home theater environment for everything from big-screen televisions to speakers and even projectors. That's fine, but what about other parts of the house? Why restrict the use of something so flexible to just one room?

For example, a bar cabinet can be installed into a kitchen cabinet, without loosing any counter space. One particular project, installed by Jerry Nodae of Jerry Nodae's Hardwood Cabinets of Poland, Ohio, came about when Nodae was looking to address a concern of the homeowner. "I suggested a project involving a lift to solve a dead space problem that was of concern to the homeowner," he recalls.

According to Nodae, installing a motorized lift within a kitchen environment really doesn't present much more of a challenge than the typical home theater. "To install a lift in a kitchen, assuming it's going to be a standard base cabinet, the only difference is size limits. The project and the lift must fit predetermined height and width limits."

Although lift installations in kitchens are not commonplace, he says that affluent clients with large kitchens offer the best opportunity for such an add-on. "The project could include a TV, a pop-up wine cellar, a spice and condiment center, a computerized recipe desk or library, a pantry or just about anything you would want to keep out of sight until needed. The best place to put one would be at the end of a peninsula or in an island or dead-space corner," explains Nodae. When specifying hardware for a job such as this, it's of utmost importance that quality and stability be taken into consideration. Nodae strictly uses lifts by Auton Motorized Systems because of their "consistent quality. I especially like the ease of precise adjustment."

Virgil Walker, president of Auton Motorized Systems, adds that other uses for lifts in the kitchen include raising and lowering cooking hoods, mixers, or other appliances, food centers or cabinets. So, the next time you're designing kitchens for the custom homes you are building, keep in mind that motorized lifts can be used in a variety of ways.