Benefits of Installing Roll-Out Pantry Shelves For Seniors In Ottawa

If you’re aging in place, there are more than a few home repairs for seniors that will make the process easier and more efficient for the years to come. If you are not yet aging in place, still consider making kitchen modifications in your next remodel or renovation that support universal design so that you can boast the features during your resell. One of the most practical installations for your kitchen that supports universal design is roll-out pantry shelving. Learn more about how roll-out pantry shelving works and why it benefits aging in place.

What Is Roll-Out Pantry Shelving?

Initially, pull-out drawers and roll-out shelving were considered in tandem for small kitchens as a space-saving solution. Since then, they have become more advanced in design and offer more than just space-saving, though that is one substantial benefit.

Roll-out shelving increases the useable and functional space inside cabinetry by maximizing how accessibility is organized. Rather than opening a cabinet and reaching to the far back to get what you want, you instead slide out a shelf or drawer or unfold a hinged rack to find the item you are looking for at the time.

Why Install Roll-Out Pantry Shelving?

Roll-out pantry shelving fits the design of the goals for aging in place: independence, autonomy, accessibility, and safety. Isolated pantries are not typical in homes, so pantries often refer to cabinetry that holds food or kitchenware used to prepare, cook or bake, eat, and then store food appropriately.

Easily Access Stored Items

When roll-out shelving is installed, items for storage alone can be placed in upper cabinetry. Typically, items relegated to upper shelves include cookware that is used infrequently, heirloom items, collectibles, or alternate sets of dishware.

The bulk of items necessary for everyday use in the kitchen should be consolidated in the lower levels. Organizing the lower shelves requires careful planning and collaboration between homeowners and repair services in Ottawa. When determining which features to incorporate in the design, note that adding sliding shelves and fold-out racks increases accessibility and convenience for the most used items like utensils, snacks, frequent ingredients, and basic server ware.

Decrease Strain on the Body

The bulk of necessary items will migrate to the lower roll-out shelving units because climbing ladders and reaching the back of shelves is no longer a safe option while aging in place. It is no longer practical because they might suffer a devastating strain or injury depending on their physical condition. Climbing on a step stool or stretching to reach a tall cabinet top is not ideal for even the spriest of homeowners, young or old, which is why universal design elements benefit all kitchen remodels.

Create More Functional Space

Whether you require assistive technology or not, optimizing every bit of space inside cabinets to increase counter space for prep and eating is ideal. With assistive technology, any additional obstacles that make eating a healthy, nutritional meal easier should be eliminated to make functioning more manageable.

Another unique angle for pull-out shelving is to add space where there wasn’t any before the renovation. The kickboards underneath traditional cabinets are often unused spaces that gather scuffs and cobwebs, but they don’t have to be. In most cases, the area underneath cabinets is another fully finished cabinetry area waiting for roll-out shelving for more storage to be installed.

If you are consolidating all of your useable kitchen items from the top to a more reachable area, using every inch of space for pull-out shelving, including spaces that weren’t there before, is likely an ideal way to keep everything neat and orderly.

For more information on how roll-out pantry shelving can improve the accessibility as a feature of your kitchen remodel or as a measure to benefit aging in place, contact Handyman Connection in Ottawa today.