Ideas for replacing small sliding door storage please Featured

There's a trend called an 'appliance garage', which is a way to hide away your coffee machine and similar. If you get a roll top mechanism you could allow having all the doors open at the same time:

Otherwise have a look at Ikea for potential fittings you might use, or carcasses you could adapt.

Theo

Doesn't get you any lost space back, though.

Having to bend the track, up, over, and down the rear would be a problem. The other way, would be to use straight tracks, and a roll at the top, but the roll would be large with timber slats, taking up lots of cupboard space.

Might simple roller blinds do, similar to the blackout blinds fitted to touring caravans. Alternatively, how about similar top hinged doors, similar to those used in tourer caravans - though I suspect they might open to have the door at face height?

I'm thinking you'd get some U profile aluminium extrusion. Cut slots in the outer edge so you can bend it, and patch up the gaps with car body filler to make a smooth surface. Then make wooden slats to run in it. You'd lose maybe 2cm of height by the slats going over the top - they wouldn't go over the back (assuming the cupboard is deeper than it is tall).

You could also do it with an existing curtain track, eg:

I suppose it depends if this is just for cosmetic purposes, or if it's to keep flies / damp / ... away from the food. If that's the case a solid barrier may be more necessary.

Theo

Yes, we have been wondering if top hinged doors might work, or even sort of mini up-and-over doors like a garage. Has anyone come across these in ready-made (or at least kit) form?

I guess it basically cosmetic, the things stored in there are mostly tins and jars plus a few packets of pasta and such.

Does the floor of your cupboards need to be at the top of your splashback? You probably need a splash back for practical reasons but could the floor of the cupboard be at the same level as your worktop with the splashback being a thin wall. This wouldn't be ideal for small objects that would be hidden from view but OK for taller items.

Some consideration would have to be given for cleaning the bottom of the cupboard but perhaps a lining of disposable waxed paper or plastic draw liner can be used

That's a point, good idea. One could just get a deeper worktop and use that as the bottom of the cupboard. The existing sliding doors mean that cleaning the bottom of the cupboard isn't all that easy anyway, a bigger 'lip' isn't going to make that much difference.

Thank you.