Kitchen Renovations: Don't Try to Do It All Yourself

It's common nowadays to see food and kitchen websites decrying the availability of single-purpose appliances and gadgets. These items, meant for one purpose only (compare a boil-water-only electric kettle vs. a boil-water-cook-soup-and-noodles hot pot) take up valuable space and become unnecessary if you have a full-sized appliance that can handle the same task. But these single-purpose items often have their place in a kitchen, and they can be quite handy in a way that larger appliances can't.

Multiple Cooks

You've got one housemate cooking spaghetti and meat sauce on the stove, and another housemate really wants some tea. Would you rather jostle for space at the main stove or have the second housemate grab the electric kettle instead? A third housemate wants to make some vegetables for dinner -- how about letting him or her use the electric steamer instead? Having these specific-use appliances around makes cooking with multiple people much easier to do.

Safety Features

These smaller appliances often have safety features like automatic shut-off, which larger appliances don't. Boil water on the stove in a tea kettle and start daydreaming, and you've got yourself a smoking, burnt kettle and screaming smoke detector. Boil water in an electric kettle and start daydreaming, and the thing will shut itself off.

(If it seems like electric kettles are being mentioned a lot, it's because they're a perfect example of a single-purpose appliance that has multiple benefits. These kettles heat plain water only -- no soup or milk. Yet you can see that they already have two major advantages over using just the main stove in your kitchen.)

One Repair Doesn't Take out More Than One Use

If your oven breaks, you have no oven, and you may end up losing your connected stove, too, if the appliance has to be disconnected for repairs or replacement. Especially with gas appliances, sometimes a problem with one part means the whole thing can't be used for safety reasons. If you have a single-purpose appliance that goes, though, you just lose the use of the appliance for that one purpose.

Whether you've gotten a bunch of small appliances or still have just the basic ones in your kitchen, eventually one of them may need repair. It's best to find a great repair company ahead of time so that if you do need help, you know who to call. Many appliance service companies can help diagnose and fix smaller appliances as well.

For appliance repair, contact a company such as Arnie's Dependable Appliance Repair.