Pot Pan

Pot Pan

Pot Racks - Just Hanging Out in Your Kitchen

How many of you out there are familiar with the different varieties of pot racks available to you? Are you up to date on the types, styles, finish/color, price, brand and size of these amazing kitchen space savers? I thought so.
 
Today I am going to give you the opportunity to learn all there is to know about Pot Racks. Keep a pen and paper handy. You might want to take notes. Seriously, by the time you read down to the bottom of this information, you will be an expert in Pot Rackology.
 
I will begin by saying that pot racks have been used as far back as the 1400’s. Back then pot racks were mainly used by lower income families because the kitchens in their homes were small with little to no extra space. These early versions of pot racks were hung on hooks from either the ceiling or one wall in the kitchen. There also were versions of pot rack that were tripods with hooks for pot and pans, which were placed in one corner of the kitchen floor.
 
Now to speed things up just a little, along came the 21st century.  Modern kitchens, modern kitchen appliances, modern kitchen pot racks. So, do you think pot racks have come along and progressed down through the centuries? Do you think pot racks have features and benefits that are far beyond the reach of 15th century man? My answer to these two questions are, “Yes, they have” and “Yes, they do.”
 
Let’s start from the top and then work our way down. The first feature of pot racks I will present to you will be Type of Pot Rack. There are 4 basic types of pot racks. These 4 types of pot racks are Hanging Pot Racks, Wall Mounted Pot Racks, Lighted Pot Racks and Standing Pot Racks. I will go over each of these types of pot racks for you.
 
Hanging Pot Racks are hung from your kitchen ceiling usually by chains bolted to the ceiling. Depending on the shape of your hanging pot rack, there are three to four chains to support your pot rack’s suspension.
 
One option usually only available for Hanging Pot Racks is lighting. You not only have the opportunity to hang your pot and pans on hanging pot racks, but you may also use your hanging pot rack for a kitchen lighting fixture.
 
Usually if the hanging pot rack is square or rectangular shaped, there is a need to have 4 chains to level the support of the hanging pot rack. If the pot rack is a triangle or round shape, there is need for only three chains for proper level support.  
 
Wall Mounted Pot Racks are just what the words say. These pot racks are mounted to the wall of your kitchen. So there is a need to have one side of a wall mounted pot rack flush so the pot rack can be mounted firmly against the wall. When mounting a wall mounted pot rack it is advised to mount it into the stud inside the wall for maximum weight support.
 
Some wall mounted pot rack swivel. All this means is that a hinge is built into the pot rack either on the right or left side. This will enable the wall pot rack to swing out away from the wall.
 
There are two more types of pot racks available for those of you with more room in your kitchen.
 
You could use a floor standing pot rack. These are usually tripods with shelves built into the center of the tripod for storing your pots and pans. This device takes up a little space on a corner of your kitchen floor.
 
The other floor standing pot rack is a kitchen island food preparation station. These kitchen islands are constructed of wood or metal frames with butcher block food prep countertops. The pot rack is build into the back side of the island. You have the option of placing a kitchen island pot rack either in the middle of your kitchen floor or up against one of your kitchen walls.  
 
Style is the next topic I will discuss. There are many styles to consider when searching for your perfect pot rack. The different styles are Traditional, Transitional, Contemporary, Early American, Rustic/Lodge, Old World, Country, Victorian, Southwestern and Whimsical. Out of all these styles available to you, you are sure to pick one out to match the theme of your kitchen.
 
Moving right along we have Finish/Color. Here too you have choices. You may choose from Beige, Black, Brass - Antique/Satin, Brass – Polished, Bronze, Bronze - Oil Rubbed, Browns, Chrome – Brushed, Chrome – Polished, Copper, Gold, Gray, Natural Iron, Nickel – Brushed, Pewter, Rattan/Wood, Reds, Rust, Silver, Stainless Steel, Tans and Verde. If you are unfamiliar with any of these, just go online and have a look.
 
Just in case you are wondering about price, you can pick one of these pot racks up in a price range starting at less that $100.00, but depending on what you are looking for, the price can be well over $700.00.
 
All of the pot racks that I am informing you on are brand names such as 2nd Avenue Lighting, AF Lighting, Artcraft, ARTEflorum, Capital Lighting Fixture Company, Concept Housewares, Craftmade, Cricket Forge, Dr. Livingstone I Presume, Enclume Design Products, Forecast, Golden Lighting, Grace Manufacturing, Hi-Lite, Hinkley, Hubbardton Forge, Hubbardton Forge, Kalco, Kenroy Home, Kinetic, Livex Lighting, Maxim Lighting International, Old Dutch International, Old World Designs, Quintana Roo, RAM Lighting, Rogar Potracks, Royce Lighting, Savoy House, Smoky Mountain Metal Arts, Stone County Ironworks, StylIcon, Triarch International, Troy, Varaluz, Vaxcel and World Imports.
 
I’ll bet you didn’t think that this many companies were manufacturing some sort of kitchen pot racks. I hate to be a name dropper, but you’ve heard the expression, “The quality goes in before the name goes on.” We are certainly talking quality here.
 
When it comes to shape, you will find that these pot racks come in Round, Rectangular/Square, Oval, Straight Bar, Half Round, Corner, Shelf, Stand and Unique.
 
The size of your kitchen pot rack will vary in depth and width. With the depth ranging from 10 inches to more than 20 inches, depending on what you are looking for. Your pot rack widths will start out at less than 25 inches and go to widths greater than 37 inches.

Kitchen pot racks are both a convenience and a space saver for your kitchen. You have a wide range of choices. You can go with basic construction or you can go with artful room decor. Whatever your choice may be, a kitchen pot rack is the right decision.

About the Author

Barbara Tobiasz is an expert in interior/exterior decorating. Along with her husband Joe, they own and operate Wall-Decor-Concepts.com. For more information on Kitchen Pot Racks, go to:
http://www.Wall-Decor-Concepts.com

I'm trying to figure out what type of pot/pan is best environmentally and health-wise: metal, teflon, glass?

If metal, what types of metal? What are the health risks associated with these choices? What utensils should be used with them? Any options I haven't mentioned?

I just wanted to add that glass cookware is tempered and most likely not suitable for recycling.

About.com has an answer to a similar question. They give a run-down of several different options. Cast iron or ceramic seemed to be the best bets. Check out the article here: http://environment.about.com/od/healthenvironment/a/safecookware.htm

Pan - Pot - Charly

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