Guides / Decks and patios · Updated
Outdoor kitchen layouts, drawn to scale
A Blaze built-in grill and fridge at their catalog sizes, Blaze's clearances, Kalamazoo's counter and walkway rules. Your grill's manual has the final word.
Estimate for planning only, not professional advice. Check the manufacturer’s instructions, your local code and a licensed professional before you buy, build or install. Use at your own risk. Terms.
Short answer
A grill and a fridge need about 8 ft of counter: 12 in on one side of a 32 in grill, 24 in on the other, and the fridge under the counter past that. Leave 48 in for the cook. Keep the grill 18 in from siding at its back and sides, build the island from non-combustible materials, and never put it under a wood roof.
An 8 ft straight island: a 14 × 10 ft patio
- Counter, 31 in deep
- Grill
- Fridge under the counter
- 18 in from anything that burns
- Walkways
The cook stands between the house and the island, so the grill’s back faces the yard and its 18 in clearance falls on open patio.
| Counter run | 8 ft long, 31 in deep |
|---|---|
| Counter beside the grill | 12 in and 52 in, the fridge under the longer side |
| Patio | 14 × 10 ft, 140 sq ft |
An L with bar seats for four: a 15 × 18 ft patio
- Counter, 31 in deep
- Grill
- Fridge under the counter
- 18 in from anything that burns
- Walkways
The return holds four bar seats at 24 in each, facing the cook across a 42 in high counter with a 12 in overhang, and 36 in behind them to edge past.
| Counter run | 8 ft long, 31 in deep, plus a 4-seat bar return |
|---|---|
| Counter beside the grill | 12 in and 52 in, the fridge under the longer side |
| Patio | 15 × 18 ft, 270 sq ft |
A run along the house: a 14 × 8 ft patio
- Counter, 31 in deep
- Grill
- Fridge under the counter
- 18 in from anything that burns
- Walkways
Against siding, the counter sits 14 in off the wall so the back of the grill is 18 in from it, and the grill sits at the front of the counter. No roof over it.
| Counter run | 8 ft long, 31 in deep |
|---|---|
| Counter beside the grill | 12 in and 52 in, the fridge under the longer side |
| Patio | 14 × 8 ft, 112 sq ft |
The rules behind the drawings
| Counter beside the grill | 24 in on one side, 12 in on the other (Kalamazoo) |
|---|---|
| Counter by the fridge | 15 in next to it or above it (Kalamazoo) |
| Counter behind a hot appliance | 9 in (Kalamazoo) |
| Walkway | 48 in for open traffic, 36 in to edge past seats (Kalamazoo) |
| Bar seats | 24 in each, 42 in high counter, 12 in overhang (Kalamazoo) |
| Grill to combustibles | 18 in to the sides and back (Blaze LTE PRO); 24 in for a Weber Summit built-in |
| Grill and fridge | 32.5 × 27 in grill, 30.75 × 21.25 in cutout; 24 × 25.5 in fridge, 26 in wide cutout (Blaze) |
No maker publishes a counter depth, so we drew 31 in: the grill's 21.25 in cutout plus Kalamazoo's 9 in behind it, rounded up.
Under a roof, or in a wood island
Blaze says its grill must not go under a combustible roof. Under a non-combustible one it needs a UL-listed vent hood of at least 1000 CFM, its fan 36 in above the cooking surface. Weber says never to put its built-in under an unprotected overhang.
Blaze wants a non-combustible island: block, stone or steel. For a wood-framed island it sells an insulated jacket, but the jacket protects only what's below the cooking surface; the clearances above, behind and beside the grill still apply.
Build it
Count the pavers with the paver patio calculator or pour a slab with the concrete pad calculator. For a table and a freestanding grill, see the patio layouts.
Where the numbers come from
- Blaze LTE PRO built-in grill manual (clearances, enclosure, hood)
- Blaze product catalog, Sept 2026 (grill, fridge and cutout sizes)
- Blaze insulated jacket installation sheet
- Kalamazoo Outdoor Kitchen Design Guide (landing space, seating, walkways)
- Weber Summit built-in installation guide
Napoleon's and Coyote's sites didn't let us read them, so their grills aren't here.