another vote..hood vent,otr mw-pics and questions

13 years ago

Ok...seems I have a few in favor so far of getting rid of the OTR MW. Hadn't considered it previously since it is for a 2nd home-by the beach and doing a kitchen remodel on a budget..But want to look at all my options before making a final decision.

If you can help by either voting and /or answering any of these questions as I think this through now that we nailed down the prep sink! thx!!!

Keep in mind how we will be using the place:

-2nd home by the beach-mostly summers

-mostly cook outside on the grill

-range is a basic 5 burner gas (propane) with 5K,9K10k,15k and 17K burners

-no high temp wok type cooking expected, primarily boiling pasta, corn, pancakes, maybe fish if don't grill it due to weather , etc...

-either the MW or the hood we purchase would definitely be low cost range (no $1000 hoods here)

-MW not used often (popcorn, reheat coffee, leftovers etc)

Seems we would be "ok" with 300 cfm (based on what I read that you need 1cfm/100 btus) and I would maybe use 2 burners at a time.

A MW we were considering had 180/300 cfm settings. $250

An inexpensive SS vent hood from ikea has up to 400 cfm setting. $400

Would consider a vent liner as suggested previously from lowes fro ~$350 but then you still have the added cost of the hood. My DH may be able to build one.. but more research needed!

So Pros/Cons -based on some things I collected on GW...

Pros for venthood-

-appearance

-safer than MW in face

-better traffic flow -noone reaching for MW while you are cooking

-better fan

-can buy cheaper/smaller MW

-can eliminate cost of at least 1 cabinet (above the MW), maybe more

-maybe move oven over (if we remove the side cabinets) and gain a larger cabinet between oven and fridge) Possibly add shelves to the right as well.

Cons

Cost - could we seriously accomplish this for only $300 more or so than the OTR MW? Or are there hidden costs re. electrical , extra parts/ duct etc?

-lose cabinet above and maybe the side cabinets? (this could be a problem)

-need new spot for MW -maybe on hutch but a little far?

-just not familiar in general with vent hoods-more work required to research it!

-will an inexpensive 400 cfm ikea one cut it? keep in mind our cooking style (above)

-more than we really need?

So here they are again:

#1) OTR MW with cabinets

#2) side cabinets

3) no cabinets

or 4) hood liner +build own hood (if possible at low cost)

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Comments (5)

jgs7691
13 years ago
I'd go with #1 -- if this is a 2nd home, and you cook the way you describe, then I would stick with the OTR MW. I know that is not the conventional wisdom on GW but I have survived with an OTR MW with no outside venting for 9 years and we have limited counter space, so we are going with another OTR and venting outside.

According to my appliance salesperson (whom I trust) the normal OTR 300cfm is going to be just shy of the recommended cfm (total BTU of burners x 100) but the reality is that one will almost never use all burners at max BTU anyway, so you can get away with it. I know others on here who have enjoyed their OTR MW, so if that's what you want, I say go for it!

Here is a link that might be useful: Thread on OTR Microwaves with Photos
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katsmah
13 years ago
I have an OTR Microwave and it serves MY purposes well. You need to ask yourself if an OTR microwave is the best place for YOU. Do you have children who might want to heat up some popcorn? Is there someone who may need to get to the microwave at the same time you are cooking at the stove? Do you have another place the microwave might fit better?

I don't think the CFM difference will make much difference. There is at least one OTR Microwave that is 400 CFMs. I forget the brand, but it should be fairly easy to research.

Looking at your plan and your description of your cooking style at this house, which is pretty much the same type of cooking I do, is there a reason you need a prep sink on the island? If you ditched that, with the savings of not having to run plumbing, you could put in a microwave drawer. I would then go with option 3, no upper cabinets and get rid of the cabinet over the fridge. You could store stuff that would be in the cabinet over the fridge elsewhere.
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It sounds like you've resolved this already, but FWIW, here's what I went through in deciding on microwave location and MW itself. This turned out to be crucial to the entire kitchen design. - I wanted double wall ovens, so, no wall oven/MW combo. - I didn't want a countertop MW. - I wanted a real range hood, so, no over-the-range MW. - I could only have one ceiling-height cabinet, which was taken up by the double ovens, so no waist-heigh shelf. Turns out, all that really cuts down your MW choices! It leaves a cabinet-depth overhead microwave, or an under-the-counter MW. I found that most overheads are designed to be over-the-range, which are wide and are intended not to have any cabinet under them. The rare exception was the GE "Spacemaker" line, which is designed to be cabinet-depth. The most popular Spacemaker, that fits cabinets perfectly, was only 1000W, and maybe it'd have worked better than my previous wimpy microwaves, but I wasn't taking any chances. I cook a lot, but I reheat and defrost a lot too, and I need a kick*ss microwave. And, I'm short. As it is, a regular OTR MW has me balancing hot bowls of soup carefully from over my head to pull them out. A cabinet-mounted Spacemaker is that much higher up, with the cabinet under it. (However, I have a short friend who has the Spacemaker mounted up high and she doesn't mind it at all. I would.) Other microwaves besides the Spacemaker that looked like they weren't super deep, and could be accommodated by making that one cabinet deeper, were way too tall to be overhead, or there were venting issues, or various issues with trim kits to make them look built-in. It could be done, of course, but my experience with varying MW quality (and indecision about the value of convection), told me I didn't want to be seriously restricted in choices by size. What if the Spacemaker didn't work for me? I'd be stuck. I kept coming back to my original vision of a *space* for a MW where I could stick in any old thing. That meant: counter (no), wall shelf (don't have unless I give up double ovens), or under-mount shelf. In the end, my KD persuaded me to go with a shelf underneath to put the MW, with the additional argument that MWs are ugly. My kitchen is still being built, so I don't know yet if this is going to work or not -- we may well end up with one on the counter. But therein lies the "logic." The one thing I did learn though: kitchens are not modular. You can't make a space for something and fit in the appliance later, for a variety of reasons. The MW, of ALL appliances, I thought would be the easiest to change out, but it was one of the biggest and hardest problems to solve. I spent a lot of time at appliance stores with a tape measure, discovering one brainstorm after another that wouldn't work. Even if you can't pick your exact microwave now, pick one that you think will work for you as a default, and use it as a starting point. But definitely start with an actual microwave rather than "most are...." I have a bunch of posts queueing up about kitchen design, regrets, initial desires that seem non-negotiable that later you think "eh whatever", lack of confidence in decisions. MW location will be tops in those!
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BoxerPups...I love the look of the wood-type hoods like in your second pic. I wanted something similar in my kitchen but as my KD told me, it was a "budget buster"! Oh well! I do like the look of my chimney one, but I like the wood better! Bpotts44...If it were me, I'd rather walk the extra steps from the other side of the kitchen to get to the MW from the refrigerator than have an OTR. Quite a few things I add water or other ingredients to, so, to me, it wouldn't be the end of the world to get things out of the refrigerator, put them on the island, do what I need to do on the island around the prep sink, and then walk over to the MW. My sister has an OTR and when she's cooking w/her kids (or visitors) helping there seems to be a periodic bottleneck at the range & MW. I've also noticed that when something's cooking on the front burners (like boiling water/pasta), the front of the MW gets hot...has anyone else noticed that? (Just curious.) Oops...LexLuthor you answered my question! Lovlilynne...noise level generally depends on the size of the hood, the length of ducting, turns, and location of the fan. Every manufacturer claims their hoods are quiet...but keep in mind when they tell you that, they're talking about the "best case scenario" for installing a hood (no turns, short duct). People here, too, have various installations so when someone says one vent is quieter (or louder) than another, take it with a grain of salt until you know the details of their installation! I probably have the "worst case scenario" and while it isn't quiet, it's certainly quieter than my old builder-grade "Nautilus" (I think that was the manufacturer)...and much more powerful. I have 3 or 4 turns plus approx 11' of duct run...converted from 8" round to a 6"x8.5" rectangular duct. I did have it on high last night b/c I was baking bacon in the oven and w/no vent near the ovens I had bacon grease/odors in the kitchen so I was trying to air it out (along w/the open windows). I didn't have to raise my voice much to be heard in the DR. That's a good thing! [BTW...I think I'm going to stick w/frying bacon on the griddle on my cooktop from now on...then I'll be able to vent the grease & odors outside! I cringed when I saw the grease & smoke rush out of the oven & up to my cabinets & ceiling last night!]
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ideagirl2
13 years ago
I was all set to vote "hood vent" until I read your post. I agree, it sounds like an OTR microwave is just fine for you. Especially since you're there mainly in the summer and have windows right near the range--if the OTR isn't cutting it, just open the window; problem solved.
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ravmd
Original Author
13 years ago
jgs.. I did see that you have the OTR MW in your pland as well so thanks for chiming in. Similar situation in our primary home . 10 yrs with OTR MW-not vented-lots of steam going up the front of it! So I assume if we do go with one and vent it, it will be a nice improvement from what I am used to.Thx for the link too.

Katsmah..the kids don't use it too much and it seems it is used more at times when I am not cooking (late night popcorn or just defrosting something)
Re. the prep sink. I didn't have one in but now that I do, I can really see putting it to some use. Just feel in the summer and with having mutltiple families at the house, we will actually be doing more cold salads, fruit etc type of prep and griling. So I can see the prep sink being used more than MW in the summer especially.

Ideagirl.. that's where I get torn I guess is the form vs. function.
We keep getting caught up in adding things and then have to remind ourselves.. it is just a 2nd home not our primary, etc.. and yes the OTR MW has been fine 365 days/ yr so I imagine it will be just fine there too.
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ironcook
13 years ago
i just have an additional thought/question.

will you need to have new electrical work done for your otr microwave or hood?

the otr microwave we have now is only 120V, but some of the new ones may require a 220V outlet. also some hoods require hardwiring.

of course, not a problem/cost if your husband does electrical work. :)

fwiw, i like katsmah's suggestion of no uppers at all if you don't really need the storage here. the more open look is nicer, imho.
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another vote..hood vent,otr mw-pics and questions

Comments (5)

jgs7691

katsmah

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another vote..hood vent,otr mw-pics and questions

Comments (5)

jgs7691

katsmah

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ideagirl2

ravmdOriginal Author

ironcook

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