hiding OTR microwave vent duct

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

I am in a pickle and hope somebody out there has an answer for me (my contractor does not seem to). I asked for a vent to outside to be installed during a full kitchen remodel (down to the studs) - I assumed he could run the vent ductwork behind the wall to hide it. Instead he cut it through the ceiling. It is off center with the upper cabinets that will house the mircowave. Is there anything I can do to hide the vent from ceiling to cabinet that will look intentional and nice (and not just a plywood box around the ductwork)? I am super POed that he cut it through the ceiling without telling me -you can see sticking out of the ceiling, just left of the light fixture. I have an extra piece of cabinetry - any way we can adjust or retrofit it to hide the vent and not have it look stupid? Thanks for any advice.

PS - If anyone knows a reliable and quality contractor in the Florida Keys, we are probably going to have to redo stuff that these guys screwed up.

Featured Answer

artistsharonva

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

During cabinet installation things rarely look good during. It's the finishing touches that bring it all together.

As for above microwave.

An open space with panel inside to hide piping behind. Will have to finish skin the cabinet inside. The pipe is behind the cabinet backing

Or order taller cabinet doors to appear as 1 tall cabinet

Or get 4 doors for 2 stacked cabinet look.

Or fill with filler above then crown. Unfortunately the cabinets look to be shorter than which is giving 12" gap to fill.6" preferred from ceiling.

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Comments (10)

PRO
HALLETT & Co.
5 years ago
I’m confused. In one picture it is open above the microwave, an another there appears to be a cabinet box there? I see two solutions. If you want to keep them open, build a false wall above the upper cabinets just deep enough to hide the pipe- meaning the cabinets are 12” deep but above the back wall there will only be 6” from the face of the wall to the cabinet. Sounds goofy but it disappears in reality. What I would really do however is affix risers to the cabinet boxes so all of them extend to the ceiling then add crown.
Emily Dey thanked HALLETT & Co.
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I think the key word above is "appear" because to me these OTR microwave ovens look like they are not flush by two or three inches. From an earlier post: "If I can use the top vent [to] go up through the cabinet and resolve the ductwork above that cabinet, that vent will care for the stove venting and the magnatron venting, and I would not need a MW with a front-facing louver." In my view, neither this nor any other microwave oven venting scheme I'm even vaguely aware of will "care for the stove venting" because they move far too little air per unit time and the units do not overhang the burners sufficiently. Perhaps if a supplementary blower designed for higher pressure loss is used in the path taken by the this so-called ventilation to augment the flow rate, barely adequate air flow will be possible. But even then, capture area will be too small to have much effect on front burner plume capture. You can design for style and give up on having adequate ventilation, or design for adequate ventilation and give up on OTR microwave ovens. Your statement "For what it's worth, most of the cooking on our stove is boiling water or soup, scrambling eggs, or simmering an occasional kettle of sauce." suggests that you can get away with doing the former. In that case, provide manufacturer specified cooling paths for the magnetron, and ignore limitations of the mediocre or worse ventilation. And don't sear steaks on the cooktop before baking them in the oven.
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PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
5 years ago
If this is vented to the outside why did you go with a MW above the range they are so so at best for venting and awkward to use when the range is in use. Not sure who designed this kitchen but quite a few problems beyond the MW issue. One being the huge fridge sticking out into a tiny space
Emily Dey thanked Patricia Colwell Consulting
Emily Dey
Original Author
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
So to answer questions back from you all...

Re photos - in the top photo you see the empty space where the microwave should be installed, and the upper cabinets above it that were supposed to house the vent/duct into the wall to run outside. The contractor ran the venting to come in from the ceiling instead of into the back of the upper cabinets above the microwave. The second photo was one attempt at a solution- to stack a 2nd cabinet on top of the uppers. Not a great fix in my opinion.

The microwave is existing and was less than 1 y/o so no need to replace it. This is a remodel not a new build and all the electrical etc was set up there for a stove/microwave combo

I guess short of buying another upper cabinet w/ different dimensions, or custom building some sort of surround for the vent, I don't really have any other ideas. But at least you guys validated what I had already researched as options. Thanks.
suzyq53
5 years ago
You could add a stack above the cabs to hide the vent, but you'd have to move it closer to the center.
weedmeister
5 years ago
I'd still sell the microwave and put a real hood in there, but that's just me.
PRO
The Kitchen Place
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
You need a skilled installer or hvac guy to do this: take the rectangular ductwork and turn it to the left and go outside (exterior wall0. Do this ON TOP of the cabinets. Then get a large enough top crown molding to hide it. You'll need someone who's good with ductwork but this is doable. We've done this before in the past when we've had to get creative.
erinsean
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
We have an OTR microwave and it is not vented outside. Our microwave can be vented outside if you want or fixed so that the steam comes out through the louvers on top of the microwave. We live in an older home and it is easier for us to have it this way. As for your problem...I would just box the pipe in and it will look okay.
PRO
HALLETT & Co.
5 years ago
What tkp is saying above is what we did in the attached kitchen- stove is on an inside wall so the duct runs horizontally above the cabinets to the outside wall. A false wall is in front of it and the crown distracts the eye from the fact that the wall above and below the cabinets are on different planes.
wdccruise
5 years ago
I'd just box the vent pipe in with a metal box between the cabinet and the ceiling, as shallow as possible, centered horizontally on the cabinet but just wide enough to cover the the pipe. Attach the box to the top of the cabinet and paint it white or the color of the wall. Sure, you'll know it's there but after a while you won't notice it anymore. -- amateur

hiding OTR microwave vent duct

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hiding OTR microwave vent duct

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