Over the range combo micro/vent


 

Paul K

TVWBB Guru
What are your thoughts of the over the range combo microwave/vent? I'm interested in the models that vent to the outside. What I've read, is that these units have weaker fans and thus don't draw as much air out as a stand alone vent hood. I have a vent hood now, but it needs upgrading to go with new appliances. I'd like to save some counter space by moving the microwave over the range, but don't want to sacrifice the venting capacity. The current vent is probably not that strong; it's 15 years old and a builder's spec model.

Paul
 
Paul,

I have a GE Advantium Oven that goes over the range. I will say that the fan is as strong as a regular vent hood but you can certainly upgrade to a more powerful stand alone vent hood. One thing you need to make sure about is your clearence under your microwave to the top of your range. When I did my kitchen remmodel we added the new oven and it only left about 15 1/2 inches. I would say that was a little to tight but we were stuck at that point. Large stock pots are very snug.
 
I sold appliances for 15 years. As in any combo appliance, it's never going to be the best of either. If you want a good vent, look at the CFM, cubic foot of air moved and the sones, which is vibration and noise. Vent a hood in my opinion makes the best. A true vent hood will have a large canopy to capture the air as it's being vented. When designing kitchens, I always wanted to go six inches wider than the cooking surface for maximum capture and venting. The Advantium oven by GE is a unit that combines infared halogen heat and microwave energy to brown and cook food, but as stated before the vent is not as strong as a stand alone vent unit.
 
I'll agree with Ivan here -

We have a GE combo. Microwave / Convection Oven, with a Vent built-in.

It works great, and saves a lot of space in our medium/small kitchen.

If you do typical home cooking, and do most of your smoke-generating stuff outside - the vent is powerful enough to help with steam and smallish amounts of smoke.

The unit came with our home - my only wish is that they would have used a smaller cabinet over the range, because the bottom of the micro/vent is a bit low, but not too bad. (another 3-4 inches would have been nice).
We can still fit rather large 15-quart stock pots on the front burners - but not on the rears.

If you do a lot of indoor grilling / blackened foods, etc. (stuff that generates lots of pungent smoke) / or, if you frequently need to use several extra-large stock pots - then you may be better-off with a separate micro & a more powerful range hood.

Hope this helps
 
Ivan, the Advantium is 1 model I've looked at. The clearance issue is a good one; I'll double check, but I think I'm in good shape there.

Edwin, your point on the CFM is what got me researching the combos a little further. I've found out they aren't as strong.

Ron, I do all of my grilling outside. I did run into an interesting situation last week. I ran the self-cleaning feature on the new oven and it produced a heck of a lot of smoke
icon_eek.gif
!. The current vent couldn't keep up with it. After the fire alarm went off for the 3rd time, I resorted to wrapping it up with a plastic bag! Lesson learned; clean the oven more often.

Thanks for your input guys.

Paul
 
Combo Micro/Vent
Pluses -
saves space

Minuses -
can't get a high CFM vent
may be difficult to insert large/heavy items
less space over stove
less choices in microwave options

Space is king. If saving space is worth more than some of the minuses, its a good choice.
 
You vent should not be more that 30" off the cooking surface. The reason most micro combos are set low is there is no capture area and the ease of taking something out of the micro. You can purchase an in line blower to ad to the cfm of your unit. There are two type. Roof mounted and in line. The roof mounted is hard to work on because of the location. Is there room in the kitchen for an under cabinet mounted microwave?
 

 

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