Can't add a hood: which stove/range?

[dilrods]

We're re-doing our kitchen and for structural reasons, we won't be able to add a nice pro-style hood. Given that we'll be relying on a recirculating microwave unit above the stove, can anyone recommend the best "Non-pro-style" range out there? (All gas. Safe to recirculate only.)

[dilrods]

Thanks all for the wonderful advice. For non-pro ranges, sounds like GE profile is mentioned a couple of times.

But more importantly, I think y'all convinced us to put a hood in.

[mcel215]

I live in a Condo and can't vent to the outside either.

I love my GE Profile stove/oven, and my microwave/vent on the top. It isn't a grease magnet any more than it was on top of my counter. A quick spray with window cleaner a couple times of weeks does the job.

Sometimes, we just have to make the best of a not-perfect situation. :)

[Politeness]

mcel215, do you have your microwave at eye level, then? The standards for consumer microwave radiation leakage in the United States are very lax -- when the former Soviet Union was beaming microwaves into the United States Embassy in Moscow a couple of decades back, the United States government sent personnel home and officially protested to the Soviet government, but the levels were a fraction of the levels allowed for consumer microwave oven leakage.

The greatest danger of microwave leakage is damage to the retina:

" Physical Hazards Group, Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, Hamilton, Ontario.

The purpose of this overview is to promote an interest in understanding and reducing the possible occupational health risks of microwave radiation on the eye. Microwaves act on living tissue through two types of mechanisms, thermal and nonthermal. Lens opacities can be induced in experimental animals at relatively high intensities (power densities greater than 100 mW/cm2). For lower intensities, lens changes may depend on the cumulative dose. At "nonthermal intensities", microwaves can act as a trigger and set off changes in the living tissues (e.g. Ca++ efflux). Some cataract-causing agents (alloxan and galactose) act synergistically with microwaves. Microwaves also accelerate formation of cataracts due to diabetes. The corneal endothelium can be damaged by microwaves alone or in combination with some drugs. Microwave degeneration of retinal nerve endings and a small increase in retinal permeability were also found in animals. The effect of long-term low-intensity microwave exposure on the human lens remains poorly understood. Several reports have implicated occupational microwave exposure as a factor in increasing the rate of lens aging and retinal injury in microwave workers. In Canada, recommended microwave exposure limits are set at 25 mW/cm2 for microwave workers and at 1 mW/cm2 for the general public (both averaged over 1 minute). The Australian microwave exposure safety standard (1985) recommends pre- and post-employment eye examinations for workers."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24...

[mcel215]

Wow, I never heard this information. I guess thanks.

I stand at 5'1" and my microwave is up higher than eye level for me. I also had my decorator/construction person put it up above my stove.

The only thing I use my microwave for is to re-heat food in, about once or twice a week. Had I known how little I really use it and this information you just gave me, I would have chosen to not put one in.

[alanbarnes]

I hate it when people refuse to answer a question within the constraints the OP has set up. But I'm going to do it here.

Even if you can't put in a "nice pro-style hood," can you at least run a duct between the ceiling joists to vent a more modest hood to the outside? I abhor downdraft systems, but even they are better than recirculation.

And I agree with the others that over the stove is the **worst** place in the kitchen to put a microwave. The height is all wrong, it makes it unnecessarily difficult for two people to work together in the kitchen, and if you ever cook on the stove the microwave will constantly be filthy. We built in a microwave / convection combo above our wall oven, and I'm pretty happy with it.

All that said, if you have to go with a standard consumer range, here's a review of the reviews that are out there:

http://www.consumersearch.com/ranges-...

[dilrods]

Very helpful, thanks.

[JRCann]

we had a similar problem. The condo-nazi's won't allow a vent to the outdoors. It kinda limits what one can cook and no sense having a high BTU stove if you can't rid yourself of the smoke and steam. We wound up with an all-gas GE profile range (PBG 910 SE)with an all SS top and 5 burners, which has proven to be a workhorse. (the SIL is jealous and she has a new high $$$ designer "pro" range and a hood that costs more than my range). No matter what the recirc hood is - it will be nearly useless. I would get rid of the MW above the range for sure. You can't believe the amount of greasy film that I have to scrub off all the the walls ceiling and hood (for what it's worth) every month. The hood may actually be the limiting factor in a good kitchen.

[dilrods]

Thanks very much for answering my question. Perhaps I just should've asked "what do people think are the best non-pro ranges out there?" :)

[Buckethead]

What 'structural reasons' exactly?

[dilrods]

Cost, mainly. We have a house very close to us, and the vent to the outside must be X distance from the property line. I think a good properly installed hood could cost us $2000...and we wouldn't do that for a low BTU stove ...

[SQHD]

You do understand that vent hoods are not only about venting CO, but they also vent smells and smoke?

[alanbarnes]

And atomized oils, which will otherwise accumulate on every surface in the kitchen...

[dilrods]

How important is the extra 3" on each side? Would a 30" vent-a-hood over a 30" stove still be worthwhile? We might be able to pull that off...

[JK Grence the Cosmic Jester]

The extra width is nice, but you'll be fine with a hood the same width as the range. Come to think of it, that's all I've ever cooked with.

[alanbarnes]

3" overhang on either side is helpful but not critical; airflow is much more significant. A fan with a decent flow rate in a small hood will capture more air than an anemic fan in a large hood.

FWIW, if you do end up ducting the exhaust, you may want to consider putting the fan at the end of the run - especially when running at high speed, there's a lot less noise in the kitchen.

[RGC1982]

I agree with SQHD. Ventilation is far more important than an over-the-stove microwave that will "recirculate" air. That is total junk, and a pro-style gas range needs some decent ventilation for safety reasons. It may not even meet code if you don't put in some kind of ventilation, based on the higher output BTUs in most pro style ranges.

If you are hell bent on putting in the nuking grease collector instead of a hood, skip the pro-style and see if there isn't a downdraft model you can choose and vent to the outside. I don't think there is too much in ranges, but you might be able to add a pop-up down draft model behind a slide-in. If you are looking at freestanding ranges, you really need to get a hood, especially with gas due to by-products of burning it.

[SQHD]

Even if a real vent hood isn't going above the stove, I just really hate the look of a microwave over a stove. It is done ALL the time but that doesn't excuse it. It's kind of like putting a flat screen TV over your fireplace. Ergonomically its a horrible, horrible place for a TV but everyone thinks its great simply because everyone else does it. Nobody thinks practically. As you mentioned RGC, it will become a grease magnet and the inconvenience of placing a microwave over the stove is not worth it.

[dilrods]

It's funny: we've had that layout for 10 years and are simply upgrading within that layout; never had any problems ... at least not with the work flow, and I don't think I mind the look. RGC, my question was not for pro style ranges.

[SQHD]

You can't put up a hood but you're putting a microwave in its place? Ditch the microwave in any situation. It needs to go somewhere else, not above the stove.