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Do Built In Microwaves Need to Be Vented? (Answered)

Built-in microwaves or the type of microwaves that are built to fit in the kitchen cabinets to free up space in the counters. Nowadays people prefer to install built-in microwaves in their kitchen to make it more modular.

In today’s article, we will be discussing built-in microwaves.

Do built-in microwaves need to be vented? 

Built-in microwaves need to be vented. Since microwaves generate heat when used, this heat must be taken out of the kitchen. Proper ventilation is required to ensure the safe and efficient operations of a built-in microwave. It will also prevent your cabinet floors from getting damaged due to heat. 

Nowadays people look for space-saving interior solutions when building houses. The kitchen is considered one of the most sophisticated places in the house.

You need to keep many types of electronic appliances in the kitchen such as refrigerators, microwaves, blenders, etc. But, organizing them in the right way is a difficult task.

That’s why fitting the ovens inside the kitchen cabinets or attaching them to the walls are the solutions that people look for. This type of microwave is also known as a built-in microwave since it can be fitted to the walls or cabinets.

The built-in microwaves save space on the counter and give your kitchen a more modular and integrated look.

Make sure it has a ventilation system. Since the microwave is a heat-generating electric appliance, it will produce excess heat when operated. This heat needs to be ventilated away to prevent any damage to the interior, walls, and the appliance as well.

Why do built-in microwave ovens need ventilation?

The microwave oven is a very essential kitchen appliance. One of the main purposes of using a microwave oven warm the food. So, heat-generating is one of the most common functionalities that a microwave oven has.

That is why it is important to ensure the efficiency and safety of the microwave oven. Setting up the microwave oven in the kitchen cabinet is simple, but it needs proper ventilation to operate efficiently.

Or else it will cause you a lot of trouble and hassle in the future. Some of the reasons why built-in microwave ovens need ventilation are described below:

Safety & efficiency:

Safety and efficiency are the first reason why built-in microwave ovens need ventilation.

Since the functionality of the microwave oven is to generate heat, without proper ventilation excess heat might cause damage to the microwave and kitchen cabinet components. So, proper ventilation will ensure efficiency at its best.

To keep the kitchen odor free:

Since the microwave oven is used to warm the food, it produces a smell and odor inside the microwave oven which needs to ventilate out.

That is why ventilation is needed in the microwave oven or else this odor would cause a bad smell around the kitchen.

Removal of grease from the kitchen: 

When you use a microwave oven without ventilating the hot air from inside of it, it starts to grow grease, oil, and other bacterial fungi inside the microwave oven due to lack of proper ventilation.

That is why ventilation is one of the main points that you should consider when attaching a built-in microwave oven to your kitchen cabinets or walls.

Do microwave vents do anything?

The ventilation system inside the built-in microwave oven takes the air that grows inside the oven and ventilates it out of the kitchen. It also prevents the microwave to produce any type of bad smell or odor inside the kitchen.

The ventilation system in a built-in microwave oven also helps prevent damage to the kitchen cabinet components. Usually, the microwave oven produces excess heat when in operation.

If that heat is not ventilated out, it will create moisture in the kitchen cabinet surface and damage it. It is very helpful to remove contaminants from your kitchen air.

It will prevent the cooking odors, smoke, and moisture that rise from the cooking surface from damaging the kitchen environment.

If any ventilation system for the microwave oven is not set up, it will recirculate the existing order and heat inside the kitchen and make the environment warm.

Do all built-in microwaves need to be vented? 

It is highly recommended for built-in microwave ovens to have a ventilation system. Although some of the modern microwave ovens do have a built-in cooling system.

Since you are going to set up the microwave oven inside a kitchen cabinet so the built-in cooling system will not be able to provide 100% cooling efficiency for the microwave oven.

That is why it is important to make a separate ventilation system for the microwave oven to pass away odor, grease, smell, and heat from the kitchen to the outside.

Most of the built-in microwave ovens have their cooling vents located at the rear, the bottom, or on the sides.

When you fit your built-in microwave oven inside the kitchen cabinet, it will not have any extra space surrounding it for the air to ventilate out. That is why it is important for all built-in microwaves to be vented.

Where do built-in microwaves vent? 

Most of the modern built-in microwave ovens have their ventilation system either on the side or on the top. For that, you need to make sure that you have enough spaces on the sides and on the top to make sure the air is ventilated properly.

You can also attach a pipe to the part of the cabinet where you have kept the built-in microwave oven. It will help pass away the air and heat generated by the microwave oven.

When you prepared the kitchen cabinet to place the microwave oven, keep 3 inches space from the sides and three inches space from the top to make sure it has enough space to ventilate the air from the microwave oven.

This will help the microwave oven to work efficiently. Or if there’s a cooling vent on the top of the microwave, you can simply attach a pipe to it and release the pipe’s other end and outside the kitchen. 

How to vent a built-in microwave? How is a built-in microwave vented?

Since the microwave also emits cooking odors, heat will be trapped in the kitchen if not ventilated. Also, the smoke emitted from the microwave oven will increase the humidity and damage the components of the kitchen cabinets.

For this reason, be sure to place three inches on the side and top of your kitchen to avoid damage caused by the microwave. These spaces will help to get rid of air and heat from the kitchen.

If you wish, you can connect a pipe to the vents that will absorb heat and smoke, and odors from the kitchen and exit the kitchen.

Built-in microwave ovens are used in the kitchen to save space on the countertops and make your kitchen look more modular. There are some instructions and rules you need to follow when venting a built-in microwave oven.

By following the proper guidelines, you can avoid your kitchen components being damaged due to the heat and moisture generated by the operation of a built-in microwave oven. They are described below:

Choose the spot:

Once you have decided to make a microwave oven inside the kitchen. Now it’s time to choose your spot. Make sure you choose a place that is easily accessible. This will help you when you clean the cabinets.

Add space inside the compartment:

When creating a compartment for your built-in microwave oven, add more space to it.

Place three inches of space next to the cabinet and three inches above. This will ensure proper ventilation inside the cabinet and prevent damage to your wood.

Attach a pipe: 

Since you are going to use the built-in microwave oven regularly, it will generate more heat than usual during the peak season. So, attach a special pipe that will emit hot air from the cabinet to the outside of the kitchen.

How do I know if my microwave needs to be vented? 

Just in case you didn’t set up a ventilation system for your built-in microwave ovens, you will see some signs if you need a ventilation system inside your kitchen. One of the most noticeable signs is your kitchen environment will always be hot.

Besides, when you cook foods inside the microwave oven, it will spread a bad smell and odor inside the kitchen. And finally, after long-term use, you’ll see that the moisture has grown up inside the cabinet and it will start to damage the wood eventually.

If any of these signs show up immediately, replace the cabinet and make a new one with a ventilation system.

Final thoughts 

Built-in microwaves need to be vented no matter if they have cooling vents in them or not. When you are setting up your microwave ovens inside a kitchen cabinet, it will generate heat and damage the wooden texture of the cabinets. It might cause damage to the microwave oven components as well.