Microwave: Where did you put yours?

[hose-man]

I've just aquired a nice, small 0.7 cu ft 700 watt microwave.   

Mine coach is a '73 D22 indian.   My floorplan is the one on page 6 of this pdf: LINK

The refer next to the stove is a large model & goes all the way to the ceiling.

My plan going in to this project was to remove the door of the cupboard above the range hood, remove the shelf in that space,  install the microwave and cut the door to trim arround the microwave.   

Pros:  Always available, not hidden behind a door.
          Off the counter
          In the kitchen area

Cons: Always visible.   not hidden nicely behind a door.
          Occupies precious cupboard space.
          Permanent alteration to my mostly stock rig.

Once I unboxed the magnatron & took a look at my space I began to wonder........    What about removing the range hood & suspending it under the cabinet, above the stove.    i could work a vent fan in behind it to evacuate carbon monoxide when cooking & stay save.    i would have less head room over the stove & there would no longer be a stove light.     It would be a entirely reversible.    I could reinstall the hood at a later date & no one would be the wiser.

What say you?   
Do you have a microwave in your rig?
Do you use it?
Am I over thinking this?
Is owning a classic Winnebago super fun? -YES IT IS-

[Oz]

LOL!  I had gone through entirely the same thought process about ours.
We've kept ours in the cabinet above the stove, just as you did and opened the cabinet door when we needed to use it.  This was all ok and fine but, storage is so limited, we really didn't want to give that up.

It's quite easy to make suitable under cabinet mounts for the microwave and your idea about placing it where the vent hood is.  It would reduce the head room underneath, but really, how often do you poke your head under there anyway?  In fact, by removing the hood, you wouldn't be bopping your head into the range hood as often when you peek into a pot (yeah, I've sputtered a few swear words doing that). 

The only issue I can think of would be the heat rising from the rear burners and water vapor rising from boiling water.

However, if your mount is a solid, heat protective sling, like a bench turned upside down, this would cure the problem, and you would be able to remove the microwave very easily as well.  Just have a lip at the bottom front to keep it from sliding out on it's own.

Also, there is room behind the refrigerator above the exterior control access compartment.  A couple of small fans could be creatively installed there drawing the smoke, vapors, etc up through the fridge roof vent.

[RV Mech Tech]

hose-man and Mark - don't forget the carbon monoxide coming off the stove and top burner plates unless the microwave has a ventilation system- I have seen some smaller microwaves  with the fan and vent - no big deal if all the windows are opened but not good if the stove is used in colder weather.    Hm?

[Oz]

So correct, Mike!  Proper ventilation is a prime consideration.  Two, small, stacked fans mounted in the wall, exiting into the fridge vent space should do the trick, even 3 or 4 would fit, and of course, more creative ideas could be employed.

We use the space on the wall behind the stove for condiments, but a standard wall fan could be mounted there quite nicely too.

[hose-man]

I guess by headroom under the microwave I was meaning room to work on the stove.

With the under cabinet method, I believe that I can hold the microwave off the back wall enough to fit a fan and duct to the factory exterior vent.

Sob, I like the vent to fridge cavity idea.   I'll have to keep that in my bag of tricks.   I have some room above my fridge too.   Not enough for the microwave, but I could put a door on the front of it, much like there is below the fridge.   That might make up for some of the lost storage of the in-cabinet install.

Seen them installed anywhere else?

[RV Mech Tech]

O.K. guys I am going to throw a wrench into the works here because this involves propane- the idea of setting up a separate ventilation system is a good one but using the fridge/vent cavity for this should be reconsidered for the following reasons -a) since these RV fridges are 'heat absorption' units and the cooling system vents the heat collected from the interior of the fridge through the backside the proper venting of this heat as well as sealing of the cavity (this is a regulation for the installation of fridges in new RVs) behind the fridge to the coach body is important and necessary to ensure three things- 1) the heat that is dissipated by the cooling coils must not enter in or around  the area of the fridge cabinet (sides or top or bottom of the fridge case outside)  as this will have a warming affect on the interior temps of the fridge-  2) any deviation or interuption of air flow anywhere  in the backside around the cooling coils (in the fridge vent cavity) will increase the operating temps of the cooling unit (this includes any introduction of air from an outside source but does not include a small cooling fan mounted at the bottom of the cooling coils to assist the flow of air over the coils)  and 3) since there is a propane burn chamber and carbon monoxide  goes up through the flu up to the top vent any air flow introduced above the cooling coils may interupt the dissipation of  not only the heated air but in the event of a leak of carbon monoxide before it goes through the roof vent it may reenter the coach through any fabricated holes (if not using the fans to vent the stove) -in other words there must be no way for air to reenter the coach body from the fridge cavity from the bottom to the top behind or on the sides or top of the fridge -  also if a cooling unit fails and ammonia escapes the stove vent system would be a way for the ammonia fumes to enter the coach interior - you can check out both Dometics and Norcolds website and download an installation manual for any fridge and it will show you that that cavity behind the fridge has to be sealed off completely from the inside of the RV- a separate venting system that would have a direct connection to outside of the coach (separate from the fridge vent) would work perfectly.    Y!

[Oz]

An "L" shaped duct from the exhaust fans to the exterior wall through the space behind the fridge would work.  "Where there's a will, there's a way."  Although, the standard exhaust fan behind the stove would be the most effective and easier to do!

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Since we fulltime it, we simply can't give up any precious cabinet space...and if we put the microwave over the stove, it would sit WAY too low and too close to the burners.

So for a while we left our tiny little microwave on the kitchen table...it was in the way and an eyesore, but we do use it often for making popcorn, heating up leftovers, etc. 

Solution?  I made a folding shelf that goes over the drivers seat, in line with the kitchen cabinet over the dinette!  I even added an outlet to the side of the cabinet so we wouldn't have any visible wires hanging down!  I used offset hinges so the front window curtain would still operate smoothly, and it looks great since we bought a little black 900 watt microwave...it blends in and looks like it belongs there.

The only drawback is that we can't travel with the microwave on that shelf.  I'd be afraid it would somehow come loose over a bump in the road and might land on my head while driving...lol!  So we take it down when we travel and put it on one of the dinette seats.  The shelf then folds up toward the ceiling and hooks out of the way.  It really did come out slick!

I'll take some pictures when I get a chance.

Kev

[newellkev]

Kevin, Here's a idea.  i?? I don't know about yours but aren't the rubber feet on most Microwaves mounted  with a screw up through the middle?  Could you pop a couple of holes in your shelf and get some longer screws to go through the feet and mount it right to the shelf? Like I said Just an Idea. Hm?
The PO of Rolling Home mounted one above the sink in one of the 2 cabinets. Yea, it it took out a little storage (not much) but they did a real good Job and it almost looks like it is original.

[ClydesdaleKevin]

I like the way the shelf folds up out of the way when driving, so I wouldn't want to screw down the microwave permanently...and the microwave is so light its no big deal to lift it up there and take it down.  I'll post some pics when I get a chance...its a slick setup.

My cabinets aren't original in the kitchen.  I got rid of the stock particle board ones and installed some that I got of a 72 Georgie Boy in the junkyard.  They are bigger, taller, deeper, and longer, so we have a lot more storage than stock...and its still barely enough.

I also added a drawer cabinet under the bed in the back...it has six deep drawers on ball bearing slides...We are going to loose a couple of smaller drawers in the back when we install the Splendide washer/dryer combo, so I had to compensate.  I also rebuilt the closet in the back so its deeper.  And the new dinette has deep drawers on slides under the benches so the storage there is easy to use instead of the pia stock setup.

I really need to post some pics soon of all the cool stuff I've been doing to Excalibur!

Ah well...its off to the Lee County Civic Center for a big RV show!  See if I can get any more ideas....muhahahahaha!

Kev

[tiinytina]

Our Tiffin had a microwave in the cabinet above the stove that simply rattled around driving down the road. Since we had the space Pat mounted the new nice red one I bought into the space and then framed it in. I believe he mounted it with some aluminum L brackets screwed into the sides of unit to the bottom of the cabinet prior to framing it.

Tina

[Beachcomber]

Hi all, haven't visited the site for a bit, but this is one of the first forum questions I noticed. We have a 1974 Chieftain, with the Chrysler 440 engine..is this a D22? We bought it just about 3 years ago, and it already had a Panasonic microwave oven mounted in what I assume used to be a storage cabinet right above the table (which sits right behind the driver). Whoever installed it cut the door enough to insert the microwave, then reframed the space left, which makes a neat little cupboard for a 3 litre box of wine! It is exposed all the time (but sports a nifty digital clock!), does use some storage space, but is very convenient, being right across from the stove and oven, and is easily accessed from the table area.  Was initially a little ticked that the door had been sacrificed, but got over it after the second glass of wine and first use of the microwave to quickly cook a meal. Works for us!

[hose-man]

I finally mounted the Microwave which prompted the start of this thread.    I decided to remove the vent hood over the stove/oven and hang the microwave in it's place.   There are a few inches behind the microwave where I will eventually fabricate & install a slender hood with a fan to capture & exhaust the cooking gasses.   For the time being I will just be diligent to open a window when using the oven and keep fresh batteries in the CO detector.

Here's how it looks.
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Click on image to view larger size

Power is supplied by the outlet located in the exterior compartment behind the refrigerator.   The fridge is plugged into it.  I just drilled a 1/2 inch hole from behind the microwave into the void behind the fridge.    I poked the power cord through, re-attached a plug & plugged her in.   Suprisingly simple once I located the outlet the fridge plugs into.   I previously had no idea it was there.    Since then, I've used it a few times to plug a work light into   I may add an exterior outlet in this area for future convenience.