Looking for advice (not pond related) of a home construction nature adding a vent hood for stove (2 story house)

Mmathis

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Before I start calling in contractors, just wanted some advice from those of you who may have personal experience and/or just know the business. You know, kinda see if this is a doable project.

We bought our current home 3 years ago (I think it was built around 2002-ish). The way the kitchen is set up, there is a gas cooktop with the microwave built in directly above the cooktop. As far as we can tell, there is no “ventilation“ above for the cooktop, other than the puny little fan-filter under the microwave — but that doesn’t vent TO anywhere. So, when we use the cooktop, it makes a “heat” alarm go off on the microwave (heat rising from the cooktop), and if we’re not 100% careful, we set off the smoke alarms…..

What we would like to do is remove the m/wave (put it in another location altogether) and have a proper vent hood installed over the cooktop. Problem is, it’s a 2-story house. My hubby thinks that it’s an impossible construction to add a vent hood since ducting would have to be routed up, and I guess through the crawl space between the 1st and 2nd floor??? My assertion is that a good contractor would have a way and means to retro-fit a vent hood, so I am hopeful…. And, BTW, yes this would totally be handled by a professional, and NOT be a DIY job (my BIL wants to come over and “knock out some flooring” :oops::rolleyes:o_O).

Maybe my drawings will help. I am convinced that the current set up isn’t at all safe.

2C16BDFD-137B-45D1-B75A-84CDC69F202C.jpeg
 
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Yep, if the microwave is mounted on an outside wall, it can easily be done.
Remove the microwave, cut the hole, install outside vent cap, convert microwave to outside vent by switching the vent framing in the back, remount microwave. I have personally done this quite a few times.

If the microwave is not mounted on an outside wall, you can vent it through the upper cabinet and out through the roof.

Mine is vented down into the basement and then out through the wall, but it was done when the house was built.
 

Mmathis

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@poconojoe and others. Sorry, but I guess I left out the most important detail: this is a 2-story house, and there is a bedroom directly above the cooktop……and it is an inside wall. Moving the m/wave and installing the vent through the cabinetry would be a cinch — if it wasn’t for the darn bedroom in the way.
 
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@poconojoe and others. Sorry, but I guess I left out the most important detail: this is a 2-story house, and there is a bedroom directly above the cooktop……and it is an inside wall. Moving the m/wave and installing the vent through the cabinetry would be a cinch — if it wasn’t for the darn bedroom in the way.
What's below the kitchen?
Is there a basement or at least a crawlspace?
Some homes are built on a slab and don't have either. If that's the case, then your options are limited.

Like I said, mine is ducted down into the basement, along the basement ceiling between the joists and out. The duct is inside the wall behind the stove.

It would be a bit more work to run a duct within the wall, but it can be done.
You would have to pull the stove out to access the back wall. Open up that wall, cut the floor within the wall to duct it down.
 

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Do you have a trusted contractor you can ask? We changed out our hood last year and because we had the hole cut for the vent, no contractor would install the new hood! Granite countertops on either side of stove and overhead cabinets. Ended up getting a cabinet jack!
Maybe time for a kitchen remodel????
 

Mmathis

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@poconojoe No, here in Louisiana, we don’t have basements, unfortunately, so we have a very thick slab underneath. I figured this wouldn’t be an easy fix, but still hoping that it’s doable enough to at least call some professional people to give it a look-see (without having them laugh at me…).

Isn’t it interesting that when you live in a home built by and for someone else, you see so many things that you would have done different? For example, this cute little alcove on the landing…..? IDK, maybe it was intended to display a piece of fine art….of which we have zero — but it makes a great spot for a cat bed, LOL!

image.jpg
 

Mmathis

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Do you have a trusted contractor you can ask? We changed out our hood last year and because we had the hole cut for the vent, no contractor would install the new hood! Granite countertops on either side of stove and overhead cabinets. Ended up getting a cabinet jack!
Maybe time for a kitchen remodel????
We do have someone in mind, so guess we’ll eventually look into it. Hubby simply wants to pull the m/wave and replace it with a counter-top one…..which doesn’t exactly solve the problem of ventilation, and only leaves a nice ugly void among the cabinets. Hmmmm, a kitchen remodel would be nice, tee, hee — we both hate the sink as well as the black sparkly granite countertops;)
 
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We do have someone in mind, so guess we’ll eventually look into it. Hubby simply wants to pull the m/wave and replace it with a counter-top one…..which doesn’t exactly solve the problem of ventilation, and only leaves a nice ugly void among the cabinets. Hmmmm, a kitchen remodel would be nice, tee, hee — we both hate the sink as well as the black sparkly granite countertops;)
there's always the option of removing the smoke alarms...;)
 

Mmathis

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there's always the option of removing the smoke alarms...;)
Oh, don’t go there! About 6 months ago all of our smoke alarms were going off at the same time (not a fire) (there are somewhere between 10 and 18, don’t remember exactly). We didn’t know it, but they were all hardwired and had exceeded their life expectancy. Hubby had been changing batteries dutifully, but the batteries were only for backup and not for the primary electrical! It was awful! The noise, and there was no way to make them stop. Hubby checked the circuit breaker boxes, but couldn’t find a switch dedicated to the alarms. We finally got them to SHUT UP, so I had the electrician come out the next day to replace them all. I went out to the garage ahead of the electrician and peeked at the circuit boxes and I said, “Oh, do you think it’s the one labeled ‘smoke alarms’.” I’ve never let hubby live that down — men!
 

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