Les wrote:
Planning on buying all new kitchen appliances, since they are all
about 18 yrs old. Currently have a hood over the range that has a
fan and light as part of it. I would like to replace the hood with a
microwave oven over the range.

My condo is 18 yrs old. Can I assume that since I have electricity
with the hood, that the electrical wiring is ample for the microwave,
like the salesman says? Or how can it be tested to make sure that
the current electrical wiring is OK?

Well the wiring is likely sufficient but the question might be what else
is already on the circuit.

It is never a good idea to make any assumptions about electrical work.

I would also advise you to rethink the combo hood-microwave. If
something happens to the microwave, you will never find another to fit the
space. You will pay more for the combo than either alone. The hot space
above the range is not a good spot for a microwave.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit

In article , Joseph Meehan says...

Les wrote:
Planning on buying all new kitchen appliances, since they are all
about 18 yrs old. Currently have a hood over the range that has a
fan and light as part of it. I would like to replace the hood with a
microwave oven over the range.

My condo is 18 yrs old. Can I assume that since I have electricity
with the hood, that the electrical wiring is ample for the microwave,
like the salesman says? Or how can it be tested to make sure that
the current electrical wiring is OK?

Well the wiring is likely sufficient but the question might be what else
is already on the circuit.

It is never a good idea to make any assumptions about electrical work.

I would also advise you to rethink the combo hood-microwave. If
something happens to the microwave, you will never find another to fit the
space. You will pay more for the combo than either alone. The hot space
above the range is not a good spot for a microwave.



Really?

Microwave/hoods are very common now, and I was planning it as part of my new
kitchen.

Have there been a lot of reported problems with these?

Banty (Les wants to replace 17 year old appliances - don't think he'd be
interested in trading for my current 45 year old ones! They're 'vintage' age
now, but they're not 'vintage' condition. :-)

Banty wrote:
In article , Joseph
Meehan says...

Les wrote:
Planning on buying all new kitchen appliances, since they are all
about 18 yrs old. Currently have a hood over the range that has a
fan and light as part of it. I would like to replace the hood with
a microwave oven over the range.

My condo is 18 yrs old. Can I assume that since I have electricity
with the hood, that the electrical wiring is ample for the
microwave, like the salesman says? Or how can it be tested to make
sure that the current electrical wiring is OK?

Well the wiring is likely sufficient but the question might be
what else is already on the circuit.

It is never a good idea to make any assumptions about electrical
work.

I would also advise you to rethink the combo hood-microwave. If
something happens to the microwave, you will never find another to
fit the space. You will pay more for the combo than either alone.
The hot space above the range is not a good spot for a microwave.



Really?

Microwave/hoods are very common now, and I was planning it as part of
my new kitchen.

Have there been a lot of reported problems with these?

The problem is most microwaves don't last 17 years, range hoods do. In
five years you will likely not be able to find a replacement for the
microwave and no one will want to bother repairing it if they can get the
parts, they are throwaways. New ones are better and cheaper every year.



Banty (Les wants to replace 17 year old appliances - don't think he'd
be interested in trading for my current 45 year old ones! They're
'vintage' age now, but they're not 'vintage' condition. :-)

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit

"Banty" wrote in message
Really?

Microwave/hoods are very common now, and I was planning it as part of my
new
kitchen.

Have there been a lot of reported problems with these?

Banty (Les wants to replace 17 year old appliances - don't think he'd be
interested in trading for my current 45 year old ones! They're 'vintage'
age
now, but they're not 'vintage' condition. :-)

My OTR microwave only lasted about 18 years. They wouldn't even honor the
warranty after that.

Sarcasm aside, if the OP is going to run a new circuit, he may also want to
consider a microwave convection combo unit. Sure is hand to have a second
oven at time and to use the fast bake feature.

On 26 Jul 2005 10:30:26 -0700, Banty wrote:

In article , Joseph Meehan says...

Les wrote:
Planning on buying all new kitchen appliances, since they are all
about 18 yrs old. Currently have a hood over the range that has a
fan and light as part of it. I would like to replace the hood with a
microwave oven over the range.
[snippage]
I would also advise you to rethink the combo hood-microwave. If
something happens to the microwave, you will never find another to fit the
space. You will pay more for the combo than either alone. The hot space
above the range is not a good spot for a microwave.

Really?

Microwave/hoods are very common now, and I was planning it as part of my new
kitchen.

Have there been a lot of reported problems with these?

My 2 cents: Replacing a dead microwave/hood combo probably isn't an
issue. As you say, they're common, and they're standard sized. What
I've read and experienced, though, is the fans in the combo units
aren't particularly good. A dedicated fan works much better. We have a
3-speed Broan Allure we like a lot - very quiet, nice design and
features, powerful enough on Boost for wokking. Just me, but I find a
microwave over the range exceedingly inconvenient. Should one use the
range and the microwave at the same time, a common occurence in our
house, one is reaching over flame, heat, and/or steaming spattering
cooking. Also, like a TV/VCR combo, if one breaks both are effectively
broken. That said, if a combo is what you want, it's your home, so of
course do what you like best :-).

Banty (Les wants to replace 17 year old appliances - don't think he'd be
interested in trading for my current 45 year old ones! They're 'vintage' age
now, but they're not 'vintage' condition. :-)

Been there :-). The ex got a lovely old Magic Chef range. Wish I could
have taken it with me, she replaced it with a new crummy Jenn-Air. One
reason she's "ex" ;-).

--
Luke

Luke ) said...

Just me, but I find a microwave over the range exceedingly inconvenient.
Should one use the range and the microwave at the same time, a common
occurence in our house, one is reaching over flame, heat, and/or steaming
spattering cooking.

Kitchens these days tend to be "operated" by more than one person at at time.
We went with a separate cooktop and oven arrangement in the kitchen of our
new home and have found the ability for one person using the oven and another
on the cooktop to be a great feature over having a range (or oven beneath
the cooktop!) where one has to step out of the way while the other accesses
the oven.

I couldn't imagine the hassles of adding a microwave to the mix of things
at one location.

Of course, if your kitchen is tight for space, then the whole picture
changes anyways.

--
Calvin Henry-Cotnam
"Never ascribe to malice what can equally be explained by incompetence."
- Napoleon
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In article , Calvin Henry-Cotnam says...

Luke ) said...

Just me, but I find a microwave over the range exceedingly inconvenient.
Should one use the range and the microwave at the same time, a common
occurence in our house, one is reaching over flame, heat, and/or steaming
spattering cooking.

Kitchens these days tend to be "operated" by more than one person at at time.
We went with a separate cooktop and oven arrangement in the kitchen of our
new home and have found the ability for one person using the oven and another
on the cooktop to be a great feature over having a range (or oven beneath
the cooktop!) where one has to step out of the way while the other accesses
the oven.

I couldn't imagine the hassles of adding a microwave to the mix of things
at one location.

Of course, if your kitchen is tight for space, then the whole picture
changes anyways.


It's a galley kitchen, tight for space, with only two people in the house
(basically only one cook).

But what you say is an important consideration.

Banty

On Tue, 26 Jul 2005 21:31:41 GMT, lid
(Calvin Henry-Cotnam) wrote:

Luke ) said...

Just me, but I find a microwave over the range exceedingly inconvenient.
Should one use the range and the microwave at the same time, a common
occurence in our house, one is reaching over flame, heat, and/or steaming
spattering cooking.

Kitchens these days tend to be "operated" by more than one person at at time.
We went with a separate cooktop and oven arrangement in the kitchen of our
new home and have found the ability for one person using the oven and another
on the cooktop to be a great feature over having a range (or oven beneath
the cooktop!) where one has to step out of the way while the other accesses
the oven.
[snip]

Yes, if one has the space and the money, separating appliances - and
work areas - is a real convenience, even when only one person is
cooking. We have a range with a large oven, but also a smaller wall
oven which gets the most use. The large oven we use only for, well,
large items, or special times like Thanksgiving when two ovens are
useful to bake several things at the same time at different temps. Not
the turkey, though - that goes on the Weber charcoal grill :-).

--
Luke
__________________________________________________ _________________
"We have the media now."
-- Ann Coulter, on The Sean Hannity Show, July 25, 2005