Recirculating Venting vs. External Venting in a Microwave Oven

[Andresa Guidelli]

Hi folks,

I just wanted to pick the brain of HVAC professionals out there regarding microwave vents for my rehab projects in Philadelphia, PA.

I have one of my GC saying we need to install microwave (with auto fan) vent that run from the appliance to outside. The vent affects the size of top cabinets I might be able to use.

Second GC is saying we do not need vent since microwave has auto fan.

Any thoughts?

Rehabbers out there..feel free to share your experiences and preferences.

Thanks a lot.

Andresa

[Tom W.]

Andresa Lobrace Would you install a recirculating fan in your bathroom? I doubt it! Why not? Because you want to remove the contaminated air from the house. The same goes for venting a microwave. Recirculation does absolutely nothing to remove odors, smoke or steam. The proper way to do it is to vent outside.