Has anyone put a microwave on a pullout shelf in an upper cab?

15 years ago

I want to put a compact microwave inside an upper cabinet with a flip up door, but can't go deeper than about a 13" (interior depth) cabinet. The cabinets are face frame inset.

I was thinking I might be able to set a spacesaver microwave on a pullout shelf so that I could pull it out a couple of inches for rear air circulation when in use - then push it back in & close the door when not in use.

The cabinet would be wide & tall enough to accomodate side/top air circulation, flip up door & pullout shelf. The electrical plug would be mounted on side wall of cabinet to save space in back.

Has anyone done this? Any comments or ideas will be greatly appreciated.

Featured Answer

jtsgranite4us

15 years ago

Our refridgerator is cabinet depth so opening the doors can hit the pullout shelf if you are not careful.
Since ours is a side by side we can use the pullout shelf on the opposite side of the refridgerator door we are opening to avoid the possibility of the door hitting the pullout shelf.

The pullout shelf works well as a landing area for the microwave.

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Comments (8)

melanie1422
15 years ago
This is something I have been wondering about myself. I'd love to put the microwave in the pantry - so I don't have to waste my small counter space and I don't have to look at it. Would it be okay on a pullout?
kateskouros
15 years ago
i'm putting a small microwave in an upper cabinet but it will be deep enough so i won't need a pull out, but i don't see any reason you couldn't do this. check with your appliance retailer to be on the safe side. good luck!
jtsgranite4us
15 years ago
We have our microwave in our cabinet. We have a pullout shelf below the microwave. The shelf the microwave sits on is actually removable. The microwave was originally on the pullout shelf but we decided to add the removeable shelf so we could use the pullout shelf as a landing area. We have a similar opening for our toaster oven on the other side of the refridgerator

The shelf that the microwave sits on is 44" from the floor.

Here is a picture:
sprengle1
15 years ago
Jtsgranite4us, What an excellent idea! There is a thread here asking about counterspace next to fridge. This is a great compromise!

Joy20, I think it would be perfectly acceptable to do what you are thinking of.
joy20
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks for the input everyone & the picture (jtsgranite)- clever idea! I am going to propose my idea to the cabinet maker. Hopefully I will have pictures to share by mid June.
bdaykitchen
15 years ago
I hate to be a kill joy, but I think you are going to have a hard time finding a microwave that' less than 13" deep. i had quite a time finding one under 15" to go as an extra microwave in my island. I finally settled on Sharp R1216 (I think). It's ok but whimpy - only 800watts. Let us know if you have success. I don't have super high hopes for the longevity of this one!
joy20
Original Author
15 years ago
bdaykitchen - The GE spacesaver models claim overall depth of 12 9/32 & there are a few other small units from GE, WP & Sharp that claim less than 13 exterior depth. I just need to make sure that those dimensions include the tab or anything else that might be sticking out on the back of the unit. Sometimes the dimensions are not clear about that.