Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
tuckaho

ADU kitchen design problem

tuckaho
10 months ago

I'm building an ADU with a small kitchen and the architect has put my stove under a window that prevents me from using a hood. There are only two downdraft electric ranges to choose from, neither of which have positive reviews. Because I'm going to install an electric range, is it necessary to have a hood?

Comments (12)

  • wdccruise
    10 months ago
    last modified: 10 months ago

    I read a bunch of articles and they all say the same thing: No gas stoves (and no curtains), electric stoves are okay, the window will get dirty and a dirty window would be more noticeable than a dirty backsplash, yes to hood a but it may partially block the window. Here are some photos. I'd use a slide-in induction range whose minimized cooktop heat could help reduce the window mess. IMO depending on the view, looking out a window could be a lot nicer than staring at a wall.

  • artemis78
    10 months ago

    I would try to solve this first by moving the range to be not below the window. Are you building this from scratch or converting an existing building? If the former, move the window. A window over a range is going to get greasy even with an electric range, doubly so if you don't have a hood. If the latter, think of other ways to configure the kitchen--you can try posting the plan for feedback. Also be sure your local code allows a range to be under a window (pretty sure ours doesn't even if it's not gas).

  • User
    10 months ago

    Architects are not kitchen designers. Please get a kitchen designer.

  • wdccruise
    10 months ago

    I like the layouts that consist of a wall-mounted hood over an induction range, sized and mounted such that neither the hood nor the range overlap the window. For example, a 30" range would have a 36" wall-mounted hood. The bottom of the 36"-wide window would be 36" from the floor, the same height as the cooktop. The top of the window would be 60-66" inches from the floor; the bottom of the hood would align with the top of the window. I like awning windows which can be opened even in sloppy weather and don't catch the wind like awning windows, reducing turbulence behind the cooktop.

  • marmiegard_z7b
    10 months ago

    That just seems bad— if any way to avoid.
    Is the window placement such that there are no privacy issues ever ? I know many homes are designed so that even large back windows need no privacy coverings due to fencing, green space. But other locations may want a backup window covering of a work zone like kitchen sink, for nighttime. I don’t think you can do that behind a stove. So how is this ADU and window oriented?

  • dan1888
    10 months ago
    last modified: 10 months ago

    Induction like a Frigidaire slide-in is the preferred choice. Second requirement is to move the window. Good high lumen lighting is super important over the work zones in this kitchen. Ambient lighting is separate. Since you're using an architect, just email him to move the window.

  • wdccruise
    10 months ago

    @marmiegard_z7b: "Is the window placement such that there are no privacy issues ever?"

    Uh-oh. Spotlight effect.

  • Kendrah
    10 months ago

    Go back to your architect and tell them that you want your range elsewhere. I have never met an architect that understands kitchen or bathroom design.

  • marmiegard_z7b
    10 months ago

    wdccruise, MAYBE , but with interior task lighting at night, and perhaps a more “ relaxed” attire indoors, I’d say there is a greater chance for a true spotlight!

  • wdccruise
    10 months ago
    last modified: 10 months ago

    @marmiegard_z7b: "greater chance for a true spotlight!"

    Spotlight effect: "The spotlight effect is the psychological phenomenon by which people tend to believe they are being noticed more than they really are. Being that one is constantly in the center of one's own world, an accurate evaluation of how much one is noticed by others is uncommon. The reason for the spotlight effect is the innate tendency to forget that although one is the center of one's own world, one is not the center of everyone else's."*

    Marmie: nobody cares about what you're cooking for dinner.

    *https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spotlight_effect

  • Helen
    10 months ago

    @wdccruise Never heard of the spotlight effect and I have often told people I have the opposite way of approaching my windows


    I live in a high rise with unobstructed views - there are no buildings closer than at at least a city block from me and so I never pull the blinds down except in the morning to block the glare from the eastern exposure. I tell people - and I believe this - that no one is going to be interested in spying on me because my life is so utterly banal that even if they were a window peeper with binoculars they would move on after two seconds of boredom.


    I have had the occasional hovering helicoptor - police use helicopters when they are looking for a suspect in my neighborhood - and I guess they could use their ultra high vision goggles on me watching television.