Open concept without external vent?

HU-193601146

last year

Hi! I'm renovating my apartment in Brooklyn, NY and I'm thinking about breaking down the wall between the living room and the kitchen to make an open concept layout, but I'm concerned about cooking smells and grease getting everywhere. A lot of new construction has open concepts but new construction also has vents that extract air to the exterior. My building is older and doesn't have that and I won't be able to get permission to break the exterior wall. Does that mean it's a bad idea to do an open concept kitchen design? Would it be enough to have a recirculating fan (i.e. in a wall-mounted microwave)? I'm interested in getting perspectives who have had this kind of layout before (open concept with limited ventilation) and how it worked out. I know there are alternative ideas like venting out the window, getting air purifiers etc. but I'm curious if anyone has advice or whether this is going to be more of a hassle than it's worth. Thanks!

Featured Answer

Kendrah

last year

last modified: last year

I live in Manhattan in a pre-war. We too have no exterior ventilation, and we are not allowed to vent out the window either. We have a microwave with vent above the range in order to save counter space. We open the window when we cook to help the gas chemicals and odor leave the room. Our building doesn't have power to allow for electric or induction. We can only have a gas range.

The previous owners took down the galley wall to make an open concept, much like you want to do. The first thing we did after closing was to put the wall back up. BUT, we added a second entrance to the kitchen and used good pocket doors on both entrances. When we are cooking something really greasy or something with a lot of smell, we will close both pocket doors to contain the odor.

Our layout is similar to yours. We added the second doorway where I marked in pink on the pic below. It helps the kitchen feel more a part of the adjacent room. It is easier to have conversation between the two space and move in and out. We have a stool at the end of the counter run on your fridge wall.. We sit there a TON. We made the doorway extra wide so the other person can easily walk in and out when the stool is being used.

This pic is taken from our pocket door near the window. You can see where the counter ends and we have a stool.

Our primary reason for adding back the wall was to keep grease and odor contained. But, we also didn't want to loose the upper cabinet space nor dedicated counterspace of a galley. And, we like to keep our kitchen mess visually contained. We are not slob by any means but in an apartment sized home, we didn't want a view of any kitchen mess (drying pots and pans, glasses to go in the dishwasher) from more than 50% of our living space.

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Comments (8)

eam44
last year
last modified: last year
I’m so bummed for you that you cannot vent to the outside. Is it a pre-war building?

It is what it is, youre going to have to use a recirculating hood with filters and change the filters often. I don’t think venting out of windows meets code in most places. That doesn’t mean you have to use a microhood. You can get recirculators that move 400 - 600 cfm of air.

I honestly don’t think you have to cancel your open concept plan because of this, but maybe invest in ceiling fans to help dissipate odors.

Also, consider getting an induction range or cooktop to protect the quality of your indoor air. Gas burns pretty dirty.
HU-193601146
Original Author
last year
Well, I'm also thinking about using a microwave over the stove anyhow just to preserve counter space. So again I'm wondering if that's just woefully underventilated. Is the biggest concern with odors? I'm concerned that we'll get grease build up on everything.
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eam44
last year
It’s odors, atomized oils, and gas ranges spew out pollutants like carbon monoxide and benzene.
HU-193601146
Original Author
8 months ago
In the end we pulled the trigger on the open plan reno. It's in process now. Because the ceilings are going to be different heights, the contractor is putting in a soffit between the living room and the kitchen, and I'm hopeful this blocks some of the smoke and steam as well. I also saw https://streeteasy.com/building/243-mcdonald-avenue-brooklyn/6j which has a layout somewhat similar to what we're going for. So, maybe it will be OK! Thanks everyone for your input. I will post back after construction is done and we have a little while to try it out.
HU-193601146
Original Author
7 months ago
OK, so construction is done, and I've even cooked a couple times. I haven't noticed any issues with odors or even cooking grease. Maybe I was worried for nothing. Thanks for everyone who shared a perspective. Here's the pictures of the final product:
John Liu
7 months ago
Very nice!
eam44
7 months ago
Congratulations on your new space! Enjoy it in the best of health.