Residential Interior Design by Maureen Mitton & Courtney Nystuen

Author:Maureen Mitton & Courtney Nystuen
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781119014072
Publisher: Wiley
Published: 2016-04-08T00:00:00+00:00

Electrical and Mechanical

The work done in a kitchen brings in smoke, odors, grease, and toxic fumes (in gas ranges and cooktops). With newer homes increasingly airtight due to improvements in construction and insulation, proper ventilation of cooking equipment is a necessity.

Four cooking area ventilation choices are available: a ventilating hood over the cooktop vented to the outside, a ductless hood with a recirculation fan, a downdraft range/cooktop that draws contaminants into connected ductwork downward and then outside, and a wall fan that exhausts to the outside. According to the NKBA’s Kitchen Basics, the ductless hood and wall fan are the least effective, with the vented hood the best option. The limitations of the downdraft system can involve tall pots and pans limiting ventilation and dependence on the proximity to the substances being vented. Both the vented hood and the downdraft systems work to filter out grease, odors, and smoke, whereas the other options primarily move the air only.

Downdraft systems may vent directly outside or use ducting running beneath the floor between joists. Ventilated hoods may exhaust outside: vertically through the roof, directly through an exterior wall, or horizontally through a soffit or through exposed ductwork. Sizing the ventilation hood and fan requires careful thought. According to the NKBA, hoods should be roughly 3 inches (76 mm) wider on each side than the cooking surface, although in the authors’ experience, this is seldom seen in standard residential construction.

According to the NKBA, ventilation of 150 cfm is recommended for surface cooking appliances. This recommendation exceeds that required by the code and may vary from that called for by manufacturers; therefore, familiarity with manufacturers’ guidelines is imperative. The length of ductwork, how many bends are required, and its location all affect the sizing of the ventilation fan. If ductwork is located in uninsulated attics in some colder climates, it may need to be wrapped with insulation.

Because the IRC (Section R303.9) calls for heating to a minimum of 68°F (20°C) when the winter design temperature is below 60°F (15.5°C), most kitchens in the United States (with the possible exception of portions of Hawaii and Florida) are required to have some source of heat.

The location of the heat source or its registers or diffusers, as well as those used by any air-cooling source, must be considered in relationship to the location of appliances and counters. The actual engineering of the heating and cooling system is, of course, done by professionals other than the interior designer. However, it’s worth noting that in colder northern climates, heat is often delivered low—for example, at toe spaces—and on outside walls. Conversely, in warmer climates, cool air can be delivered at higher locations on interior walls.

The National Electrical Code calls for ground fault interrupters (GFIs) to be used for electrical outlets in kitchens and other wet locations. These are designed to protect from electrical shock by detecting currents as minor as a few milliamperes and tripping a breaker at the receptacle or at the breaker panel to remove the shock hazard.

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