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Old 03-05-2015, 10:40 AM   #1
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Microwave vent to outside.

Got the microwave down and now waiting for a nice weather day to cut the hole in the wall to vent it to the outside.
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Old 03-05-2015, 11:40 AM   #2
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Wow that is a major project.

Should be nice weather next week...
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Old 03-05-2015, 05:29 PM   #3
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I am perplexed why Thor decided not to vent the microwave to the outside on most of their motorhomes. I think I saw an ACE model with a nice chrome vent at a dealer lot, but that may have been added afterward.


I anticipate watching your installation pictures, as I will very likely vent my 34E Hurricane.
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Old 03-05-2015, 09:14 PM   #4
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Beacher,


The reason why they did not vent to outside, in my opinion, is cost! Tis much easier and cheaper to simply bolt the microwave in and have it blow all thee grease around the coach, rather than care enough to measure, cut the hole, and install the outer vent cover.


I did this in my old class C when I replaced the 12V recirculating hood with a 110v vented one. A little nerve racking drilling the first hole in the wall!!! lol
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Old 03-06-2015, 12:24 AM   #5
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Originally Posted by Nursx2 View Post
.... A little nerve racking drilling the first hole in the wall!!! lol

Yeah! I'm also considering a hole on the other side of the coach for a dryer vent as well!! Two holes!!
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Old 03-06-2015, 05:00 AM   #6
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Ask Thor for a print of your side-wall's construction details. If you are lucky, they will send you something like this:



That way, you can avoid cutting into any structural members when cutting slots through the side-wall.
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Old 03-06-2015, 10:30 AM   #7
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Great idea FW, thanks!
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Old 03-06-2015, 12:41 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FW28z
Ask Thor for a print of your side-wall's construction details. If you are lucky, they will send you something like this:
Knock Thor for the quality issues all you want but its stuff like this that makes Thor stand out a little. So far, for me, they have been very responsive to inquires like this. None of our other 3 RV manufacturers had ever even attempted contact with us let alone send us prints and diagrams. I was very surprised when we got a call from Thor about 2 months after purchase asking us if we had any questions.
Sure their quality sucks (or is on par with every other RV manufacturer) but, at least in my experience, their customer service has been pretty good.
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Old 03-06-2015, 12:54 PM   #9
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Originally Posted by JamieGeek View Post
So far, for me, they have been very responsive to inquires like this.
That has been my experience as well. I had to ask twice once, and on one occasion they would not divulge a parts source (they said to ask the dealer), but overall, they have helped a lot in this regard. Better than expected.
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Old 03-07-2015, 01:31 AM   #10
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If someone asks for the sidewall construction detail for the Axis please post this information.
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Old 03-07-2015, 02:29 AM   #11
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Hey, nice project and something I would be interested in...did you buy a new vent fan that goes under the micro? Or how are you going to duct it?

Hey Beacher...I had a washer and dryer installed at CW before pickup, the dryer vent is on the driver side and is chrome.....looks real nice!
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Old 03-07-2015, 02:43 AM   #12
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Microwave Vent

Gotta agree here. The microwave in my Four a Winds 31L is vented inside!

Definitely want to see details on how you do this mod!
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Old 03-07-2015, 09:34 AM   #13
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I should have clarified this with my original post. This is a combination microwave /hood unit. I am mainly concerned with venting the hood unit part to the outside, not the microwave. I want to exhaust the stream from the stove unit when my wife cooks using the stove, boiling vegies and frying bacon. I am not worried at all about the little bit that comes from the microwave. My bad!
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Old 03-07-2015, 10:58 AM   #14
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That is odd. My unit has an oven, a range hood, and a microwave. The microwave is not a combo convection oven/microwave. The vent hood is not part of the microwave, but a separate unit underneath.

I have a factory installed outside vent. Perhaps the oven option includes a vent hood to the outside? ...at least in 2011?

Don't know; just my conjecture.

A couple of things I did last year. The vent is just a cheap piece of (originally) white plastic, and in under 3 years had faded yellow. Even in Michigan, UV from the sun can damage plastics that are not protected. So I painted it white to UV protect it. Looks a lot nicer.

We also get pesky wasps, especially in the August timeframe, and they like to build nests in such things, so I made my own custom vent screen for the range hood.

I am a woodworker, so I am comfortable with doing detail work. I made a block of wood that could slip into the bottom of the vent, that was about 1/16" smaller than the vent opening. I then made a cut-out in another piece of wood so that the first block of wood would fit inside of it, with the same 1/16" gap all around.

This became a two piece "mold", and on my workbench, I sandwiched a piece of aluminum screen between the two pieces - then hammered the "plug" into the cut-out.

I ended up with a piece of screen that looked like this:



The screen slid into the slot of the range vent just perfectly. I used a small amount of sliicone to attach it. Silicone will keep it there, but not so much that it cannot be removed.

In reality, it fit snugly enough that I probably didn't need to use silicone, but I didn't want to lose it.

Here is the final result:



Might be hard to tell but the screen is in the bottom and flush with the vent cover. I put the screen in before painting the vent white.

If you can find a chrome vent cover, that of course would work. But if not, consider painting a white one as chances are those cheap covers are not UV protected.



Before painting. The hood is yellow in under 3 years.



After painting.

My wife says I over-complicate everything, but I have a perfectionist mentality... so she will just have to put up with my improvements.
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Old 03-16-2015, 12:51 AM   #15
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Well here is it. Finally got a nice day to get the hole cut and vent attached.
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After measuring 10 times and dry fitting the heavy microwave, starting to cut.

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I got lucky as the aluminum beam was right at the edge of the hole on the left!

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And the sun shines in!


More pics in next post
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Old 03-16-2015, 12:56 AM   #16
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Talking

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You can see the aluminum vent cover in the hole.


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Prior to sealing with silicone.

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The finished product!

Dam thing is so high, I have to go online now and buy an awning rod to be able to open and close the flap tabs! lol


Not shown is the tube of clear silicone I placed inside the vent prior to installing the outside vent. Most waterproof section on the entire RV!
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Old 03-16-2015, 01:04 AM   #17
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Looks really nice!
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Old 03-16-2015, 01:07 AM   #18
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Well done!
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Old 03-16-2015, 01:58 AM   #19
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Good job. I am not opposed to taking a sawzall to my RV if needed, but it still is a leap of faith.
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Old 03-16-2015, 09:52 AM   #20
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FW, I always say, the first cut is the deepest! lol Nice job with your vent as well, BTW!
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