Window over range

[louis]

Thanks guys. It is a gas range. We thought about the same issue of a draft from the window. It is not our idea to put the range in front of the window. The client wants it there. I thought there was a code reason for not putting it there. It looks like there is not a code reason. I think from a practical standpoint it make no sense at all. Your window will get greased up. Clean clean all the time.

[WendyWelton]

I don't know if it's in IRC, but I had one rejected several years ago based on an NFPA regulation governing distance of glazing to combustibles.

[WendyWelton]

And - like others, in my installation I put the window in a boxed bay, both to get the window away from cooking grease and to comply with NFPA. Mine was a gas range.

[louis]

Thanks Wendy. I don't think a boxed bay is practical in this case. This is a remodel and the window is on the front of the home.

We may have to talk them into moving it.

[MarkMc]

I did one last year and could not find a definitive code answer, checked with a lot of KD's and builders. We also checked with BI prior to final design phase so no surprises.

Ended up setting a fixed inoperable window, not tempered, set back so it was > 9" from the cooktop (distance listed by mfg to the side for a combustible surface), glazing was wider than the cooktop. Used an inoperable window for common sense safety and to keep the builder happy, didn't want someone reaching over a flame going up in smoke and then suing. Used a pop up downdraft for venting.

[WendyWelton]

Mark - there is a code, it's in NFPA 101 - National Fire Protection, adopted by every state in the country as far as I know. I'd have to paw through buckets of NY code stuff to see for sure. Some local code officers don't go beyond their building code book, even though other rules are in effect by reference. You'd be wise to find out for the next one, because having the code officer miss it won't protect you in a lawsuit.

Easier than pawing through all the rules & regs - ask one of the gas fireplace dealers. Gas cooking stove people will have rarely had this question, but the gas fireplace folks will have. They'll point you in the right direction (if you ever have that request again, of course).

I think you were wise to make it inoperable. I would have gone tempered as well. Most people don't do Mongolian Barbecue, so you'll probably be fine.

[louis]

Thanks Mark and Wendy.

Wendy do you remember what the distance is?

[kernsdan]

I have put glass block behind the gas range. Right in the wall very close. But you have probably thought about this already.

[RMorrison]

In California, this issue is referenced in the CMC, Sec. 916. Since the CMC is based on the International Mechanical Code, I suspect you will find it there. Mostly, it is based on clearance to combustibles, as well as any specific clearances required by the appliance manufacturer. It also references NFPA 54:9 & 10, if that helps.

[WendyWelton]

Thanks Mark and Wendy.

Wendy do you remember what the distance is?

I don't, it was a good 8 years ago. I have 12" stuck in my mind, but I couldn't swear to it.

[marty]

I think its just a bad idea and I would try REALLY hard to talk my Client out of it.
Things get splattered on a Stove top and it would forever need cleaning. I guess at a pinch if it was a skinny horizontal window with the sill about 5' off the floor it wouldnt be quite so bad as long as there was a benchtop extract system.

[gawdzira]

I have windows on each side of my range partially overlapping the range. The hood actually intersects the windows. It is a gas range and I do get some problems with the flame blowing against the wind when the windows are open and there is some wind outside. This was not under the IRC at the time it was built. I am pretty sure we were on the UBC at that point.

[VHampton]

Thanks guys. It is a gas range. We thought about the same issue of a draft from the window. It is not our idea to put the range in front of the window. The client wants it there. I thought there was a code reason for not putting it there. It looks like there is not a code reason. I think from a practical standpoint it make no sense at all. Your window will get greased up. Clean clean all the time.

Louis, it's not a code issue, but the glass should tempered if you have extreme clashes of air temperature from inside and outside.

My first apprenticeship was with a modern architect who like to do bands of glass between the lowers and uppers. Kind of a cool idea.

A long story short, in mid winter one year, the water which was boiling on the stove was steaming up the glass. And the outdoor temperature which was in the 20's had made the glass quite cold. Before long the steam caused it to pop.

[VHampton]

a similar thread...a few good safety concerns were raised.

-window treatments which could catch on fire.

-wind could blow out the pilot light (if it were a gas cooktop).

-and reaching over the stove to close the window could be hazardous.

Nothing mentioned about tempering the glass though.

[Cave Dweller]

See this one I did a few months ago.
Window was fixed, and we used tempered glass as suggested by manufacturer. Doesn't seem to be any rules and regs against it here in Aus.

ps. - just don't don't blame me for the colour selections!