Ideas for an Under-Cabinet Microwave With No Back Wall

Under-Cabinet Mount

• If you do not have a back wall to install an under-cabinet microwave on, a wall-mounting kit will be of no use. However, some manufacturers produce cabinet-mounting kits for this very reason. An under-cabinet mounting kit works similarly to a wall-mounting one, but the components of the kit install to the bottom of the cabinet instead of to a wall. Before attempting to install an under-cabinet microwave, you must know the weight limitations of the cabinetry, which can generally be found in the original plans for the kitchen.

Mesh or Wire Stand

• The main issue with installing an under-cabinet microwave with no back wall is ventilation. An under-cabinet microwave generally vents from the bottom, which means that the microwave cannot sit directly on a countertop. If you do place the microwave directly on a surface, the unit won’t be able to vent and may overheat. One solution for this venting issue is to sit a microwave meant for under-cabinet use on a mesh or wire stand with a slatted surface. This way, the microwave can still vent.

Counter

• Like under-cabinet microwaves, many countertop microwaves also vent from the bottom. This venting is made possible by rubber or plastic feet that lift the microwave up above the counter surface. Some under-cabinet microwaves already have these feet attached to the bottom to make it adaptable to countertop use. If the under-cabinet microwave does not have bottom feet, however, you can install rubber or plastic feet to each corner of the unit with adhesive to create a countertop microwave.

Microwave Stand

• If you would like to make your own stand for an under-cabinet microwave that cannot be mounted or you want to use a store-bought microwave stand, you can do so by adding feet to the bottom of the microwave or by creating a hole in the microwave stand that allows the microwave to vent. The vent on an under-cabinet microwave generally covers most of the bottom of the unit, so you must cut a hole into the top of the stand large enough for the entire vent to show through.