ᐅ Ventilation for IKEA METOD Cabinets on an Exterior Wall

Created on: 11 Apr 2015 09:08
S
Specialist
S
Specialist
11 Apr 2015 09:08
Hello everyone,

we are currently planning a kitchen for our new apartment and have a question about one aspect: one side of the kitchen is against an exterior wall. Since the building is an Art Nouveau-style old building from 1910, proper ventilation behind the cabinets mounted on the exterior walls is especially important to prevent condensation and mold growth in winter. What options are available with Metod for this? As far as I can tell, IKEA does not seem to have a specific solution for this... Is the IKEA planning and installation service (we want to have the kitchen fully assembled due to time constraints) knowledgeable enough to properly address and solve this issue if it is explicitly mentioned?

A wider countertop with ventilation grills at the back could be an option to place the cabinets further from the wall, but I am not sure if IKEA even offers wider countertops (for custom sizes).

Thank you and best regards
Specialist
B
Bandito
11 Apr 2015 12:06
Unfortunately, I don’t have a ready-made solution, just a small suggestion:
We had a similar problem in one room where tall Pax wardrobes were to be placed.
I set those wardrobes up with a 5cm (2 inch) gap from the wall and installed a small fan on each wardrobe. The fans run for a few minutes every few hours to circulate and exchange the air behind the wardrobes. Since then, we haven’t had any mold issues in that area.
Just a small idea to consider...

Bye,
Micha
I
IKEA-Experte
11 Apr 2015 12:32
Unlike Faktum (and PAX), the METOD kitchen units do not have their backs flush against the wall. This means the cabinets are ventilated from behind.
During my first FAKTUM installation, I mounted the cabinets directly against the wall as intended, with wall cabinets above the cooktop and sink. Mold spots developed on the back panels, except for one unit that did not sit completely flush due to wall irregularities. This slight gap was enough to prevent mold growth there. Since then, I have always installed the cabinets with about a half-centimeter (0.2 inch) gap from the wall.

I would not expect much from the installation service. Often, they are employees from shipping companies who do a rather poor job with the assembly.
K
Katzenmami64
21 Apr 2015 19:45
What??? And IKEA charges a whopping €179 per meter (3.3 feet) of cabinet to assemble???

We also wanted to have it assembled, but now... *thinking*
I
IKEA-Experte
22 Apr 2015 12:34
Not all of them are bad in general; I would just recommend thoroughly researching who is doing the work beforehand. It is also possible that the installation of the freestanding refrigerator into the cabinet is generally not allowed.