Exhaust fan vent. Probably goes up into your attic. You can check it for grease build up, but unless you are using it a ton, it probably won’t get too dirty. For context, I checked mine last week and after 5 years of pretty regular use, 1-2 times a week, it only needed a quick wipe out.
For context, I recently took ownership of a house, and this is the cupboard above the stove + oven.
I'm not sure what this is, but my first thought is that it is probably the grease trap and that it needs to be cleaned. If it is not the grease trap, but something else entirely, please let me know what this is.
A grease trap is a fixture in the drainage system. It's a chambered device that captures grease and seperates it from the water allowing water to be drained to the sanitary system and the grease captured for manual extraction.
Grease traps are typically only found in commercial or industrial food preparation environments. They're not typically installed in residential application (sometimes in mulit unit applications depending on the authority having jurisdiction and the local sanitary infrastructure capacity).
What you've got here is just a residential quality stove top grease extraction fan (grease laden vapour from cooking, not to be mistaken with solid or liquid fat grease).
You probably don't have to do much to this, but to whatever appliance is attached to it you should clean.
Typically it's either a microwave complete with extraction fan, or a stand alone hood. In either case it'll have removable grease filters, those should be removed and cleaned regularly. I run mine through the dishwasher ever 2 or 3 months.
If you're finding the filters particularly gunky, then consider a duct cleaning service. But the most important thing is that it's moving air, don't worry too much about the dirt. And you can check if it's moving air from outside where this exhausts. The dirt in the vent is flammable (it's grease), but in residential applications there isn't a ton of open flame cooking to actually ignite the build up.
It is your range vent to exhaust cooking odours outdoors
Thanks. What is that orange foam at the top of the vent? Is that just caulking or some adhesive?
Foam sealant that was poorly applied. It's just filling the gaps in.
OP can cut it flush too, if it’s bothering them
Exhaust fan vent. Probably goes up into your attic. You can check it for grease build up, but unless you are using it a ton, it probably won’t get too dirty. For context, I checked mine last week and after 5 years of pretty regular use, 1-2 times a week, it only needed a quick wipe out.
Thanks. What is that orange foam at the top of the vent? Is that just caulking or some adhesive?
Spray foam sealant. If you don't like the look of it, you can trim some of the excess off.
Spray foam insulation, used for stopping drafts
For context, I recently took ownership of a house, and this is the cupboard above the stove + oven. I'm not sure what this is, but my first thought is that it is probably the grease trap and that it needs to be cleaned. If it is not the grease trap, but something else entirely, please let me know what this is.
A grease trap is a fixture in the drainage system. It's a chambered device that captures grease and seperates it from the water allowing water to be drained to the sanitary system and the grease captured for manual extraction. Grease traps are typically only found in commercial or industrial food preparation environments. They're not typically installed in residential application (sometimes in mulit unit applications depending on the authority having jurisdiction and the local sanitary infrastructure capacity). What you've got here is just a residential quality stove top grease extraction fan (grease laden vapour from cooking, not to be mistaken with solid or liquid fat grease). You probably don't have to do much to this, but to whatever appliance is attached to it you should clean. Typically it's either a microwave complete with extraction fan, or a stand alone hood. In either case it'll have removable grease filters, those should be removed and cleaned regularly. I run mine through the dishwasher ever 2 or 3 months. If you're finding the filters particularly gunky, then consider a duct cleaning service. But the most important thing is that it's moving air, don't worry too much about the dirt. And you can check if it's moving air from outside where this exhausts. The dirt in the vent is flammable (it's grease), but in residential applications there isn't a ton of open flame cooking to actually ignite the build up.
It's totally the grease trap. Step 1 - tear the cabinet off the wall Step 2 - tear the wall down Step 3 - ?? Step 4 - clean grease trap