Smaller oven for our rental condo, or suggestions for this dilemma.

Our past two days:
We drove a new oven that H retrieved from a job site up to Boston to install in our rental condo. The existing oven is REALLY old.

We never thought to measure the kitchen doorway. We figured that there was already a full-size oven in the space, so we could take it out and replace it.

Nope. The old oven won’t fit through the door, so the new oven won’t come in. It’s a really old building, and while we COULD remove the doorway moldings, you’re talking about many thick layers of paint, and problems with the ceramic tile on the kitchen walls.We weren’t planning on remodeling the entire kitchen, at least not today. We still can’t figure out how this oven got in the room in the first place.

So basically we took an oven for a trip to Boston. And back.

Any recommendations for quality smaller ovens?

What is the actual space where you want to put the oven? Ovens come in standard sizes: 24 inch, 27 inch, and 30 inch.

24 inch ovens can be bought with a trim to fit a 30 inch space seamlessly.

“We still can’t figure out how this oven got in the room in the first place.”

Take the door off the oven. Take the entry door off the hinges completely. They do this with fridge delivery.

Another thing to consider: the amperage of your circuit and the new oven. Good luck!

Agree with removing doors. To get our fridge into our kitchen, fridge door and kitchen door had to be completely removed. Good luck. Also agree that many appliances have trim kits so they can fit and fill existing spaces.

Yes, we did remove the oven door when trying to remove it. There is no actual door to the kitchen, just a doorway, so we’d have to remove the molding around the entry, and as I said, that would mean extensive work. It wouldn’t be like taking off the molding in a modern home. W

The oven in the kitchen is 30 inches wide, but 28 inches deep (without the door). The opening is 25 inches, so I guess we’re looking at a 24 inch oven. We are replacing a free-standing gas oven, so no need for trim. It still works, but it’s very old, so we’ll keep on the lookout for a smaller replacement.

Thanks!

Freestanding? And it is gas? Ouch. Does it have a cooktop on it? Is it a range? Trying to get as much information to find a solution for you. Replacing old appliances is a pita.

Yes, it’s an oven with a cooktop and it’s gas. The existing one is super old, and it has a standing pilot light, which is just one reason we want to get rid of it. You’re right about the PITA part.

There aren’t many options in 24 inch gas ranges…

http://www.homedepot.com/b/Appliances-Ranges-Gas-Ranges/24-in/N-5yc1vZc3oyZ1z0yhyq

The GE one has a gas oven and is well reviewed.

It might be worth it to check with a Sears outlet to see if there are any scratch and dent ones available.

@BunsenBurner, thanks. We didn’t really start our search until last night, because we didn’t think we’d have to, haha.

Good luck! I recommend checking the electrical requirements for the new range and install it to code to cya in case anything happens.

Lowe’s appliance folks are usually helpful. As far as the old beast goes… disassemble it into chunks and take out piecemeal.

I’m confused. If you can’t get the old oven out now, that’s one issue. Are you also saying the new one won’t fit through the 25" passage?

@lookingforward - it sounds like it is both. Taking the old one out is easy because they don’t need to keep it intact. The new one has to have one dimension (depth or width) of 24 inches to fit through the doorway that is 25 inches wide.

That’s the story. We can take the old one out, after we take it apart, but the replacement that we planned is the same size as the old one, and it can’t go in, unless we do some serious widening of the doorway.

Use wwwajmadison.com to research your options by entering your size requirements. They pretty much carry every brand so you should get a list of those that would work. Hopefully you can call around and find a physical store that carries your selection.

An important question… Is 25" doorway leading into the kitchen to code?

The apartment has passed the safety inspection by the city this summer, with no violations, so I believe we’re in the clear (sorry, bad pun).

^Did you examine the new one to see if the side panels could be removed and then put back on? Unless the old one was put there before the door moldings, that’s probably how it was brought in (unless there was some other opening available?)

We did check the side panels,but we can’t remove them. Our new tenants move in today, so we’ll have to work this out in the future. We feel dumb for not checking the clearance, of course.

We had this nightmare with a fridge in a rental. Who ever thought it was a good idea to have 28" entry doors??? Good luck with this!