The modern American kitchen is more likely than not to contain a microwave. America is a first-world country so the microwave is a luxury that the middle class or college students couldn’t afford to lose. You can see this quick-cooking device from family kitchens to offices as well as schools.
It’s most certainly the American kitchen’s definitive workhorse. In fact, as much as 97 percent of all kitchens in the United States of America have some sort of microwave device in them.
So how big is 0.7 cubic feet microwave anyway? Not very big. This capacity of microwave is considered small. It’s typically used in small apartments and recreational vehicles due to its size and lowered wattage.
How Big is 0.7 Cubic Feet of Microwave Capacity?
The 0.7 cubic feet capacity or 21 or so liters of a microwave can serve 2-4 members of the family. This is typically the size of a medium-sized grill or convection microwave oven. This microwave oven type ranges fro 0.7 to 0.8 cubic feet or 21 to 25 liters.
It’s also ideal for cooking, defrosting, heating, and baking. This is in contrast to a simple mini microwave that can only do simple cooking, reheating, and defrosting. These microwaves measure 0.5 to 0.6 cubic feet instead. They can also serve 2-4 family members but do less.
A typical 0.7 cubic feet microwave has a net weight of 21 pounds. Its overall depth is typically 12.75 inches, overall height is 10.19 inches, and overall width is 17.31 inches, thus its cavity measurement is about 12¼ inches by 7⅞ inches x 11⅝ inches.
15 to 20 Liters versus 25 to 30 Liters
The difference between a 0.6 and 0.7 cubic feet is slight size-wise but significant function-wise. A smaller microwave sized 0.5 to 0.6 cubic feet (15 to 20 liters) is usually of the mini or solo microwave type that can’t do more complex work such as baking and cooking.
A 0.7 to 0.8 cubic feet microwave is usually of the solo grill or convection microwave type that you can actually do baking and cooking with. It’s still small enough to use in small apartments and RVs or campers. Vehicles in particular require the 0.7 cubic feet microwave’s 700-watt power level.
RV vehicle or car batteries can only handle so much wattage at the same time. If you have more than your microwave around in your RV (such as your refrigerator, toaster, and oven as well as electric stove), that can overload your batteries.
This is also the case with RVs that are powered by solar batteries. It’s best to limit your wattage usage by having low-wattage mini or convection microwaves.
Determining Your Microwave Size Needs
A microwave can go up to 2 cubic feet, which is roughly as large as an old-timey CRT TV. On average, the size for microwaves range from 1.4-1.8 cubic feet. This means a 0.5-0.8 cubic feet microwave is on the small side.
A compact or solo microwave like one with 0.7 cubic feet of internal capacity is typically under a cubic foot. Sometime mid-sized and can cater to families range between 1 cubic foot to 1.5 cubic feet. Full-sized microwaves measure from 1.6 to 2 cubic feet. Anything above 2 cubic feet is extra large.
Aside from campers and RVs as well as solar batteries, it’s also beneficial to avail of a 0.7 or 0.700 cubic feet capacity convection microwave for a small apartment. If you’re renting out such an apartment, this probably means you have limited cash for the electrical bill.
Therefore, it’s in your best interest to avail of a microwave of this size and 700 watts of wattage. Just be warned that even the more advanced microwaves of this size take longer to heat up or cook your food. Their limits in size also result with it heating up a smaller portion of the food.
It’s What’s Inside the Counts
Pay attention to the microwave’s internal measurements in cubic feet form. The specs should state as much. However, you can calculate the cubic feet by multiplying the interior length of your microwave by width and by height. From there, divide it by 1,728.
If you have an 18 inches by 14 inches by 12 inches microwave (it will vary), then the cubic feet in size for that oven is about 1.75 cubic feet. A cubic foot or so of microwave space can cater to 4-6 family members or even more than 6 people depending on interior spaciousness.
Going even smaller, however, limits your microwave abilities to reheating and defrosting. If you want to end up with a microwave that’s slightly more advanced than your daughter’s Easy Bake Oven, upgrading to a 0.700 cubic foot convection microwave or grill microwave (for kebabs) is called for.
Check how well the inside of your microwave is designed. How well does it turntable turn? Is it easy to remove and clean via dishwasher? How quickly or slowly does it heat up a cup of water? Or cook dishes?
Yes, the Outside Counts, Too
With that said, the outside of the microwave is important to consider as well. While the turntable is responsible for how even the cooking of the food and beverage is, you should also take note of the user interface of the device.
How durable are the push buttons or dials of your microwave? Is it easy to clean? How boxy is it? Will it teeter off the edge of your counter because of how cumbersomely big or badly designed it is? You don’t want an imbalanced microwave.
Measure the space that your microwave will occupy to ensure that it will fit, especially if you don’t have much real estate to work with in an RV or small apartment. Many compact models start at around 0.5-0.6 cubic feet in size but their controls are limited.
When All Is Said and Done
When it comes to cooking and baking, size matters with microwaves. In order to get the 700-watts of minimum wattage required for decent cooking and baking, you need a 0.7 cubic foot capacity microwave. Maybe you can avail of something smaller, but that limits the microwave function.
You can only reheat, defrost, and simply cooking with such a device. If you want more complex oven-like functions such as baking cookies or making quiche, you need the great output that a 0.7 cubic foot microwave can provide. It also gets the job faster and a little better thanks to its extra size.
References:
- Steffani Cameron, “How to Determine Microwave Oven Size“, Hunker.com, April 20, 2018
- “Microwave oven buying guide“, Zelect.in, Retrieved March 8, 2020
