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Is your home-based kitchen air conditioned?

post #1 of 16
7/22/12 at 3:22pm
Thread Starter 
Is your home-based kitchen air-conditioned or are you in a humid climate and your kitchen is warm? I had some trouble this week with bulging fondant and massive amounts of air bubbles which were so unusual. Some ppl on CC said it was from the humidity. Do you find it easier to work with a crusting BC / ganache and then apply fondant trouble-free in an air conditioned kitchen? My kitchen temperature is around 90 degrees. I turn on a fan to cool it down but wonder if it should be air conditioned. Do you vote for an air conditioned kitchen or room temperature kitchen for your home-based business?
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post #2 of 16
7/22/12 at 3:40pm
Oh my God, air conditioning all the way! 90 degrees is too warm to be working with sugar, and if you add humidity to that, forget it. When people say "room temperature" they're not talking 90 degrees, that usually refers to a comfortable temperature around 70-73 degrees according to wikipedia, the source of all internet knowledge (I'd say a little warmer but I'm cheap.)
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http://www.acaketorememberva.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/acaketoremember
http://www.youtube.com/karabuntin
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post #3 of 16
7/22/12 at 4:31pm
Air conditioned for sure. I have an attached home kitchen which my husband added an air conditioning duct to but that doesn't cut it when the ovens on so I moved the oven and use the attached kitchen solely for decorating. 90 degrees would about kill me let alone my cakes!
Fedra
Cake just happens....
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Cake just happens....
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post #4 of 16
7/22/12 at 4:57pm
I don't know how I would make my cakes without my A/C . It's a definite life/cake saver!
~*~Michelle J~*~

http://www.facebook.com/A.T.CustomCreations
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~*~Michelle J~*~

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post #5 of 16
7/22/12 at 4:57pm
Thread Starter 
Oh boy. I need to put in ac then. Guess that ends this thread icon_smile.gif I had so much trouble with scratch fondant because of heat and humidity in the day. I started making fondant at night when it is cooler. Thanks for your input.
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post #6 of 16
7/22/12 at 5:01pm
Oh, I know what you mean. My kitchen has no AC and I live smack dab in the middle of the tropics. You have no idea of how many adjustments I've had to make to my fondant, gumpaste and icing recipes just to get the darn things to set up! Fortunately, the room where do a lot of my decorating does have AC, but not 24/7. Crusting BC will not crust in my house. I try to use ganache under fondant - it's less squishy. I add shortening, CMC (tylose) and more PS to my fondant and gumpaste, and still things wilt sometimes. I'm just about to try my hand at pastillage and see if at least that will harden like it should. Ah, well, life is always and adventure, isn't it?
Marianna
"I know my own mind...and it's around here somewhere!"
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Marianna
"I know my own mind...and it's around here somewhere!"
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post #7 of 16
7/22/12 at 5:13pm
Thread Starter 
Wow you have the same troubles as me. I too have had a lot of adjusting to do to survive with the heat in the kitchen. My kitchen is not closed off from my home which is why I never put in ac. I just noticed that when I kneaded scratch fondant, for e.g., the heat from my hands was breaking down the sugar and I used to add way more PS than needed because the fondant was always sticky. Until I made fondant and covered all my cakes at night and had zero problems. At night the temp drops to late 70s early 80s.
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post #8 of 16
7/22/12 at 6:26pm
I stress over the weather in the summer when I have a cake to do. I do not have central air. We have a window ac in the living room and there have been times I have moved my caking into there but it never completely helped. This year I put my foot down and now we have a second window air conditioner. I use fans to move the cooler air into the warmer rooms. I also have a dehumidifier that I use but running it adds more heat to the room so I can't win.
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post #9 of 16
7/22/12 at 8:10pm
Forget cake, I begin to melt at 90 degrees! icon_smile.gif My home kitchen is completely separate from my house (GA rules) but I did run ducts from the main HVAC system. And when all 3 ovens start running it got hot FAST! So I got one of those ductless systems just for the kitchen. It makes a world of difference!
Jenniffer White - Cup a Dee Cakes LLC
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Jenniffer White - Cup a Dee Cakes LLC
http://cupadeecakes.blogspot.com
http://www.youtube.com/user/cupadeecakes/videos
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post #10 of 16
7/23/12 at 8:38am
Cheatize - a dehumidifier! I'd kill for one of those! I'm convinced it's not the heat but the humidity that's my biggest enemy. Or, as they say in New Orleans, it's not the heat, it's the stupidity - which is true because excess humidity makes you dopey as hell!
Marianna
"I know my own mind...and it's around here somewhere!"
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Marianna
"I know my own mind...and it's around here somewhere!"
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post #11 of 16
7/23/12 at 8:56am
I would give my left pinky for A/C in my kitchen! we have an attic exhaust fan which make the house comfortable to live in; but not to decorate cakes!!
chris-cakesbychris.blogspot.com
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chris-cakesbychris.blogspot.com
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post #12 of 16
7/23/12 at 9:38am
I finally installed a window A/C in my kitchen this year. It has made everything I do so much easier and I'm not as exhausted at the end of it all. My kitchen is not huge, but the ceiling is high. I purchased a 6000 BTU unit on sale for about $160...what took me so long!!!!?????
Life is unpredictable so let's eat dessert first!
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Life is unpredictable so let's eat dessert first!
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post #13 of 16
7/23/12 at 6:09pm
I can't live without AC in Georgia. So my kitchen benefits from my lack of ability to cope. Wouldn't dream of building anything, most especially a kitchen, without AC.
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post #14 of 16
7/23/12 at 6:22pm
I have central air, and since the temps stay in the upper 90's-100+ lately, I have had many problems! My thermostat is set on 70 and the house is usually still 85 when I'm not baking! It's made many things not comeout right in the fondant world!
The worst critic is yourself.
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The worst critic is yourself.
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post #15 of 16
4/15/13 at 1:15am

Unfortunately, there are still some non-air conditioned kitchens, but that should be remedied wherever possible. The idea of kitchen workers dripping sweat into the food is not good.
 

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