Noise of kitchen appliances and installations at home

Recommendation 138
Noisy kitchen installations such as the engines of extraction devices are better installed away from the kitchen. The ducts should also be as soundproof as possible
The use of mixers, coffee grinders, blenders and similar appliances should preferably be used when the person in question is out of earshot
Involve the family member in question when acquiring such appliances

Chapter (theme)
installations and appliances (kitchens)

Because of
sensory oversensitivity to noise

In order to
meet oversensitivity to noise.

Elaboration
As explained in the theme ‘kitchens’, this space poses exceptionally high demands on many senses and also on bodily and cognitive functioning. Children with autism who respond well to these challenges are richly rewarded, those who don’t will experience considerable disadvantages in daily life because of it. For these reasons it is crucial that optimal conditions are created through building, interior design and the choice and installation of machinery and appliances, which is at issue here.

This recommendation applies to open and closed kitchens because it’s aimed at the presence of the autistic person in it.

The noise of extraction devices is often experienced as annoying. Moreover, often one has trouble distinguishing between different sounds which makes dealing with them even harder. Its hard to concentrate on conversations and homework, activities which regularly take place in the kitchen. The engine, the source of the noise, can best be placed outside the kitchen, in a corridor closet for instance which is itself sufficiently soundproof. The same goes for the ducts.

Regarding mixers, coffee grinders, blenders and similar appliances, they should – if unavoidable – preferably be used, at places and times when the person in question is least bothered by them.

In case of confusion about the nature and the source of different sounds, these should be explained, preferably along with a reason why they are unavoidable.

It is strongly recommended to involve the family member in question in the acquisition of such appliances. Bringing them to the shop, for instance, can make sure the high-pitched sounds to which some people on the spectrum are oversensitive, but are above the auditory thresholds of non-autistic people, are absent.