Familiarizing Yourself With Kitchen Range Hoods
Without proper ventilation, even the most alluring of kitchen smells can become overwhelming or overextend their stay. When that spicy, robust scent of stew slow cooking is suddenly overpowered by a burning stench that won't go away, it may be time to purchase a new kitchen range hood. Hoods circulate and vent air, keeping the kitchen healthy and smelling fresh and clean.
Exhausted Air - The Role of the Range Hood
Kitchen fumes, especially those from the stove and oven, are major contributors to indoor air pollution. Smoke, moisture, heat and grease can reach and build up in even the farthest corners of your home.
Gas ranges emit carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide, two health-harming gases. In addition, carbon particles and sulfuric acid in smoke irritate the respiratory system and are harmful to plant life. Steam carries other particulates through the home, while odors stick on fabrics and walls.
The heat generated through cooking significantly reduces air conditioning efficacy in the home. It is estimated that the heat from a four-burner range can negate the cooling of a one-ton conditioner.
An efficient kitchen range hood that will accommodate the frequency of kitchen use and the size of your range is the best way to minimize the invasion of these indoor pollutants and to ensure greater energy efficiency when using an air conditioner.
Let's Vent - Range Hood Terms
Become familiar with these terms to make the most informed purchase.
Vented: If a hood is vented, it exhausts air outside of the house. Non-vented hoods circulate the air through filters and then release the filtered air back indoors.
BTU (British Thermal Unit): BTU denotes heat emission.
CFM (Cubic Feet per Minute): Unit of measurement that indicates the amount of air that can be removed in one minute. The higher the CFM, the more powerful the ventilation hood.
Downdrafts: Refers to one type of circulation. Downdraft hoods pull air down into ducts and vent it outside the home.
Duct: Refers to pipes attached to the hood for ventilation.
Canopy: Also called the shell, the canopy is the visible part of the hood.
Projection: The depth of a range hood is referred to as its projection. The projection should ideally extend to the front edge of the cooking range.
Holding Capacity: The interior canopy space, which should be proportional to the power of the range.
Overlap: Indicates that the hood extends beyond the range, recommended for better performance. Overlap is mandatory for island ventilation hoods.
Liner Insert: Specifically designed to fit in an existing enclosure.
Mounting Height: The ideal height at which a ventilation hood should be mounted.
Roof Jack: External venting accessory that is placed on the roof of the hood and connected to the ducting.
Sone: The measure of noise level.
Sorting Out Range Hood Types
Knowing what type, size and extra feature options will provide your home the best ventilation will leave you shopping smoothly. First, consider your cooking range. Is it standard electric, gas, or commercial? This will determine what type of hood will best ventilate your kitchen area.
Under Cabinet Hood
Installation of this most common hood type involves electrical fittings and ventilation ducting. These hoods are ideal for standard ranges situated under the kitchen cabinets.
Wall Mount/Roof Mount Ventilation Hoods
Wall mounts are placed directly over the cook top, where they collect, rather than pull, air and exhaust it through the hood's blowers. To ensure this process is as efficient as possible, it is necessary to determine the appropriate canopy size for your range. Consider holding capacity, projection and overlap and select the corresponding hood. Wall mounts generally require professional installation, and are appropriate for commercial ranges and professional kitchens.
Island Ventilation Hood
These hoods are only necessary if your kitchen range is free standing. Ducting and a chimney are important for the installation of an island hood.
Liner Inserts
Commercial and professional kitchens often purchase liner inserts for aesthetic purposes.
Size is also an important consideration. Determining hood capacity will help you choose the most efficient hood for your range. For reference, a standard wall mount or under cabinet electric range with 20,000 BTU will require a 450 CFM hood. A 40,000 to 60,000 BTU standard gas range will require 900 CFM, and 90,000 BTUs for any style range will require a 1350 CFM hood. A range of any style with a BTU of 90,000 will necessitate a 1350 CFM ventilation hood. Heavy usage of these necessitates an 1800 CFM ventilation hood.
In a small kitchen, only a 250 to 400 CFM rating is required, whereas large families, big kitchens and self-proclaimed chefs may require a hood ventilation system between 600 and 1200 CFM.
Determining size and type will allow you to make an informed decision, but knowing each extra feature and enhancement available will guarantee your overall purchase satisfaction.
Some manufacturers offer additional blowers to meet heavy cooking needs, while some models feature optional top venting. Larger blowers mean both more CFM and more noise. While internal blowers are common in home kitchens, external blowers ensure more power and less noise for professional environments.
The effectiveness of a ventilation hood is contingent upon its ducting. For optimal performance, never compromise on the recommended duct size for your range. The ducts, which should be galvanized metal, must vent outside. During installation, be sure that sharply angled turns are avoided, but do not use flexible ducting to solve this problem.
Finally, research the hood's extras, such as lighting, sones, air speed options, and filter type. Small hoods usually employ screen filters, which are sometimes dishwasher safe for easy cleanup. The baffle filters of larger hoods collect grease into a receptacle, which should be cleaned frequently for optimal efficiency.
Range Hood Prices
A small, economy model ventilation hood, made by such manufacturers as Whirlpool, may cost as little as $60 to $75, but will only be equipped with a power level of 160 CFM.
Stainless steel economy hoods are available for $100 to $150. Broan and Sirius produce convertible models in this price range. Some models include halogen lights.
$150 to $450 will purchase higher-powered, more stylish stainless steel hoods, ranging from 400 to 1500 CFM. This price category includes vented, non-vented, and convertible hood types.
Extra features such as multiple air speeds, lower sone levels, halogen lighting, dishwasher safe filters and powerful blowers become common in the $450 to $900 price range. Some manufacturers like Dacor offer a choice of remote or internal mounted units, or two blowers. Centrifugal blowers are easy to clean and maintain. (Simply spray the hood with liquid detergent while on low speed. Residues are collected and deposited for easy disposal.)
Ranges that cost between $900 and $1000 provide features like electronic touch controls, multiple speed settings and quiet, high CFM blowers. Most hoods in this price category cater to professional needs, including home professional style ranges.
The $1000-$3000 price group offers aesthetically magnificent, highly efficient hoods. The most ornate and efficient of hoods can reach $6000.
Bottom Line
Hoods today provide highly efficient ventilation designed to keep your home both clean and healthy. Choosing the best kitchen range hood depends entirely on research that takes into account size, type, cooking style and frequency, and of course, aesthetics.