How to Choose A Range Hood For Your Kitchen
Cooking will inherently cause fumes in your kitchen. Whether you are trying to avoid breathing in smoke or are trying to keep stains off of your walls, a range hood is an essential part of keeping your cooking space clean and safe.
But how do you choose the right range hood? In this guide, we’ll go over the different types of range hoods, their pros and cons, and other key features you should consider.
What Is a Range Hood?
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As you cook, range hoods remove odors, smoke, and harmful particles from the air you breathe. These gasses are generally produced by your cooktop itself or the food you are cooking. A powerful fan draws air in around the cooktop and sends it out of the house via filters or a duct. Filters prevent smoke, heat, moisture, microscopic food particles, and other impurities from contaminating either the air or your food.
Are Range Hoods Necessary?
Here’s the short answer. Yes, a range hood is a must-have. A range hood is an effective way to ventilate your kitchen when cooking, but what type should you buy, and how big should it be?
When considering a range hood for your kitchen update, there are a few basic considerations to keep in mind:
Basic Considerations When Selecting Your Hood
- Kitchen Safety: It’s important to be aware of concentrated fumes and gasses such as carbon monoxide in the kitchen. For the safety of your whole household, it’s best to filter in clean air as soon as possible, and remove dangerous air completely.
- Cleanliness and Upkeep: Range hoods not only disperse cooking smells in the air but also direct unseen grease and food particles up into filters and ductwork. As a result, there is less crusty, cooked-on, food mess to clean from the backsplash tile and other surfaces surrounding the cooktop.
- Light Source: There are a number of range hoods that have light strips or bulbs under the hood, aimed down at the cooktop. The light is placed where you need it, over the kitchen work area, thereby simplifying meal prep and cleanup.
- Added Property Value: Range hoods are an excellent investment for your home. As well as adding safety and accessibility, they enable you to reach dark corners of the back-lit burners. They reduce the accumulation of cooking grime and remove hazardous materials from the air. As a result, range hoods are in high demand. It’s becoming more common for home buyers to ask for a range hood installed as a standard option in their kitchens.
- Design Preferences: Range hoods come in all shapes and sizes. Options such as hiding them in a cabinet or tiling over them to match your backsplash can make them disappear into the design of your kitchen. Alternatively, you could go with a large metal or wood hood to be a bold accent piece. These are far from all of the style options but it does give you an idea of the amount of options available. So that leads to the question, “What types of hoods are out there?”.
The Different Types of Range Hoods
Under Cabinet Range Hoods
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Choosing an under-cabinet range hood will provide you with a more compact design. Generally, they’re 30 inches to 36 inches in size and are installed under kitchen cabinets. An under-cabinet model may be the best option if your kitchen is smaller or you simply prefer a sleeker appearance.
Pros
- Inexpensive
- Easy To Install
- Come In Ductless And Ducted Models
- Available In A Number Of Designs And Sizes
Cons
- Recirculating Under-Cabinet Models Can Be Inefficient At Cleaning The Air
Wall Mount Range Hoods
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Larger kitchens or those with an open area above the range top are good candidates for wall mount range hoods. A more eye-catching look is achieved by mounting them securely on an interior wall above the stovetop.
Pros
- Effective In Getting Rid Of Smoke Fumes And Lingering Smells
- Keep Kitchen Cabinets Free From Oil Adn Grime
- Bring Lighting To Your Countertop
Cons
- Cannot Install Cabinets In Area Over The Range
Kitchen Island Range Hoods
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Does your kitchen have an island? A kitchen island range hood will be a great addition to your kitchen. Typically, these models come with a canopy or a pyramid design. They’re mounted to the ceiling. The ductwork should run through the ceiling as well.
Pros
- Can Provide More Flexibility In Your Kitchen Design
- Your Aren’t Restricted By Cabinet Space
- You Can Choose Ductless or Ducted Island Range Hoods
Cons
- Can Interfere With Sightlines In Your Kitchen
Downdraft Ventilation Hoods
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Downdraft ventilation hoods are exhaust fans that are concealed within a range or cooktop. If the kitchen air begins to smell or become humid, you can turn on the fan. But if you don’t need the fan, it can stay hidden inside the cooking range.
Pros
- Great For Small Kitchens That Don’t Have Space For A Seperate Range Hood
- Great For Islands When You Don’t Want A Hanging Hood
- Create A Modern And Minimal Look
Cons
- Lower Efficiency At Drawing Gasses From Taller Pots And Pans
- May Interfere With Gas Cooktop Flames
Custom Range Hoods
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Looking for a design that truly represents your personality and style, but can’t get it with any other type of range hood? Consider custom range hoods. Custom range hoods are great options for those who may want a stove hood with a more compelling look. Various styles and shapes of custom hoods are available, and they can be tailored to meet your individual needs.
Plus, there are endless options when it comes to materials. You can choose from a wide selection of custom finishes, handcrafted and sculpted materials, and classic rivets.
Pros
- Entirely Customizable – You Choose The Shape, Size, Material, And Finishes
- Can Be A Wonderful Centerpiece For A Kitchen
Cons
- Takes Longer To Arrive Than Normal Hoods
- More Expensive Than Other Hood Options
Features to Consider When Choosing a Range Hood
Now that you’re familiar with the different types of range hoods, let’s take a look at some important features you might want to think about when choosing the right option for your kitchen.
Range Hood Features
- Multiple Fan Speeds: High and low fan settings are really all you need. Typically, the more burners you use, the more ventilation you need. However, a low speed should be sufficient when cooking one or two pans at the same time on a medium heat.
- Heat Sensors: Some range hoods have heat sensors. This means that when the temperature changes, they’ll automatically turn on or adjust the fan speed.
- Remote Control: The remote control is helpful for hard-to-reach island hoods or when you’re away from the stove (for a short period of time).
- Exhaust Timers: Typically, after 10 minutes, this feature shuts off the fan automatically. This is handy to remove lingering odors without turning off the fan.
- Built-In Storage: Do you have a limited amount of cabinet and counter space? Look for a vent hood that has rails around the front and sides so that you can hang smaller pans and utensils. A shallow shelf may also be created at the edge of some hood designs.
When choosing a range hood, you should also think about the exhaust system, your kitchen layout, fan power, noise, styles, and of course, costs.
Count on McManus Kitchen and Bath to Help You Achieve Your Dream Kitchen
There are a few things you should consider carefully before selecting a ventilation system for your kitchen. What type of cooktop or range do you have? How big is your range? The questions are endless.
No matter which type of range hood you end up choosing, we can help you with your dream kitchen remodel. Contact our experts today for all your kitchen remodeling needs.
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