How to choose the right range hood for your home

If you’ve recently renovated or purchased a home, it’s time to think about keeping them clean and fresh for a long time! An important element of the modern kitchen is the cooker hood. During cooking, droplets of water, fat, particles of soot settle on surfaces and contaminate them. Time passes, and kitchen furniture, dishes, curtains take on an unsightly, shabby look. With such troubles, a kitchen hood is designed to deal with.

In order for the kitchen hood to have the maximum effect, it is necessary to choose the right model for a particular kitchen. This is not an easy task with such a variety that home appliance manufacturers offer. We hope that our advice on choosing a hood will be useful to you.

Components and principle of operation of the kitchen hood

The kitchen hood consists of the following parts:

• Frame
• Motor (1 or 2) with fan
• Filter (or filter system)
• Control block

The basic, initial principle of operation for all hoods is the same. When turned on, they spin the fan, which forms the thrust. Under its action, air is drawn into the hood housing along with the smallest particles of fat, water, soot, which rise from the stove.

Next, there are several options. Removal of air can be carried out through an air duct that is connected to the ventilation system of the house. This is called the flow principle of operation («withdrawal» mode). In such hoods, only grease filters are installed, because they do not require thorough air purification. Otherwise, the air passes through the filtration system and, already cleaned, returns to the kitchen. This principle of operation is called recirculation (may also be called «air cleaner mode»).

Let’s talk about filters

Filters play a key role in circulating exhaust systems. In order to eliminate unwanted odors and purify the air, carbon and grease filters are used.

Primary filters include fat (grease-trapping). Their task is to collect large particles of soot and grease, thereby protecting the fan and the inner walls of the hood. Grease filter It is a rectangle and consists of several metal sheets, between which a wire mesh is fixed.

Such filters require periodic cleaning, and are easy to clean with conventional cleaning products by hand. These are reusable filters. There are also disposable grease filters in the form of a porous pad, which consists of metal sheets. You can use disposable grease filters for about 4-6 months.

carbon filter — this is a cassette, inside of which there are activated carbon granules. Those impurities that could pass through the primary filter are retained in the carbon filter. Such filters are not cleaned, but are immediately replaced at the end of their service life.

In some models of hoods there are also HEPA filters (High Efficiency Particulate Air). It is a corrugated compressed sheet of synthetic fibers contained in a retaining body. Microscopic distances between the filter fibers (10-40 microns) allow even the smallest particles of pollution to be retained.

The best models of kitchen hoods with a filter

Cooker hood performance

Another important point in choosing a kitchen hood is its performance. This characteristic determines how much air for optimal kitchen ventilation the hood can pass through itself per hour. According to sanitary standards, for good ventilation, the air in the kitchen should change about 10-12 times.

In order to calculate the required performance of the hood, you need to calculate the volume of the kitchen. If its length is 4 m, its width is 3.5 m, and the height of the ceilings is 2.7 m, then the volume will be 37.8 cubic meters. m. The resulting value must be multiplied by 12 and by the safety factor (1, 3). We get 590 cubic meters. m. This value will be the required performance.

Another parameter to consider when choosing a hood is the width of the stove or oven/hob. The hood should have the same width as the source of pollution, or a little more. Hoods are available in widths of 50, 60, 70, 90 and 120 cm.