Buying Guide For Range Hoods

Investing in a range hood is a great way to customize your kitchen, increase your home’s value, and make it more comfortable to cook!  There are a lot of styles, types, and features to consider when shopping for a range hood.  Use this range hood buying guide to help narrow down the type you’d need and make sure you love the range hood we help custom design and install at your home or restaurant!

Types Of Range Hoods

There is a variety of types of range hoods for different install limitations and style preferences.  Some mount to the wall while others mount to the ceiling over an island in your kitchen.  There are styles where the hot air and cooking fumes are pushed outdoors while others are ductless and filter the air to remove the toxins and airborne grease before releasing the air back into the kitchen.

Island Range Hoods

An island range hood is one that is mounted directly to the ceiling over a cooktop in a kitchen island.  These range hoods are typically made much wider than wall mounted hoods as they don’t have the benefit of cabinets to help direct air into the hood.  Many kitchens today are putting the cooktop in the center of the kitchen so he or she that’s cooking can still face people in the kitchen and be part of the conversation.  An island range hood just helps them stay cooler and comfortable while preparing their favorite recipes.

Downdraft Range Hoods

These designs are less practical for residential applications as they funnel smoke and fumes downward into ducts installed into the floor.  In some commercial applications they do help keep kitchen staff cooler and more productive, but in residential settings the demolition needed to install the ducts is typically cost prohibitive and time consuming.

Wall-Chimney Range Hoods

When there are no cabinets where to mount to over the range a wall-chimney range hood is a great option.  These range hoods mount directly to the wall and vent into a wall stack to the outdoors.  This design helps homeowners have a more open kitchen plan where extra storage isn’t needed.  These are popular in homes where minimalist modern designs are gaining in popularity.

Ductless Range Hoods

Not all range hoods have ducts that channel the fumes and airborne grease from cooking, and there isn’t always a need to.  A ductless range hood pulls the heat, airborne grease, and steam away from the cooking area and filters out the grease.  While this is sometimes necessary it does put the cooking odors and heat back into the home instead of pushing it outdoors.

Features of Range Hoods

Not all range hoods are made equal and there are some premium features that make some range hoods more desirable and user friendly.  From being able to choose how fast you want the fans to go to having a range hood that knows when it needs to turn on, you have options when choosing a range hood.

Fan Speed Settings

Different types of cooking call for different fan speeds.  Simply heating up some water doesn’t put off the same fumes and boiling spaghetti or cooking meat.  Being able to choose the right speed for your fans makes it so you can keep the kitchen quieter when cooking smaller things.

Automatic Sensor

Some of the best range hoods effortlessly work with you as you cook in your kitchen.  As the heat rises along with steam and the toxic cooking fumes a range hood equipped with an automatic sensor springs to life and simply takes care of you, the chef!

Volume of Airflow

Clearly every kitchen has a different layout and size.  You will want to ensure you choose a range hood that’s capable of effectively removing the heat, steam, and fumes quickly enough to keep the cook comfortable.  Check with your design consultant to ensure you’re choosing a design that fits your kitchen layout and location of the range hood!

Timed Exhaust Shut-Off

When you’re done cooking there is likely a little smell and steam still rising.  Waiting around for the stove to cool off to turn off your range hood is inconvenient.  A timed shut off allows you to take your meal in with your company or family to enjoy while it simply does it’s job and then turns itself off.