"David Hare-Scott" > wrote in message
...
> I was referred to this NG from rec.food.cooking so my apologies to those
> who have already seen it there.
>
> I am in the process of setting up a new kitchen and I am getting
frustrated
> about range hoods. I want a range hood that really works (ie extracts
> smoke, smells and steam efficiently) but I cannot afford to pay the earth.
>
> Appliance shops deluge you with sales bull and explain nothing. You can
get
> a hood from $200 to $2000. Some of the larger and fancier ones have more
> stainless steel and bells and whistles but some look just the same and
have
> a price tag twice (or half) as much. When asked to explain the difference
> you get "the more expensive one is better" if you ask better in what way
> exactly you get told about features but not performance. I can make my
own
> jugements about ease of cleaning and if I need frisbees on the thingajig
or
> gold plated whatsernames.
>
> I have looked at professional cooking gear web sites but so far it seems
> that you have to have qualifications in air conditioning engineering to
> follow their specs and most of the products assume a restaurant sized
> operation.
>
> One web site recommends that the hood be able to extract between 6 and 12
> times the volume of the room per hour. That is you turn over the air
every
> 5 to 10 minutes, this seems reasonable to me.
>
> Does anybody have any views on that? Under what circumstances would the
> upper or lower rate be appropriate?
>
> How else might one assess the required rate?
>

The volume of the room is completely irrelevant. The hood should be able to
extract all the hot air and fumes that are being generated, and this has
nothing to do with the room size. Remember, the point of a vent hood is
*not* to clear out the room once it has been filled with smells and heat,
but rather to extract the smells and heat as they are being generated.

Most important is the size. It should extend at leat 6" to the side of the
stove. The vertical size is even more important - 18" high is the minimum
from what I understand. The reason is that the hood must enclose a
sufficient volume of air to be able to collect the fumes and hold them
briefly until they are sucked out. A 6" high hood will simply not be able to
do this no matter how powerful the fan. A remote blower (mounted on roof or
outside wall) will result in quieter operation than a fan in the hood
itself. Be sure the duct is of proper diameter for the fan capacity.

I consider an effective outside venting hood to be essential in any serious
kitchen. It is well worth the $$$.


--
Peter Aitken

Remove the crap from my email address before using.