Hood Size vs Stove
I need professional advice on a range hood decision. I am absolutely in lust with this Italian range hood and my contractor told me that I shouldn’t get it because it wont perform well with my stove. My stove is 30″ (4 burners) and this hood is 26″. I have read several threads here on…
I need professional advice on a range hood decision. I am absolutely in lust with this Italian range hood and my contractor told me that I shouldn’t get it because it wont perform well with my stove. My stove is 30″ (4 burners) and this hood is 26″. I have read several threads here on GardenWeb that it is mandatory to go with an exact size hood or larger for best performance. However, I want this specific design, it’s gorgeous and there’s absolutely nothing even close to it that I was able to find. I don’t cook a lot and I don’t fry or steam. Can someone please reassure me that going with a 26″ in hood will be okay for my 30″ stove, considering my “non-pro” cooking habits.
Speaking from experience, my range hood is about 3 inches too short for the stove. I have cabinets above the hood, and now everything is covered in a sticky film (Lip of hood, cabinet pulls and door). Pain in the ass to clean.
I didn’t even realize why until about a year after cooking on the stove. Just thought the hood was not working. (We do cook alot, though)
I agree with checking the specs online or contacting the manufacturer to find out how powerful it is. I’m facing a similar dilemma in that I plan to install a commercial-style range, and all the manufacturer websites recommend 24†deep commercial-style hoods if you want the exhaust to work properly. However, some of those recommended hoods only provide 600 cfm of exhaust, and there are shallower, less bulky hoods that provide 1,200 cfm (especially if you can accommodate an external blower). I can’t see why a hood that moves twice as much air would perform worse just because its overall dimensions are smaller. I get that a smaller hood is less likely to “catch†the rising fumes, but if it has a powerful blower it seems like it should be fine. Maybe not as efficient (because you’re using more electricity than you would if you had a hood of the recommended size), but fine nonetheless.
Gorgeous, which brand is that?
Definitely contact the manufacturer – in the picture it looks as though the hood is substantially smaller than the cooktop below, so maybe it’s actually meant to work that way (which is sort of what the graphic is implying).
Both the Italians and the Japanese are all about form over function.
The manufacturer advised that I install it a few inches closer to the stove, I might just do that.
Common sense, anyone? It’s 4 freaking inches smaller and will be installed 2+ feet up. It’s not as if the air/smoke will magically miss the edge of the hood and grease up your ceiling. If it’s powerful enough it will be fine. Your contractor is being a slave to guidelines.
Who is going to clean that thing?
In any event, the contractor is right for optimum performance. Most say that the hood should be no more than 30″ or even as little as 24″ above the range. I am 6’2″, and the rediculously priced range hood we bought was in no way going to be that close to the stove. The short answer is that every step you take away from “optimal” means it is less optimal. It is still better than nothing, probably still better than a downdraft, but might be an expensive piece of wall art if (as the picture seems to suggest) it is significantly narrower than the stove and 3 feet above it
your contractor’s rule of thumb is only that, a rule of thumb. All rules are occasionally broken and that’s definitely not your typical hood. Why don’t you contact the manufacturer and ask them? Or find their specifications or installation instructions online?