What to look for when buying canopy rangehood

Hi everyone,

We are ditching the standard supplied by our builder to put in our own canopy rangehood. The builder quoted $1300 to upgrade from the standard to a canopy which we thought was a bit extravagant

There are so many options out there and the price range is very wide. We will most probably want one that's 900mm wide.

Can anyone recommend what I need to look for when purchasing a canopy rangehood? E.g. Specs I need to look out for.

Any help will be very much appreciated.

Thanks
Jim

Hi JimnSal,

We had the same dilemma a while ago and I did a lot of hunting around. The main thing I was looking at was the noise that they generate and the amount of suction. We ended up specified a schweigen which has a huge amount of flow through and has the motor mounted outside to significantly reduce the noise. We also ended up with the under the cabinets look, which my wife preferred.

After to speaking to lots of different sales people they all seem to have their own product to push. Many said that the schweigen wouldn't work as well because the motor is too far away, however I am really starting to not trust sales people.

hi room4acubby,
Thanks for the advice, I've never even considered noise as a factor.
Can you roughly give me a ballpark on the cost of your rangehood?

Just been to your blog, you're right about the 'things-we-need-to-do-ourselves' list getting longer everyday

all the best with your build

jim

Jim,

I should have given you the other link of where I found the rangehood. At Prestige Appliances they advertise the really powerful one as $1999, however I visited the store and they say that they can do better than that.

If you don't want to have the really powerful one you can almost get the whole thing for the upgrade price you were quoted.....

Hi, I found some information from a choice magazine article that gives you a bit of an insight on what to look out for.

CHOICE tests confirmed that ducting a rangehood to the outside gives better steam extraction than using one in recirculating mode.

Fixed rangehoods outperformed their retractable counterparts in recirculating mode.

Exterior. It should be easy to clean and have no nooks and crevices where dirt and grease can build up. Fixed rangehoods with a smooth underside are generally easier to clean than retractable ones.

Filter. All rangehoods have a filter. Those made of aluminium mesh are relatively easy to clean and the least expensive, as non-washable filters need replacement and will incur ongoing costs. If you install a rangehood in recirculating mode it’ll also need a carbon filter that has to be replaced regularly.

Light. Two globes generally provide better visibility than one over the cooking area. Globes should be easy to replace.

Controls. Sliding or pushbutton controls on the front panel are easy to reach and to operate. Some retractable models have controls on the underside of the hood. This is OK if you always use the same fan speed, as both fan and light come on automatically when you pull it out, but probably less convenient if you want to change it. On other retractable units, the further you pull out the hood, the higher the fan speed becomes.

Noise and extraction rates are the other things to consider.

Good Luck

Thanks rooms4cubby for the link, it will definitely come in handy. cheers

thanks jaelee! i certainly did not expect something so comprehensive. Thanks so much, I now have a better idea what to look for. cheers

If you get a rangehood that can be installed as either ducted or recirculating then make sure the builder installs it properly!
In not one but TWO houses our builders thought all they needed to do was stick a bit of duct on top when in fact they needed to remove the recirculating filter and do something else to actually switch the flow to the ducting. This is some years ago now so I don't know what current models are like but do check the installation instructions.

I dont know the terms sorry but make sure the exhaust thingy suits your cooktop. We are having a gas cooktop with a large fish plate in the middle so needed something a bit more powerful. Also another thing to consider - DH has banged his head a few times on his mothers one which has sharp edges so we are getting something more rounded and having it installed slightly higher.

I am very doubtful when salespeople try to explain scientific principles to me.

A saleslady at a store stated two clear errors of fact when she tried to sell a range hood to me including the one mentioned to you.

The resistance of the system starts from the grille and finishes where the duct terminates. It does not matter where you put the motor (before, within or after). The fan works just as hard whether it 'sucks' against a resistance or 'pushes' against a resistance or anywhere in between.

To maximise air flow the ductwork needs to be installed correctly. It should have no kinks, abrupt turns and be as short as possible. However, in the overall scheme a things a couple metres here or there doesn't make much difference as long as you adhere to the above principles.

The second issue that most retailers ignore is there needs to be a source of 'make-up' air. Whatever air that gets sucked out of the kitchen needs to be replaced with fresh air. Otherwise, the fan begins working harder and harder against a relative vacuum. It will like trying to suck the air out of a bottle with your mouth. This issue is particularly important in commercial installations because of the massive airflows but you need to also consider this in a domestic setup particularly if you are in a small kitchen and have all the doors and windows closed.

Other considerations concern the canopy design. The best setup is when cooktop is 'enclosed' as much by the range hood. The most efficient design is with the cooktop against a splash back surround by side panels or cupboards either side. This helps the air flow 'funnel' upwards into the range hood. The least efficient system is a cooktop over an island bench with a flat profile or bench mounted range. Try to choose a range hood size that slightly 'overhangs' the burners in front and to the sides. Minimise the distance between rangehood and cooktop as much as practicable.

Hi!
We just bought a new rangehood for our kitchen today. We went to about 15 different shops and looked at everything, end in the end decided the cheaper ones are nearly as good as the brand names.
We picked up a 900mm stainless steel and glass made by robinhood for $399 on special (ticket price around $600). It wasn't too noisy and vents up to 700m3/hr. Hubby would have liked one that sucked more but we would rather spend on other appliances, we don't have much of a fan now and we cope fine (although we do have duceted air cond and keep windows open most of the time, which I'm sure helps). We will also get the ducting kit to vent thru the roof, these are ticketed at about $200.
good luck with your search!

Leni, not sure where you are located but would you mind sharing where you bought your rangehood please? I'm not 100% sure if I will have a slideout or glass, although the latter would have to be white/glass which seem to be quite expensive.

Thanks

Slideouts and flat bottomed ranges have less extraction efficiency.

See this article on the technical aspects of rangehood design:

COMMERCIAL KITCHEN VENTILATION DESIGN

HappyCamper - from Harvey Norman Osborne Park WA. It was the Robinhood RHCV9G model, on a 'one day only' special of $399.
We went across the road to the HN seconds place, and they were there for $479! Everywhere else the ticket price is about $600.
We also got a pryolitic oven ex display at over 50% off.
The guy said they are re-doing the display to have the biggest in WA, so they want to get rid of everything before the cabinetmakers arrive.
We haven't even ordered our new kitchen yet! But they seemed like such good bargains we couldn't resist.
Just the cooktop and dishwasher to go..

Leni, are the sales still on? Might pop in tomorrow if I can grab a bargain!

Pheonixrain, it was a 'one day only' sale according to thesign on the rangehood (which was new in the box), but the ex display stuff I think is on discount until it goes. Def worth a ring if you are after something in particular or a visit if you're not too far away.
We are also after an induction cooktop but they had mainly gas and ceramic ones on display.

Ahh thanks for the leni. Might go down and have a look anyway. Only after a rangehood but I have heaps of time for that. Cheers!

Thanks Leni....sorry for my late reply but I've been out of town for a few days!!

Totally understand not wanting to pass up a good bargain, I did exactly the same with my kitchen appliances then unfortunately the land deal fell through, but they are still in the garage patiently waiting!! LOL

Not sure if you have 'Seconds World' in the west but I got my dishwasher for half new price at one of their Sydney stores.

Thanks again for your helpful info.
Bronwyn