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Kitchen Ventilation
Buying Guide
A step-by-step guide for finding the right ventilation
for your kitchen.
296 Freeport Street I Boston, MA 02122
Updated March 2015
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Inspirations
Photo credit: www.lasleybrahaney.com
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Inspirations
Photo credit: www.studiominteriorsinc.com
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Inspirations
Photo credit: www.PZArchitects.com
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Table of Contents
1
Overview
2
Ventilation Terms
3
Types of Ventilation
4
How to Buy
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About Us
1
Overview
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Overview
The primary function of a range hood is to draw heat, steam and grease out of your
house (the average family produces one gallon of grease per year due to improper
ventilation). Proper venting is about CFM (cubic feet per minute), capture area, proper
ducting, and provisions for make-up air (code 1503.4).
The secondary purpose is style.
With the advent of the Italian
manufacturers there are beautiful
and functional products readily
available.
Check out Best and Zephyr for
really modern pieces. We also
have an attractive yet affordable
private-label brand.
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What’s New 2015-2016
With the advent of Italian manufacturers like Zephyr, Best and Faber, ventilation
become a much more varied and interesting category. They are now design
statements in the kitchen or completely hidden.
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Ventilation Terms
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Ventilation Terms
CFM
Cubic Feet per Minute. A measure for the amount of air that passes through the hood in a
given minute. For example, a 300 CFM hood exhausts 300 cubic feet of air in one minute.
Capture Area
How big is the hood? Smoke is channeled or captured, so the larger the hood
receptacle, the more efficient the exhaust. Capture area is especially important in
professional products but less so in standard products.
Blower Types
Blowers can be located outside your house, inside the duct or inside the house. The
biggest blowers are on the outside, but I prefer the inside for service accessibility and
aesthetics.
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Minimum CFM Requirements
Cooking Type
Recommended CFM
4 Burner Professional
400
6 Burner Professional
600
4 Burner plus Grill
900
48” Professional
1100 minimum
Wok Cooking
Add Suitable CFM
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Ventilation Terms
Make-Up Air
Code 1503.4 states that an equal amount of
fresh air must be introduced for every unit
exhausted in range hoods over 400 CFM.
With new homes being built more airtight, a
high CFM hood could depressurize your
home. The solution is relatively simple
though.
Read more: What is Make-Up Air?
Make-up air demonstrator
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Ventilation Terms
Height
Heights vary, but 24-30 inches above the
top of a regular range and 30-36 inches
above the top of a pro range seems to be
the standard.
Over-the-range microwaves have their
own measurements; from the floor to
the top of the microwave should be 67.5
inches.
Always check your local codes before
hanging your hood.
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Ventilation Terms
Ductless
A recirculating hood. Ductless returns
air back into the room though the room
itself. Ducted is a better option,
because the excess heat and grease is
removed from your kitchen.
Ducted
Yale Custom Hood - RH830AS & RH00630S
A hood with an outside exhaust. Ducted
hoods transport heat and grease
outdoors. Ducting should be less than
50 feet for best performance. Round
ducting is better than rectangular for air
flow.
Yale Custom Hood– RH00538S
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Ventilation Terms
Ducting
If you buy the right hood, the most powerful blower and
duct it wrong, it will not exhaust properly. Smoke is
channeled by the hood, and is pushed or pulled by a
blower through duct. Inadequate duct will slow down the
process, and so will a poorly conceived ducting run. This
can be solved pretty easily.
1. The minimum duct for a regular vent is 6” round or
3.25” by 10” rectangular. For a professional hood, it
should be 8-10”. If you fry, wok or grill max out your
duct work.
2. The best ducting run is straight up through the roof.
Second best is straight back through the wall.
3. Keep the elbows and bends in the duct to a minimum,
if at all. Every 90 degree bend will reduce static flow
through the duct itself.
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Blower Types
Many of the hoods, microwaves and downdrafts already have blowers. However, on
many professional and higher CFM hoods, the blowers are separate. They have their
advantages as well as drawbacks.
Exterior Blowers
Exterior blowers are quieter (you still hear the exhausting air) and can
be more powerful with speeds up to 1500 CFM.
However, they are big and bulky for the outside of your house and are
harder to service, especially in the snow.
Internal Blower
Blower in mounted on the inside of the hood itself. Internal blowers
are louder, but simpler to service. They use an exterior wall cap, so
they are much better looking than a much larger outside blower.
In-Line Blower
Combination of the quieter outside blower, without the big outside
vent. It’s still harder to fix, especially if it’s placed in the recesses of
your home.
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Types of Ventilation
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European Hoods
European hoods are triangular shape and are really designed to be the focal point of
the kitchen. They can vary in power (CFM) and capture area.
Read more: Best Looking 30 Inch Chimney/Pyramid/European Hoods
Photo credit: www.heliosdesigngroup.com
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Professional Hoods
Professional hoods are designed to vent the high BTU’s of the high output ranges. The
CFM can be up to 1800 and depth of 24 inches or greater.
Read more: Best Ventilation Hoods For Professional Gas Ranges
Photo credit: www.ccswoodworks.net
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Undercabinet Hoods
This is the traditional style hood. In 1986,
the average power of this hood was 250300 CFM. Today it can be 2-3 times that.
Learn more:
Yale Appliance University - Ventilation
Photo credit: www.aidandesign.com
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Downdraft Ventilation
Whether it rises up or is integrated into
an appliance, a downdraft vent carries
heat and grease outside.
Downdrafts are best utilized in island,
hoodless applications. Since the
downdraft vent has no capture area and is
fighting gravity, it should be considered a
secondary option.
You cannot downdraft a professional
cooktop as there is too much heat and
smoke.
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Over-the-Range Microwave Hood
A microwave with a fan built inside. OTRs,
as they are called, are designed to go over
a range.
However, at 310 CFM and with a
rather shallow capture area, they are not
designed for heavy cooking.
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Wood Hoods
This has become a very popular design trend, because it accentuates the cabinet.
If you are using the cabinet as the hood, then you need a blower designed for this
application.
Many brands market a wood
hood blower, which is simply the
lights, filters and controls along
with the blower itself.
Read more: Decorative Kitchen
Range Hoods
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Island Hoods
Four sided hoods to be placed over your kitchen island (usually in the middle).
Photo credit: www.archipelagohawaii.com
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How to Buy
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How to Buy
Style is truly in the eyes of the beholder.
You will be happy with Best, Viking, Zephyr, Wolf or Yale in terms of aesthetics.
Function is another issue, especially if you have a professional range or like to cook a
lot.
Venting properly is the key. Buying a larger vent than required is not a bad idea
because the cost difference is minimal.
Although downdrafts open the kitchen scheme, these should be considered as a last
resort.
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About Us
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A Little About Us
Yale has been in business since 1923 and operates out of a 30,000 square foot showroom in
Dorchester and display over 80 types of hoods. We have been awarded Best of Boston 12
times, Boston’s Green Award, Massachusetts Retailer of The Year 2013 as well as Showroom of
The Year for social media by Residential Lighting Magazine.
Be a Yale Insider and choose topics of your interest from Cooking tips, sales information,
lighting and much more. Click here for more information
2014 Awards
Residential Lighting
Magazine Showroom
of the Year
Boston
Magazine’s Best
of Boston 2014
Retailers
Association of MA
Retailer of the Year
Read more about us here
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Contact Information
For product recommendations, questions or anything else please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Address: 296 Freeport St., Boston, MA
Website: www.yaleappliance.com
Blog: blog.yaleappliance.com
Email: help@yaleappliance.com
Phone: 617-825-9253
Facebook: fb.com/YaleApplianceLighting
Twitter: @MyYale
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Virtual Showroom
Want to get a sneak peak at our state of the art showroom? Check out the link
below for a full interactive virtual tour of the Yale Appliance and Lighting
Showroom located in Dorchester, Mass.
See the Yale showroom here
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