Yale Appliance University - Ventilation

Here we are with another installment in our video series where we answer our customers commonly asked questions. This week, the topic is ventilation; why it's important, the different styles available and an explanation of our Yale brand and how it compares to the name brands.

Below the video is a transcript and links to more in-depth answers for each question.

Hi folks, it's Chris Wurlitzer from Yale Appliance + Lighting in Boston, MA. We're back with another round of common questions we receive here at the store. Today we're talking about ventilation and what hood would be proper for your kitchen. Remember, look at the links below to get more detailed articles from our blog.

WHY IS VENTILATION IMPORTANT?

If you're like me, when you're cooking sometimes you're going to create some heat, smoke, grease and a little bit of general chaos. If we can eliminate some of that heat, smoke and grease we can minimize some of that chaos as well.

The first thing you want to do is turn on your vent hood before you even turn on your cooking appliance so you have good air flow circulation. If you wait until the smoke has left the capture area it's very difficult for it to come back into the capture area and out of the hood.

You're going to have some general rules for picking the right CFMs for your cooking appliance. General rule of thumb is 100 CFM for every 12" in electric cooking and with gas cooking you'll add up all your BTUs and divide by 100. So if you have a 60,000 BTU range you're going to need a minimum of 600 CFM. Those calculations will change if you're going for long duct runs or making a lot of right angles in that ducting to go outside of the house. So definitely very important to talk to your sales associate so he can advise you in the proper manner.

Read: Review of Interior, Exterior and Recirculating Ventilation

WHAT ARE THE MAJOR STYLES OF HOODS?

There are seven general styles of ventilation, we're going to through each one of them. There is Island, Downdraft, Over-the-Range Microwave, Under Cabinet, Professional, Insert and Chimney.

Island Hoods

This is an island hood. So if you have an island this is the proper hood for you. This one is pretty cool because it motorizes up out of the way. Very Star Wars.

Read: Island Hoods vs Downdraft Ventilation

Over-the-Range Microwave

An over-the-range microwave can be a great space saver. It combines your microwave, your vent hood and the lights for the vent all in one piece so it gives you more counter space in your kitchen. However, it does come with some drawbacks. It doesn't have a great power in it, so there's not a lot of pulling power. Also, it doesn't have a great capture area. Most of the times when you're cooking you're going to go the easiest, most convenient burner which is one of your front burners. This over-the-range microwave does not extend over that burner. So there's less of a capture area which makes it slightly less effective. It still can be effective if it's vented directly out the back and does not have long duct runs.

Hood Inserts

An insert is going to be one of the best ways to integrate your hood into your kitchen and hide it away. Basically you buy the internal components of the hood and then you have your cabinetmaker make a wood hood around it. So it integrates and looks like the rest of your cabinetry. It's a really great way to have that function with the form.

Read: Top 3 Custom Wood Hood Inserts

Under Cabinet Hoods

Under cabinet ventilation is going to give a great option for the most amount of cabinet space in your kitchen. The cabinet above can remain usable. You can get it a couple of different styles. You can get it in a traditional style or professional style. One will have baffle filters and one will have mesh filters. Both filters are good options for certain types of cooking.

Professional Hoods

Professional ventilation is going to give you the most power and performance. They can be upwards of 1,500 CFMs with an internal blower, external blower or even an inline blower. If you have a true professional range this is the proper ventilation.

Read: Best Ventilation Hoods for Professional Gas Ranges

Downdraft Hoods

Downdraft ventilation is another great way to hide away the hood from your environment. You are reliant on the pulling power of the ventilation on this and not so much any capture area because it is behind the cooking surface. So when you're doing multiple pots it's not quite as effective, but a great aesthetic.

Chimney Hoods

Chimney hoods are a great way to show off a really great tile backsplash like we have here. There are some height restrictions so you do have to have a certain height ceiling. It's very important to talk to your sales associate to make sure you in those requirements or if you need a duct cover extension.

Read: Best Looking 30" Chimney Hoods

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN YALE HOODS AND NAME BRAND HOODS?

Here at Yale Appliance + Lighting in Boston, MA we've researched the most popular styles of hoods out there and have come up with our own line of hoods. They have no logo on them so they match whatever appliance you may have. We've partnered with one of the most popular hood manufacturers in the industry to make an excellent quality hood at a very good price.

Additional Resources

Download our Ventilation Buying Guide with features and specs of all the major brands of vent hoods on the market. Over 40,000 people have already found answers in a Yale Guide.