Choosing the Right Cooker Hood
A cooker hood is essential for any kitchen as smoke and airborne grease generated as a by-product of kitchen cooking for extraction purposes. Hoods not only help to remove grease, heat, moisture and smoke from the cooking area but they can also enhance the overall appearance of any kitchen. Hoods are available in various sizes and finishes and can fit perfectly in your kitchen area. They can neutralise, recycle and obliterate smoke and cooking odours to provide a fresh feeling while cooking. You will need to consider a few things before purchasing a cooker hood for your kitchen. Below are a few guidelines that can help you make the right decision. Your existing layout will determine some of these choices unless you are going to redesign your kitchen altogether.
Choosing by dimension
All popular kitchen hoods can be fitted with built-in hobs and freestanding cookers. You should first measure the width of your hob or cooker, and then select a hood with the same width although this is not compulsory. If you have space, a hood of any size can be fitted. Smaller hoods are more suitable for compact kitchens as they are quieter and usually have low extraction rates but larger kitchens require larger hoods with high extraction rates as they have more powerful motors to recycle a greater volume of air. We also offer a range of hoods that feature twin motors so that they can work to a greater efficiency.
Choosing by style
There is a vast range of cooker hoods that different characteristics, looks, and positions.
Canopy Cooker Hoods
Canopy hoods are designed to easily fit on the underside of a kitchen cabinet and as such, they will not detract from your kitchen aesthetic. They are suitable for traditional four-ring freestanding cookers or hobs. The air can be cleaned either by re-circulating in your kitchen or it can be extracted by Canopy Hoods. These range of from 52cm to 90cm in width so carefully check the measurements. There should be at least 75cm of space between the base of the hood and hob when you use a cooker hood with a gas hob. A minimum distance of 65cm is required for electric hobs.
Integrated Cooker Hoods
If you do not want to interrupt your current kitchen design, then integrated hoods are a good choice as they fit easily behind a cabinet door. You will find them suitable for a hob or above a traditional four-ring cooker. As greases, smoke and odours are unwanted in any kitchen, so these cooker hoods will keep them away without disturbing your kitchen design. Please make sure that you have checked your required size as these hoods are available in a variety of widths. Features of integrated hoods are like canopy hoods, but they will require their own space between two cabinets and you need to place a matching cabinet door in front. You will find them suitable for a four-ring traditional hob, and they are available in multiple sizes.
Optional extras: You may require a venting kit or charcoal filters, for more details, please check the product description.
Chimney Cooker Hoods
If your cooker backs onto a wall, a powerful, chimney-style hood is an option. These consist of a canopy plus a chimney and come in different sizes and designs. Stainless steel with glass is the most popular style in the market.
Island Cooker Hoods
Island hoods are considered the largest cooking hoods and are attached to the ceiling. Their design is elegant, and they make an incredible focal point to the kitchen and are available in many shapes and styles and will fit well above all types of hobs.
Downdraft Cooker Hoods
Those of us who don't like to see traditional cooker hoods in their kitchen or cook on an island will find these downdraft hoods the best option, however, they are on the higher end of the price range. Do you know what makes them different? At the touch of a button, they hideaway into a base unit. They also offer a flexible approach to your hob position.
What's the difference between Extraction and Recirculation?
Extraction hoods
By extracting the grease and smoke out of the kitchen, these extraction or ducted hoods work efficiently and give clean and refreshing air. These Extractor hoods draw in odour and greasy air through a metal filter grease trap before releasing the air outside. Ideal for kitchens that have access for the vent to go outside. If there is no extraction in a place where you want to install them, then you will require professional installation.
Recirculation hoods
For recycling the air in the kitchen, these recirculation hoods are a perfect choice as they efficiently recycle the air by passing it through filters that provide clean air. There is a grease filter in these hoods that are made of either paper, cloth or metal but if you want to neutralise the odours than charcoal or carbon filters will be required. These hoods are easy to install and can be positioned on internal walls. Though they are not as fast or efficient as extraction hoods, they are cheaper.