What is the optimal height and depth for a hood fan?
In a perfect ventilation world I would have a 27" deep and high powered hood fan that sits as close as possible to the stove (18"?). Unfortunately, this would be tricky as the hood fan would be so deep and low that I'd have trouble seeing the whole stove and I could hit my head on it.
This leaves me with two options:
- A low (18" above the counter) and shallow (e.g., 18" deep) hood fan, or;
- A high (e.g., 32"-36" above the counter) and deep (e.g., 27") hood fan.
Which of these two options would be most effective at eliminating unwanted odors and gases? Let's assume in both cases that the hood fan extends beyond the edges of the stove on both sides (e.g., a 46" hood fan over a 36" stove).
Best Answer
This is going to be dominated by ergonomics.
The perfect fan for exhaust isn't so perfect if you're always banging your head on it, or can't see in the pan. Some unusual devices are rather tall and wouldn't even fit in your 18" (I can't strain jelly on the worktop because of the cupboards so do that on the cold stove).
In catering, where kitchen air quality is a concern, the fan hoods are normally high, well over head height for the tallest users, but powerful.
The stuff you want to get rid of, whether steam, oil aerosol, or smells, tends to be carried upwards by convection, which gives a push to complement the fan's pull. You also have to consider the source of replacement air - if the house was sealed completely tight there wouldn't be one and the fan would be largely useless. Airflow from the rest of the house into the kitchen to replaced the exhausted air can be effective in controlling the flow of smells, despite not increasing or even decreasing (for the same total inlet size) the amount of airflow.
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Quick Answer about "What is the optimal height and depth for a hood fan?"
The range hood should be equal to or slightly larger than the range top. Range Hood Height: The recommended mount height from the range top to the hood bottom should be between 24” to 30”.KOBE Range Hoods: How to calculate proper clearance dimensions of your kitchen range hood.
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