The range is only the beginning.
Choose a range and the decisions quickly move beyond the appliance. Where will the hood discharge? What is above the ceiling? How will replacement air enter the house? The answers can change the cabinetry and the work needed beyond the kitchen.
Scott Hobbs makes that connection in his discussion of the kitchen on Boroughs and Burbs. His example is a powerful exhaust hood interfering with a fireplace’s draft. A kitchen renovation can affect a room on the other side of the house.1
Air out. Air in.
Give the air a route.
An exhaust hood sends air outdoors. The house then draws air in through available paths, unless a planned supply accounts for it. Depending on the house and its appliances, the pressure difference can interfere with combustion venting.3
The design team needs to consider the hood, duct, replacement air and other equipment together. A larger number on the hood specification does not settle that work. The route matters too: PNNL recommends a direct outdoor exhaust path, smooth metal duct and as few bends as practical, following the manufacturer’s sizing instructions.2
This is worth resolving before the ceiling and cabinet details are finished. It gives the mechanical work a place in the design while there is room to accommodate it.
Explore / Airflow balance
What leaves has to be replaced.
300 CFM remains to come through other paths.
This is a steady-flow illustration: exhaust minus planned replacement air. This does not predict pressure, installed fan performance, leakage paths or combustion safety, and is not a sizing tool. A real system must be designed and checked for the house.
Measured in a home
The burner’s position matters, too.
A hood has to capture the plume above the cooking surface. In a 2012 laboratory study of seven residential hoods, Berkeley Lab found that capture varied with the hood, airflow and burner position. Back burners generally performed better than front burners in that sample.5
A separate 2016 field report shows the distinction within one installed hood. The chart presents H5, one home in a nine-home study. It is an example of measured behavior, not a rating for today’s products.4
Hood H5 / Berkeley Lab, 2016
The chart shows the percentage captured by the hood in the study’s burner-emission test. All four measurements come from the same installed hood. Source: Table 8, report page 19.
The order of decisions
Resolve the appliances before the cabinet drawings.
Select the model.
A nominal width does not describe every requirement. Work from the selected model’s installation information, including clearances, ventilation, utilities and service access.
Confirm the supply.
Scott describes how production schedules affected appliance availability in the market discussed in the original conversation. For a new project, confirm current lead times with the supplier and revisit them as the order progresses.
Coordinate the fit.
Check the appliance schedule against the cabinetry and mechanical drawings before fabrication. Agree on how a substitution would be reviewed if the selected model becomes unavailable.
The work continues through installation. Doors need to open as intended, the equipment needs to remain serviceable and the ventilation needs to perform in the finished house. Those checks belong in the project schedule alongside the stone and millwork.
Builders, since 1954.
More About Hobbs
Hobbs, Inc. has been building and renovating homes since 1954. The Journal draws on that work and on conversations with architects and craftspeople about the decisions behind a finished home.
Discover HobbsSources and conversation
For a closer look
- Hobbs Conversations: The Current Market
Scott Hobbs on kitchen exhaust, appliance availability and construction planning. The production example reflects the market discussed in the original conversation.
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory: Kitchen exhaust fans
Outdoor exhaust, duct routing and coordination with replacement air. Refer to the adopted code and equipment instructions for the project.
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Remodeling and indoor air quality
Kitchen ventilation and the possibility of backdrafting when exhaust depressurizes a home.
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory: Cooking burner study, 2016
Singer, Delp, Lorenzetti and Maddalena. Table 8, printed page 19. The chart reproduces the front and back burner measurements for hood H5.
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory: Residential exhaust hood performance, 2012
Delp and Singer. Laboratory study of seven hoods, examining airflow, sound and capture efficiency. DOI: 10.1021/es3001079.
A few practical questions
When should appliances be selected for a custom kitchen?
Select the models before the cabinet drawings are finalized. Their installation requirements determine more than opening widths: clearances, utilities, ventilation and service access all need to be coordinated.
Is a higher-CFM range hood always better?
Airflow is only part of the comparison. Hood geometry, coverage of the burners and the installed duct route affect capture. The design also needs to account for replacement air and the other equipment in the house.
What happens if an appliance changes after cabinetry is ordered?
Review the replacement model against the cabinet and mechanical drawings before accepting it. Two appliances with the same nominal width may have different clearances, connections or ventilation requirements. Confirm the fit and any changes with the project team.
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