Kitchen hood device: DIY video instructions for installation, how it works, wiring diagram, price, photo

If you have not previously encountered the choice and installation of kitchen hoods, then their design may seem quite complicated to you.

In fact, the hood device in the kitchen is quite accessible even for independent study - and if you have high-quality instructions or an explanatory article, you will even more easily figure it out.

Flow-type hoods

Features of the design of flow hoods

In household appliances stores today we can find a huge number of very different types of kitchen hoods. Their models differ in size, design, price, performance, etc. But the main difference lies in the very principle of the hoods.

By this parameter, all hoods are divided into:

• Supply (exhaust);
• Recirculating (filtering).

Flow-through hoods are designed for active suction of air from the space above the kitchen stove or work surface and removing it into the ventilation system of the building through a pipe - duct.

Flow hoods are passive and active.

• Passive hoods flow-through type does not contain electric motors in its design. The capture and removal of air from the kitchen occurs exclusively due to the draft in the ventilation duct system.
  Such hoods have a fairly long history, but today they are practically not used in kitchens in private houses and apartments.
• Active hoods work due to an electric motor installed inside the dome. During operation, the electric motor creates a sufficiently powerful ascending air flow, due to which soot, soot, drops of fat suspended in the air, etc. are removed from the kitchen.

Regardless of the type of flow the hood is installed in the kitchen directly above the stove. Metal air ducts are used to connect the hood to the ventilation ducts of the building. Most often, a corrugated pipe or a sealed tin box is used as an air duct.

Note! So that when the air passes through the duct, no extraneous noise occurs, the pipe is wrapped with sound-insulating material (for example, batting). Also, quite often, air ducts are hidden behind false ceilings.

The air duct is fixed to the hood neck using special metal clamps. For a more efficient connection of the air duct and the ventilation duct, you can use a special grid - an adapter (pictured).

What determines the operation of flow hoods

The efficiency of such a hood depends not only on its size and power, but also on the state of the building's ventilation system:

• If the ventilation ducts are clogged with debris or old plaster, the performance of the exhaust hood is significantly reduced.
  To prevent this, you must either clean the strangles yourself, or (if you live in apartment) - contact housing maintenance organizations with the requirement to bring ventilation to order.
• In addition to ventilation, air flow is also important for the correct operation of the hood.. In order to ensure the flow of air in the kitchen, either a ventilation valve (can be wall or window) is installed, or decorative perforations are made in the lower part of the kitchen door.

The main advantage of flow-through hoods is that they not only purify the air in the kitchen, but also replace it with fresh air - with a higher oxygen content and less carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide.

Recirculating hoods

The principle of operation of filter hoods

Unlike flowing hoods, circulating hoods do not require connection to the ventilation shaft of the building.

Below we will tell you how the filter type cooker hood works:

• Under the influence of the rotating blades of the hood motor, air above the stove is sucked into its body.
• At the entrance to the housing, the polluted air passes through the first filter (the so-called grease filter). This filter retains not only grease droplets, but also soot, soot particles, dust, etc.
• The roughly cleaned air is forced into the second filter under pressure. This filter is designed for fine air purification (small particles of soot, unpleasant odors, etc.) and is a cartridge filled with granular carbon.
• After passing through two filters, the purified air flows back into the kitchen.

Benefits of recirculation hoods

Despite the fact that historically recirculating hoods appeared much later than flow-through hoods, they still gained some popularity.

The reason for this is the advantages that filter hoods provide to their owners:

• Firstly, the efficiency of this type of exhaust device has nothing to do with the state of ventilation of the building..
  That is why recirculation hoods are installed in houses with poorly functioning ventilation, as well as in private houses.
• Secondly, the absence of air ducts not only greatly simplifies the installation of the hood, but also contributes to the creation of a more harmonious interior in the kitchen..
  At the very least, we don't have to look for ways to disguise the large metal pipe under the ceiling.
• Thirdly, the care of the filter hoods is very simple, and consists only in periodic cleaning of the anti-grease filter and replacing the charcoal filter.

The key drawback of such hoods is one - they do not replace the air in the room, but only drive it through filters. Therefore, although the hood copes well with fumes and odors, the carbon dioxide content in the air remains at the same level as before filtration. This means that you will have to ventilate the kitchen more often.

Hood structural elements

Housing and ducts

A modern hood consists of several elements - and below we will consider each of them in sufficient detail.

And we will begin to consider the details with those that are in our sight:

• The design of the body and air duct pipes is important, first of all, for flow-through hoods. Hoods with filters are not provided with an air duct, as such - and the body performs almost exclusively a decorative function.
• Tolley case - exhaust hoods. As a rule, they are made in the form of rather large domes. This shape makes it easier to suck in air above the stove and prevents polluted air from spreading through the kitchen.
• The surface of the case - both internal and external - should be periodically cleaned from fat deposits.
  If on the outside this must be done to ensure an attractive appearance, then on the inside - to keep the hood in working order.
• Air ducts can also be of different shapes, but most often, as we noted above, they are made round or square in cross section. The optimum duct diameter is 150 mm or more.

Note!
The fewer elbows (i.e. turns) the air duct has, the more efficiently the hood works. Each turn of the duct by 90⁰ reduces the extraction performance by 10%.

Engine and "stuffing"

The next in line will be the engine - the "heart" of our hood. Some models are equipped with two engines, which provides a significant increase in power.

As a rule, kitchen hoods are equipped with electric motors ranging from 50 to 200 watts with an operating speed of 1500 to 2000 rpm. The performance of the hood directly depends on the power of the engine, as well as the volume of its energy consumption.

Note!
An important parameter when choosing a hood is the volume of its engine. As a rule, more powerful engines operate more noisily, therefore, you should not take a hood with a large margin of power - after all, it will also make much more noise.

In addition to the motor, the power consumption of the hood is also influenced by the installed lamps, which provide directional illumination of the stove or work surface. Either halogen or LED lamps are installed as backlighting.

The second option is more economical, since halogen lamps consume almost as much energy as standard incandescent lamps.

A cord is used to connect the hood to the mains (220V, 50Hz). As a rule, its length is no more than two meters, therefore it is often necessary to either use an extension cord or mount an overhead socket.

Note!
The current strength is about 1A, therefore, to connect the outlet, wires with a cross section of 0.75 mm are required² and more.

In fact, the electrical circuit of the kitchen hood is not particularly complicated. That is why, if you have the appropriate skills, you can repair the electrical part of the hood yourself.

Anti-grease filter

The next element of the hood that we will look at is the grease filter.

This filter is installed "at the inlet" of almost any type of hoods, and not only cleans the air from large impurities, but also protects the engine and electrical components from grease.

• Grease filter is a cassette made of metal mesh or perforated foil, placed in several layers. When choosing a hood model, it is better to give preference to those devices in which anti-grease filters are equipped with an anti-corrosion coating.
• Inexpensive hoods can also be equipped with disposable anti-grease filters. These filters are made from synthetic fabric and require periodic replacement. And although the price of such a filter is quite low, it is still better to purchase models with metal grease traps.
• The grease filter requires periodic cleaning to remove contamination. Dishwashing detergent is most commonly used to remove grease - this is usually sufficient.

Carbon filter

For finer filtration, and most importantly, for cleaning the air from unpleasant odors in recirculation hoods, carbon filters are used:

• The charcoal filter is installed behind the hood motor, which allows air to pass through it under significant pressure.
• The design of the carbon filter includes a plastic case, inside of which there is carbon powder or carbon granules.
• Moistening the charcoal filter should be avoided, as the caked carbon creates resistance to the passage of air, reducing the extraction power.
• Carbon filters are disposable filters, therefore, after the end of their service life, they require replacement. Typically, information on the operating time of the filter contains instructions for the hood itself.

Replacing carbon filters is quite simple - just press the latches and remove the filter housing from the mounts. In this case, you should not use excessive force so as not to damage the latches. If you are in doubt about how to properly remove the filter for replacement, we recommend that you watch the explanatory video.

We hope that the information in this article on how the cooker hood works in the kitchen will be useful to you. And when the time comes to make a choice in favor of this or that model (see. also how to choose a hood for the kitchen) - you will choose the device that best suits your requirements.