ent hoods.
Ideally you want unwanted elements from cooking such as smoke, odor, humidity and heat to be exhausted outside the house with a ducted vent hood. Seriously try to avoid ductless, or down draft vent and those over-the-range microwave filters that pull air in but recirculate the air back into the kitchen.
Vent hoods, both ducted and non-ducted, must be adequately sized for the job. Hoods need to be designed around the size and strength of the range. A properly sized hood must cover at least the full width of the range and at least 50 percent of the front burners. Local code will dictate minimal vent hood requirements, but you might want to go beyond the minimal code requirements and take the recommendations of the The Home Ventilating Institute (HVI), a nonprofit organization that certifies residential ventilation products.
For range hoods, The HVI recommends a minimum of 40 CFM for every linear foot of range. CFM stands for cubit feet per minute and is measurement of how fast air circulates in and out of a space. So, 40 CFMs per linear foot of an electric range.
In the case of gas cooktops, the rule of thumb is 1 CFM for every 100 BTUs. But ultimately the HVI recommends following the cooktop manufacturer's advice to determine ventilation requirements.
If at all possible, choose HVI-rated vent hoods. Inflated performance ratings are common for range hoods that are not HVI-Certified. Selecting range hoods with HVI-Certified Performance Ratings will ensure that ventilation expectations and building code requirements are met.
Alright, wanna do a couple of quiz questions?
1. True or false: Electric ovens cook more evenly, but gas ovens cook moister.
Choose a combination convection steam oven for moist and even cooking.
2. True or False: For range hoods, The Home Ventilating Institute recommends a minimum of 40 CFM for every linear foot of range.
Well, that's all I have for this week. Thank you for joining me. I hope you learned as much as I did. Hope you stop by next week.
Please remember that the purpose of this podcast is simply to educate and inform. It is not a substitute for professional advice. The information is based the only on the opinions, research and experiences of my guests and myself. That information might be incomplete, it’s subject to change and it may not apply to your project. In addition, building codes and requirements vary from region to region, so always consult a professional about specific recommendations for your home.
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