Hello, I just discovered your blog-LOVE it!
We are re-modeling our 16 year old kitchen. My husband is doing all of the work himself. We currently have gas range topped by a micro with a recirculating fan-no other ventilation.
We can not vent to the outside-there is not duct work in place now and the stove wall backs up to the living room wall. The kitchen is on the ground floor with rooms above so there is no way to run an exhaust pipe up through to the roof.
Is there a ductless hood in existence that can do a decent job of cleaning the air?
Thanks!
Charlotte
A.
Hi Charlotte,
Thanks for your question.
My first reaction is to advise you to bring in a good HVAC (Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning) expert to assess your problem and figure out how to get a duct out of the kitchen to vent to the exterior.
One thing you might consider is a beam containing the ductwork across the ceiling with some false beams to balance it out. Another often used ploy is to build a soffit (basicly an empty box) over the upper cabinets and run the ductwork in the soffit. Either of these options would function better than a ductless system, if the ductwork was well designed and properly installed.
It's funny you should ask if there are any quality hood manufacturers offering hope that a ductless hood might do more than blow hot air in your face. Just a few days ago, I saw an ad in an industry publication announcing a new ductless system by Vent-A-Hood. They are a well respected company.
Here's their pitch, dated January 27th, 2010:
“We’ve launched a whole new category of range hood,” said Skip Woodall, president and CEO of Vent-A-Hood, about the ARS series. “Thanks to superior engineering and design, we offer the one real solution for residents in lofts, condos or highrises who have suffered with recirculating hoods that do nothing to clean the cooking air.”
Unlike conventional low-quality ductless ventilation products on the market, Vent-A-Hood’s new Air Recovery System includes a unique four-phase technology with four times the cleaning power to effectively collect the rising gases, separate the grease, contain the odor and trap the smoke for complete cooking air recovery.
The ARS series features an active canopy to capture cooking contaminants. A centrifugal blower then extracts the grease. The air is pushed through an activated carbon bed with 50 times more exposure to cooking air than flat carbon mats in traditional ductless hoods to reduce odor. And lastly, a large accordion microfiber filter makes Vent-A-Hood’s design the only hood to address smoke when not venting to the outdoors.
“The Air Recovery System is a green technology to take pollutants out and put clean air back,” Woodall said. “It is the only range hood worthy of the Vent-A-Hood name that will clean and recover good air when ducting to the outside of a home is not an option.”
The Vent-A-Hood ARS series, offered in two stainless steel designs, is now available across the U.S. and Canada. For more information or to find a Vent-A-Hood licensed dealer near you, visit www.ventahood.com, call 1-800-331-2492 or email: customer_service@ventahood.com.
I did say Vent-A-Hood is a well-respected hood manufacturer. However, I have no personal experience with this product. It is so new it's not even on their web site yet.
I still encourage you to make a real effort to solve your problem with a vent to the exterior. If you DO decide to buy the Vent-A-Hood product (which will certainly be pricey), please let us all know how well it works.
Peggy
