Having chosen your perfect cooker, you now need to decide on the hood. While cooking up some fantastic dishes in your kitchen, unwanted grease, moisture and smoke permeate the room – this is where the hood does its job. The cooker hood becomes quite a focal point for your kitchen so do not just for the cheapest here. The hood should match the style of the rest of your kitchen, so if you have a contemporary feel, purchase a sleek modern looking hood and obviously a more conservative hood if your kitchen is traditional.
Firstly, you can choose from two types of cooer hoods, extraction and recirculation. If your kitchen does not have access to an outside wall, you have to opt for a recirculation hood, which basically passes the air through filters before returning it to the room in a cleaner state. These types of hood are only really recommended if you are unable to duct the air to an exterior source, which is what extraction fans do.
As touched on earlier, your hood should fit the style of your kitchen, but for great performance make sure that it is as wide, if not wider, than your hob or oven. This is so all grease and moisture is either sucked up into the filters or extracted externally, leaving less chance of grease “sticking” to both walls and other appliances.
There are several types of cooker hoods of which your choice will be determined by the rest of your kitchen design.
The Integrated cooker hood—most popular size 60cm, but also available in 90cm widths. These models are only used in fitted kitchens. They are always fitted between wall units and have a door on the front, which matches the other kitchen furniture and effectively hides the appliance except when viewed from below. Opening and closing the door switches the fan on and off at the speeds previously set and also activates the cooker hood lights to illuminate the cooking surface. Very popular with the kitchen trade and price is usually included in the basic cost of the kitchen.
Built In and Canopy Hoods—are fitted into the base plate of wooden or metal canopies. Typically available in both 60 and 80cm widths, with single or twin motors. These models are only visible when viewed from below as they are generally fitted into specially made decorative canopies.
Chimney and Island Hoods –are highly visible, high tech models that are used as features within the kitchen and are usually much more expensive than the other types of hoods. These hoods mainly feature halogen or fluorescent lamps and very high performance fan motor systems. Accessories such as spice racks, utensil rails and back plates are available to enhance the appearance of these models.
Classic Canopy and Cove designed to enhance range style cookers.