We have a manufactured home which is almost 3 yrs old. The DW would like me to replace the above the range exhaust fan/hood combo with something that is more effective and which makes MUCH LESS NOISE.
Is there such a critter than can be retro-fitted without tearing the drywall out? Ours is vented straight up through overhead cabinets, then a drywalled bump out above the cabinets about 18″ through the ceiling/roof.
The one we have is a basic white sheet metal unit made by Philips Products of somewhere in Indiana, single speed and single light bulb. Disappointing, given the nice cabinets and a generally pleasant bright kitchen we have.
I’m realistic enough to know that quality, many times, translates to a few more $. We live in a small town a long way from suppliers or big box type outlets. Will probably end up ordering/buying via the web or would be willing to pay a local contractor a handling fee.
Any recommendations or favorites? Your time would be appreciated.
…The unspoken word is capital. We can invest it or we can squander it. -Mark Twain…Be kind to your children….they will choose your nursing home.…aim low boys, they’re ridin’ shetland ponies !!
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In general you should be able to replace the hood and at worst limit your surgery to inside the cabinnet, using the old duct.
Good luck finding a quieter hood, though. I can definitely NOT recommend the GE units.
Thanks. We just had an issue with the GE range. Almost new and needed a small part. Could not get a part number anfter many, many go 'rounds with Customer DISservice.
I junked it and bought another unit. Will never buy anything GE again, if I can help it. What is their stock going for and why?...The unspoken word is capital. We can invest it or we can squander it. -Mark Twain...Be kind to your children....they will choose your nursing home....aim low boys, they're ridin' shetland ponies !!
Their stock's doing sorta OK, close as I can tell. (Have not really followed it.) Took a beating like everyone else, but nothing scary. But then they're the original conglomerate -- a thumb in everything, and probably not too deeply in debt.
The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness. -John Kenneth Galbraith
Old,
GE was going to sell off appliance division since it didn't show the profit they wanted. I've seen more quality problems with GE friges than Frigidaire that always was rated poorly.This year they "spunoff" the appliance division. What that means, nobody knows. For me, I want to see a lot of improvement.Pete
appliance sales....lately....kinda occasional.
Any hood the same width that has a top discharge of the same size as yours would work. Almost all the manufacturers now offer quiet, efficient (often Energy Star rated) units.
Look for one that is not more than about 250 cfm on high speed, has at least one low speed, and operates at or below 4 sones (noise level).
Broan makes a good hood.
Solar & Super-Insulated Healthy Homes
Edited 1/17/2009 5:14 pm ET by Riversong
It is a Philips Products model PR @ 100 cfm (single speed) with no sound rating listed. About a plain as you can get.
I'll check out the Broans. I bought a bathroom unit from them for an apt we're putting up. I like it. Very quiet and effective....The unspoken word is capital. We can invest it or we can squander it. -Mark Twain...Be kind to your children....they will choose your nursing home....aim low boys, they're ridin' shetland ponies !!
Broan is good but not all the 'Broan's are made by Broan.Early in '08 I had a customer pick out a 'Broan' Model at Lowes from Delaware and I went online to find the PDF to prep the wall for it. When I could not find it, I called the Broan tech help line. They were very responsive and helpful by the way.They said, that model is really made by ____( I can't recall who) and I can fax you the PDF, but it has not been in production for two years now.Which tells me that Lowes is selling from a rather large inventory in a warehouse someplace, and that Broan distributes other makers products under their own name.
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Probably "Nutone." I think that's Broan's low end brand.
I'd like to put a vented range hood in my house sometime this year. Does anyone have other brands to recommend/avoid?
I just bought a Sakura which is relatively quiet and very well designed. It has a solid underside and clever intake so that cleaning it is easy too.
Maybe the thing to do would be to first quantify what you have now - find out the CFM and Sons ratings. Then you can compare to a prospective purchase. I'd think you could get a decent one for somewhere between $75 and $125 depending on how good a one you want.
Also, you may likely find that the existing ducting isn't actually connected to the current hood. Rather, it is installed in the cabinet with an outlet underneath. Then the hood is just pressed up against the duct opening with likely some kind of gasket material between like foam.
Edited 1/17/2009 6:53 pm ET by Matt
I find that the quiet ones range about $150 while the $75 ones make lots of racket
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
Had good results (in past kitchen) with Broan but after a reno we now have a combo over-range hood & microwave. Effective but just not the same.
A few thoughts:
- test them before purchase to determine the noise levels. While price is an indicator (usually) similar price points often had a lot of difference noise-wise.
-a multi-speed is desirable, particularly if you can get some quieter low speeds and 1 or 2 high speeds that really move the air.
- look for a clean deck facing downwards (towards the range surface elements). The smoother it is, with fewer projections, the easier to clean and imo a more finished appearance.
- don't forget the lights - some accepted only low-wattage bulbs that made the chef cook in the dark. Otoh, some accepted halogen spotlights -if this, then a multi-level or dimmer switch would be nice.
- a lot of the noise does not, imo come from the fan itself. It is the vibration of the ducting. Tieing this tightly together and damping with duct tape worked wonders -at least for me.
"Vent a Hood"
They're not the cheapest, or quietest, but they are easy to clean and work well. Ours has a sensor so we just turn on the low and it kicks into high if needed.
"They're not the cheapest, or quietest, but they are easy to clean"
LOL! Lemme guess -- your wife cleans the hood?
Cleaning the Vent-a-Hood ranks as No. 1 on my "most dreaded jobs" list. Not that they're any harder to clean than any others -- just that I've never met a range hood that was "easy" to clean. ;-)
Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA
"LOL! Lemme guess -- your wife cleans the hood?"No, not at all. Granted, we don't deep fry every night, but the only cleaning I've had to do in the year or so I've had it is to pop the tray in the dishwasher and run a cloth over the inside with some degreaser.I know what you mean though, there are a lot of open spaces in the vent-a-hood that would otherwise be covered by a charcoal filter -and therefore forgotten about.