Introduction
When buying a cooker hood it can be helpful to know which type is most suited to your kitchen so a bit of advance research could be important. We're going to take a look at the recirculating 60cm cooker hoods and 100cm cooker hoods and the different types available, with their advantages and disadvantages.
For many of us, cooker hoods are perhaps not an area we have an enthusiastic interest in and they are maybe more of an afterthought. The objective of all hoods is to remove food smells from your kitchen. The hood sits directly above your hob or cooker and needs to be a minimum of 65cm above a gas hob or 43cm above an electric hob. There are 60cm cooker hoods and 100cm cooker hoods. For most cookers the 60cm cooker hood will suffice but it's always best to measure your cooker beforehand.
A recirculating cooker hood is one that draws air through a grease, then a charcoal filter, into the cooker, to remove grease particles and neutralise smells. Cleaned air is then returned out into the kitchen, in a similar way to air conditioning. All cooker hoods 60cm as well as 100cm ones have a grease filter. A recirculating kit or a carbon filter may also be needed for the recirculation hood. The charcoal filter will need to be replaced about once a year, depending on how much you use your cooker, whilst the grease filter needs to be replaced if you have a paper one, but a metal type can just be washed.
One of the advantages of the recirculation cooker hood is that it has low installation costs and it can be used in almost all kitchens. On the downside, the charcoal filter has to be replaced and does not remove moisture from the air.
Sizes and types
Cooker hoods come in different sizes. Most importantly your cooker hood will need to be the same size as your cooker or oven. 60cm cooker hoods are the smallest on the market and most suited to a smaller kitchen. There are also 100cm cooker hoods for larger cookers and kitchens.
Recirculating cooker hoods come in different brands and designs. There are glass cooker hoods, chimney hoods, which have a chimney leading off above a fan; island hoods, which are suspended from the ceiling; visor/conventional hoods, which stick directly out of a wall; fully integrated hoods, which are built into a cabinet above the hob; and lastly canopy hoods, which are built-in to the underneath of a cabinet above the hob. All types will come in the 60 cm and 100 cm sizes.
The cooker hood extractor
An alternative to the recirculating hood is the cooker hood extractor. The cooker hood extractor uses a duct to the outside which removes steam and odours. This type will need access to an exterior wall for the duct to go through. An advantage of these is that there is no need to replace filters regularly, so running costs can be cheaper and they also remove the moisture from the air. However smaller kitchens may not have room for the extractor or the capacity for the ducting. On the cost side, installation of the ducting can prove more expensive.
Whether it's a 60cm cooker hood or a 100cm cooker hood, a glass cooker hood or a cooker hood extractor you need, any good appliance store should be able to meet your needs.