Comments on: Recirculating Range Hoods — As Effective As Recirculating Toilets

By: Samantha Velez

Samantha Velez — Tue, 29 Jul 2014 19:46:58 +0000

You did a great job of
You did a great job of explaining the difference between vented and ventless range hoods. What would you suggest for someone who cannot install ductwork?

By: Juan Villar

Juan Villar — Fri, 04 Jul 2014 19:18:56 +0000

You can get better results
You can get better results with a recirculating model if you use a carbon filter, which is often an option. Check the website of the manufacturer and see if they sell a carbon filter in the parts section for your model hood. Otherwise, you need to vent outside or open all the windows!

Alternative solution: The Raw Food Diet.

By: David Butler

David Butler — Tue, 15 Oct 2013 23:25:09 +0000

@Diana, a recirculating hood
@Diana, a recirculating hood is certainly better than none. It will filter contaminants, but not moisture. As long as your home isn't super tight, that shouldn't be an issue in the winter, but it will add to your latent (humidity) loads in the summer. Whether or not your AC can handle this is another matter.

By: Diana

Diana — Tue, 15 Oct 2013 22:36:31 +0000

So does this mean that, if
So does this mean that, if your living situation is such that there is no possible way to vent to the outside, there's no point in getting a range hood? Please help, I'm struggling with this...Thanks, Diana.
PS - I have an electric range.

By: mike eliason

mike eliason — Mon, 02 Sep 2013 06:54:53 +0000

all toilets are recirc
all toilets are recirc toilets.

By: David Butler

David Butler — Sun, 03 Mar 2013 23:44:10 +0000

@Ray, aside from the CO issue
@Ray, aside from the CO issue that Allison mentioned, just how does a recirculating fan get rid of moisture?

By: Allison Bailes

Allison Bailes — Sun, 03 Mar 2013 19:25:05 +0000

Ray: Sorry
Ray: Sorry, your comment is high on the assumption scale. The range hood is part of the ventilation system, and yes, it's certainly possible to have a kitchen with a recirculating range hood that works well in the overall ventilation system. If you have a gas range or oven, though, they're a big NO-NO. If you don't have some source of pulling air out of the kitchen, they're not adequate.

In Europe, from what I understand, they're integrated into the whole-house ventilation system. When you see recirculating range hoods in the US, they're typically not integrated.

By: Ray

Ray — Sun, 03 Mar 2013 19:18:12 +0000

Sorry, this article is low on
Sorry, this article is low on the knowledge scale. We've lived in 6 different countries and, outside of the USA, we've almost always had ductless fans. Think Germany, Italy and Switzerland, all countries we've lived in and had ductless fans. And, all countries with more of a cooking tradition than the US and produce far higher end cooking appliances.

In the USA, our home has an outside vented 1,200 cfm attic mounted Fan Tech, drawing from a 42" stainless hood, thru both a wire mesh filter and a Swiss tight mesh replaceable fabric filter. A 36" muffler completes the install.

It works well but no better than the ductless fan in our Swiss home, which is quieter, better looking, easier to install and cheaper.

By: Ryan Shanahan

Ryan Shanahan — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 23:17:48 +0000

Allison, what is your take,
Allison, what is your take, (or Straube's take) on what Stuart Fix suggested above? This is what I most commonly see on Passive House projects. I've yet to hear from any homeowners (albeit there are few) that the set up is problematic.

By: CharlieK

CharlieK — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 18:26:00 +0000

At some point this all
At some point this all becomes ridiculous. Typical young professional family spends an hour in the kitchen each night 10-20 minutes of which cooking.
Typical young professional spends 30-60 minutes in the car commuting and breathing in a much heavier dose of chemicals and particulate matter coming off of the entirely plastic interior of the car as well as the road pollution. Answer stop eating and stop driving.