However, the airflow in your kitchen might seem pure; you’ve only shifted the filthy air only a few inches up and hidden in your attic. So you inhale in the attic, where all the residue, filth, and undesired particles from your kitchen air are sitting.
Never direct the vent of your range hood upward. The overabundance of gunk and humidity will destroy your attic, and moldy problems could result over time.
As an alternative, exhaust your range hood even outside your house through an internal wall or roof.
It’s a semi-enclosed area in your attic. Most of the time, there is hardly any air flowing into or out of an attic. So the majority of the ventilated gas remains in the attic area if you exhaust your range hood into this area. The issue is what takes place after that.
Your range hood’s excess heat is contaminated with humidity, dirt, lubricants, and other particulate matter. This warm air cools down in the attic area. Residues start to evaporate out of the air when it gets cold. So your attic is the place where the concentrated atoms must go.
It’s generally not necessary, although it’s strongly advised, to vent a range hood outdoors. However, vent the hood to the exterior of your sole option is to exhaust it into the attic.
A ductless or recirculating range hood is another option. A ductless hood pumps the air from your kitchen directly into it after passing it through carbon filters. For these hoods, ducting is not necessary. They are typically a little less expensive and simpler to set up.
Install ducting into your attic and create an opening to vent a range hood on the roofing. The most crucial step is making an opening big enough according to your ducting. Fortunately, you can make a tiny opening first and align it with the ducting to make a larger hole afterward.
The rooftop should next be secured to your ducting. To attach your ducting and roof vent cover, get technical counseling.
- Caustic gun
- Plug-in drill
- Hammer
- Jigsaw
- Pry bar
- A duct that is insulated
- Cement for concrete roofs
- Exhaust vent installed on a roof
- Roofing screws
Oil, filth, soot, and toxins will accumulate in your attic if your roof is not vented. Keeping these toxins in your house may be detrimental to your well-being. The idea of having a ducted range hood is effectively defeated if you vent it into the attic. Also, the lubricant accumulation over time could harm your attic.
Always resist running ducts up to your attic. Long-term concerns like installation costs, dusting time, fixes, and other issues will be avoided. In addition, it’s difficult to cope with the oils and humidity accumulation in the attic. Instead, ventilate your range hood outside your house for the purest interior air.
To properly measure your ductwork, refer to the preceding chart. The most crucial thing is to stay within these required duct widths. Your hood won’t operate as effectively if you don’t.
Using a wall or roof cap to cover your ducting is great practice. Use a wall cap if the hood’s vent is located outside a wall. Use a roof cap if your hood is vented via your roof.
These covers prevent tiny particles, dust, sleet, and precipitation from entering your ducting and house.
Determine the exterior route that employs the minimum elbows and is the fastest before installing your ductwork. By doing this, you can be assured that almost all of the sticky cooking air will exit your house.
To lessen humidity and prevent air from flowing into your floorboards and attic, seal your ductwork. Although not necessary, doing this will help your hood run more efficiently and keep your ducting in a fantastic condition.
Generally speaking, the width of your ducting should approximate that of the roof cap. Therefore, the ductwork dimension specifications are as follows:
Install a 4″ roof cap for vent hoods with a maximum CFM of 600. Apply a 6″ cap for vent hoods with a CFM of 700 and 900. An 8″ cap works best for hoods around 1000 and 1250 CFM. Lastly, for hoods above 1300 CFM, install a roof vent cap of 10″ or greater.
The height of the kitchen hood vent is the most crucial aspect to consider. Choose a hood that is equal to or wider than your present range.
Aesthetics, illumination, air velocity, and ventilation direction should all be considered. The air that travels from the vent hood is measured in cubic feet per minute (CFM). As a general rule, multiply the square footage of your kitchen by two to get the CFM you’ll require.
The optimum route is through an exterior wall so that less sealing is required. Make sure that the vent, if you choose to vent via the roof, travels outdoors rather than simply into the attic.
Direct attic ventilation seems like a cost-effective initial implementation for range hoods. However, long term, you are causing more costly issues in the future. Compared to removing moldy or polluted shielding from your attic, repairing any loss, and replacing the waterproofing, the expense of installing that vent through the roof is unquestionably far lower.