Under-cabinet range hood: what do I need to keep in mind?

When buying an under-cabinet range hood, ask yourself the following:

• Do you place the range hood under your kitchen cupboard or on the wall?
• Which extraction system do you have at home?
• What width range hood do you need?
• How much extraction capacity do you want in your kitchen?

You place a substructure hood under a cupboard or on the wall. Do you use the air exhaust system? Then take into account the installation of the air exhaust pipe.

• Under a kitchen cupboard: the drain pipe runs out through the kitchen cupboard.
• On the wall: you can see the drain pipe running over the wall.

Before you choose a substructure hood, it is important to look at the current exhaust system in your home. There are 3 possible situations:

• Air exhaust system: the hood extracts the air to the outside.
• Recirculation system: the extractor hood filters the air and blows it clean into the kitchen.
• Central exhaust system: the extractor hood is connected to the central exhaust system.

Do you have no room for a drain pipe? Consider the device to be converted to a recirculation hood. Then the hood filters the cooking fumes and blows clean air back into the kitchen.

Because you do not install a substructure hood in a cabinet, you do not need to measure any nismatics. There are two types of substructure hoods: models 60 cm wide or 90 cm wide. Note the following:

• Width of the hob: it is important that your cooker hood is always wide or wider than your hob. Otherwise, the appliance does not drain all cooking vapors.
• Required extraction capacity: a substructure of the extraction hood has a lower extraction capacity than, for example, a wall-mounted extraction hood. Check well in advance how much extraction capacity you need in your kitchen.

To install a substructure hood, you need a ruler, pencil, drill and plugs. Take a good look at which drilling machine is suitable for your wall. Always consult the supplied installation manual of the supplier. For some drainage systems you need extra accessories:

• Air exhaust system: you need an air exhaust pipe. Check the product page to see which diameter you need.
• Recirculation system: you need carbon filters or a recirculation set. On the product page you can see which ones you need to convert your cooker hood.

With cheap substructure hoods you often get synthetic grease filters included. Over time these are saturated and you have to buy new ones. If you prefer not to, you choose a model with aluminum or metal filters. If these are dirty, simply clean them with soapy water. You do not always have to buy new filters.