Kitchen with no hood

[lindag]

I have a wonderful, modern home with one fatal flaw; it has no range hood.  In fact, the kitchen is on the main level with bedrooms overhead.  Nowhere to run a vent.  So I have existed for almost nine years with no vent in my kitchen.  I have a microwave oven over the range with the 'pretend' vent fan.

I know I'm no alone since many people in large apartment buildings have kitchens with no ventilation.

What to do? 

[radtek]

No way to go through the wall? That's assuming you don't have the kitchen in the middle of the house. Some stoves have vents built in by the burners but still doesn't vent to the outside. If you have a window perhaps an exhaust fan you can put in when needed.

 

First thing I looked at when buying my house. Had to have a good vent to the outside. 

[lindag]

Nope, range is on an inside wall (kitchen has a big view which can't be blocked).

I have considered replacing my range with one that has a downdraft but what I read about those hasn't been real good.

[Joe Blowe]

Duct work can be installed in the area between the ceiling and the floor above.  Have you consulted a plumber or HVAC contractor?

[radtek]

Well there's always the option of building a little cook-house.

 

I usually have the toaster oven and several induction burners in the garage which is great for keeping cooking smells out of the house. Especially in seasons where it isn't practical to open windows up.

[Hassouni]

I'm in a similar situation - In a condo with my stove against a shared wall, nowhere near a window or outside wall. I just open all the windows, open the bathroom door and turn the bathroom fan on, and hope for the best. I also neutralize my smoke detector, or as Dave Arnold calls it "cooking detector". For steaks and stir fries and the like, I'll heat the pan up inside, and then take it to my patio on a small portable burner - Super high heat searing should not be done in an unvented situation, if for no other reason than the immense amount of smelly smoke it generates.

 

But yeah, I don't know why any architect or designer thinks it's OK to have an unvented stove. The architect who did my building still lives on the top floor and every now and then I feel like shaking him and asking what he was thinking...

[CatPoet]

Call on a   kitchen expert and see what can be done?

[ElsieD]

Nope, range is on an inside wall (kitchen has a big view which can't be blocked).

I have considered replacing my range with one that has a downdraft but what I read about those hasn't been real good.

I had a Maytag that had a downdraft and it was pretty much useless.

[dcarch]

Get a powerful electrostatic air cleaner to put near the cook area.

 

It can filter out particles in the air (grease and smoke in the air), but not smell.

 

If you want to also filter out smell, you can get an electrostatic air filter with an activated charcaol filter section.

 

The filter section can be washed in your dishwasher and never need replacement. charcoal filter will need to be replaced once in a while.

 

dcarch

[weinoo]

Welcome to the wonderful world of an NYC apartment.  I've lived with this same situation for a really long time.

 

I don't do any (well, hardly any) deep frying.  I used to roast coffee beans, but talk about generating some smells! I tend to do most of my cooking, when it's on the stove top, at moderate heat levels - I can still get a pretty nice sear, but it still generates smoke and grease and smell.

 

I also occasionally do some stove-top smoking, using Hassouni's high-tech method to rid the air of smoke.

 

Oh, there's also incense.

[andiesenji]

Your home has to have some plumbing vents through the roof - from bathrooms in particular.  venting duct work can be connected to these existing vents, run inside walls or in the space between floors.  This has been done in buildings much older than yours and the results were excellent.

One of my friends owns a fully restored Craftsman home in Pasadena in which this was done so she could have a functioning range hood to complement the restored original colors (green and cream) of this home that was built in 1915. 

The installation was done so skillfully that it appears the range hood was an original part of the kitchen.

 

Consult with someone who installs vent hoods professionally.

[gulfporter]

Our current home (bought it a year ago) has no hood over the cook top; putting one in would be expensive and more importantly to me, very disruptive, dusty, messy.  Installing a hood would also detract from the openness of our living space.  We thought about changing to a downdraft cook top (had one years ago and it was ok), but that option would take away lots and lots of existing lower storage space in this kitchen. 

 

Luckily we live in Central Florida and can do most of our cooking outdoors on a large gas grill with a very powerful side burner.  I much prefer searing duck breasts and ahi tuna outside rather than inside even if I had a hood...there's no real clean up needed at the grill (the splatters tend to hit landscape plants that don't seem to mind).  

 

We are also lucky in that we go out for dinner 5 nights a week.  Most of our at-home meals are grilled fish or meats that we serve over salads or with grilled veggies.  It's the type of food we prefer.  

 

I should also mention that our former house in AZ had a 1927 Garland gas stove with NO insulation; that's when we learned a lot of grilling techniques! 

 

When we do cook on the stovetop, we put on two ceiling fans (one in the kitchen, one in the adjoining but mostly open family room).  Any lingering food aromas just remind us of another great meal together.  

Edited April 18, 2015 by gulfporter (log)

[dcarch]

Your home has to have some plumbing vents through the roof - from bathrooms in particular.  venting duct work can be connected to these existing vents, run inside walls or in the space between floors.  This has been done in buildings much older than yours and the results were excellent.

One of my friends owns a fully restored Craftsman home in Pasadena in which this was done so she could have a functioning range hood to complement the restored original colors (green and cream) of this home that was built in 1915. 

The installation was done so skillfully that it appears the range hood was an original part of the kitchen.

 

Consult with someone who installs vent hoods professionally.

 

Be very careful with connecting kitchen exhaust hook fan to bathroom vent. It may not be Code compliant.

 

A bathroom vent is around 100 CFM, the duct work is sized for that quantity of air, and a kitchen hood fan can be from 500 CFM to 1000 CFM. For sure the grease smoke smell will be blown into the bathroom. In an apartment building, you can be blowing into someone else's apartment.

 

dcarch

[radtek]

I believe andiesenji meant into the waste water vents that are open to the atmosphere.

 

Edit to correct- sorry wrong name...

Edited April 18, 2015 by radtek (log)

[Anna N]

Many problems can be solved if you throw enough money at them. But since this problem has existed for nine years and you have coped some way or another, I would be looking at other ways to spend that money! A powerful range hood must no doubt be a lovely thing. I have never had one. My current one is "full of sound and fury signifying nothing". Does a wonderful job of preventing me from hearing how my cooking is progressing.

[radtek]

Well if you have a sink along the same wall it may indeed work well for you. The drainpipe needs venting out the top of your roof to keep sewer gas from bubbling out of your drains.

[lindag]

True,

 

Well if you have a sink along the same wall it may indeed work well for you. The drainpipe needs venting out the top of your roof to keep sewer gas from bubbling out of your drains.

 

True,  I have tolerated the problem for a long time, BUT what's particularly objectionable, besides smelling your last dinner all over the house for three days, is the problem of the grease that goes into the air and invariably ends up on the kitchen cabinetry.  It also limits the types of foods that I'll cook indoors (some produce lots of grease)...splatter screens have been pretty useless.

[radtek]

Now I'm looking at my kitchen wanting to change some stuff... 

[andiesenji]

Be very careful with connecting kitchen exhaust hook fan to bathroom vent. It may not be Code compliant.

 

A bathroom vent is around 100 CFM, the duct work is sized for that quantity of air, and a kitchen hood fan can be from 500 CFM to 1000 CFM. For sure the grease smoke smell will be blown into the bathroom. In an apartment building, you can be blowing into someone else's apartment.

 

dcarch

That's why I advised consulting a professional.   There is also the venting system for built-in gas heaters or furnace, gas or electric, vent for water heaters, etc.

[dcarch]

That's why I advised consulting a professional.   There is also the venting system for built-in gas heaters or furnace, gas or electric, vent for water heaters, etc.

That is a very dangerous situation. When a powerful kitchen exhaust evacuates air from your kitchen without proper makeup air, it draws air from your boiler backwards together with carbon monoxide into your home. Do not Try! 

 

Well if you have a sink along the same wall it may indeed work well for you. The drainpipe needs venting out the top of your roof to keep sewer gas from bubbling out of your drains.

 

A plumbing vent should never be used for kitchen exhaust. It is not big enough, it is against all building codes. There will be no plumber who will do that for you.

 

As I said, look into an electrostatic air precipitator (filter).  

 

dcarch

Edited April 18, 2015 by dcarch (log)

[Edward J]

 

 

A plumbing vent should never be used for kitchen exhaust. It is not big enough, it is against all building codes. There will be no plumber who will do that for you.

 

As I said, look into an electrostatic air precipitator (filter).  

 

dcarch

 

 

 

The above is very true, and for a number of very good reasons.

 

Remember plumbing vents are for venting only, an exhaust fan needs to remove grease laden vapours, and smoke

. 

 

If, for some reason, your plumbing vent is blocked or plugged, your sinks  and tub won't drain, and more importantly your bathroom will get very smelly very quickly.

 

.

[boilsover]

You can fix your issue with money.  You may have to pay for ductwork and wiring.  And you may need to chase ductwork through/around obstacles.

 

IME, the only folks who are well and truly and screwed are the condo owners whose rules (or the landmark codes) forbid any exterior appearance changes.

 

 

[Hassouni]

IME, the only folks who are well and truly and screwed are the condo owners whose rules (or the landmark codes) forbid any exterior appearance changes.

yep 

[Joe Blowe]

Asked and unanswered in Post No. 4:  Have you consulted a plumber or HVAC contractor?

 

Until then, this is just a lot of chin wagging...

[Deryn]

You have my sympathies. I have exactly the same issue. Big two storey house. I have an unvented island cooktop (with no hood or downdraft) set directly under 2 lights that open downward. As a result of having no way to clear the humidity, etc. my cabinets have begun to peel and every door/drawer front must now be replaced. The kitchen is 4 years old. So it is not just a nuisance factor, it is a major expense now, even if I don't have a hood install to pay for.

 

I didn't design/build it - the previous owner did. I knew when I bought it that there was no hood over the island but thought that was probably just because the previous owner didn't do much stovetop cooking so she didn't care much. I didn't realize it was probably because she must have been told that putting in a hood would be nigh on impossible here. I did see the difficulty in going up but assumed I could put in a downdraft.

 

It turns out a vent cannot go downward because the basement walls are 3 foot thick granite rock topped by very little wood that could be cut through. To go up I would have to go through the equivalent of 3 floors and the pipe would likely have to go through the center of a bedroom. The stove apparently cannot be moved to along the wall and vented out the side because that is where my oil tank is. I just paid a fortune to re-vent the oil burner furnace in my basement and install a chimney pipe about 30 feet away from it (because the furnace was blowing out all winter - that is the northeast/west side of the house and that is where the evil wind blows here in winter) so even if someone could figure out how to install a kitchen hood/vent here (and there are no experts to call within about 300 miles), it would, I am sure, cost a small fortune times 3 at the very least. I have never met a recirculating vent that was worth having.

 

So, yep - you are not alone in having a large standalone house that has no kitchen vent and where there are barriers to putting one in. Misery loves company?