cooker hood extractor thing - silly question

[squidge]

afternoon all

stupid questions coming up....

we're doing up a little place nearby at the mo in order to rent it out as a gite next year. at the moment it doesn't have a hotte aspirante at all, so we're going to need to install one. as the stone walls are getting on for half a metre thick, i'm not going to vent it to the outside for now (may do in the future). prob is that the gas hob currently resides underneath a window....

i think there's enough room to fit one to the window wood lintel thing above it, but i don't know how they can be fixed -

can you just fix one to the wall via brackets? are the brackets normally supplied?

as it will be fitted above a window, there won't be much room above the extractor for the air to ventilate.... a prob?

cheapest one i've seen is for about 60 euros.... in ikea of all places

er...... thanks!!!!

the squidge x

[Nearly Retired (I am now)]

If effect rather than trendy appearance is required why not just put an extractor fan in the glass window like we all used to do before these hoods became the thing to have.

[Alex H]

[quote user="squidge"]

 i'm not going to vent it to the outside for now (may do in the future). [/quote]

Errr, if you are not going to ventilate it to the outside, what is the point of fitting it?

 

[Framboise]

We have an extractor hood that draws in the steam etc., cleans it up and recycles it then vents it into the utility room behind the kitchen. 

Likewise we have huge thick walls so a vent through there was not an option, however we intend to put an electric vent into the glass of the utility room at some stage,  but so far it has not been necessary.

[BJSLIV]

Errr, if you are not going to ventilate it to the outside, what is the point of fitting it?

1 The theory is that the air passes through filters which remove the grease and some of the smells.

2 I would have thought venting into the utility would be a bad idea. If the utility is colder than the kitchen, as they often are, it will encourage condensation on the cold surfaces.

[Nearly Retired (I am now)]

"  2 I would have thought venting into the utility would be a bad idea. If the utility is colder than the kitchen, as  they often are, it will encourage condensation on the cold surfaces. "

The house we bought came with exactly this system - the back kitchen used to smell lovely depending on what was being cooked. The water streaming down the walls and the steamed up glass in the back door was not too much to my liking though. I simply extended the vent with a 90 degree bend, a vertical length of pipe and poked it through the roof with a lanterne on top. Now it happily vents into the open air.

[Framboise]

Our utility is the little room (part of the main house) behind the kitchen which houses the stairs to 1st floor, the washing machine & dog's bedroom. Its probably only 10' x 5' with a large 3'x5' window and radiator in there. The intended electric extractor fan will go into the top of one of the window panes - when we get around to it amongst everything else that needs to be done. Its on The To Do List.

Despite being a keen cook I have never noticed a great deal of condensation in there, but then I am a fresh air fiend so there is normally a window open slightly somewhere to allow steam etc to escape, and thats aside from the to-ings and fro-ings through the door to the gardens.  We had a lot of pre-existing damp in the house when we bought it because it had been empty many years apart from the resident cows, however it has settled beautifully now, helped by the central heating.

I still think an extractor on the window (electric or otherwise) will do the trick and save having to dig through thick walls.  It took an entire day to get through ours to fit the boiler - no wonder then that the plombier agreed when OH said he would make the holes "to save time.....".  Just make sure you fit window locks if these are opening windows though.

[marc62]

Hello Squidge

Having spent the past 26 years within the kitchen industry I have at last found a subject I am qualified to reply!

Unless to are extracting via an outside wall, the re-circulation method is as good as useless. In order for it to work effieciantly the unit would have to be switched on for a period of time prior to cooking (in order to create an air flow) & then left on after cooking to complete the cycle, this would have a minor effect on the cooking smells. It would also need to be set at 760mm above the worktop to the underside of the extractor to have any effect. Any higher & the motor would not be strong enough, any lower & you will be to close to the gas hob. They will take some of the solid particles in the air to the outer grease filter, but this also has a down side. The air flow that will be created will also spread, behind the gas hob you have a window, this will turn into a grease trap that will require constant cleaning. The best use for a re-circulating extractor are the lights!

I would suggest no extractor at all & just wipe down after use. The best method may be for a ventair set in the window.

 

Marc                                                      

[Gluestick]

Glad you made that post, Marc!

I've always thought that type of extractor was a total waste of time!

Looked posh: made all the right noises, yet on my limited experience about as much good as a One Legged Man at an A**e kicking party!

'Twere me, somehow I'd be through that outside wall!

Concrete brakers are cheap now: circa £99.....................

Actually, I wouldn't site a cooker directly underneath a window anyway, but we are all different.

 

[Framboise]

Yes the lights are very handy.  I don't often use the extractor anyway as I find it deafening working underneath it, but as  it came as part of the range when we bought it, it seemed churlish to not install it.   I find the stainless steel a pain in the a** to keep clean, but its beautiful

 

[sunny]

Why wouldn't you put the cooker under a window...seems a good place as one can just open the windows to get the steam/smells out.

I am curious because we are redesigning our kitchen and I would like to place the cooker under the window...

 

Thanks

[marc62]

Hi BP

The rules of design are more practicle than visual, but the more money you have & the bigger space to work in design flair comes into play.

The two most common rules are

1, If it fits it's right

2, If it works for you & you are happy it's fine

 

If you have a large kitchen or a space with many windows it is perfectly acceptable to place a hob in front of one window with the sink in front of another. The only down side to a hob infront of a window is that it will steam up very easy & you will forever be cleaning the window & washing down the paint work.

Work on the basis of rule 1 & rule 2 remembering that it is your kitchen, your views & your requirements are the most important.

 

Marc

PS Wish I could find a job in the kitchen industry in France!

[sunny]

Hi Mark,

Thanks for your reply and I do hope to that you find a job in the kitchen industry in France. 

I have spent hours agonizing over the new kitchen layout and I want to have the stove, rather than the sink under the window.  We have a nice view from the window and I want to enjoy looking out while cooking.  Your point about cleaning, is well taken though.  I have been thinking about that and not sure what is a good solution - perhaps fixed glass at the bottom of the window so it is like a glass backsplash for the cooker, and the top part of the window opens to let the smoke out...

Not sure why most houses have sinks below the window...is it just tradition, or is there a reason for it?

[La Guerriere]

Sinks were put below windows before the invention of the dishwasher....

[marc62]

Hi BP

 

Sinks have traditionaly been placed under a window, the main thought is due to looking outside whilst at the sink. However, most wastes (external) are for some reason close to the window, this would then be a good position to place sinks & washing machines to ensure a waste drop of 1 in 4 is achieved with ease. These day's with the use of dishwashers & prepared foods, the time required at the sink is a lot less than times gone by. People now spend more time cooking so the reason for looking whilst working still applies.

Dependant upon budget & the type of hob required, there are now direct extractors set into the work top which are the most effieceint available. Like all things they come with a price

 

Regards

 

Marc

[squidge]

evenin all

in answer to the 'why?' question - it's those silly people at gites de france (and prob clevacances as well...... don't know) that insist on having a cooker hood (amongst 15,000 other things) installed before it can be rented out as a gite with them.

when we're done it'll be kitted out much better than our own place!!!

[tenniswitch]

[quote user="BP"]

Hi Mark,

Thanks for your reply and I do hope to that you find a job in the kitchen industry in France. 

I have spent hours agonizing over the new kitchen layout and I want to have the stove, rather than the sink under the window.  We have a nice view from the window and I want to enjoy looking out while cooking.  Your point about cleaning, is well taken though.  I have been thinking about that and not sure what is a good solution - perhaps fixed glass at the bottom of the window so it is like a glass backsplash for the cooker, and the top part of the window opens to let the smoke out...

Not sure why most houses have sinks below the window...is it just tradition, or is there a reason for it?

[/quote]

Just my opinion, but I prefer having the sink under the (only) window because:

1. I don't really spend that much time at the stove stirring or whatever (I mainly put things on, get them started and leave them to simmer);

2. even though I have a dishwasher, I spend a fair amount of time at the sink, and, also, when I'm at the sink washing dishes, rinsing veggies, etc., I'm usually doing things that don't require my full attention, thus I have time to look out the window; and

3.  I like having a windowsill over the sink on which I can perch things (such as pots of herbs) that would be less happy in close proximity to my cooker.