A couple of questions regarding Modern-Aire vent hoods -

- I tried emailing them per their site, but didn't get any response for a quote. Other than just calling and getting some random person on the phone, who should I talk to? I've read over the threads and keep seeing Jeff's name mentioned - is there anyone else? Is there some other way to email them? (little kids=extremely limited phone time)

- Does anyone have an internal blower from them? I was hoping to do remote or inline but it doesn't look like that's going to work with our setup. I'd love to hear feedback on their internal blowers as it doesn't look like I'll be able to see one locally and I am concerned about noise.

Thanks so much!!

At any rate, Jeff is definitely the best person to talk to at Modern-Aire. Only thing is that he's not always the easiest person to reach. In the alternative, I would suggest talking with Patrick. I think you'll find him to be knowledgeable, reliable and personable.

My PS 26 has an internal blower. Makes more noise than I would like but that's probably because I've never had a kitchen with a range hood before and I have no idea whether my blower is any louder or quieter than any other. I should also note that I have 1200 cfms (many more than are necessary for most of my cooking situations). So, more often than not, I'm running the blower on a low-medium speed and the sound it makes, while noticeable, is not a big deal. Bottom line is that my MA works just fine!

HTH

I noticed that the ventahood excalibur has a similar look as the PS 26, except that it has black bands... an interesting idea if you have standard size dimensions and don't require additional customization.

fast, ontime, nothing to fear.

BTW: After six months with the MA hood, we just came back from a vacation trip. Stayed in a condo with a recirculating OTR MW as only "ventilation." The entire time, the whole condo smelled like bacon (one indulgence during ski trips is bacon every morning). Nasty. It reminded me of how much I love having really effective ventilation. The MA hood liner remains neck in neck with our range as the favorite appliance in my kitchen.

However, I will say that I really love the virtually silent operation of our fantech inline blower and would certainly recommend it if possible. Is the problem a space limitation, duct routing problem, power supply issue, etc?

For others who might be considering Modern Aire, I worked with Teresa. She was extremely responsive and was very quick to fax me drawings and quotes. She did have to consult Jeff on a few technical questions.

Good luck!

Erika

I've mostly been using my hood at the lowest setting and boy does it ever do a great job of sucking steam, smoke and smells! It's much quieter than my old OTR micro recirculating piece-of-poop fan (won't even call it a vent). I'm extremely happy with my hood so far. It's very pretty and it SUCKS! =)

rgjem: you are asking the right questions. Clearly if you are ducting straight out the wall, with only a very short run of duct, there is little advantage of an external blower, as the distance is too short to give you the noise reduction you'd want from an external blower.

The alternative is to run duct all the way up to the attic and roof. That's what we did. That allowed us to use a Fantech inline blower and silencer, and the result is an unbelievably quiet hood. I am totally ecstatic with it, but others might not find it quite as ideal. The duct installation was a nightmare, involving many hours of HVAC consultation. The performance of the blower is reduced by the long duct run, though the layout of our range (which is in an entirely enclosed alcove, which greatly enhances hood performance) compensates totally: I can sear at max temp and have not a wisp of smoke escape.

For me it was a no brainer but many others, who would prioritize cost, and maximum cfm performance, would choose otherwise.

I am going to take the liberty of quoting a recent email from Jeff Herman at Modern Aire which I think is the clearest explanation of the pros and cons of internal vs external vs inline blowers (Jeff was aware I might do this). It was directed at another potential customer who had corresponded with me, thus the reference to my (Mark's) hood:

Our hoods are supplied for use with our internal motors 600 – 2400cfm, Abakka exterior blowers 1000 and 1400cfm, and Fan-Tech inline blowers so switching for the fan is not a problem. If you are planning on using the Fan-Tech inline I highly recommend using the silencer. It makes a very dramatic difference in regards to air and motor noise at higher speeds. The Abakka exterior blower is the quietest option we have going right now, but the performance is not as good as the inline IMO. If pure performance is the most important then our internal blowers are the best way to go, they are louder in comparison to Mark’s set up, but are moving more air then the inline or exterior blowers at 1200CFM. Our internal blowers compensate for higher static pressure loads and do not slow down when connected to ducting making them a great choice for super long duct runs or duct runs with many turns or transitions"

HTH

Thanks in advance.

I love the looks and the reputation of their hoods, but if Modern-Aire doesn't have a distributor who can follow through on customer inquiries, they might as well not be in business. I did e-mail Patrick about my lack of response from Luxury Products, and he said they were putting a quote together, but so far I have had NO CONTACT from Luxury Products. It would appear that their only function is to obfuscate, delay, and drive up the price.

I'm ready to go with a Broan Elite. At least I know that's available, and for how much.

Pity, 'cause those MAs are truly beautiful hoods.

Enjoy them, those of you with an inside track.

You who have been through this whole kitchen remodel scenario know the anxieties, the enthusiasms, the DRIVE to get something wonderful and GET IT DONE. When a company can't carry through in a timely fashion, that drive turns elsewhere, because it's just too costly, emotionally, to hold everything in suspension.

Are you listening, Modern-Aire? Luxury Products?

The modern aire hoods are certainly well made, but the PS 26 does not have a welded corner, if that is something that matters to you. It is quite a bit less expensive than some other brands that do full welded corners on their hoods, though. I dont know if all MA hoods are not welded at the corner. For me, I felt that MA was a good balance between performance and cost.

That being said, I live in a state where they do not have a licensed distributor, so I dealt with them directly. Patrick was terrific, always got back to me very quickly, and was a joy to work with. If their distributor/retailer is not performing adequately, you should let MA know that and request to deal directly with them. I don't see why they wouldn't permit that.

I understand that Jeff may be the absolutely most knowledgable person at MA, but I would imagine for 90% of the applications, Patrick or anyone else would be able to help you out just fine.

Modern-Aire (through Patrick) told me I needed to work with a dealer. The one they've designated for our area is Luxury Products LLC. I phoned and made contact with a young lady,...

I'll go on record here saying that I gave Modern-Aire quite an earful about the lack of responsiveness of Luxury Products, the dealers that L.P. sent me to not knowing anything about Modern-Aire products (and, in one case being beyond rude), incorrect pricing from L.P., and told them, straight out, that I was nearly at the point of not buying their product as a result.

I brought up service concerns with Modern-Aire and they assured me that I would deal with them if there were any post-sales or service issues, but knowing that my dealer would have to work through L.P. meant to me that I'd be hanging out in the breeze if anything happened.

I got a brief spurt of activity from John Foster at Luxury Products, which was not terribly helpful ("Saturdays are, by far, the busiest of days for these folks and you came across the newest fellow" to explain why the dealer he sent me to didn't even know they carried Modern-Aire), and only got the promised emails days later, when I called him on the phone myself.

I'll state flat out that I'll be damned if I give Luxury Products a penny of my money and chose not to pursue Modern-Aire products as an option as a direct result of L.P.'s failure to be responsive.

Great product, from what I can tell. Beyond useless distributor.

Jeff and crew, are you listening???????

I think Modern-Aire makes beautiful hoods, with Erikanh's hood pictured above being a stunning example. However, I agree with the other posters that if a company makes you struggle to get a quote, stresses you out, and doesn't seem to value your business, there are so many competitors out there, especially in the current economy, who would be happy to work with you.

As long as I was working direct with Modern-Aire, I was quite pleased. Patrick was knowledgeable, helpful, courteous, and very responsive. I just wish that relationship could have continued. I thought it was going to be able to, until we reached the point where MA said I had to work through "a dealer."

Well, L.P. is no dealer. They are not even a business, imho. When a contact person (the young woman I mentioned) cannot even undertake the courtesy of acknowledging having received an e-mail, and when days go by without ANY WORD from the people you have been referred to, it tells me that that company is not serious about staying in business.

I did tell Patrick about my problems receiving communication from L.P., whereupon he promptly contacted them himself and reassured me that they were "working on determining shipping costs and tax." (For days on end?) So I find no fault with MA, other than continuing with a distributor who is angering customers and driving away business.

I still love that hood. Did a Photoshop mockup of how it would look in our kitchen, and it would have been stunning. Furthermore, being custom made, it would have elegantly overcome some very tight space and venting constraints. But if L.P. is too busy or too good to talk to me, and if MA continues to support them as a distributor, well, there are other companies who do still know how to please customers.

And that would be Eurostoves. We ended up with a Broan Elite recommended by Trevor, who has been absolutely marvelous to work with.

Luxury Products also reps TradeWind and Abakka, so those are out as well.

I would point out that in this case, the company at fault was Luxury Products, not Modern Aire. I agree that MA has some indirect responsibility, in choosing a distributor like LP, but as you know, any company can be undermined by a distributor, sometimes for reasons out of the control of the manufacturer.

It is true that my experience was definitely influenced by the fact that MA had no distributor in my area. That was a huge plus, as I dealt directly with Jeff and MA throughout. They were incredibly helpful, and I was able to call at any time to get the status on my hood (when I did, the receptionist ran back into the shop, found my hood, and told me it was just getting the lighting installed, on schedule--that's personal service).

So, I can unequivocally recommend MA if you are in an area where they will sell directly to you. castiron and sfjeff both point out the problems if a distributor does shoddy work.

I can see no reason not to consider purchase the M-A product through a reputable and responsive retailer/distributor combination.

My problems have only been with the Northern California distributor and the retailers that they recommended I speak with. I don't know the details of M-A / distributor agreements, but generally a manufacturer's hands are pretty tied on "going around" their distributor in a given territory.

I was in the factory. It's beautiful, clean and the workmen do great work. It's the administration that seems to be messing up.

I am installing a new vent hood insert in a kitchen remodel -all new appliances, with gas stove top along a side wall.

I am considering the Modern Aire (still open to suggestions) and I have the same issue - internal blower (PSL-246) vs. in line blower (PSL-046 + Fantech FKD8XL).

New 36" Gas Stovetop: Kitchenaid KFGS366VSS
5 burners, total 51K BTU

Cabinet area: up to 50" width available under custom cabinet

Duct: 7" straight up to roof exhaust vent

Small issue, my GC installed a 7" duct for the vent straight up out my new roof, so I expect to live with 7" duct (unless it is a really, really bad idea). He is also suggesting at a brand called Dacor, but I only saw grills and no baffles on their product site -I want something nicer.

Per a conversation with Patrick at Modern Aire he rated my gas range at approx 51K BTU and he said a 600CFM internal would be fine.

This is my first real vent -only prior experience is microwave/fan combo with an external vent to roof. What about noise? Patrick said the small 600CFM may be quieter then an inline blower without a silencer, and about the same as an inline blower with silencer (inline may be a little better). I told him I thought I had either an 8" or a 10" duct -I just found out it is 7".

Decision: internal blower (maybe more noise, less cost, easier for my GC to install) vs external in-line blower (maybe less noise, more cost, more work for my GC to install)

After reading this forum, I originally wanted an external in-blower with a silencer, but if noise is not much different I would rather save the money (and reduce the install change order issues) with an internal blower unit.

Do you like your all-in-one units?

What we call "noise" is created when airflow isn't "smooth" -- think of wind -- wind, itself, doesn't make any noise, but we hear it when it swirls around trees, walls, or any obstruction. Since most fan motors are relatively silent, the noise sources we most often hear are:

1) Turbulent flow through the mesh or baffles
2) Turbulent flow in the duct
3) Fan noise from the blades "beating" the air
4) Vibration of the fan/motor combination coupled out through the duct or hood

How do these play out?

1) Doesn't matter where the blower is for this, it's basically all about flow rate and geometry of the hood's filters.

2) Bigger ducts and less turns tend to be quieter than smaller ducts or those with turns.

3) This is where a remote blower and a silencer or a long duct run can help.

4) This can be a big factor on inexpensive hoods, but is much less on better-designed and fabricated hoods. Certainly decoupling the blower from the hood, and even the duct, can help.

I think Modern-Aire has given you the straight scoop -- that the internal is going to be just about the same perceived loudness as the remote options, with a 600 CFM flow. Most of your noise sources are unchanged between the two. You can probably reduce the flow noise through the duct, as well as potentially being able to run at slower speeds by going to an 8" duct over a 7" duct.

A better-quality hood at 600 CFM makes one of the mainstream hoods at 600 CFM sound like a 70s jet takeoff by comparison.

By comparison, the Vent a Hood 1200 CFM wants 12" pipe.

The VAH 550cfm wants 8"... I would think 7" would be FINE for the 600 cfm Modern Air. Ask. There are pretty straight.

First I will ask Modern Aire (Patrick or Jeff) regarding the 7". Maybe it will work with the small 600CFM blower.

Then I can check with my GC regarding the 7" vs 8" duct. I can at least move the constriction (and air noise) up to the roof exit by replacing 7" with 8" in the attic and closing to 7" at the exit.

By the way, regarding purchase of a Modern Aire, people noted some displeasure with a dealer (L.P.). I don't know a local dealer in my area yet, but I found a website called Kichensource.com that lists "range hoods". It has pricing for order and shipping of Modern-Aire or others. I know nothing about them, but maybe a dealer on the internet would be an alternative to working with L.P.

I have no local dealer, so I can go direct -he will give me a quote, which can be custom fitted if I confirm cabinet opening and exact duct placement. I could also choose any dealer (like Kitchensource).

Just an interesting story:
I went to a model home show last weekend for ideas and I saw two new homes -a 2+ million and a 4+ million. After reading forum items, I had a little more insight in looking at kitchen vent hoods...the 4+ put in a Vent-A-Hood with built-in (visible) triple squirrel cage units, no baffles or grills, stove was okay (nothing special) -I was surprised how unattractive...the 2+ put in a beautiful Wolf vent with stainless baffles and a remote blower (I spoke with the builder who explained), over a Wolf oven with top burners and a grill -the 2+ house had special design elements everywhere (including a solid granite master tub that filled from a spigot in the ceiling), the builder did it right...by the way, the 2+ is already sold...