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debs3_gw

Height of range hood?

debs3
15 years ago

How high should the bottom front edge of the range hood be? A measurement from the floor would be the most helpful as not all countertops are the same height. I am 5'6 and my husband is 5'11". I do most of the cooking. Cooktop is 30" gas. Hood is Miele 36" wall hood model DA 259.

Here is a link that might be useful: Miele Hood

Comments (31)

  • debs3
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    More info .... Miele recommends 26" above cooktop. That would put our hood at 62" from the floor. Would it be better if it was higher? There would be approximately a 7" set back from the front edge of the countertop to the front edge of the hood. Thank you.

  • khat
    15 years ago

    Most times the hood and cooktop specs will tell you where it should be. If you use the height calculator on the Miele link, it is specing between 26 and 31" above cooktop. Now,look at the specs for your cooktop and see what they specify. Code and your warranty dictate that you follow these specifications. I believe the specs are determined for maximum venting efficiency and fire safety, not unfortunately to prevent head bumping which is a serious issue. In our showroom I always have to watch that clients don't bump their heads on the hoods. For my own house, I specifically chose a hood with rounded corners for this reason.

  • boysrus2
    15 years ago

    I have a Wolf gas rangetop and Wolf recommends between 30-36", a fairly wide range. You measure from the cooktop grates up for placement of the hood. Check with your manufacturer to see what they suggest.

    Mine measures 34 1/2" from my grate to the bottom front edge of the hood. It's nice that it clears my head as I'm also 5'11" and the main cook. However, my Broan 1200 cfm hood with remote blower isn't that effective on the lowest setting. Luckily it's a quiet unit, so I mainly use medium.

  • Buehl
    15 years ago

    The height of your hood is determined by the height of your range or cooktop/rangetop. Distance from floor is not a correct measurement.

    Some people raise or lower their counter which in turn affects the height of their cooktop.

    So, check your hood specs to see how far off the top of the cooking surface the hood should be mounted. If it's 26", then that's what it should be. The higher you mount from spec, the wider and deeper and stronger (CFMs) it should be to compensate.


    For reference, we have a 42" wide x 24" deep x 18" tall Vent-A-Hood that's mounted 29.5" off the cooktop surface. The spec says 30" so we're pretty close. (If we had gotten a 14" tall hood it would have been 24" off the cooktop.) It also happens to be 65.5" off the floor..but we measured from the countertop, not floor.

    I'm 5'10" & DH is 6'5" and neither of us has had a problem w/bumping our heads or the hood getting in the way. [I was actually worried that I would bump my head so I got the emerald edge rather than the sharp edge...but no problems!]


    HTH!

  • beachbum
    15 years ago

    Mine is a bit higher than specs called for. I don't use the hood vent most of the time when I cook. But DH and I are both tall and I knew that I would be aggravated if I bumped my head or had to otherwise compensate for my everyday cooking.

    It may not be the "right" way to do it, but it was the best decision for us.

  • redroze
    15 years ago

    We had ours at 26" above the cooktop and it looked way too low. We're having the range hood cover shortened so it will sit 32" above the cooktop.

  • chefkev
    15 years ago

    While everyone is correct that hood height is not measured from the floor, it's worthwhile measure carefully from the floor and do a mock up to see if you might end up with a headwhacking problem. Once most hoods are installed it isn't easy to adjust the height, so you want to get it right the first time. My Best By Broan Island hood recommended placement 26-30" higher than the range. I found a separate brochure which recommended an additional 100 CFM for every 3" above 30". It also matters how much (if at all) your hood sticks out over your range (in terms of head whacking). The front edge of my hood comes out 1/2" past the edge of my front grate. For capture purposes, I would have preferred it to come out a couple inches more so it lined up with the front of my oven door, but something about my rafter placement and a load bearing wall made that not possible. I had an extra wide hood and 200 extra CFM, so it made sense to me to go with 31 1/2" instead of 30". My mock up showed me that anyone 5' 10" or shorter would never whack their head even if they weren't paying any attention whatsoever to the hood. I did select a hood with rounded corners and edges in case I have someone really tall cooking with me.

  • debs3
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    Thank you to all. I did some more research because of issues you pointed to, however, my main concern is hitting our heads. I never thought about the sharp corners, too late now.

    From the floor, it is 35 1/4" to the top of our counter and 36 1/2" to the top of the Wolf cooktop. The Miele hood sticks out ~20" and the front edge of the countertop below extends 7" beyond the front edge of the hood. There is a 24" work space on each side of the cooktop with cabinets above. I am 5'6" (66") and husband is 5'11" (71"). If the hood is 30" (Miele's minimum) above cooktop that equals 66 1/2" from the floor. This should be fine for me, but will hubby end up with knots on his head?

    The Miele wall hood info recommends a MINIMUM of 30" above the cooktop. If we were using a Wolf hood they recommend 24" to 30" above the countertop.

    Since we are using a Miele hood, if we feel we need more than 28 3/4" (Wolf hood recommendation) above the cooktop, we should be able to use the Miele specs for the inspection, right?

    The hood has 625 CFMs. The minimum Wolf recommends for our Wolf
    cooktop is 450 CFMs.

    Thank you again, Deb

  • debs3
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    Oldjgw Okay, sounds like we may have a problem if the inspector wants to use the Wolf recommendations vs Miele. However, the Wolf design guide, under cooktop planning information says, "When installing a ventilation hood, refer to the specific requirements of the hood for the minimum dimension to the countertop." Since we are using a Miele hood I am hoping we can use Miele's recommendation which is a minimum of 30".

  • oldjgw
    15 years ago

    debs
    If you're following someone's written instructions I'd think it's ok. Your contractor would have hands on experience with the local inspectors.
    Our guy was great. He knew where we could be "close" and where we needed to be spot on. He also made us put in six more smoke alarms because the county is really into that this year. (We passed the final on the first try and the inspector really did looked in every bedroom for the smoke alarms)
    Good luck

  • kaseki
    15 years ago

    My countertop should end up at 35&13/16 inches above the finished floor, with the induction surfaces close to 36 inches, and the pan sides somewhat higher. (With induction, there is no gas effluent from the burners that originates lower down.) The ceiling at the sheetrock surface is at 94&3/4 inches. The Wolf island hood is 18-inches high and is mounted to a 6-inch extension. This should put the hood at 70&3/4 inches above the finished floor(and barely above my head).

    The hood overhang and 1500 cfm exhaust (at zero static pressure, probably around 1000 cfm actual) should be sufficient for the induction cooktops underneath.

    I consider building inspectors who fail jobs on the basis of hood height when they are unlikely to be qualified to evaluate the flow and diffusion issues to be exceeding their authority. Demanding a hood height that is hazardous in order to improve effluent collection at the margin of the effluent plumes is surely counterproductive to their function. The manufacturers' recommendations are only that. This is why a range of values are usually given.

    kas

  • edlakin
    15 years ago

    this has been much discussed over in the appliance forum.

    there are a variety of answers and it really depends, as usual, on personal preferences and equipment.

    if your hood is made of a flammable material (wood, for instance) most ranges will specify a certain distance from cooktop to flammable materials. many will also specify a recommendation for hood height for capture. often, these two specifications will be at odds with each other.

    my bluestar installation instructions specified a minimum of 36" distance from my burners to my wood hood. it also specified ventilation 30" away from the burners. what to do.....?

    we decided to split the difference and go 33". we went over it with our KD and contractors multiple times. and then i came home and it had been installed at 30". the sub said it had to be that way in order to get the hood, upper, and crown to line up.

    so we left it. and it's fine. sometimes all the planning in the world doesn't end up mattering.

  • debs3
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    Thank you everyone for you help.

    We hung it at 32" above the countertop, which puts it 67.25" from the floor.
    Seems like it will be just fine.

  • debs4_aol_com
    12 years ago

    For reference, we have a 42" wide x 24" deep x 18" tall Vent-A-Hood that's mounted 29.5" off the cooktop surface. The spec says 30" so we're pretty close. (If we had gotten a 14" tall hood it would have been 24" off the cooktop.) It also happens to be 65.5" off the floor..but we measured from the countertop, not floor.

    Here is a link that might be useful: range hoods

  • Mermom1
    11 years ago

    Interesting to see so many others with this issue! We are at the point where we have received the appliances, but they arent' installed yet. Counter aren't in yet either. The carpenter drew in the line where the bottom of the hood would be (Best by Broan) and it looked disturbingly low. 26" above counter. I spent some time last night building a fake hood out of cardboard and styrofoam. The result was that I could see that I'd be bumping my head every time I try to cook. I'm 5'5" and my DH is 6'2". He would have to crouch over to stir the soup! I don't know what to do, as there is a cabinet above where the hood is, so no room to raise the hood. Will I need to buy a different hood?! Or can this one really be cut shorter, as someone else mentioned. I think 30" would be fine, but don't know how to manage getting there.

  • Jimmy Edwards
    7 years ago

    My question is, is there a maximum height from the range the hood can be mounted. Where my stove is now, the best / easiest pkace to mount it is 48" above the stove top. I cant find anything in the building that specifies a maximum height, just a minimum

  • _sophiewheeler
    7 years ago

    Yes there is a max. Whatever the hood manufacturer says. Any appliance's installation instructions are incorporated into the building code. From clearance to combustibles to distance from the cooking surface, it's all in the appliance literature. 30"-36"H is usually the max allowed.

  • Buehl
    7 years ago

    Jimmy - what is the make & model of your hood? Have you checked the installation specs for your hood to see if a max/min is stated?

  • Jimmy Edwards
    7 years ago

    I havent gotten one yet. I just need about a 4 foot clearance from the stove top to where Im going to mount it over a window

  • _sophiewheeler
    7 years ago

    You've got a bigger design problem. Ranges under windows are a Very Bad idea, and you need your whole design checked. There are probably more Bad Ideas.

  • Buehl
    7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    Is the window an operable window?

    What fuel? Gas? Electric?

    Some localities do not allow a range or cooktop in front of a window. Some do as long as the window cannot be opened. Some have no restrictions whatsoever.

    Putting a range or cooktop in front of a window is usually not a good idea. What many people have done, however, is flanked their range or cooktop with windows. This way, the hood can be installed properly (it's more effective and costs less b/c it's against a wall), there's less grease splattering on the windows, and there's no concern about Code! (Of course, that's probably only possible for you if you can modify your windows - but without seeing your layout, I don't know that for certain.)

    +++++++++

    Regarding max/min, it's dependent on your hood - they vary. However, the majority specify around 30" above the cooking surface - I've never seen one that says 48" is fine, but that doesn't mean there isn't one out there. If there is, I suspect it's going to (1) be quite powerful (1000 cfms or more?), (2) require makeup air, and (3) be on the expensive side.

    Have you considered a glass island style hood that can be installed from the ceiling and mounted in front of the window?

    The bigger question I have is...what does the layout look like? I can't help but wonder if there's a better layout for your Kitchen that doesn't involve putting the least used work zone in what is probably one of the best locations. Kitchen work studies show:

    • 70% or more of work/time spent in the Kitchen is spent prepping (includes cleaning/rinsing veggies/fruit/etc., putting ingredients together ,other prep work prior to putting the food in the oven/MW oven, on the range/cooktop, on the table)
    • 20% or less is spent cleaning up (includes clearing the table & counters, loading the DW, wiping down the table & counters, unloading the DW)
    • 10% is spent cooking (actually standing in front of the range/cooktop watching food cook or adding ingredients)

    So, what zone does it make sense to put in the prime location of the Kitchen? The Prep Zone - you spend more than twice the amount of time prepping than you do cooking and cleaning up combined!

    Jimmy - I strongly recommend you post your layout here for us to see. There are quite a few people here who are very talented at finding other ideas for layouts. If you decide to do so, please start your own thread so we all know (1) that you are the one asking for help (not Debs3 who started this post) and (2) what type of help you need - I'm hoping it's layout help! :-)

    Whatever you decide, good luck!

  • kaseki
    7 years ago

    This subject and its related aspects have been exhaustively discussed in many different threads in the Appliance forum since the date of this thread. To simplify your research task, however, let me summarize the big picture.

    First, while there is a minimum height limit above the cooktop due to fire and heat hazards that may affect hood safety or lifetime, maximum height is a recommendation based on performance. Given a suitable design, this height can be seven feet from the floor (typical commercial hood), or even ceiling height with specialty commercial perforated or vented ceiling designs. These higher hoods are usually large in intake aperture for reasons given below.

    Second, configuration aspects required for good ventilation performance, that is, adequate capture and containment of cooking plume effluent, are as follows:

    1. The hood entrance aperture should overlap the rising and expanding cooking plume cones. This requires a hood entrance aperture that grows in size as the height above the cooktop increases. A cone angle of 10 degrees from the vertical for the locus of all pan bases is a desirable capture boundary. Care needs to be taken, however, to account for any drafts that might further displace plumes outside the capture aperture. Thus island hoods in drafts may have to be very large to be effective.

    2. The plumes rise at various speeds, mainly as a function of pan temperature, but also influenced by whether there is an entrained gas burner plume, or induction is being used. Speeds up to over a meter per second have been measured. In order for the captured plumes to be contained (stay above the baffles after passing through), the air velocity at the aperture needs to be high enough to overcome any momentum reflections at the baffles. Experience (and Greenheck) recommend a value of about 90 ft/min over the entire hood entry aperture for likely residential cooking temperatures. This is equivalent to 90 CFM per square foot of aperture.

    3. The product of the hood aperture and this value determines the lower bound of the desirable blower flow rate at full power. Real blowers have CFM ratings that are specified for zero static pressure. Actual flow with pressure loss is lower.

    4. Restrictions include the baffles, hood transitions, duct length, duct transitions, and most importantly in many cases, make-up air pressure losses. (There is always make-up air, because no flow goes through the hood that isn't met by the same amount brought or leaked into the house.)

    5. Because analysis of all these losses is difficult, and because not all blowers have published fan curves to plot against, a rough margin factor may be used instead. I recommend that the blower zero static pressure flow rate be about 1.5X the desired actual flow rate from par. 3 above. But make-up air has to be supplied at very modest pressure drop within the house or else even higher rated flow rates may be needed.

    From these aspects one can examine trades among hood height, hood size, blower size, etc., in the context of how well grease and odor are to be removed, as well as affordability and aesthetics considerations.

    Other maxims:

    • Perfect is the enemy of good enough
    • Performance, affordability, aesthetics -- pick any two

    kas

  • GreenDesigns
    7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    Post your layout in a separate post. There has to be something better than a range in front of a window.

  • sarayale
    7 years ago

    For anyone reading this--if your cabinet over the range lines up with the rest of your upper cabinets--you need to determine the height you want between vent and cooktop before you order your cabinets so that your cabinet maker can make the cabinet over the range the right height. You will not be able to decide later, unless your cabinet does not need to line up height wise. I have my grates too close to a wood enclosed vent (previous owner) and the wood is all charred (probably from when I use the burner to clean chickens) so especially for wood enclosed vent, leave ample space between hood and stove top. Also, no one does this but your hood should be 3" wider on each side than your stovetop. so if you have a 30 range, you want a 36" hood to capture smoke better.

  • kaseki
    7 years ago

    The "height you want" must comply with the minimum distances to combustibles directions that are supplied with the cooking unit's installation instructions.

  • PRO
    The Kitchen Abode Ltd.
    7 years ago

    It should be clarified that it is the stove, range or cook top that dictates the minimum clearances from combustible and non combustibles, not the hood. Typically the canopy or blower unit specs are for best performance of the device. The cooking device requirements supersedes those of the exhaust hood/canopy.

    Graham

  • sarayale
    7 years ago

    Of course, you do need to meet the requirements--I did not mean to insinuate that you don't, but once you meet the minimum clearance there is some leeway to go higher with the height. Also, of course, this minimum is different if you have a combustible (wood cabinet) or if you have a metal range hood.

  • PRO
    The Kitchen Abode Ltd.
    7 years ago

    Yes, these are minimum clearances and that is all they are concerned about. I was really trying to emphasize that it is the cooking device that dictates this. Depending upon the construction of the canopy or hood it will be either classified as combustible or non combustible and as such it can not be placed below the minimum cooking devices clearance requirement for it's classified construction. It can however be placed any distance above this, which is when the exhaust hoods performance specs come into play.

    Graham

  • PRO
    Christopher Peacock, NJ
    2 months ago

    The blower and range hood should be 30” from the countertop, when installed over a professional range and the range hood is metal and 36” if the range hood is wood. If the ceiling is higher or the clients are tall, then 33” minimum is better.