No, two would be 63 dB. But Pat said 63 each so two would be 66 dB. Having no experience with external blowers, I won't comment other that $1000 is a lot of money.

thanks for your response, capecodcook--I know very little about db levels--so somehow 2x63 ends up at 66? that is a relief.

yes, $1000 is a LOT of money...and I am at that point in the remodel where I feel like I'm bleeding it...saving some would be nice! But getting a really quiet and efficient vent is a top priority and I don't want to regret anything down the road.

Vent gurus? what say you?

I wish I could have gotten the liner for that price. I paid ~$1600 out the door for my Abbaka liner. My external 1200 cfm blower was only $231 on EBAY. Seriously, the external blower seems really high. Call Abbaka, theirs is less expensive and if your looking for quiet - go external. gt a silencer if you have the room. These are long term investments that you will use daily.

hi salmon--this actually is an Abbaka. MA sent the manual and specs and it's the Abbaka Hy-Ex Professional Exterior Ventilator...and I just looked it up...and heck, on the Abbaka site it is $980. #$%!, what do I do now? I have already paid a deposit to MA. They've been very nice and helpful and I went with them b/c I read so many good things about them here. I hadn't heard of Abbaka somehow in all my reading. Looks like MA is a distributor for their motors at a 30% markup. I don't get it b/c they are also competitors.

I think the MA people have been great but I feel a little strange about this. The ventilation business is so strange--there seems to be all this rebranding.

Also frustrated b/c I feel like I researched this till I was cross-eyed, then finally decided to just buy the thing that seemed the best, but now it seems like I have made a mistake...

Does anyone have an MA liner or hood with an internal motor? Do you like it?

I'd reassure you regarding your choices. I have been so totally happy with my MA experience and I'd hope you have the same. Several comments:
Yes, MA just resells blowers. I chose a Fantech inline blower over the Hy Ex which was their initial recommendation, mainly because my contractor and HVAC guy were not enthused about going out on our steep roof for the install. I suggested an Fantech instead and they were completely happy with that decision.

When I made the decision, Jeff Herman, my MA contact, said that they could sell it to me, but likely I could save a few hundred $$ on price and shipping by finding the blower online. After looking around I was getting totally stressed out by having to figure out if the websites were legit, if I was ordering the right backflow damper, duct adapter, rheostat etc etc. I finally contacted Jeff and said hey, I know it will cost more, but can you just send me whatever it is that I need and just take this off my list of worries. The small markup was totally worth it for the peace of mind of knowing that someone who knew what they were doing was doing to make the order. Jeff was totally willing for me to buy it on my own, so adding to their profit was clearly not the motivation.

Regarding the decision of internal vs external blower: I think the logic is somewhat different given your short duct run. Normally I'm a huge fan of remote blowers. However, a big reason that this has worked so well for me was the ability to use the Fantech LD10 silencer along with our FKD 10XL blower. The silencer does a great job of eliminating any motor noise tracking down the ductwork. Without it, I suspect a significant part of the advantage of a remote blower might be lost, expecially if the blower was only 9 feet from the hood. Absent the silencer, the advantage of the external blower without a silencer may not justify the cost.

I totally found that MA was focused on the best product for me, not squeezing a few hundred dollars more out of me. I'd tend to trust their advice, although if it were me, I'd ask for Jeff Herman's opinion, who I think is the gospel when it comes to ventilation. If Jeff says go wtih the internal blower, I'd do it.

But, no matter what, I think you'll love the MA hood. It's neck and neck with the Lacanche range as the favorite part of my new kitchen. I cannot imagine a better ventilation choice based on my experience.

My Modern Aire is 7 years old and out of date. The new ones are supposed to be a lot quieter. Certainly, the demo model at the store with no ductwork seems a bit quieter even with it all hanging out. But even my old one isn't the kind of loud that hurts the ears. On full tilt, it's the kind of loud where you can't hear the TV really well if you're standing under it stirring.

The new ones (I don't know which blower) are not only supposed to be quieter, but they're supposed to compensate for weird ducting and adjust the motor to speed up if the airflow isn't adequate. Or something like that. But that comes from an appliance salesman (though the store's in the same neighborhood as MA and they do a lot of business with them).

clinresga and plllog--thank you. It turns out I could get the silencer too and it's not too much more money. I think it will fit but I have to make sure. Clinresga, It sounds like you're saying, if I can get the silencer then go external? that was the conclusion I had come to--even if it is a bit of overkill. But I think I will call on Monday and speak to Jeff. Teresa and Pat have been great but it sounds like Jeff is the man. I'll ask him about the Abbaka markup too, but I'm probably committed since I already gave them a deposit.

plllog, your description is reassuring. My current hood makes it so I can't hear anyone talking three feet away, even if it's on low!

Hollylh
you can definitely get the silencer and a remote blower. My research indicate the abbaka exterior blower is very nice. The only reason we did not buy it was because we found a great deal for another brand on Ebay I could not pass up. The big blades Abbaka has means it does not have to spin as fast to get the same CFM. My blower is much closer to the hood (a couple of feet) so we could not get a silencer in. Do we need it - no, would it have been nice - probably (it would have been only a couple hundred more which becomes very easy to say as you get going. As far as noise, we get a low hum when the fan is turned all the way up. No issue talking or hearing anything around you. On low, its barely noticeable. This is a HUGE difference compared to the vent -a-hood we have in our other house. Given an option, I would go with an exterior or inline blower every time. I would talk to Modern-aire about the price difference. They may not have any issue cancelling the blower. I bought the Abbaka liner though a retail store (Standards of Excellence) and it was delivered within a few weeks. The quality/finish of their product was beautiful - albeit pricey

agree totally with salmon slayer. Sent you a quick email with some other thoughts.

I know this is an old thread, but I'm at the exact same spot now. MA hood, wall or roof mount? 9 ft ceiling, one story home. Pat says go directly through the wall; builder doesn't like the aesthetics and suggests roof mount. Abbaka is $980, plus I guess I would need a liner? How much? Still need the silencer? Holly, what did you decide and were you happy with the results?

If you can fit it, include a silencer (Fantech) when using an exterior blower. It will definitely help reduce fan tip turbulence noise at the cook's ear and make feasible conversation around the hood when doing heavy cooking.

A liner is a hood that you provide the external decorative covering for. The covering is usually some extension of the nearby wood cabinets. If you have a hood then no liner is required.

kas

I talked with Abbaka and they recommended a roof mount, which could be connected with galvanized ducting. I guess I thought that was a liner. thanks for the clarification. They suggested a silencer, but not sure I have room for it. Failing that, if I could put turns in the ducting and move it further away from the edge of the house, the sound would be lower,because of both the turns and the space away from the edge. In case of a major winter storm, clearing it might be an issue. But we live in Maryland, and don't have major storms often. I learned that Abbaka starts in the high setting to help blow anything out of the way of the unit. I would save about $850 on the MA, so it doesn't look like the roof mount would be that much more expensive. Am I missing anything?

You don't want a bunch of turns in your vent. Each turn adds back pressure which is a bad thing. Fewer turns the better.