My kitchen is being redesigned, and I think Ive been able to figure out and decide on everything except for the ventilation over our 30" induction cook top. The cook top manufacturer recommends at least 450 CFM of ventilation.

IÂve narrowed my choices to three general types (specifying Broan to provide specific examples): a short under cabinet hood that vents directly out the back through the wall, or two integrated in cabinet vent systems that vent through the top before turning to go through the back wall: one with an internal blower, and one with an external blower.

IÂm looking for opinions and thoughts about which way to go, specifically looking for opinions about the adequacy/effectiveness of an under cabinet (Broan E661 -550 CFM blower) compared to something like the in cabinet mounted (Broan RMP17004 - 400 CFM internal blower) or (Broan RMPE7004 - 600 CFM external blower).

The cook top will be along an exterior wall. Cook top height is 36". Ceiling height is 96". This wall is 90" wide and, for several reasons, is the only wall that will have upper cabinets. The vent has to fit in the 30" wide space over the cook top. The primary cook is 5Â7", secondary cook is 5Â11".

Cooking style is not exceptionally adventurous: boiling water for pasta, sauces, soups and chili, not too many ethnic or frying dishes. The general style of the kitchen will be simple but nice (think Shaker). The fridge and dishwasher will have overlay panels so there will be little stainless visible (only oven/microwave combo on a different wall).

We want to balance the tradeoffs between system effectiveness, the obviousness of the ventilation system (visual and audible), and useful wall cabinet space.

We know the vent will be ducted through the wall and have ruled out microwave vent combinations as we think we really want a vent height of more than the 21" we currently have.

The Broan E661 can be installed under a 24" tall wall cabinet up to 15" deep and still have 30" clearance over the cooktop. This looks like a vent hood and is the most noticeable. There would be a 3 ½" x 14" vent on the outside wall.

The Broan RMPE7004 with an external blower has a higher claimed CFM capacity, and with the blower outside seems like it should be the quietest, but IÂve read that the quietness of an externally mounted blower system depends somewhat on how far away the blower is (mine would be on the outside of a 8" wide brick and block wall). This could be mounted in a 30" tall cabinet leaving 30" of clearance. Cabinet depth could be 18"-24", but likely around 21" so IÂm less likely to bump my head. The cabinet space loss due to ductwork is less than the internal blower system and it is also less noticeable than the E661, but installation seems the most complex. The ~ 5" deep ~2Â square blower would be on the back wall of the house and requires a 10" vent pipe through the wall.

The Broan RMP17004 with the internal blower seems less noticeable than the E661, installation seems simpler than the external blower system, but capacity is below recommended level and seems like it could be louder than the RMPE7004, and it will take up the most cabinet space due to the blower being in the cabinet. This will use a 6" diameter wall cap on the outside wall.

I have some concern about the depth of the hood at the 24"-30" height. A 24" deep hood will be a head knocker for me. Do you think IÂll find 21" front to back to be too shallow?

Writing this down has helped me think this through a bit more, but I would love to read your opinions/recommendations.

Thanks