Well, I didn't know what to expect until I came home and mine was installed, and I was kind of shocked to see this quite unattractive large metal thing installed on the side of my house. It looked like something you would see on the back of a restaurant, and I was appalled at first. I have a brick house, and it really stood out like a sore thumb. But we painted it a brick color, to blend in, and now I don't notice it much.

When I expressed my shock to my GC at how big it was (we have a commercial grade range) he said "yeah, people are always shocked." I thought "why not warn us?"

I'm sure it depends on what size you are getting, but it was rather larger than I thought it would be, but like many things, we just got used to it, and it doesn't bother me anymore.

I just had my external blower installed this week. I had gotten the measurements in advance and knew what to expect but it was still a shock. I was going to have it installed on the side of my house where there is a staircase to the back deck. When I realized the massiveness of the unit, I changed its location to a less conspicuous location and one that would not be dangerous to walk near. The contractor and assistant had a horrible time installing it because it was heavy and sharp around the edges. But, it is in - won't be very obtrusive, and I painted it the color of the siding.

This is what I am worried about! We are thinking it will go on the same wall as our AC units, but still all those metal boxes. Do you think you would have preferred to have an inline blower where you would instead of had a large vent on the side of your house or on the roof?

We just installed ours this summer- I love it. Ours was insalled on our backside of the roof, and it was basically the same dark color as our roof so I have never even noticed it there. If the roof is an option for you I would go that way- it was almost a straight shot up for us and closer than the outside wall.

I could not use an inline blower because it was not compatible with my range which is a duel fuel Dacor. I ended up chosing that range because it did have a pop up ventilation system. The range is installed on an island and I didn't want an overhead hood/ventilation system. My kitchen is above my garage so it was easy to vent down and out through the garage.

we have had ours on the rear roof for 2 years now. It is a lighter aluminum color than our dark roof but we have skylights etc so it is just one more thing up there and it is to the back so most never see it.

It is great as it is so quiet and powerful. We have the 1400 cfm Thermador remote. c