This is what it should look like, with the hood pack fitting into a stainless liner, that covers all of the wood. The previous picture is installed incorrectly, as it has exposed wood over the cooking surface.

Frank and Frank - Thank you- very much - There is no exposed wood... it is full box stainless steel liner however the part with fan/lights is inserted into the steel toward back wall... I added a pic of mine. Maybe it's correct just seems odd to me to have controls so far back.

The insert also has a height that must be accounted for in the hood design. Is your hood curved, or otherwise restricted in height, so that it had to be pushed back in order to be inserted?

Here's the hood:

Mesh filters should be at highest point inside capture volume, not lowest. And I agree that the unit should be over the front burners such that effluent rising at the back is partly constrained by the wall and cabinets so that it is directed toward the filter area.

I seriously doubt that the actual flow rate achieved through those filters, even if perfectly clean, will be adequate for any hot oil / grease cooking. Flow rate of 90 CFM per square foot of entry aperture applies the the entire opening, not just the filters.* The performance needed requires baffle filters with baffle assemblies covering more than 50% of the internal area. Mesh filters covering the entire area could be adequate with enough flow rate, if it can be achieved. Present capability, even without knowing what passes for a blower in this unit, is unlikely to exceed that required for capture and containment of simmering bacon.

* 36 x 20 = 720 sq. in. = 5 sq. ft. ==> 90 x 5 = 450 CFM actual ==> 600 to 700 CFM rated blower with baffles and adequate MUA.

The shape of the hood does not mesh with the height and volume of the blower insert. It’s pushed back from the front because of the hood curve interfering with the blower height. There isn’t enough height to mount it properly, and it is too small and low powered already.

A better option would a remote roof mounted blower with a much better designed sump and baffle filtration system at the lower level. Or a different, boxier shaped hood, with more height at the front, as is shown in the manufacturer’s pics. The real truth is that this insert is not really ever going to work well, even with a differently shaped hood. It’s just too small and underpowered.

Interesting, thank you. My contractor told me this was the size that was needed. When I went to appliance store to order it the woman questioned if the size was right because it was unusually small and I put her on the phone with my contractor who confirmed it was the size he told me was needed. This GE vent was the only one available in the size required. Thank you very much for the insight …. too late for the hood or blower to go back at this point so I’ll have to cross my fingers. We don’t cook often and hadn’t used the previous vent in years. Had I known this I would have chosen a different hood which is custom and non returnable. Before this reno there was no external vent and we really only used the light.

@kaseki thank you for the really interesting info you shared… would have been nice if the cabinet guy, or my contractor or even the appliance store shared this info ahead of the purchases. I’ve learned a ton doing this reno, and in this case.. too late. Appreciate the response!

Not what you want to hear... But that looks like a not so great design that is likely to be quite ineffective. What insert is that? CFM rating? Duct size?

That said, if you have an induction range and rarely do much more than boil water then you're OK. Otherwise you could have a problem.

On the plus side you've got somewhat decent containment volume which is good. But very limited filter area and mesh rather than baffle.

Thanks for your response…The link is above with specs … Everyone is consistent in messaging that it’s not going to work great but like I said my contractor told me the size I needed and the store I purchased the vent at said this is literally the only one that comes in 20’’… it was back ordered and took 3 mos to come in. Considering both the hood and vent are already installed and non returnable… I’ll just have to be thankful that we really rarely cook… and as mentioned above I hadn’t used the previous kitchen fan in years… it didn’t go outside so I just felt it was a waste.. this one does vent to the outside of the house. I’ll chalk it up to Live and learn

Me thinks you've a quite bad contractor. Considering this setup I'd be quite concerned about the quality of their other work.

As I'm sure you've become aware, the general rule is that the hood should be 6" wider than the range with appropriate filters. Even those who screw it up only do same width as the range. Did they tell you why they were recommending something so much smaller?

The hood is 6’’ larger than the range … the hood is 36’’. It’s the vent size that is 20’’… I guess the way the hood curves is small. The stainless steel is appropriate size… my question was shouldn’t the mess and light be more toward the front of the stove top vs the wall…

If you don’t cook much, I don’t think I would worry about it. I hardly cook also. I had a blower installed in the roof and it sounded like a plane taking off. I never used it and when I removed the drop celing I got rid of it. Maybe this isnt the best advice, but it would not concern me given my lifestyle and it sounds like yours is similar.

If you don’t take care of it now, you may have to when you sell your house. And as opaone said, the prospective buyer will begin to wonder about the quality of the rest of the house. Does this have to pass inspection?

I’m not following if your concern is the installation placement of the vent or the quality of the vent? I’m really not sure if there’s another inspection needed. The hood is by Shiloh and the vent by GE, both quality companies … the question is was there a better fitting vent that could have been purchased for this hood and I was told no. Not really sure what you’re suggesting at this point. It doesn’t make sense to me if you are suggesting the wooden Hood itself is no good… I see this hood and similar on many new build and reno kitchen pics

I assume you paid a good amount of money to do this kitchen renovation. You see the wood exhaust hood cover on many new build and reno kitchen pics, but you can’t say that about the working interior parts of your exhaust. Pros say that the ventilation inside the hood is underpowered and a problem. You may not use the ventilation, but when you go to sell your house I assume you will think your new kitchen a selling point. It might not be. A good home inspector will point out that the vent is underpowered and a problem. A savvy buyer will take this into account when negotiating a sales price and then perhaps assume that there is other pretty but shoddy workmanship throughout. Just something to think about.

I guess I’m not following what you are suggesting … you are correct, this is a costly project. Are you suggesting I try to find a different exhaust siren only or both hood and exhaust? I’m not changing the hood and while I said it was custom after thinking about it, it’s actually not.. it’s a standard size right out of Shiloh’s product line so therefore shouldn’t be the issue.

Sorry won’t let me edit.. not sure where the word siren came from.

My quick opinion is that either (a) the existing wood hood is not critical, in which case I would try to find a metal hood/filter assembly (with blower) that would interface with your ducting, or, (b) a wood hood is critical (aesthetically), in which case I would try to find one that fits your space as well as fits a suitable insert, or, (c) this particular wood hood is critical (aesthetically), in which case I would determine its exact interior dimensions including the duct interface and contact Modernaire to see if they could produce an effective insert that fits.

"Effective" means capture area, filtering, and CFM meet requirements for good capture and containment performance.

I’ll go with C and once my project is complete check around see if possibly there’s another vent/exhaust that will work with this hood’s interior dimensions which I’m sure I can get from Shiloh or perhaps I have paperwork here. I relied on what my contractor told me would work.. I’d expect that he’s right but who knows. He is a very good contractor and had nothing to do with my hood choice.