Cooktop Vent Hood Placement ???

3 years ago

I'm doing a remodel and I'm looking to purchase a Wolf Vent Hood to go over my 36" induction cooktop. The cooktop is placed in front of a fixed window, so I'll need the 42" island hood rather than the wall hood.

My ceilings are 9' high and the counter is 3' high.

Ideally, I want my vent hood to land 24" from the cooktop. I much prefer it closer than "average" aka the 36" that's typically advised, because I find it to work MUCH more efficiently landing closer to the counter. Being nearly 6' tall, there's also no risk of bumping my head with this lower positioning, nor any flame risk due to it being induction.

That said, I'm a bit confused on Wolf's wording for the "accessory flue extension" .

With my 9' ceilings and wanting to land the bottom of the hood at 24" above the counter, I will need the chimney to travel 48" down from the ceiling, or 4' .

However, Wolf's website says that "main" body accommodates a 23"-32" distance down from the ceiling, and the extender accommodates a 51"-59" distance, which completely skips over anything in the 40"-50" range, which is what I need for my 9' ceilings.

Is this a misprint on their site or is this how their product is designed?

I'm hoping being a high end product that Wolf is super customizable and I'm just not understanding correctly.

Does anybody have experience?

https://www.subzero-wolf.com/wolf/range-hood/42-inch-cooktop-island-hood-black

Featured Answer

kaseki

3 years ago

My Wolf Pro Island hood (1989) has a short extension (duct cover) that bolts to the house ceiling framing, then the hood bolts to the extension. So I imaging that one could stack extensions, particularly with the tiny load (relative to my 66-inch long canopy hood). Note that a long stack will require a long duct, and this has to be placed after the assembly is installed. So your attic will need some height clearance, or perhaps two duct sections can be serially installed.

Stacking should be confirmed. Call Wolf. They answer their telephones and will connect you to engineering if they don't have a handy answer.

Gratuitous comments:

A lot the the front-to-back depth of your choice doesn't actually perform plume capture in the normal sense, so while the thin design you have picked has minimal visual blockage, a more conventional canopy design with baffles will perform better. Whether this matters depends on your cooking style.

My Pro Island hood overlaps a 36-inch induction cooktop and Cooktek induction wok hob, has an actual capture depth of 26 inches, and is placed at 34.5 inches above the cooktop due to extension size and ceiling height.

With adequate cooking zone overlap and reasonably minimal cross drafts, you should be able to mount as high as 36 inches without having to size wider and deeper. (Although I am only guessing that Wolf provided some scheme to make this configuration adequate in capture and containment.) When evaluating sight lines using a side-view stick figure approach, keep in mind that the island design protrudes toward the cook by a few inches relative to the counter.

The front-back center-line should align with the center of the cooktop hobs array, and not particularly with the counter or the cooktop itself. So the layout should be drawn and evaluated vs. whatever structure is above that has to support the hood and pass the duct.

Get and read the installation guides for hood and extensions before ordering anything.

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Comments (11)

kaseki
3 years ago
P.S. Alternatively, you could build a ceiling colored chase that dropped down from the ceiling by some amount that you mated the stainless steel extension to.
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Theresa Peterson
3 years ago
I've never had a hood larger than my range.

I've never been unhappy with my same-sized range hood.
PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
3 years ago
I agree I do hoods the same size as ranges often I might up the CFM sometimes but I do think 24" from the cook top is too low I do 30" all the time.
Pi_pumkin_sol3
Original Author
3 years ago
@kaseki wow thank you so much for your thorough comment.

You've actually just convinced me to move the cooktop to a different part of the kitchen (not in front of a window) to allow for a more effective hood and proper attic hookup. While the cooktop in front of the large window would have been beautiful, it wasn't ideal, functionally. Thank you a million!
cpartist
3 years ago
You've actually just convinced me to move the cooktop to a different part of the kitchen (not in front of a window) to allow for a more effective hood and proper attic hookup.

Very wise move.
wdccruise
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
The Zephyr ZLCE42BS Luce 42" island hood can be installed as close as 26" from the cooktop below a 9' ceiling when equipped with the Zephyr Z1C00LC Duct Cover Extension.

How tall is the window?
kaseki
3 years ago
It is not impossible for a surface sized hood to operate successfully, just not possible under all conditions. As a test with the hood on full blower power, take a pan on a hob/burner at the edge of the cooking zone and heat peanut oil to the smoke point (~ 450F). Observe whether all of the plume is captured or some gets past the hood edges. If the "cook" walks around, or others walk around the area, does the capture efficiency change?

There is much information in the threads on this site w.r.t. hoods and make-up air that can improve insight into these topics. With that background, one can ask targeted questions that have not been adequately covered -- at this point mostly questions specific to architectures, or help with calculations.
wdccruise
3 years ago
@kaseki: "As a test with the hood on full blower power, take a pan on a hob/burner at the edge of the cooking zone and heat peanut oil..."

He's doing a remodel. He doesn't have the hood.
kaseki
3 years ago
wdc: my comment was directed at those who believe they are getting full capture with a cooktop width hood. Some may and some may not get full capture. The OP is (was) going +6, so my comment wasn't meant to apply to him.
Fori
3 years ago
I'd suggest splurging on a custom made duct cover to avoid the seam. It just looks better.