Kitchen equipment is given great attention. This is a room that should have all the necessary elements of comfort and convenience. Among these devices is a hood, which removes unpleasant odors and purifies the air. An important part of the system is the duct. For effective work, you need to choose the right device and install it.
The difference between the hood and the ventilation system
According to existing sanitary standards, appliances that support air exchange must be installed in any living room. In connection with these requirements, a ventilation system is being made in the apartment building. It is a chain of channels that are located in the walls and bring air masses to the roof. Fresh air enters the apartment through the cracks in the door and window openings. Such a system is not able to quickly remove unpleasant odors that are formed in the kitchen during cooking.
For effective odor removal, forced ventilation systems are used. They are also called hoods. Their principle of operation is based on the absorption of vapors that come from the hob. After the air masses are diverted using the air duct into the ventilation duct. In exchange, a new fresh air stream comes from windows and doors.
Duct classification
Ducts for the hood in the kitchen can be divided into groups according to different indicators: material of manufacture, operational characteristics, type of construction. Ventilation for the hood in the kitchen is selected individually for each room.
By type of construction
All products can be divided into two types:
- Flexible. They can be placed at right angles. They can be compressed and stretched, but it must be borne in mind that a slightly elongated duct has better resistance to air flow. Typically, such structures are made of aluminum. The disadvantages include the impossibility of creating a corrugated box longer than 3 meters due to the degradation of system performance.
- Tough. They are easy to assemble and have a smooth and even inner surface. The air flow has no barriers due to smoothness, which is why the efficiency of such systems is greater.
The cost of tough models is higher, but their positive qualities justify the cost. The choice of system is determined by the number of bends that the pipes must go through. It is recommended to reduce the number of turns so that no turbulence appears.
In shape
There are several main options:
- Rounded. These are products that are used in homes with high ceilings. Due to the design and size of the duct, infrequently installed. When connected to the ventilation duct, hoods with a square or rectangular shape will require the use of special connectors.
- Rectangular and square. Universal ducts, which are most often installed in houses and apartments. Installation can be done behind the cabinets in the kitchen. There is the possibility of laying along any path.
- Oval. They have similar characteristics with rounded models.
- Flat. This is a subspecies of rectangular structures that are almost invisible.
Rectangular designs are used more often than other types. Manufacturers produce products in several sizes. For hoods with a capacity of not more than 300 cubic meters / hour, ducts with a section of 110 × 55 mm are used. For devices with a capacity of 350 cubic meters / hour, 120 × 60 mm products are suitable.Devices with a capacity of up to 1000 cubic meters / hour require a cross section of 240 × 60 mm.
According to the materials
Ducts made of plastic and various metals are popular. Each material has its own characteristics and advantages, which will be implemented in certain conditions.
- Plastic. These are the most popular designs for cooker hoods. The shape is round and rectangular. The main advantages include corrosion resistance, ease of assembly and installation of pipes for hoods, smooth walls, low price and low weight. During the operation of the hood, such systems do not emit noise. The disadvantages include the need to purchase adapters and connectors for connecting parts, as well as instability to high temperatures.
- Aluminum. Of this material, designs for ventilation systems are often created. The advantages include low price, simplicity and versatility, ease of installation, resistance to high temperatures. However, aluminum has serious drawbacks that limit its use - it is a high thermal conductivity, due to which condensation will accumulate; unpresentable appearance and weak structural strength.
- Steel. For ductwork, stainless or galvanized steel is selected. This is a durable material that is inexpensive, has an even base, is not subject to deformation and does not emit harmful substances. Every year, the popularity of steel products decreases. This is due to the need to use the most reliable and stable clamps, the difficulty of cutting metal pipes, heavy weight and noisy work.
Despite the reliability, metal ducts are used less and less. Replace them with plastic products.
Selection tips
Arrangement of a ventilation system requires the owners of a house or apartment to take into account all the features of the premises. To facilitate the selection, you need to follow the recommendations:
- Equipment should be bought only in official stores. In the kit must be an instruction and warranty card.
- The external design also needs to be considered so that the hood with a displaced duct fits into the interior.
- Brand and cost of the product. It is recommended to take air ducts from trusted companies with an optimal ratio of price and quality. It is better not to buy cheap products, as their characteristics will not correspond to the declared ones.
- Performance. It should be sufficient for a specific room. In case of poor ventilation, the air flow will be updated more slowly, unpleasant odors will stagnate.
- Low noise.
- The ability to quickly remove odors.
When planning the system, it is recommended to use the principle of minimalism - the fewer turns and additional parts, the more efficient the air duct will work. In the case of a kitchen hood, a channel with three turns is sufficient. An increase in this value leads to a decrease in efficiency by 10-15%.
Throughput is the main selection criterion. The cross-sectional area on which it depends must be commensurate with the nozzles that discharge the air. To determine the cross section, use the formula S = 3.14 × (d / 2) ² for round pipes where d- diameter of the duct; as well as for rectangular S = L × Hwhere L and N - the length of the 2 sides of the structure. It is not necessary to add a margin to the obtained values, since it will not affect performance.
Installation of the duct for the kitchen hood can be done independently. Before you do how to make a duct for a kitchen hood with your own hands, you need to create a plan for its placement and choose a method for masking pipes.
Installation Features
The exhaust vent can be installed on your own. Corrugated products are the easiest to install.They are cut into segments of the desired length using conventional scissors or a hacksaw, and then attached to the ventilation shaft and hood. For more efficient operation, it is recommended to replace the usual grill with one that has a connecting pipe. Fixation of the air duct is carried out on special clamps. Contact points should be sealed for greater strength.
Similarly, PVC ducts are installed. Using a hacksaw for metal, the pipe is cut into parts of the right size, after which they are switched using clamps. It is important that the pipe enters the pipe by at least 5 cm. The contacts are sealed.
If an extractor hood with a capacity of more than 600 cubic meters / hour is used in the kitchen, back draft may form. To combat this phenomenon, check valves are used. They are sold in the form of a plastic disc on an axis or foil. Installation of the product is carried out vertically, so that there are no false positives under the weight of its own weight.
Ways to decorate the duct
Pipes adjacent to the hood and ventilation hole can ruin the design of the room. For this reason, the owners of the apartment decide to hide it. You can mask the duct in several ways:
- Gypsum plasterboard. A lath is placed along the duct, onto which sheets of drywall are fixed. Further, the resulting box can be finished in the same way as the entire room. An important disadvantage of this method is the complex approach to pipes if necessary.
- The box is made of plastic. Manufacturers offer prefabricated plastic structures in which the duct can be placed. This is a simpler and cheaper analogue of drywall lining.
- Installation of pipes over a suspended or suspended ceiling. In this case, the design should be planned at the stage of repair before finishing work. An air duct is laid over the ceiling structure, after which the coating itself is already installed. If necessary, access to the pipes will have to disassemble the ceiling, which is a significant drawback.
- Built-in hoods and air ducts in furniture and kitchen sets. A cabinet is hung on the wall through which the pipes will pass. This method has an important drawback - a visual reduction in space.
- The budget option of the previous method is the use of a hinged visor on the cabinet. Then the box is not mounted under the ceiling, the duct pipes are brought out of it upward and connected to the ventilation shaft. Above they are covered with a visor.
- Laying the duct close to the wall. Suitable for use with tall and deep cabinets that extend significantly above the surface. Then the pipes will not be visible.
- Painting. This is the cheapest way. The duct is painted in colors suitable for the interior. It is important to choose the right paint composition so that it also protects the pipes.
For small kitchens, methods with a cabinet are not suitable due to the visual reduction of space. The best option would be to lay pipes over a suspended ceiling or use ducts and painting.
