Kitchen ventilation
In my small (1400 sq ft), single-story 1953 ranch home in Zone 5 CT, I have recently turned a 132 sq ft, W-facing sunroom (on slab with slate flooring) into a kitchen. The room has a sloped ceiling, ranging from 12′ on the interior to 8′ at the exterior, window-lined (to the ceiling) wall. It has two skylights that open and close manually, and will be heated with Runtal baseboard radiators. It is isolated from the rest of the home by a door into the living room that has a Hearthstone wood-burning insert.
The kitchen stove, a Blomberg 24″ electric range, is on the interior, high wall. We do not eat meat, do not fry anything but eggs and onions (though never together!) (yet). Thus, I do not want a bulky, overpowered exhaust/ventilation fan on the wall, nor do I need this much power. Can I install an exhaust fan (such as a WhisperGreen), on the wall for odors and ultrafine particles?
There is a kneewall in the attic (well-insulated!), as well as an opening behind the stove in the interior wall that hasn’t been enclosed, yet.
Also, Martin has suggested the Lunos eGo in the past, but I do not have an exterior wall except the small space between the top of the baseboard radiators and bottom of the windows.
Thank you!
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Replies
Jennifer, even if you don't cook a lot of meat or other greasy foods, there is still particulate matter if you're cooking eggs, onions or other food--so for best indoor air quality, you should install a proper range hood. It's not required by the IRC code with an electric range but it's best practice. They usually have a washable filter, and a fan that can move 250 cfm (or more) of air, and can also be run on lower speeds. The IRC requires makeup air if the unit is rated for 400 cfm or higher, but it your house is relatively airtight, you might want makeup air with lower-cfm fans as well.
On the other hand, Passive Houses and other super-efficient homes often have a recirculating hood, and an ERV or HRV intake not too close to the stove but in the general vicinity. You could probably do something similar by locating a fan in the kitchen but away from the stove. You should still have a fan to capture particulate matter. And even then, grease will build up on the exhaust fan, which reduces efficiency and could be a fire hazard, so be sure to take it apart on a regular schedule for inspection and cleaning.