Indians love spicy and oily food that require a lot of frying and baking. The food is undoubtedly delicious but in the end, it’s our kitchen that has to bear all the negative effects. And, sometimes the chef too get affected with the smoke and dust which result in watery eyes.
Everything this happen is because of the inappropriate ventilation in the kitchen.
Earlier, for ventilation, exhaust fans were mostly used. Now in today’s time, now only few people use the noise making exhaust fans and most people would rather choose a kitchen chimney.
Kitchen chimney is an electrical device that is designed in order to remove the smoke and fumes that are produced while cooking. Also, it absorbs the oil particles that are released into the air during cooking, therefore keeping your kitchen clean.
Other than the simple working process, there are many features of chimney you should consider about this appliance before making sure it as best kitchen chimney.
Types of chimney
You can choose a chimney depending upon the structure of your kitchen and the available space above the cooktop.
Wall mounted chimney
Chimney that is adjusted adjacent to the wall, above the cooktop is called as
wall mount chimney and this is the most picked chimney in India.
Island chimney
This chimney is fitted on the celling of the wall and above the stove, looks like it is hanging from the celling.
Types of filter
Chimney contains a filter, which is managing the filtering process, and depending upon the material and the process of filtering there are three types of filter.
Mesh / cassette filter
Mesh filter is made up of many layers of aluminum that have small holes to catch particles and purify air. Oil and other particles hold on to the mesh as the air passes through it, stimulating the purification process. It should be washed twice in a week with a detergent to keep the filter working or it may get blocked.
Baffle filter
It is best suitable for Indian kitchens because of the more use of oil and spices at the time of cooking. It utilizes overlapping sheet of steel or aluminum to reverse direction of airflow to segregate grease and spice particles from the air. Suction power is not influenced even if oil is accumulated in the first layer. It should be cleaned regularly for the best performance.
Carbon filter
Carbon filter is used as an optional filter in addition with the mesh or baffle filter, and features a layer of charcoal granules that is used for absorption of odor. This can not be washed or cleaned, therefore you need to change the carbon filter in every 3-6 months for effective function of the chimney.
Size of Chimney
Selecting a kitchen chimney that is equal or slightly larger then the size of cooktop/ hob is generally suggested. Mostly, 60 cm width chimney is appropriate for a cooktop with 2feet width, and 90 cm width chimney for cooktop with 3-5 burners. Choose as per your needs.
Auto clean Feature
When the cooking air goes through this auto clean kitchen chimney, the air blower of this machine pushes this air towards the wall of chimney where the easily detachable oil collector is present which accumulates most of the oil and grease from the air and the rest goes through the filter. You only need to remove the oil collector and clean it every week to reduce repeated maintenance of the filter.
Suction power of chimney
The suction power is the ability of the chimney to absorb oil, smoke and odor.
It is represented in cubic meter per hour (m3/hr) and usually chimney with a suction power of 500 m3/h to 650 m3/h is appropriate for every type of kitchen.
According to experts, a chimney need to recycle the air of the kitchen at least 10 times in every hour. It means one have to select a chimney ten times the volume of the kitchen. For example, if your kitchen has dimensions of 4m×4m×2.5m, then the volume is 40m3. When you multiply the volume by 10, you will get 400m3, which is the minimum needed air suction capacity for that kitchen.
Duct chimney and Duct less chimney
Duct chimney is fitted with a duct that moves the smoke and dust particles out of the kitchen, while on the other hand, the ductless chimney contain activated charcoal or carbon that helps in eliminating smoke particles and odor from the air, which can then be recirculated back all through your kitchen.
Ducted chimney is always a better option because its performance is just perfect, but in cities where there is already space issue, home owners can go for ductless chimneys.
Considering all the above factors, you can choose the best depending on your requirements. For any chimney related repair and service reach ServiceTree.