Range hood thoughts?

[richyrich]

Hi folks. My house is a couple of years old and my range hood just gave up the ghost. I paid for an upgrade but it's pretty clear now the "Air King" unit they put in is pretty crappy. Broken switches, never did pull much air (it's vented) and tonight I put on the lights (with the dicky switch) and heard a fuse-like "pop" so I'm ready to give up on it.
Anyways, hoping for some thoughts on a couple of things:

1) I pulled it out tonight to look at the venting and electrical with a replacement in mind to find that it was not well connected to the vent pipe at all - the rectangular boot was just sitting loosely (and not at all heavily) on top of the rectangular vent outlet on top. Pretty sure this is the cause of the crappy performance - it would be best sealed on with aluminum tape right?

2) Anyone have recommendations on a decent replacement? It's under-cabinet and I'd want stainless, maybe 5-6 inches high (not one of the monsters). These things are not really all that complex so I'm not looking to break the bank on overpriced named stuff. Anyone got experience of the Costco ones or the various ones on Amazon.ca?

Thanks in advance.

[good2know]

Yes it should be screwed into the exhaust port and then taped. We use broan allure series vents. Very quiet and last for years. We have one thats > 8.

[oakvillehomeowner]

just make sure you find a quiet one. if it's too loud (like mine), you won't use it as often as you should.

[richyrich]

Just to close the loop, I ended up getting a basic $200 one from Amazon - http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00NUIHQV0

Received in a couple of days, installed (properly) and all good - does the job and looks great, all for a reasonably bargain price. If I have to replace it in a few years, no worries at this price. These get a lot of use so no wonder they break down, just a surprise that the Air King "upgrade" wasn't better quality. As with quite a lot of things these days, I think "buy cheap, replace regularly" applies here. This stuff just isn't made to last.

[jeffjc]

Originally Posted by richyrich

Just to close the loop, I ended up getting a basic $200 one from Amazon - http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00NUIHQV0

Received in a couple of days, installed (properly) and all good - does the job and looks great, all for a reasonably bargain price. If I have to replace it in a few years, no worries at this price. These get a lot of use so no wonder they break down, just a surprise that the Air King "upgrade" wasn't better quality. As with quite a lot of things these days, I think "buy cheap, replace regularly" applies here. This stuff just isn't made to last.

costco sells that one. it used to be $99 now its $149

[richyrich]

It's not on their website and I don't go there - if I did I'd get a great deal on my $99 range hood then waste a bunch of cash on other crap I don't need, 5kg of almonds when I just needed a small bag etc etc. The "$100 store"....