Can I get away without having extractor fan in kitchen?

[Deleted User]

I've been looking at extractor fans and most of them sub £200 look a bit rubbish.   Noisy and don't ventilate well.  Filters often need changing.  Etc.   So wondering if I could get away with not having one.

The room doesn't have any cabinets or shelves above hob height.

The ceiling is 275cm high.  The room is 290cm wide and 350cm long.  There's a sash window on the same as the hob, though 180cm away. 

One pane open gives a space of about 1m by 80cm. (Have been busy with the tape measure).

So... Big room, high ceiling, large window, no wall cabinets.   Only one person using the kitchen.  So not having a cooker hood might be okay?

Perhaps I'd need a special paint for the walls?

Thanks for reading!

neilmcl

Your kitchen and surrounding area will soon get covered in a layer of grease without the use of an extractor fan, which is the reason why they have filters in the first place. Who says they don't ventilate well, I have standard 3 speed hood and never had the need to go to max to fully ventilate. Look for cooker hoods that have washable filters.

casper_gutman

To comply with Building Regulations, if there is an existing extract fan (or cooker hood extracting to outside in the kitchen) you need to retain (or replace) it. If there is no existing ventilation system you need not provide one.

Just because not having one isn't "against the rules" doesn't mean it isn't a good idea to have one - but I agree some of them are a bit useless! I never switch mine on, because it's a useless means of blowing the grease around. I plan to get a decent onein the new kitchen though.

Sooler

Depends what you cook may be. Have one but don't use it, noisy and effectively doesn't do much. Just open a window if you need to get rid of steam.

[Deleted User]

Thanks for the feedback!

I think the main thing is that I always listen to the radio when I'm in the kitchen and a hood make to hard to hear.

There was an existing fan but I removed it when I took down the 20 year old wall cabinets.  It extracts/extracted through a vent that goes out through a special roof tile. 

coffeehound

Another option is to install an extractor fan in the ceiling using that existing roof outlet.  A bit of a compromise, but will give extraction without too much noise.  As with all extractors though, they need to have fresh air coming into the home somewhere else in order to work.  This might mean opening a window in another room and propping the kitchen door open a bit to let air flow through.

EssexExile

Extractor fans are fairly new, we never had them for the first 30 years of my life. Life will go on without one but I don't recognise the problems you have, our one is fine.

FreeBear

I have a cheap extractor hood in my kitchen (sub £120 jobbie). At full speed, it doesn't make a huge amount of noise, and it certainly helps getting rid of some of the steam generated when cooking.

Keep the ducting as short as possible with minimal bends. Don't use the flexi stuff except at the hood<->ducting connection. This will help the air flow better and reduce the amount of noise to some degree.

mug2007

You could get a small one in the wall like a bathroom extractor one and as long as you have windows, it may be sufficient for you.  My friend went for that instead of a hob extractor and is happy with her choice.  May be they use deliveroo, who knows, we do loads of cooking so we went with a ceiling extractor with remote motor, it cost quite a bit.

[Deleted User]

Thanks for the further ideas!

I live in a flat which is in a Victorian terraced house conversion.  The room was formerly a bedroom.   A lot of air blows in through the large sash window which looks down the side of the house toward the gardens.   There are windows facing the other aspect in the front room but there's a wall or a few right turns through doors in the way!

The ceiling is 2.75m high which might be a bit much for a ceiling fan.

Well... So I think I'm settled on trying out not having an extractor for a while.   Perhaps there's some particular type of paint I should use, e.g. a gloss that doesn't absorb the grease from the air, or anyway that can be wiped clean!

TELLIT01

We had our kitchen redone about 3 years ago and that was the first time we had an extractor fitted.  For 38 years prior to that we managed perfectly well without.  An open window will avoid a build up of steam and I would question the implication that an extractor means grease will not spread through the air in the kitchen.,