Where Does Your Range Hood Vent? Ducted vs. Recirculating
Your range hood may be blowing grease back into your kitchen. Learn ducted vs. recirculating hoods, the warning signs, and how The Great House fixes them.
KITCHEN REMODELING
11/21/20263 min read
ASK MASON · KITCHEN
Where Does Your Range Hood Vent? Why It Matters for Your Kitchen
Mason shows where your hood should vent, what goes wrong when it doesn’t, and how we fix it.
Every time you cook, grease, smoke and steam rise into the air. Your range hood decides where they end up: outside, or on your cabinets.
Watch Mason’s video, then read how to tell what your hood really does, the signs of a bad setup, and how we fix it.
IN THIS GUIDE
01
What Mason Checks
Ducted vs. Recirculating Hoods
DUCTED HOOD
Pulls air through a metal duct and pushes it outside.
RECIRCULATING HOOD
Filters the air and blows it back into the kitchen.
DEAD-END DUCT
Vents into a cabinet or the attic and just stops.
A ducted hood pulls grease, smoke and steam through a metal duct and pushes it outside, through the wall or the roof.
A recirculating hood only runs the air through a small filter, then blows it right back into the kitchen. It catches some grease, but not the moisture or the heat.
Some hoods look ducted but aren’t. The duct ends inside a cabinet or the attic, so everything it pulls up stays in the house.
Mason’s diagram: a ducted hood venting outside vs. a recirculating hood
If you can’t find where your hood vents outside, it may not vent outside at all.
02
Warning Signs
Signs Your Hood Isn’t Doing Its Job
STICKY CABINETS
A grease film on cabinets and walls near the stove.
SMOKE ALARMS
Alarms go off every time you sear or fry.
LINGERING SMELLS
Cooking smells hang around for hours.
Over time, grease coats your cabinets and walls, moisture builds up, and smells hang around.
A duct that dumps into the attic also leaves grease and moisture on the framing, where you can’t see it.
Check this today
Turn the hood on high and look for a vent cap outside on that wall or on the roof. Hold a paper towel at the hood: it should pull firmly.
03
How We Fix It
A One-Day Upgrade for a Cleaner Kitchen
We check where your hood actually vents. Then we run a smooth metal duct to a proper wall or roof cap, seal every joint, and match the fan to your cooktop.
Caught early vs. caught late
It’s usually a one-day upgrade, and it keeps your whole kitchen cleaner.
In Northern Virginia
Code requires a ducted hood to vent outdoors. In Fairfax County, new ductwork or a new range hood needs a mechanical permit, while a same-spot, like-for-like replacement does not. We fixed this on our Mason Bluff Dr kitchen remodel in Burke.
Planning a bigger project?
Remodeling your kitchen? We plan the hood and its duct route before the cabinets are ordered. See prices and real projects on our kitchen remodeling page.
The fix: a smooth metal duct with sealed joints and a matched fan
ASK MASON · KITCHEN
Want to know another problem?
SPOTTED ONE OF THESE SIGNS?
We’ll check it before it turns into a big repair
Free in-home visit from a Class A licensed team. We check the problem and the rest of your kitchen, then give you a clear written plan.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
The Great House team
Written by the team at The Great House LLC, a Class A licensed builder and remodeler in McLean, VA (License #2705197237). We have renovated 30+ Northern Virginia homes since 2022.
PLANNING A PROJECT?
Our kitchen remodeling service
See prices, real photos and how we work: our kitchen remodeling page. Real example: Ridgeway Dr kitchen and full renovation.
Serving McLean, Vienna, Great Falls, Fairfax, all of Northern Virginia.