Air purifier for the kitchen with a carbon filter. What to choose: a full-fledged hood or an air purifier for the kitchen? How to make the best choice

A kitchen filter refers to a kitchen circulating air purifier that purifies the air by passing it through a filter system.

A flow-through (full-fledged) hood and a circulation purifier are only superficially similar techniques, but their operating principles are completely different. The flow hood exhausts contaminated air into ventilation system(outside the room), and the circulation air purifier circulates the same air in the room: passing it through the filter system, cleans it and immediately returns it back to the same room. Let's look at the pros and cons of each type of technology.

Flow hood

The device is placed directly above the stove and, when operating, draws in steam, smoke, and in general everything that is commonly called kitchen fumes. Through the air duct, all contaminants and combustion products are discharged outside the room along with the air.

Since there is an outflow of air in the kitchen, it is necessary that fresh air from the street enters the apartment during operation. Therefore, do not forget to open windows and doors. After all, the air must constantly circulate (air thrown into the street must be replaced by fresh intake). If everything is hermetically sealed, and air from the street is not allowed to enter, then it is possible that while the hood is operating, air from neighboring apartments will begin to flow into your apartment. You probably won't like it.

It is believed that with the correct ratio of hood power and cubic meters of room, per hour of operation of the device, the entire volume of air in the kitchen should change from 10 to 12 times. Agree that this is the most complete update of the kitchen air, provided, of course, that the air outside meets environmental standards.

The flow-through hood has a filter (although there are also hoods without it). But its presence does not affect the quality of air purification in the room (as, say, in a circulation purifier), since this air is still discharged into the chimney and then into the street. Here the filter is needed only to protect the fan motor from sticky soot and grease residue.

From time to time, the filter must be washed and grease removed using a degreaser (either manually or using dishwasher). If this is not done periodically, a filter clogged with greasy dirt will stop letting air through. The device will not be able to perform its main task. The load on the engine will increase and it may fail prematurely.

The method of 100% air replacement should appeal to everyone. Who can be against fresh air from the street? But the problem is that in winter time Not everyone wants to lose heat in their home, especially if there is a heating problem. After all, when it’s frosty outside, we try by all means to provide for ourselves and our loved ones comfortable temperature in the apartment and pay money for it. This means that when we expel the air heated by heating into the chimney, we also throw our money there. In this case, it may be better to have a circulating kitchen air purifier at home.

Circulating air purifier

A circulating air purifier for the kitchen, like a flow-through hood, creates a forced draft. Air is forced through two-stage system filters and returns to the room. Thus, the air circulates and is cleaned, leaving dirt particles on the filters of the device.


The role of filters here is paramount. The air first passes through a grease filter, which is typically a multi-layer perforated aluminum or steel sheet. These are reusable metal filters that can trap particles of fat and soot. As mentioned above, metal filters must be washed and cleaned as they become dirty.

There are also disposable grease-absorbing filters that are simply thrown away after contamination (for example, an acrylic or padding polyester filter). One way or another, any filter requires either cleaning or replacement. If this problem is ignored, the device gradually loses efficiency and becomes useless. If the device is located above gas stove, then accumulated on the filter old fat may even ignite.

After the grease filter, the air then passes through a carbon filter. This filter contains Activated carbon, which is needed for “fine” air purification. It traps smaller particles of fat, dust, smoke, combustion products and partially neutralizes unpleasant odors.


Carbon filters will have to be purchased and changed every 4-6 months (depending on how much and how often you cook). The disadvantage of this method of cleaning kitchen air is the inability to capture some air impurities. For example, carbon dioxide. In order to enrich the air in the room with oxygen, all rooms still need to be ventilated from time to time.

It’s not bad when a kitchen hood can operate in two modes: the outflow of dirty air from the kitchen or its return in a partially purified form. Many of the latest models are designed this way so that you can choose the mode yourself depending on the situation. For example, in summer time turn on the flow process and completely renew the air in the kitchen, and in winter, in order to save heat, make do with the circulation mode.

It is easier to install in the kitchen, of course, a circulating air purifier, since it does not require air exhaust, but the method of releasing soot and odors from the kitchen along with the air flow through the “sleeve” into the ventilation is more natural and effective.


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Air purifiers for the kitchen above the stove - types and criteria for selection.

Combustion products, soot and carbon monoxide escape from the kitchen through the hood. At the same time, a kitchen hood allows you to get rid of cooking odors. in the kitchen it is always hung above the stove, because this is where all the gases and unpleasant (as well as pleasant) odors are concentrated. The kitchen hood has different names. You can often find both the common name of an air purifier and a kitchen exhaust fan or module. Depending on the name, there will be no fundamental difference in the operating mechanism, but there are differences in throughput and final design.

Types of air purifiers for the kitchen

In the kitchen, a hood is needed to purify the air and remove foreign odors. This occurs due to the air draft created by the fan. Looking under the decorative body of the equipment, you can see one or more engines with impellers. Also one or more filters.

Modern air purifiers for the kitchen can be:

— Circulating. The air is cleaned using filters and then returned back to the room.

- Flow-through. Kitchen fumes and soot are thrown away. This occurs through the building's external ventilation system. Installation of such a hood will be more difficult, because you need to make a chimney pipe and connect it to the ventilation hole. But such an air purifier works more efficiently. After all, the natural traction force enhances the air exchange created by the fan.

How to make the best choice?

When buying an air purifier for the kitchen above the stove, you need to pay attention not only to the technical characteristics. The size of the kitchen is also important, appearance the device itself. Throughput is performance. The main characteristic that you need to pay attention to. The higher the capacity, the more air the hood can clean within an hour. Average productivity should be 150-700 cubic meters per hour.

Important! To determine the required performance for a specific room, you should remember that according to sanitary standards optimal air exchange for the kitchen should be next. Within an hour, the air volume should change at least 10 times.

All good devices must have from two to five power levels. A useful feature is smooth adjustment over a wide range. Maximum power is needed when frying fish, if some dish is badly burnt.

Why filter air?

Some people wonder why air filtration is needed if it is being released outside anyway. It all depends on the type of device. In circulation mode, the filter can be used to retain the smallest droplets of fat and soot, as well as absorb odors (charcoal).

As for flow-through devices, only the first type of filter is installed in them; carbon filters are not used in supply air purifiers at all. Because the air is released and, indeed, no additional purification is required. But there is a point in a grease filter. After all, without it, grease would accumulate on the fan blades, slowing down the operation of the entire system.

Interesting! The cheapest flow-through hoods do not have any filter at all. But they require careful care: it is necessary to regularly clean off grease from the ventilation hood and other parts.

Just because your kitchen air purifier is quiet doesn't mean it's slow. Simply, the purchased model is of high quality and will not tire you with its noise, which has a good effect on the general condition. Each owner can choose the design to suit their specific requirements. But you shouldn’t make a fundamental choice based on design. First of all, of course, it is important production characteristics described in this article.

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This is a device with special fans that push air, and with it, bad odors through tubular air ducts to the street. Installation of any hood requires proper arrangement of the air path. The smoother it is, the more efficient the device will work. In the case of a crooked outlet pipe device, the air flow, or rather its power, will be weak. And the more various irregularities in these pipes, the less efficiently the hood works.

Recirculation type air purifiers

Such air purifiers for the kitchen usually have several (sometimes one) filters, which clean the air from unpleasant odors. The main difference between these devices and hoods is their ability to return purified air back into the room. In addition, such devices provide for the use of several filters at once: carbon and conventional mechanical, which is necessary for filtering air from various large suspended particles.

The main disadvantage of air purifiers for kitchens of this type is the high cost and costs of Consumables, that is, special filters. The latter need to be changed approximately every few months (depending on the specific model of the device).

What should you choose?

In order to decide on the most suitable type of air purifier for your kitchen, first of all, carefully analyze all the features of the room where you want to install it. If installing an air duct in your kitchen requires a lot of expenses for paying specialists, as well as related materials, and plus, the path for the air mass to exit cannot be made smooth and holes will be required in several walls at once, the best option In this case, a recirculating air purifier will be your solution.

In addition, before purchasing such a device, be sure to take measurements of your own slab above which it will be located.

Mounting type

Air purifiers for the kitchen can also differ from each other in the type of mounting:

1. Hanging hoods are installed directly above kitchen stove and attached to furniture.

2. Built-in - attached or built into pieces of kitchen furniture and completely merge with it. For example, you can purchase air purifiers for the kitchen, made in the same style as the furniture, then they will become almost invisible to the eye.

3. Dome or fireplace - they are of the outlet type and resemble in their shape the chimneys of fireplaces, and most importantly, they fit perfectly into almost any interior.

And of course, it is best to choose air purifiers for the kitchen only from trusted manufacturers who have proven themselves well in our country.

The kitchen is one of those places in the house where it is really necessary to purify the air, because it contains not only various odors, but also often gas decomposition products. There are a huge number of exhaust devices that can cope with this problem. This article will talk about recirculation version of the hood, which is also called a kitchen air purifier.

A kitchen air purifier is used instead of a hood and works as follows:

  • with the help of a fan, polluted room air is sucked into the device;
  • there it passes through a series of filter elements;
  • Afterwards, the purified air mass is supplied to the room.

Filters remove the following air pollutants:

  • soot;
  • various mechanical particles (for example, dust, animal hair, fabric fibers, etc.);
  • products formed after gas combustion;
  • odors (particles of substances that caused their appearance).

The fundamental difference between an air purifier and a flow hood lies in the principle of operation of the devices and the degree of their mobility. The first one misses air mass premises through a filter system, cleaning it. The hood removes air containing impurities from the room through air ducts to the outside. In addition, the air purifier can be reinstalled in any room, and the hood is a stationary device that is placed directly above the stove to achieve greater efficiency, with a whole system of paths for air removal.

Here's how an air purifier differs from a hood:

  • productivity;
  • operating noise level;
  • the presence of additional functions;
  • the cost of the device itself and its maintenance;
  • complexity of installation.

These differences are not fundamental and depend on the specific models used. But it is precisely these criteria that are oriented towards when choosing devices.

Hoods that can operate in 2 modes are becoming increasingly widespread: recirculation and flow. But the price of such devices is higher than their single-mode analogues.

The nuances of installing air purifiers

As mentioned above, installation of recirculation and flow principles actions are different. For the hood, you should select a place so that you can easily connect the air duct to it and then connect it to a common ventilation shaft. Ideally, it is recommended to purchase an air purifier in combination with kitchen furniture so that its model fits into the design of the room.

The installation process is simple, but a number of nuances should be taken into account:

  • need to calculate in advance socket location, from which the installed device will receive power, so that its wire is not stretched and does not come into contact with the heated parts of the stove;
  • need to install an air purifier before arranging kitchen furniture In order to be able to preliminarily determine the direction and area of ​​its action, it is convenient to arrange all the component elements of the headset around the room.

Installation diagram of a flow cleaner

The optimal distance of the purifier from the stove is 0.75 m, which meets fire safety requirements. This arrangement allows the device to draw in all fumes emanating from the stove.

Types of filters in kitchen air purifiers

Kitchen air purifiers are often equipped with the following filters:

  • fatty;

  • air.

The first filter is a cassette consisting of several layers of plastic or aluminum. It can be washed with water. The air filter is designed for more complete cleaning and has a fibrous structure. It allows you to trap small particles.

In addition to the 2 considered, a number of models also contain a third, carbon filter. It is designed to eliminate odors. Air and carbon filters must be replaced at least once every 3 months. This is determined by the intensity of the equipment’s operation and entails additional, sometimes significant, costs.

Carbon filter for hood

Mobile cleaners can be equipped filter with electrostatic operating principle. Its essence lies in the fact that around the electrodes a electric field, due to which they begin to attract particles in the air. Some models contain photocatalytic filter, which decomposes organic matter into simple, harmless compounds. Electrostatic and photocatalytic types are relatively expensive, but they do not need to be replaced.

For efficient work A kitchen air purifier should be equipped with at least two filters.

Which is better to choose: a recirculating air purifier or a regular hood?

Which is better: a range hood or an air purifier for the kitchen? This question cannot be answered unequivocally, because the choice must be made based on practical expediency. Recommendations in this regard are as follows:

  • when cooking is done in the kitchen quite rarely, and its area exceeds 15 square meters. m, then a recirculation cleaner will do the job;
  • If the stove is used frequently or the kitchen room is small, then it is recommended to give preference to a hood.

When choosing, keep in mind that the air purifier:

  • can be installed in any room, it is portable;
  • does not remove heat from the house to the outside during the cold season;
  • ready to work immediately after installation and connection to the network;
  • maintenance is more expensive than a hood;
  • does not interfere with moisture circulation.

Maintenance costs can be reduced by purchasing a model with washable filters.

A flow hood is characterized by greater productivity and lower noise levels during operation, but requires ventilation ducts. If this is problematic to do, or the work is associated with significant costs, then it would be preferable to install a recirculation device.

Combined hood Kaiser AT 6405 N

The choice of a cleaner should be made based on its practicality for specific operating conditions. Among the three types of devices, if possible, it is better to purchase equipment combined type of action. It will remove pollutants from the air and function as an exhaust hood.

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