Understanding why you need a carbon filter in the hood is quite simple. During cooking, a lot of foreign odors and even solid impurities appear in the air, which rise up. If there were no filter, they would settle on the inner surface of the pipe, in the fan mechanism, significantly reducing their service life. Therefore, the filter is an absolutely necessary element of the exhaust system, which must be installed in it for safety reasons.
The content of the article
- Purpose of the filter
- Pros and cons of filters
- What are the filters
Purpose of the filter
Almost every hood has a charcoal filter. This is an inexpensive filler that performs an important function. It cleans the incoming air from various odors, including unpleasant ones, as well as small impurities.
There is no doubt that a charcoal filter is needed in the hood. The principle of its operation is quite simple. The fan entrains air currents, like in a vacuum cleaner, but only with less power. They come from the plate up and then go into the pipe. But they first pass through porous carbon, which absorbs (holds on the surface) not only odors, but also solid particles.
Even with ideally correct cooking and maintaining sanitation, fumes, soot particles, fumes and other small inclusions enter the air. If not for the additional insert, they would settle on the inner surface of the pipe. Because of this, it would become heavily clogged, which would lead to the need for a quick replacement.
That's what the carbon filter in the hood is for - it protects it from soot, smoke, and other particles. This significantly increases the service life of the entire system, including the fan. And replacing the coal itself is much easier and cheaper.
Pros and cons of filters
It is clear why a carbon filter is needed in the hood. Along with effective air purification, it provides several other advantages:
- affordability;
- easy installation and replacement;
- integrated into existing furniture, saving space.
There are also disadvantages. One of them is related to the need for regular replacement of the carbon element. Although it is easy to do it yourself in a few minutes. In addition, it is better to regularly change this component than the pipe itself or other elements. This once again shows why the charcoal filter is in the hood.
Another disadvantage is the noise during operation of the device. But it is quite acceptable, besides, the mechanism works only for a limited time. If you close the door in the kitchen, there will definitely not be noise in the room.
What are the filters
To understand how to choose a coal hood for the kitchen, you need to figure out what types it is. There are 2 main classifications. For example, there are different shapes of devices - convex or flat, oval or rectangular.
In practice, the division according to the principle of action is more significant:
- Insert - an element made of synthetic materials that are impregnated with activated carbon. The base withstands high levels of humidity, hot streams, and the carbon element effectively absorbs impurities and eliminates odors. Here is how a hood with this type of charcoal filter works.
- Cassette element - in this case, the filtering part is presented in the form of a powder or small granules, which are poured into a plastic container. It is she who is called a plastic cassette. The shape of the container can be different - flat, convex, in the form of a circle. Cassettes are inexpensive and easily replaced with new ones.
- Combined type – 2-component filter element: synthetic material and separately activated carbon in the form of granules. They are more expensive, but the cleansing effect is more pronounced compared to other models.
Now it’s clear what a carbon filter is for an exhaust hood, and what main function it performs. This is an inexpensive and simple device that purifies the air. You can change it yourself, and in modern models there is a sensor that will remind you of the need to install a new cassette.
