How to Choose the Right Rangehood for Your Kitchen Layout

Choosing a rangehood is an important part of kitchen planning, yet it’s often one of the last decisions made. Beyond appearance, the right rangehood plays a key role in maintaining air quality, managing odours and steam, and ensuring the kitchen remains comfortable to use every day. The best solution depends on your kitchen layout, ceiling height, cooktop size and how you use the space. Understanding these factors makes it far easier to select a rangehood that performs efficiently while integrating naturally into the overall design.

Why Kitchen Layout Matters

Every kitchen is configured differently, and ventilation needs to respond to that layout. Where the cooktop is positioned — against a wall, within cabinetry or on an island — will influence both the style and performance requirements of the rangehood. A well-matched rangehood captures cooking vapours effectively at the source, reducing the spread of heat, steam and grease throughout the home. Selecting a model that suits the layout ensures consistent performance without compromising aesthetics.

Undermount Rangehoods: Discreet and Functional

For kitchens where a clean, understated look is preferred, consider an Undermount rangehood. Installed beneath overhead cabinetry, these models provide effective ventilation while remaining visually unobtrusive — ideal for streamlined kitchen layouts.

Wall-Mounted Rangehoods: Defined and Effective

When your cooktop is positioned against a wall, a T-Shape Wall rangehood can be a practical and stylish solution. Designed to deliver strong extraction performance, wall-mounted units are available in a range of finishes that integrate seamlessly with both contemporary and classic kitchens.

Island Rangehoods: Performance from Every Angle

Island kitchens present a unique challenge — ventilation must work effectively from all sides. Island rangehoods are engineered to capture vapours in open-plan spaces, providing powerful extraction even when the kitchen opens to living and dining areas. Because they are visible from multiple viewpoints, island rangehoods require thoughtful consideration of proportions, materials and noise levels.

Ceiling Cassette Rangehoods: Minimal and Architectural

For architectural and open-plan kitchens that prioritise visual simplicity, a Ceiling cassette rangehood offers a refined ventilation solution. Installed flush into the ceiling, these systems deliver powerful extraction while remaining largely hidden from view, preserving clean sightlines in modern spaces.

Room Size, Cooktop Size and Ducting Requirements

Room size ( L x D x H ) will have an impact on how many cycles the air can change per hour. Selecting a rangehood with extraction rates suitable is important when deciding on your hood. This also means, a super high extraction rate may not be required to cycle the air efficiently. Choosing a model with the highest M3/h may not be necessary. It’s best to select your rangehood based on the facts of the environment it sits. This way, you purchase based on the needs to carry out sufficient air cycles. Ducting requirements can impact the overall performance of the hood, so always best to speak with your specialist on what hood best suits your needs calculated on room size and installation details. This way, performance is guaranteed, no matter your cooking style

Balancing Performance, Noise and Design

Modern kitchens are often part of open-plan living spaces, making noise an important factor in rangehood selection. Effective ventilation should work quietly in the background, allowing conversations and everyday activities to continue uninterrupted. Advanced motor configurations and thoughtful engineering help balance strong airflow with reduced noise levels, delivering performance without distraction. When combined with considered design and quality materials, the result is a rangehood that enhances both the function and atmosphere of the kitchen. Over 65% of customers select hoods with noise front of mind. Depending on your environment, the Falmec NRS units and offboard motor options are ideal for any application.

Choosing with Confidence

Selecting the right rangehood is about more than ticking boxes — it’s about choosing a solution that supports the way you live and cook. By considering kitchen layout, airflow requirements and noise expectations, you can ensure your rangehood performs reliably while complementing the overall design of your space. Explore Falmec’s range of ventilation solutions designed to suit a variety of kitchen layouts and architectural styles.

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