How Much Does It Cost to Install a Kitchen Hood in a Restaurant?

A restaurant kitchen hood is invaluable for safer cooking. Simply placing a kitchen hood over your commercial range protects your customers and your livelihood from grease fires, excessive heat, and dangerous levels of smoke. But what does it cost to install a kitchen hood? 

Kitchen hood installation costs depend primarily on the type you buy. Be sure to do your research before purchasing just any kind of kitchen hood. They are not all created equal, and your business needs and local codes may call for a specific type. 

Ambient Edge can help you determine which kitchen hood is best for your restaurant. 

What Is the Cost of Installation for a Restaurant Kitchen Hood?

The average cost of installing a new commercial kitchen hood could cost $950 to $1,200 per linear foot. This means a 10-foot hood could run about $10,000 to install. Other cost factors to consider include:

• City building permits that may be required for installation.
• Structural reinforcements to help your floor or wall support the weight of your new hood.
• Higher-end materials, including copper or stainless steel.
• An installation location that requires a relatively large number of ducts.

Please keep in mind that these prices are only estimates, and your costs could be higher or lower depending on your project’s unique circumstances.

What Is a Commercial Kitchen Hood?

Commercial kitchen hoods are similar in function to the ventilation hood found in your home. Their purpose is to filter grease, odors, and other airborne particles that are a by-product of cooking on a range.

Since they work longer and harder than household ventilation systems, commercial kitchen hoods and their related exhaust components are manufactured with heavier and more durable materials. This means they are usually more expensive to manufacture.

Therefore, you can expect a kitchen hood restaurant installation to cost more than its household-based counterpart.

What Types of Kitchen Hoods Are Available?

The cost of installing a commercial kitchen hood will depend on the type of equipment your restaurant has and on your local health regulations. 

Commercial hoods pull steam, heat, and greasy smoke from your workspace, which provides fire protection, improves air quality, and reduces ambient temperatures.

You can install two essential kinds of restaurant kitchen hoods: type I hoods and type II hoods (or called type 1 or type 2 hoods).

Type I Hoods (Grease Hoods)

Type I hoods, or grease hoods, have baffle filters that trap grease, smoke, and oil from the air and limit the amount that reaches your exhaust system’s ductwork. 

Grease hoods are primarily used above deep fryers, grills, cooktops, and ranges, as well as cooking appliances that will likely create grease-filled vapors.

Type II Hoods (Condensate Hoods)

Type II hoods, also called condensate hoods, diminish steam, odors, heat, vapors, and moisture typically found in restaurant kitchens. Type II hoods should not be installed where grease-laden food is prepared.

Condensate hoods are usually installed above commercial dishwashers, and if your local code permits, over toasters, hot dog cookers, pasta cookers, steam tables, rice cookers, and light-duty ovens.

How Does a Kitchen Hood’s Exhaust System Affect Its Price?

The issue of exhaust ventilation and how it’s handled are vital points to consider when installing a  commercial hood. Depending on the exhaust ventilation system you settle on, installation outlay will be less for a ductless system and more for a vented exhaust-style system with ductwork. 

Ductless Exhaust Systems

Type II hoods are easier to install because you can use them without ductwork or vents. For this reason, they’re often less expensive than a Type I hood with an exhaust system; however, local codes may significantly reduce their usability.

Additionally, ductless exhaust systems are not for everyone. They filter irritants from the air, then push the clean air back through the kitchen. 

Finally, you should not use a system like this in a kitchen that creates an abundance of grease. You could wind up scrubbing a ductless exhaust system every hour to ensure it was clean enough to function correctly.

Vented Exhaust Removal Systems

Restaurants that cook food with an abundance of grease will likely require a type I hood with a vented exhaust system. Vented exhaust systems work by redirecting grease, smoke, and moisture from the kitchen and channeling it through ductwork and outside your restaurant.  

The installation price for a vented exhaust system varies and will depend on your kitchen’s size and needs. Ambient Edge will work to find a well-priced exhaust system that suits your needs and budget best.

How to Know Which Kitchen Hood Is Right for You

You may want to avoid having a kitchen hood installed until you’ve thoroughly researched the product you’re buying. The last thing you want to do is purchase a range hood designed for steam and odors, and then discover your kitchen surfaces coated in grease. 

Your chosen hood should foster healthy airflow while removing steam, odors, and grease from your restaurant’s atmosphere.

Our Ambient Edge professionals are here to answer your questions so you avoid purchasing the wrong kitchen hood. Plus, we’ll install it for you so you can continue working with little or no interruption.

Looking to Install a Restaurant Kitchen Hood? Ambient Edge Has You Covered!

At Ambient Edge, we have over two decades of experience installing every restaurant kitchen hood make, model, and exhaust system you can think of. When you call us to request a price quote, we will take measurements of your business and ask you some basic questions to get an idea of which system would work best for you.

To schedule your consultation today, give us a call or message us via our online contact form. When it comes to commercial food-service equipment, we do it all, from repairs to installations. We will help you design a kitchen space so comfortable, your employees will consider it a second home!