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Cleaning the Kitchen Exhaust Hood: What You Need to Know

Cleaning the kitchen exhaust hood is what everyone needs to have a clean kitchen. We tend to clean and scrub every corner of our kitchen, but what about the parts we cannot see? 

The interior of your kitchen hood is one that often goes neglected. This negligence can lead to kitchen hazards as the oil and grease are flammable, leading to a house fire. 

Why Do You Need to Clean Your Kitchen hood? 

A long kitchen exhaust hood in the center of a middle-sized kitchen with wooden cabinets across the wall.

That is the first question that may arise in your mind when thinking of Cleaning the kitchen exhaust hood. The primary purpose is to avoid any hazards and make your kitchen hood last longer. I have made a heavy investment. 

The primary function of the kitchen hood is to keep the air clean from any combustion fumes, smoke, and heat. So, I do not feel the need to clean it as such. 

But, let me tell you, your kitchen hood needs as much maintenance as any other appliance in your house. 

Buying any appliance is one thing, but you will not be doing its maintenance as required. It will all be the same no matter how much you have invested. 

If your kitchen hood is not cleaned correctly, even the highest quality will not last long.

Best Ways for Cleaning Your Kitchen Hood

A worker is cleaning the kitchen exhaust hood in a kitchen from the inside.

You are sitting on a winning lottery ticket. We will be explaining the ways you can clean your kitchen hood. Of course, you can get a professional team for this task. 

But giving 400$-450$ for this task may seem a bit pricey to some. Some feel the need to do it on their schedule. And that is precisely why we are here. 

The two methods traditionally used for kitchen hood cleaning are as below. However, if your kitchen hood is made of stainless steel, you can learn how to clean stainless steel appliances here.

1- Baking Soda and Degreasing Detergent 

A white bowl of baking soda used in cleaning the kitchen exhaust hood.

Conventionally, this is the most often used method for cleaning grease and removing tough stains that usually come with hectic cooking routines. 

Things you might need

  1. Baking soda 
  2. Degreasing liquid soap 
  3. Soft bristle brush 
  4. Damp cloth

Steps to follow

. Disassembly

You need to disassemble all the parts of your kitchen hood. This will help you clean the parts effectively and even the difficult-to-reach spots.

. Preparing the solution

Add ¼ tablespoon and a reasonable amount of degreasing liquid soap in some warm water. You can do it in a bucket or even sink, whatever suits you best. 

. Soaking the parts

Now that you have prepared your solution, it’s time to soak the parts of your kitchen hood such as the oily kitchen exhaust fan in the baking soda solution. 

Let them sit in this solution for 15- 20 minutes, depending on the grease and stains stuck on the filters and fans. 

. Brushing off the grease
A soft cleaning brush used for cleaning a dirty and greasy kitchen exhaust hood.

The baking soda and degreasing soap soften the grease, dirt, and grim. Now, you can easily clean the parts with the least effort. 

Because we want ease at the end of the day, which is what baking soda will do. It will make your job much easier. 

With a soft bristle brush, clean the filters and ducts. The brush will help you reach the areas where you fail to clean.

Do keep in mind not to scrub so hard that it damages the integrity of the parts. 

. Washing with water

All the dirt and unwanted grease are scrubbed and washed to remove any leftover stains. 

. Drying

You might think you are done with scrubbing and washing, and your job is done. But, let me tell you, if you skip this step and assemble your kitchen hood as it is, you might regret it later. 

Remember to dry all the parts to rule out any water stains and rust or corrosion signs. 

Benefits 

  1. This method effectively removes dirt and grease.
  2. It can help combat any foul or unpleasant odor. 
  3. All the ingredients are cheap and available at home. 

Things You Need to Consider 

It might be possible that you are not aware that baking soda is a potent agent. If not used with caution, it will damage more than any good. 

Remember to clean the parts after the baking soda bath, as it might leave a white film and might keep damaging the surface of your kitchen hood.

2- Pressure Washing 

A child using the pressure washer to clean a chair outside the house.

The second method for cleaning the kitchen hood is pressure washing. It uses high-pressure water for cleaning any mold, dirt, and mud. 

The forceful water pressure emits any grease and residue. 

Benefits

Pressure washing your kitchen hood will make it easier to reach inaccessible areas.

Shortcomings 

It might help in combination with baking soda as that helps alleviate the grease, and then the pressure wash will remove the stuck oil. 

The pressure wash itself is not so good with adhering layers of oil and grease.

The exterior of Your Kitchen hood 

A kitchen interior with a wooden kitchen exhaust in the middle and cabinets on the sides.

This is often cleaned as it is in front of the eye. 

  1. Spray the detergent and baking soda solution.
  2. Let the solution rest for 10 mins. 
  3. Clean with a soft cleaning cloth keeping in account whether the surface of your kitchen hood is stainless steel or painted metal. 

How Often Do You Have to Clean the Kitchen Exhaust Hood?

There is no hard and fast rule for this. Depending on its use, it would be best to clean your kitchen hood. 

If you are using your kitchen for cooking big meals or if it is a professional kitchen, then it needs to be cleaned more often than in a kitchen where meals are cooked occasionally. 

Monthly Cleaning of Kitchen Exhaust Hood

Those kitchens have heavy cooking, such as restaurants or catering companies. 

Quarterly Cleaning of Kitchen Exhaust Hood

Those kitchens working 24 hrs need to clean their kitchen hoods every three months to work properly. 

Annually Cleaning of Kitchen Exhaust Hood

If you cook simple meals and that too not so often, you can clean your kitchen hood after a year or so. 

When to Know It’s Time to Clean?

You might be wondering how you would know that it’s time to clean your kitchen hood. No need to worry. We have got it covered for you. 

You need to look out for a few things when working in your kitchen.

  1. Black smoke from a room filter usually means that your filter is clogged with grease.
  2. The motor is loud, or making any unusual sounds indicates that it’s going through a lot of work to filter the air. 
  3. Unpleasant odors are also a sign that it’s time to clean your kitchen hood. 

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Last Words

Your kitchen hood is something that is often overlooked but needs equal attention. By cleaning the Kitchen exhaust hood, you will make your kitchen cooking pleasant and hazard-free and save you some money because, in time, maintenance will increase its life.

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Kitchen

Kitchen Tools and Equipment that You Must Have

With new and upcoming different types of kitchen appliances, tools, and types of equipment being introduced into the market on a daily basis. It is easy to become overwhelmed and confused about what essentials you should have in your home kitchen. Whether you have prior cooking experience or are just starting out, we have compiled a list of kitchen tools and equipment that you must have.

You installed your kitchen cabinet and make sure it looks good. The next step is coming… First and foremost, gather your basic kitchen utensils. It is critical that you should stock your kitchen with all of the cutlery you and your family require to cook and enjoy meals at home. Here is our list of essential kitchen utensils:

1. Knives Are One of The First Kitchen Tools and Equipment Everyone Should Have

Food preparation can be a chore without the right chef’s knife. So, if you are in a pinch, opt for the inexpensive 8-inch Misen Chef’s Knife. It is a favorite of both the Test Kitchen manager, Breana Lai Killeen, and food editor, Carolyn Malcoun, who rave about how well it handles and how affordable it is. A good chef’s knife cannot be found for less.

Those butcher blocks full of knives may look nice on your counter, but you really only need three: a serrated knife, an 8- to 10-inch-long chef’s knife, and a paring knife. Purchase the best knives you can afford; they will last for many years.

2. Sharpener for Knives

Once you have found the right knife, you must keep it sharp. However, you do not need to hire a sharpening service or spend a lot of cash on a fancy electric gadget.

3. Cutting Board

 A good quality cutting board is essential when preparing vegetables and ingredients for cooking. To chop your ingredients, we recommend using a wooden board.

4. Grater

When a recipe calls for less chopping and more grating, use a grater. A grater is an absolute must-have in any kitchen, whether for freshly grated parmesan, garlic, or onions.

5. Mixing Bowls Are One of The Most Important Kitchen Tools and Equipment Everyone Should Have

What is the point of having the tools to chop and cut your ingredients if you cannot mix them? Prepare your kitchen with all of the mixing bowls you will need for various recipes.

6. Pans and Pots

After you have combined your ingredients, you will need plenty of pots and pans to cook them in. Make sure you have a variety of pans and skillets for roasting or sauteing vegetables, as well as pots for making delicious pasta dishes.

7. Towels and Potholders

Every kitchen should have towels and potholders to make cooking and serving easier. Not to mention that potholders can be used as cute kitchen décor.

8. Colander

When preparing a pasta dish, make sure you have a colander at the ready. Nothing is worse than finishing your pasta only to discover that your kitchen lacks a colander to drain the pasta water.

When it comes to dinner parties or family meals, presentation is often the icing on the cake of what will undoubtedly be a delicious meal. That is why, when serving food to family or guests, a serving platter is essential. A salad dish, a pasta dish, and a large platter for any meat or fish dishes are ideal.

9. Blender is One of The Main Kitchen Tools and Equipment Everyone Should Have

This kitchen tool is often overlooked. But you would be surprised how important it is. Include a blender on your kitchen tools and equipment list for everything from morning smoothies to homemade sauces to hearty soups.

10. Tupperware

Make sure you have the right post-cooking tools to make clean-up and food storage easier. Tupperware comes in a variety of sizes, from small containers for fresh fruit or leftover sauce to large ones for meat, fish, and pasta. Remember that Tupperware is essential for an organized, clutter-free kitchen.

11. Saran Wrap, Aluminium Foil

Last but not least, do not forget to include aluminum foil and saran wrap on your list of cooking tools and equipment. These ingredients will help your food retain its delicious flavor, allowing you to enjoy homemade meals throughout the week.

12. Kettle (Electric)

An electric kettle is a useful kitchen appliance for quickly heating water.

Most electric kettles on the market today have an impressive feature that turns off the heating as soon as the water reaches boiling temperature. It not only saves electricity and energy, but it also saves the user from having to monitor the temperature of the water and turn off the kettle. This is also a safety check because you do not have to worry about leaving your electric kettle on while you are busy with other cooking errands. You can also use it to boil eggs, cook ready-to-eat or instant noodles, make soups, and even sterilize small items.

13. Oven Microwave is One of The Most found Kitchen Tools and Equipment Everyone is Installing in Their Home by Defaults

The microwave oven is a must-have in the kitchen because of its versatility and the variety of meals it can produce from such a small box space. Of course, the main purpose of a microwave oven is still to heat food. And it is efficient in doing so because the expected taste is not reduced even after use, and the expected texture is also achieved with the right temperature and timing.

A microwave oven is an excellent choice for quickly reheating leftovers or serving fresh popcorn for movie night. But it can also be used for baking, grilling, boiling, steaming, and even roasting.

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Last Words

There you have it. Your kitchen essentials list, equipment to keep on hand at all times, and tools to help you store and organize your leftover meals.

If you are thinking of buying kitchen countertops, find out the main used types first to make the process easy for you.

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Kitchen

What are Floating Kitchen Cabinets? Complete guide to Floating Cabinets!

Now the trend of floating kitchen cabinets increases every day? You may notice that the old kitchen had shelves and did not introduce the cabinets. The direction of installing floating cabinets is new.

Everyone wants to know what floating kitchen cabinets are and how they provide more benefits than traditional choices. 

Therefore here we came with the complete guide about floating cabinets. 

Floating Kitchen Cabinets

The floating kitchen cabinets are more stylish and break from monotony to regular ones. Traditionally the cabins are below the shelves. 

The floating cabinets hang on the wall with structural security. It gives an aesthetic look to the kitchen according to the color combination of the kitchen interior. When you install the floating cabinets, it provides a more spacious look to the floor.

Moreover, it gives a three-dimensional look to your kitchen along with more space. You can secure a wide variety of items in floating cabinets instead of keeping them on the shelves.

The floating cabinets give a modern way to install various themes and stay consistent.

Why you need to install the Floating Kitchen Cabinets?

There are many reasons to install floating cabinets. Here we will share some of them that also help us understand it. 

Lots of Storage

The floating kitchen cabinet offers a lot of additional storage space. It gives a new and trendy look to the kitchen and provides a tremendous amount of space.

In addition, you can install different types of floating cabinets, including racks for holding glasses or plates, separate box cabins, and many more.

You can store the special crockery in floating cabinets with additional protection. However, floating cabinets are the perfect option if you need storage in your kitchen.

You can also use the floating cabinet doors for decoration purposes. It comes with plenty of choices in color, size, and doors.

Get a put-together look

It is another excellent reason to install floating kitchen cabinets. You can get a cohesive look according to your choice.

If you feel that your kitchen is messy, install the floating cabinets with more solid doors. It gives a way to break the traditional look as you can choose the clear glass doors instead of the wood and its similar shades.

Moreover, the cabinet with the increased height, double doors, extend more towards the ceiling, stacked with the modeling details, and some more are incredible choices to give a solid look.

All these choices depend on your kitchen interior. Besides these, it is a way to get a close look at more storage and interior options in your kitchen.

white floating kitchen cabinets with steel stools in front of the brown countertop

Hide the clutter

The floating kitchen cabinets are a key to hide the clutter. We all have a lot of things in the kitchen that make an incredible mess if not stored properly. Some of these things are essential, and others are just clutter. But still, we want to secure them for later use. 

So the kitchen floating cabinets give the best solution to get a clean look. When you have the cabinets in your kitchen, you can store and maintain every item in its place. 

Take a moment and think of all the disorganized dishes coffee cups on your kitchen shelf. It is a scary sight, but I also didn’t find time to sort them.

Thus, the kitchen floating cabinets hide all these clutters unless you have the time to organize them. 

Affordable

Do you ever compare the cost of floating cabinets and installing the new shelves or countertop? The price of installing a new countertop depending upon the material is way more than the floating cabinets. The average cost for the kitchen floating cabinets depends on their sizes and material.

However, the average price is around $6000 for installing the new floating cabinets. Whereas you need to have considerable space for the new shelves for countertops, it is also a bit pricey. 

The kitchen floating cabinets are also expensive, but they give your money the perfect worth. You don’t need to get the additional accessories for maintaining the storage requirement in the kitchen.

Easy to maintain

It is easy to maintain the kitchen with floating cabinets. Once you install it and set all the necessary items, it needs cleaning after months. You can sort them according to your time feasibility.

Moreover, it also requires less time to maintain as you can do it one by one. The best way to keep them clean is by using mild soap and warm water once every six months. 

white floating kitchen cabinet with black handles

Pros of floating kitchen cabinets

Here are some essential benefits or pros to having floating kitchen cabinets in your kitchen. 

  • Perfect for enhancing the look of your kitchen interior
  • Creates the ideal focal points when you enter the space
  • Quickly change the decor according to season demands
  • Complement the backsplash and help to stand out nicely
  • Provide incredible storage space
  • Help to organize the kitchen in better ways
  • Create the perfect look according to trend
  • Make the kitchen more aesthetic

Cons of floating kitchen cabinets

Every great thing also has some drawbacks. Similarly, floating kitchen cabinets have some cons that you should know. 

  • Require the professional labor to install it
  • Needs the significant wall space
  • Depend on the metal frame or other security support. 
grey floating kitchen cabinets with green neon light below

Final words

There are many reasons to install floating kitchen cabinets. You also understand floating kitchen cabinets through this guide if you are new to it.

The floating cabinets hang with the kitchen wall and give additional space to store and maintain the essential items.

You can double your kitchen space by utilizing the walls and organizing your kitchen in better ways. The kitchen is the central part of every place like house and office so it should be in proper condition. 

We hope this guide helps you answer your doubts in the best ways.

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