Cooker hoods: How we test
We put the hoods through their paces in the lab to find out how effective they were at extracting grease, odours and steam. We also recorded how noisy they were.
Seven hoods failed our steam extraction test
Steamy windows
We boil four pans of water on a hob until humidity levels reach 90% in our test room. We then put the hoods to work and measure how quickly they can reduce the humidity by 30%. Seven of the smaller hoods couldn’t manage this in the eight minutes allowed.
Shake, rattle and roll
We measure the noise made by each hood using a sound level meter. Our panel of experts also listen for any strange noises, rattles or vibrations.
Greased lightening
Creating a greasy atmosphere.
First we weigh the hoods grease filters. We then drip vegetable oil and water into a hot pan to create a greasy atmosphere.
We then turn the hoods on and record how much grease has been caught in their filters by weighing them again after 30 minutes.
Odour eaters
We drip water and the pungent chemical methyl ethyl ketone, which smells like nail polish remover, into a hot pan to make the test chamber smelly and record the odour particles found in the air at four points around the room. We then turn on the hoods for 30 minutes and measure the odour reduction.