Range Hood Care: Keep Your Kitchen Ventilation Working Right

When you cook, your range hood, a kitchen exhaust system designed to pull smoke, steam, and grease out of your cooking area. Also known as extractor fan, it’s not just there to make your kitchen smell better—it protects your walls, ceilings, and even your health by removing harmful particles and moisture. Most people forget about it until grease starts dripping or the fan sounds like a jet engine. But a well-maintained range hood lasts longer, works better, and saves you money on repairs—or worse, a full replacement.

Range hood care isn’t complicated, but it’s often ignored. Grease builds up fast, especially if you fry or sauté often. That gunk doesn’t just smell bad—it clogs the filters, strains the motor, and can even become a fire hazard. Cleaning the metal mesh filters every month takes five minutes. Just soak them in hot, soapy water with baking soda, scrub with a brush, and rinse. If you’ve got charcoal filters (common in ductless hoods), they need replacing every 3 to 6 months. No, you can’t wash them and reuse them. They’re single-use. Skip this, and your kitchen starts tasting like last week’s fried chicken.

Then there’s the extractor fan, the motor and blower that actually moves air out of your home. If it’s not pulling air properly, check the ductwork. Many homes have long, kinked, or crushed ducts that choke airflow. A clean, straight duct makes the fan work half as hard. And don’t forget the exterior vent cap—birds, leaves, and even wasps love to nest there. A quick check every few months stops blockages before they turn into big problems.

Some range hoods have lights and touch controls. Those can get sticky with grease too. Wipe them down weekly with a damp cloth and a drop of dish soap. Don’t use abrasive cleaners—they scratch the surface and make it harder to clean next time. If your hood is noisy, it’s not just old age. It’s probably a dirty fan blade or a loose mount. Tightening screws or cleaning the blades often fixes it without calling a pro.

People think range hoods are low-maintenance. They’re not. They’re like your car’s air filter—you don’t notice them until something breaks. And when they do, fixing a clogged duct or replacing a burnt-out motor costs way more than a little regular cleaning. This page pulls together real fixes from people who’ve been there: how to clean grease traps without scrubbing for hours, what to do when the fan won’t turn on, and why ductless hoods aren’t always the answer.

You’ll find guides on replacing filters, diagnosing weak suction, and even when to upgrade. No fluff. Just what works. Whether you’ve got a basic hood over your stove or a high-end model with smart sensors, the same rules apply: clean often, check the airflow, and don’t wait for smoke to get worse before you act.