Commercial kitchens that operate at a large scale often require multiple adjacent exhaust hood sections to cover their longer equipment batteries. Each hood section is just that, a hood—meaning a distinct exhaust plenum and, for most manufacturers, four distinct walls. This results in a mostly vertical barrier between each hood section that can decrease the effectiveness of grease capture, restrict staff movement, cause grease buildup, and interfere with a sleek kitchen look.

Accurex’s wall canopy exhaust hoods remove this obstacle with a UL-approved continuous capture design that joins multiple hood sections without a wall in between. This enables:

• A better-functioning hood capture tank, allowing hoods to more effectively “work” together, leading to more efficient exhaust airflow.
• More productive and comfortable staff members, who can work without a wall in their way and have one less surface to wipe down.
• The removal of “problem spots” above appliances, areas where smoke or steam can escape, typically caused by the presence of shared walls with adjacent hoods.

Continuous capture is available on all wall canopy exhaust hoods, including the Auto Scrubber™ complete hood and filter wash system.

Smart Design Saves Costs

Exhaust-only hoods are the most cost-effective option for large capture areas. These hoods have a 3-foot airspace that is sloped for optimized performance. They also feature a Performance-Enhancing Lip (PEL) along the front edge of the hood canopy, which redirects airflow back into the hood so it does not escape the capture tank. The PEL improves capture and containment of heat, grease, and smoke, allowing exhaust and supply airflow rates to be reduced. This saves energy costs and operating dollars as well as contributing to quieter kitchen operation, especially when paired with a demand-controlled kitchen ventilation system (DCKV).

Maintenance Made Easy

Auto Scrubber hoods come with the design features above and add another important component: built-in self-cleaning technology. The system cleans the inside of the exhaust plenum and both sides of the filters through a preprogrammed wash cycle. This significantly reduces the labor cost of having staff manually clean the filters and hood. Having a kitchen hood system that maintains its own grease buildup also helps with equipment maintenance costs and lifespan, as well as fire safety.

Capture Grease at the Source

Along with cleaning grease from the hood, ductwork, and fan, a savvy kitchen operator makes sure they have the right hood filters to stop grease as it enters the system. Wall canopy exhaust hoods have these filter technologies as options:

• The Grease-X-Tractor is a stainless steel centrifugal filter that removes 69% of grease particles eight microns or larger and is designed for medium grease applications.
• The Grease Grabber dual-stage filtration system is ideal for heavy grease applications. It removes 100% of grease particles eight microns or larger by using the Grease X-Tractor filter and adding a packed bead bed filter, which uses a dense bed of small beads to capture additional grease particles and makes an ideal pair with an Auto Scrubber hood.
• Either system lowers maintenance costs and prolongs equipment life compared to baffle filters by preventing grease from building up in the exhaust fan and on the roof.

Unobstructed and Unbeatable

When you put it all together, kitchen ventilation systems serving high-volume kitchens with large equipment batteries should ensure captured smoke, steam, and grease particles stay within the capture tank. This can be accomplished with features like the PEL that turn air back into the hood. Continuous capture on hood systems allows these systems to scale up to match the demanding cooking load. And to go beyond the standard, a convenient self-cleaning technology such as the Auto Scrubber and an elite filtration system to trap airborne grease further reduce maintenance and keep the system running smoothly.

Questions? Reach out to an Accurex expert to discuss simplifying your commercial kitchen operation with engineered solutions and dedicated support.