Do you need a kitchen extractor hood?

: We have a Berbel Blockline with the "Umluftfilter permalyt." Since this recirculation filter also requires a power connection and the filter box is relatively narrow and had no space for the double plug originally planned by the kitchen fitter, we had to install a second socket.

... I could have saved myself the controlled residential ventilation with heat recovery as well.

Naysayers claim that it would have been cheaper in any case...

On the subject: exhaust air or not, a high-quality exhaust hood is a must. The noise alone is awful with cheap hoods. Provocatively put: there are no usable exhaust hoods under €2000. For recirculating air, you have to pay another €500 to €1000. Anyone with an open kitchen should plan that directly as a necessary expense. After all, no one builds a modern house and then heats it with patio heaters from the hardware store...

At the latest, when a wood-burning stove comes into play, it gets really complicated with exhaust air, especially if window contact(s) and a differential pressure monitor also have to be installed.

At least the pressure monitor is not absolutely necessary.

We solve this after an on-site appointment with the chimney sweep for our open cooking-dining-living area as follows:

- Central controlled residential ventilation/heat recovery is set to a slight overpressure.
- Recirculation range hood (alternatively: exhaust air + window contact, cost for the contact approx. 50 EUR).
- Wood-burning stove with Dibt certification, so no differential pressure monitor is necessary.

Best regards.

We have a Berbel Blockline with the "Umluftfilter permalyt".

Ah, ok. I was already wondering why it would need two power connections, that would actually be pointless. But since that's an optional accessory, it's easiest for the manufacturer. However, I would have expected something different at this price category. /EDIT: I just looked it up, it would also be available for our Skyline. But the part alone costs around €800 and runs for a regeneration process up to 2 hours at about 100W. You are much cheaper off with an activated carbon pack for €40 every 2-3 years. It only makes sense if you really don't want to take care of it at all.

I just bought the test report on range hoods from Stiftung Warentest for €2.50

- The Berbel - BKH 90 Ergoline for €2000 performed relatively poorly, especially in grease separation
- the Miele - DA 6096 W and the Miele - DA 3466 (for €500) were rated "good" in grease separation, but only in exhaust operation, otherwise satisfactory
- hoods that can operate both in recirculation and exhaust modes were tested; test results were given separately for both types
- the same hoods performed consistently better in exhaust mode than in recirculation mode
- meaning that with every recirculation hood, some grease still escaped upward, sometimes more, sometimes less (none achieved more than 90% separation)
- heat losses, tightness, etc. were completely ignored, only function was tested
- all hoods were louder in recirculation mode than in exhaust mode
- Berbel was unbeaten in odor removal with its carbon filter, very good

- Berbel itself says (seen in a Berbel catalog) that the Berbel hood must be wiped inside after EVERY cooking session, otherwise the filter loses its effect
- other simple stainless steel filters should be washed in the dishwasher every two weeks, otherwise function loss occurs here too

For me personally, grease separation is the most important.
According to the test, recirculation hoods are not as good as I had read in various forum posts about how they should be.
Above all, I am disappointed with Berbel according to Stiftung Warentest’s test.
Before the test, I was leaning toward a Berbel recirculation hood (€2000). After the test, I now tend toward the Miele recirculation hood for €500 plus the Mauerkasten Weibel WMK-Arbeitsplatte-VA for €500.
So, initially about €1000 cheaper + no annual filter replacements for €40.

Some had tried in other forums/forum posts to calculate the heat loss from an exhaust hood.
I can no longer prove it, but I had kept in mind a value of €200 heat loss through cooking per year for myself.
That means recirculation only pays off financially after 5 years. Plus the additional efforts and disadvantages of grease separation and noise.
I do not trust the planned controlled residential ventilation to effectively transport away grease residues.
Also, I do not want the exhaust pipes of the controlled residential ventilation to become clogged with grease.

I also believe the following:
About 1.5 m next to the stove there is a window that we would have to open while cooking.
I believe a draft is created and the cold incoming air is quickly expelled again. Of course, it still heats up, but I would classify it as inferior in temperature compared to normal room air.

I have now been to two kitchen builders twice. First, we spoke with the boss, in the second meeting with the "employee," who has worked in the business longer than the boss.
The boss said: recirculation hoods will never work as well as exhaust hoods and some grease will always escape upward.
The employee says: nowadays the recirculation filters are so good that nothing escapes anymore.

Everyone has their own opinion, but so far I would not fully trust any expert here.
My brother-in-law built Kfw55 with exhaust and sometimes doesn’t even open a window when cooking.
He says he has absolutely no problems, whether the window is open or not.

In many statements on the subject, whether pro exhaust or against exhaust, I find there is also a lot of ideology involved. You can probably only really say it if you have been able to compare both.
And that is exactly what Stiftung Warentest did, hence my change in opinion.
Whether the test in the end was paid for by Miele, I of course do not know either, but I also do not want to chase ghosts forever.

I still have another question:

As I said, grease extraction is particularly important to me. But does our "cooking behavior" produce so much grease that a recirculating hood really isn't suitable for us?

I think vegetables, pasta, and potatoes only produce water.
We fry meat with quite little oil.
Fish is served at most in the form of fish sticks, but rather rarely.
From time to time we fry patties or fried potatoes; to prevent sticking, we use significantly more oil, almost frying (1-3 times a month).

Is this already considered normal behavior, or would the fat content rather be described as "ridiculously low," meaning a recirculating hood would indeed be suitable (in that case not the expensive Berbel, but a cheaper one for 500€).