This range hood was installed in my kitchen right before Christmas (December 23, houseful of guests!) I switched from a range with a downdraft to one without and needed a hood, but didn't want to obstruct the open view I had into our dining area. My ceiling was a little shorter than 8' and this was the only hood I could find that could be mounted in such a way that it didn't visually obstruct our opening. I am thrilled! Every time I pass through my kitchen I marvel at how inconspicuous and yet attractive it is --- chalk that up to the glass. It functions well --- much better than my former downdraft. Everything arrived very well packed. It seems solidly made, and was less than half the cost of anything else I looked at --- and those would have created an obstructed view.
Visually it look fine. Had to purchase the extension pieces for the high ceiling. Completely NOT impressed with the extension pieces. My biggest complaint is that it came with plastic duct. I am real concerned about the safety of that design. A grease fire being sucked up by the hood could melt the duct and cause an attic fire. I will be looking for a 6" flex metal duct to replace the plastic one.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Response from zlinekitchen.comBy ZLINE Kitchen and Bath, Customer Relations, June 19, 2019
Hello,
We apologize our product was not up to the high standards that we promise to our customers.
We provide our flexible, plastic duct as a courtesy and convenience for our customers. However, we do recommend purchasing something a little more durable to withstand high heat and grease if that is part of your cooking habits.
We are doing our best everyday to improve our products for our customers, so feedback like this helps us make improvements for the future.
This will look great once we get the canines and appliances installed at our project home. The instructions for the chimney mount are a real disappointment - but other than that the product is very well designed.
The product itself seems to be great. I’ve had it installed for a few weeks and all works great. The fan sucks well and is not overly loud.
The instructions were very lacking though. We debated “what they might mean” several times, and had to guess on several things, as the instructions are VERY vague and general. It will tell you to install screws, when you actually need to use the nuts and bolts, and you have to make educated guesses on a couple steps. If you are clever, you’ll figure it out.
We installed it with two people, although I reccommend three people: two to hold it up while one screws it to mounts. Luckily my holder was strong enough to lift it himself.
The range hood I purchased was exactly as advertised. Looks great. The representative who took my order was knowledgeable friendly and well-trained. Overall great product, great experience. Would recommend to all.
It's as quiet as all the competitors and sounds the same as any squirrel cage fan. Nice digital readout. The lights could be brighter, but they'll work. There are no logos printed on the exterior of the fan, I like that. Except for drilling a 6" hole through my exterior wall it was an easy install. It came well packed. I wish the gasket for the vent adapter would have been packed flat, otherwise I give it 5 stars! Nice sleek design.