Tips To Update Your Kitchen

Porcelanosa

As the hub of the home, the kitchen is the room with all the action. It’s not just the place to prepare and cook food — it’s also used for entertaining guests, storing gadgets, and eating family meals. Your modern design needs to accommodate all these activities, which is why kitchen remodels are more popular than ever. If you don’t want to do a total overhaul of your kitchen, these steps can help you update your kitchen within your means. Continue reading →

Choosing The Right Lighting

Wamtermark lights

Whether you’re talking about bathroom or kitchen lighting, make sure you choose the right fixtures for the job and that they are functional and create the look you really love.  Lighting can be traditional, modern, or a mixture of both depending on your needs and can be accomplished in a variety of ways, including floor lamps, ceiling lights, wall lights, and pendant lights, to name a few.  The lighting in both rooms can make smaller rooms look and seem bigger and larger rooms appear more intimate.  Use lights to illuminate small spaces and dimmers to help create the perfect mood.  Your choice of lights will allow you to see better and complete the task you are working on in each room. Continue reading →

Kitchen Lighting Tips: How to Install a Range Hood

traditional-kitchen

Range hoods removes smoke, grease and heat from the kitchen. This kitchen lighting equipment, if installed properly will draw out odors and cooking grease away and will leave your kitchen clean and fresh.

Before installation, you will need:

Tools: Screwdriver, Hammer, Nail set, Reciprocating saw, Electric drill, Wire cutters, Caulking gun, Wire stripper, Cable ripper

Materials: Range Hood, Caulk, Galvanized wood screws, Wall cap, Metal duct, Cable connector, Wire caps, NM cable

Safety First!

Every product installation that involves electricity must make sure to follow a few safety precautions:

  1. Wear goggles and dust mask.

  2. Turn off power and make sure to test the wires to ensure the power is off.

  3. Have your work checked by an inspector.

  4. Consult a licensed electrician to avoid overloading the circuit.

Let’s Get Started!

The following instructions are applicable for under cabinet range hoods.

  1. range hood install1Remove the old hood, locate the electrical connection under a cover near the light fixture and disconnect the wiring by removing the wire nuts and separating the connections. Mark the holes for the duct and the cable.

  2. Check and make sure the new hood will cover at least the entire cooking or 24 inches to 30 inches above the surface of the range.

  3. Check the direction of the venting, the vent should run either up through the cabinet or back through the wall. Open the proper venting hole in the hood and knockout the wiring.

  4. Wire the hood. Thread the wiring from the wall through the cable clamp and the small hole in the back of the hood. Using wire nuts, connect the two black wires to the black wires coming from the wall and the two white wires to the white wires coming from the wall. Tuck the wires and replace the cover. range hood install2

  5. Tighten the screws.

  6. Turn on the power to the circuit and test the fan and light. Make sure the air is flowing on the outside vent.

When purchasing a range hood, it is also useful to know the “cfm” rating which indicates the number of cubic feet of air it pulls per minute. It is recommended to choose a fan with a cfm rating that is double the square foot of your kitchen.