Product review (4 stars): Broan QS230SS Allure II 30-Inch Under-Cabinet Range Hood, Stainless Steel
I purchased this from Amazon and was delivered on time without any problem. It took me about 2 hours to install with my wife's help. I could not remove my range so installing is a little bit awkward as I have to lean to the range trying to push the hood up and it's heavy. I concur with other review that there is damper for the 7" round duct, but only for 3 1/4" x 10" duct. But since I only have ductless option, so the damper is extra.
Compare to my old range hood, this is very quiet. The old one was so noisy that my wife didn't turn it on because we can not communicate without yelling at each other. With the new Broan, noise for level 1 is hardly noticeable. The lights are beautiful. Frankly, I should have replaced it few years ago.
The fan is on the left hand side. When I place a piece of 8 x 11 inch paper, it is only sucked up on the left area where the fan is located. I use duct tape to cover places that are intended for ducts. I follow the instruction from 1 - 5 then skip to 15. So far, it works perfectly. I also order charcoal filter from Amazon to filter odor from cooking.
There is one step that applies for ductless installation, that is to remove the blower wheel and insert the retainer ring to steer air directly to the air flow through the non-ducted slots.
Do not use LED lights, the lights always flash even when I turn them off. I read on Amazon review and saw that someone using LED lights. It may works on different model, but not with this model (QS230SS). It works perfectly with Halogen lights.
Cons:
- There is only one blower which is on the left hand side, so the it draws air better on that side.
- The instruction shows to remove Teflon-coated bottom cover, but it never mentions to put it back on.
- The edges are very sharp and easy to cut to my fingers.
- Electrical Cable Clamp is not provided, cost me a trip to Lowes.
- The filters do not cover 100%.
- My old power cable is located on the left but this range hood has the knock-out on the right. Lucky, I found the way to run the cable to the right.
- Smoke from front stoves will not likely be sucked through the filters.
- It would be nice if they include a piece of carton paper to mark for screw locations as I didn't want to cut its box because I may have to return it. First, I wanted to fit it then drilled the screws in, but it didn't work for the left side which was occupied by the blower. Then I measured the left side, drill the screws, put the range hood in place with two screws on the left then work on the right. it became much easier that way. After the done tightening screws on the right hand side, I went back to tighten up the screws on the left hand side with long screwdriver.
So far, it meets our expectation. Now, my wife doesn't have to turn off the range hood each time she answers a phone call. Level 1 is quiet, but it is not very effective. Level 2 is practical, and the noise is still so good compared to our previous one. The installation was relatively easy and two hour was well spent. We should have done it a long time ago.