Product review (3 stars): Love Hate
This is a review of the Kitchen Bath Collection STL75-LED Stainless Steel Vent hood. Wow. Dont know where to begin. I love it / I hate it. OK - first the love. It is beautiful. The control is simple. The blower is squirrel cage type - the best kind. And noise ranges from inaudible on low speed to moderately loud on high. You cant move large volumes of air without making some noise so I have no complaint here. The lights are dazzling. The built-in back draft damper works perfectly and seals completely. The collar for the output side is well designed and well made. The grease filters remove and reinstall surprisingly easily - an unexpected bonus. Installation of the hood was simple. My tenant is thrilled.

Now the hate: it is NOT 18 ga. (.050") material as someone said in a prior review. I measured the sheet metal thickness with a micrometer - .025" which is 24 ga. That is half the thickness of 18 ga. This affects the product in 2 ways: 1) thinner metal reverberates more contributing to the noise level and 2) thinner metal allows internal components that are attached to it to move because of the flexing of the hood. I think that is why my hood arrived with 4 dimples in it, clearly made from something inside banging against the hood. Two dimples correspond to the blower housing and two dimples correspond to corners of the control module. If the hood was made of 22 ga (.031) metal the reduction in flexing would dampen noise and eliminate damage caused by flexing in transit. I would gladly pay $20 more for the extra thickness and the better product that it would be. I worked in sheet metal fabrication for years; I know what I'm talking about. No need to go all the way to 18 ga. The difference in stiffness of 22 ga vs 24 ga is stunning. This would be a 100% better product if made with 22 ga metal.

I would give it 4 stars if it arrived without the dimples. I plan to buy another for another rental unit. I didn't return the first hood due to time constraints and the dimples are in an inconspicuous place. This time I have more time and will return the hood if it arrives damaged.