Building: multi-tenant building, Allen, TX. Equipment: CaptiveAire upblast kitchen exhaust fan, 2,100 CFM on the nameplate, 1 HP, 208 volt three-phase.
What was reported
A kitchen exhaust odor complaint: the smell was reported near the building’s rooftop equipment and attributed to the kitchen exhaust fan. We were asked to look at the fan.
What we measured
We went up with a tape measure.
- Fan curb height: 37 in.
- Discharge height above the roof surface: 43 in.
- Distance from the exhaust fan to the nearest rooftop condensing unit: 184 in., which is about 15 ft 4 in.
The minimum separation we checked it against is 10 ft. The fan clears it by more than five feet.
What that means
The installation was not at fault, and our report says so. That doesn’t make the smell imaginary. Grease exhaust rolls downwind, and rooftop equipment 15 feet away will catch it on some days.
The option we put on the table
A wind band extension, a CaptiveAire accessory that raises the point where the exhaust leaves the roof. It’s an elective upgrade, not a code fix. We don’t stock it, so we asked the fan manufacturer for pricing and left the decision with the customer.
The takeaway
When an odor complaint comes in, get the numbers first. “Meets the clearance” and “still stinks” can both be true, and it’s easier to talk about options once the measurements are on paper.
Related: commercial kitchen ventilation, maintenance agreements. All case studies.