CaptiveAire is the dominant commercial kitchen hood manufacturer in the United States — an estimated 40-60% of new hood installations use their systems. If you own a restaurant, hotel, or institutional kitchen in New Jersey, there's a good chance you have a CaptiveAire hood on your roof.
CaptiveAire builds great equipment. But they sell it through manufacturer's reps and authorized dealers — they don't maintain it. Once your hood is installed, service and maintenance falls to third-party companies. And most HVAC companies don't specialize in kitchen ventilation.
What CaptiveAire Hoods Need
Air Balancing (After Installation and Periodically) Every CaptiveAire hood system should be tested and balanced after installation and after any changes to the kitchen — new equipment, hood modifications, or MAU replacement. The hood is designed for a specific CFM at a specific face velocity. If the system isn't balanced to those specs, capture and containment suffer.
CaptiveAire hoods use baffle or Captrate filters. Air volume is measured using a VelGrid (with built-in standoff that sits on the filter) or a rotating vane anemometer held 2 inches from the filter face. Each filter gets multiple velocity readings, then CFM is calculated using the filter's conversion factor.
Exhaust Fan Maintenance CaptiveAire exhaust fans — upblast models are the most common — need regular belt checks, bearing lubrication, and fan wheel cleaning. A dirty fan wheel is the most common reason a CaptiveAire hood underperforms. Grease buildup adds weight, reduces efficiency, and creates vibration that destroys bearings.
Makeup Air Unit Service CaptiveAire MAUs need filter changes every 1-3 months, burner inspection annually, belt and motor checks, and controls verification. The MAU should deliver approximately 80% of the hood's exhaust volume as tempered air. When it doesn't, the kitchen suffers.
Demand Control Ventilation (DCV) Many newer CaptiveAire systems include or can be upgraded with demand control ventilation — sensors that modulate fan speed based on cooking activity. Instead of running the exhaust at full blast all day, the system ramps up during peak cooking and slows down during idle periods. This saves 30-60% of fan energy and reduces HVAC load significantly.
What CaptiveAire Hood Service Costs
Service costs vary depending on your system size and what's needed. Contact us for a quote — we price per hood system, not hourly, so you know the cost before we show up.
Who Services CaptiveAire Hoods in NJ?
Most general HVAC contractors will tell you they can service kitchen hoods. But kitchen ventilation is specialized — the instruments, the measurement methods, the K-factors, and the understanding of how exhaust and supply interact are different from standard commercial HVAC work.
True Commercial Service specializes in CaptiveAire and all major kitchen hood brands. We carry VelGrid instruments, understand the filter conversion factors, and have hands-on experience commissioning CaptiveAire systems from new. Serving Union County, NJ and the NYC metro.
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Looking for service? Visit our Kitchen Ventilation Service page or schedule service today.