What you are talking about is staggered height cabinets. Its a matter of taste: some people like it, some people don't. In some kitchens, I think it looks fine. As for a single cabinet being higher over the range hood, I tend to think it looks like the cabinet was moved to make the range hood fit, because I've seen people do that when they get an OTR microwave: it hangs down too low because its bigger than the old hood, so they pop the cabinet up to compensate.. However if it is part of an overall design of staggered cabinets, it can look nice, and look intentional.

houses14, my Imperial range hood is not an insert, rather an under cabinet ss hood. However, the materials used, and the quality of construction, the fan motors, are the same with minor variances to allow for space restrictions within the smaller size of my hood. Construction wise, it is all that I had hoped for, was easy to install, and has functioned beautifully. Packaging and shipping were excellent. The ss is marine grade. This means that the amount of chromium in the ss will prevent rust from forming in the interior of the hood over time. The electrician informed me that their fan motors and switches appeared to be top quality. The warranty for my hood is 7 years, which is almost unheard of in the industry. Their specifications and installation instructions are right on to allow for optimal operation. For example, my duct is 8" from hood to roof jack and had to have a certain rise in height from the hood before the first angle in the duct work. Baffles remove and reinstall easily for cleaning. It was a joy to call Imperial direct with technical questions at their manufacturing headquarters in California. Someone was always immediately available to answer my questions regarding their vent hoods or recommended installation. My installer was promptly referred to their engineer for technical assistance as I requested that the wiring that would automatically turn on my hood once a certain temperature below the hood was reached be disconnected as I did not want that feature. To me, having that level of service available when answers are needed means a great deal. I found that the folks at headquarters were always honest even if it wasn't the answer I wanted and that they knew their stuff. Their light and fan switches are continuously variable which is rare on vent hoods. This means that they both function like a rheostat with a continuous increase, or decrease, rather than clicking up or down discreet notches, such as level 1 to 4. Also, I liked having the option of installing the switches wherever I wanted remotely, rather than being mounted to the underside of the hood. The hood easily handles removal of odors, steam or grease beneath it's surface. I've found that if the hood is allowed to run for about 10 minutes prior to cooking that it can be operated at a lower level and do a good job. The hood on low is fairly quiet but is noisier than I had anticipated at higher levels with having dual fans and baffles. Also, highest cfm level is 1000 which is a factor. However, I used a different size led bulb than Imperial recommended. I now have a gap around the bulb that needs to be filled with a rubber gasket. Also, the temporary roof jack is too large, and the correct one is waiting to be installed so the jury is still out on the noise issue. Noise level was quite an issue for me, but even if it remains unchanged, I would still buy the same hood given how pleased I am with the overall operation and that I can easily live with the noise that I now have. I'll have to look up the name of the online vendor I used and will add that information tonight.

Mechanical Q: What makeup air requirements are associated with vented kitchen range hoods? (IRC M1503.4, M1501.2, G2447.6)  Three code provisions can trigger the needful makeup air in this situation.The bottom line is that makeup air is always required for high-volume hoods (> 400 cfm) and may be required for lower volume hoods when natural-draft appliances are used.  M1503.4 requires makeup air for kitchen hoods which exhaust more than 400 cfm. The makeup airflow rate must equal the exhaust flow rate and an intake damper on the makeup air duct must be interlocked with the control for the fan.  M1501.2requires that“ducted exhaust systems”(such as kitchen hoods,bath fans, clothes dryers) not induce negative pressure in excess of negative 3 Pascals at the location of a natural- draft combustion appliance. This provision applies regardless of the rated airflow of the exhaust system.  G2447.6 reinforces M1501.2, more explicitly for vented kitchen hoods. This provision is independent of the rated airflow through the hood.  A pressure test is required to demonstrate that the depressurization level is within the 3Pascal limit. If the depressurization limit is exceeded, makeup air is one potential solution.  There is no requirement to temper makeup air.

"Can we attach flexible piping to the 6" duct" DANGER. You cannot install flexible pipe for a cooktop exhaust. Flexible duct is prohibited by Building Code. It is a fire hazard. Here is why: the duct must be smooth so that grease particles do not get trapped and cause a fire. If you have grease particles in the crannies of flexible duct above your hood, and your cooking has even the tiniest flare-up, that grease will catch, the fire will whoosh up the duct assisted by the pull of the air flow, and then spread across your walls, and ultimately your house. You may be thinking "this isn't likely for us". Except that according to the Insurance Information Institute, a home fire occurs every 87 seconds in the U.S., and 50% of all home fires are caused by cooking fires. So just use rigid metal duct, and an elbow if you need to turn it in a different direction. "Will it affect the venting power?" What will affect the venting power is the 6" duct size you specified. The duct needs to be a 8" or 10" diameter for good air flow to pull up the smoke and grease. People get by on a 6" duct size because their homes already have the 6" duct behind walls so they are stuck with it. But if you are installing new duct - which it sounds like you are - you have the opportunity to install 8" or 10" duct. It does not make much sense to spend money on a new hood, but curtail its air flow from the getgo with a 6" duct. "induction doesn't cause as much smoke." Not true. The smoke and grease is a function of what you are cooking, not the energy source. If you are cooking bacon, frying a hamburger, or stir frying, the smoke and grease are the same whether using induction or a gas cooktop. If your family is vegetarian, or you never use the cooktop for frying , then it makes sense to say your cooking does not cause as much smoke, but it's not because of an induction cooktop. I think it's best to budget for smoke and grease, and if you don't often generate it, you can turn the hood fan to a lower speed, but on the occasion you are cooking a smokey item, you have enough ventilation not to set off the smoke alarm. Not what you asked, but essential measurements: - width of the hood is ideally 6" wider than the cooktop, so your hood should be 42" wide. - depth of the hood front-to-back should be 24" in order to cover the front burners. This is where a lot of cabinet hood surrounds fall short. You can get away with a 22" depth, but not less, or you would have spent all the money and effort for a hood that does not even cover your front burners. - Distance from cooktop to bottom of hood shoud be between 30"-36". Shorter than that and you will have a cramped feeling when cooking. Higher than that and you are giving the smoke and grease too much opportunity to escape.