Type 1 vs Type 2 Hood: Which Does Your Ottawa Cafe or Restaurant Need in 2026?

Which hood you need comes down to what you cook, not what you cook it on. If your equipment throws off grease-laden vapour or smoke, a fryer, flat top, charbroiler, wok or open-flame range, Ontario code requires a Type 1 grease hood with a UL 300 fire suppression system built to NFPA 96, plus matched make-up air. If your equipment only produces heat and steam, like a dishwasher, a small combi oven or an espresso machine, a Type 2 condensate hood covers it, and plenty of Ottawa cafes need no commercial hood at all. Get this wrong and you fail inspection before you sell a single coffee.

This is one of the first questions we settle on a cafe or restaurant fit-out, because the answer shapes your budget, your ceiling space, your rooftop and your electrical load. Here is how it actually works in Ottawa.

What is the difference between a Type 1 and Type 2 hood?

A Type 1 hood is a grease hood. It captures grease-laden vapour, smoke and the heat that comes with high-temperature cooking, pulls the grease out through baffle filters, drains it into a trough, and vents the rest above the roofline. Because it is handling flammable grease, a Type 1 hood is not just a canopy. It is a fire-rated system with welded stainless ductwork and a suppression system tied into it.

A Type 2 hood is a condensate hood. It removes heat, steam and moisture from things like a dishwasher, a pasta cooker or a steam oven. It has no grease filter and no fire suppression, and it cannot be installed over grease-producing equipment. Put a Type 2 hood over a fryer and you have built one of the most dangerous setups in a commercial kitchen, and an inspector will shut it down.

Here is the short version:

Does my Ottawa cafe need a commercial hood?

Often, no. A cafe running espresso, pulling shots, warming pastries and plating cold items usually needs no commercial hood at all, or at most a Type 2 over a steam or dishwashing setup. The espresso machine is not the problem. The moment grease enters the picture, the answer changes.

Add a panini press, a small flat griddle for breakfast sandwiches or a fryer for a lunch menu, and you have crossed into Type 1 territory. That single menu decision can swing your build by tens of thousands of dollars, so it is worth deciding early rather than after the space is designed. The safest move is to lock your equipment list first, then confirm the hood requirement with the City of Ottawa and Ottawa Public Health before you sign anything.

Which hood does a full-service restaurant need?

A Type 1, almost always. Any restaurant cooking on a flat top, fryer, charbroiler, wok or open flame produces grease-laden vapour, and Ontario code treats that as a Type 1 requirement with fire suppression. This is the standard setup we build for Ottawa restaurants, and it is the single biggest mechanical line item in most restaurant fit-outs.

The Type 1 system is more than the hood. It is the canopy, the baffle filters, the welded stainless exhaust duct running to a rooftop exhaust fan, the make-up air unit feeding tempered air back in, and the UL 300 suppression system that ties the whole thing together.

What does Ontario code actually require here?

The Ontario Building Code requires commercial cooking equipment to be served by a ventilation system built to conform to NFPA 96, the standard for ventilation control and fire protection of commercial cooking operations. That is the backbone of the whole thing. On top of that, the Ontario Fire Code requires fire suppression on kitchen exhaust systems handling open flame or grease-laden vapour.

For the suppression system itself, NFPA 96 points to UL 300. A UL 300 system uses a wet chemical agent designed for modern high-temperature cooking oils. It smothers the fire and cools the oil so it cannot reignite, which older dry-chemical systems could not reliably do. A compliant setup includes suppression nozzles in the hood, ducts and over each cooking appliance, automatic gas and electric shut-off when it discharges, and a manual pull station in the kitchen. You also need a Class K portable extinguisher within reach of the fryer, and the suppression system has to be serviced by a licensed fire protection contractor twice a year.

None of this is optional. It is what an Ottawa building permit, a fire inspection and your insurer will all look for.

What is make-up air and why does it matter?

A Type 1 hood pulls a large volume of air out of your kitchen. That air has to come back in from somewhere, and that is the job of a make-up air unit. As a rule of thumb the make-up air replaces most of what the hood exhausts, usually in the range of 80 to 90 percent of the exhaust volume.

Skip it or undersize it and you create negative pressure. Doors get hard to open, exhaust fans stop moving air properly, and combustion appliances can backdraft. In Ottawa there is a second reason it matters. That incoming air has to be heated through our winters, so a proper make-up air unit tempers the air before it enters the kitchen. This is why a Type 1 system is a package and not just a hood hung from the ceiling.

Does electric equipment still need a Type 1 hood?

Yes, if it produces grease. There is a common myth that switching from gas to electric lets you skip the grease hood. Code does not care about your fuel source. It cares about what you are cooking. An electric flat top searing burgers throws off the same grease-laden vapour as a gas one, so it needs a Type 1 hood either way. Where electric equipment can help is with the service upgrade and gas line, not with the hood itself.

How much does a commercial hood cost in Ottawa?

A full Type 1 system installed in Ottawa runs roughly $40,000 to $120,000, current as of 2026. That is a wide range because it depends on the length of your cook line, how far the duct has to travel to the roof, the size of the make-up air unit and whether your rooftop and electrical can take it.

The cost drivers that move you toward the top of that range:

• A long cook line with several appliances needing full-length coverage.
• A long or awkward duct run to the roof, especially in a multi-tenant building.
• A larger make-up air unit with heating for Ottawa winters.
• A rooftop that needs structural or curb work to carry the exhaust fan.

A Type 2 condensate hood is a much smaller cost, since it has no suppression system and simpler ductwork. And if your cafe concept needs no commercial hood at all, that is one of the biggest line items you get to avoid, which is a real advantage of a lighter menu.

If you are weighing a menu that needs a full grease hood against one that does not, that decision belongs at the concept stage, not after the drawings are done.

FAQ

1. Do I need a hood for a coffee shop with just an espresso machine? Usually not. An espresso machine produces steam, not grease, so it does not trigger a Type 1 hood. If you add grease cooking later, that changes. Confirm your specific equipment list with the City and Ottawa Public Health before you build.
2. Can I put a Type 2 hood over my fryer to save money? No. A Type 2 hood has no grease filter and no fire suppression and cannot legally sit over grease-producing equipment. It will fail inspection and it is a serious fire risk.
3. Does a pizza oven need a Type 1 hood? It depends on the oven and what goes in it. A high-heat oven cooking greasy toppings generally needs a Type 1 hood. Some listed electric or conveyor ovens are treated differently. This is exactly the kind of item to confirm before you buy the oven.
4. What is UL 300 and do I have to have it? UL 300 is the fire testing standard for wet chemical suppression systems over commercial cooking equipment. If you have a Type 1 hood over grease appliances, NFPA 96 requires a UL 300 system. It is required, and your insurer will look for it too.
5. How often does the suppression system need servicing? A licensed fire protection contractor should service and certify the UL 300 system twice a year. Your hood and ductwork also need regular cleaning based on your cooking volume under NFPA 96.
6. Can I avoid a hood entirely with ventless equipment? Sometimes, for a very light concept. Some ventless appliances are built for this, but they are limited in what they can do and the City has the final say. For most restaurants with a real cook line, a Type 1 hood is not something you can design around.

Noblestar Construction is a commercial fit-out general contractor in Ottawa. We build restaurant, cafe, retail, wellness, healthcare and office spaces across Ottawa and Ontario, and we coordinate the hood, make-up air and fire suppression as part of the full fit-out so it passes inspection the first time. If you are working out which hood your concept needs, book a fit-out consultation.