Exhaust hood weight sensor

A ventilation hood system,

• a hood body defining an interior through which cooking vapors are passable;
• a support system affixed to a fixed body and supportive of an entire weight of the hood body, the support system comprising support legs that each comprise:
• a first load bearing member affixed at a first end thereof to the hood body;
• a second load bearing member affixed at a first end thereof to the fixed body;
• and
• a bracket connecting respective second ends of the first and second load bearing members;
• and
• a weight sensing system operably coupled to the support system to sense and monitor the entire weight of the hood body over time,
• the weight sensing system comprising weight sensors respectively disposed in a bracket of a corresponding support leg and configured to sense a portion of the entire weight of the hood body supported thereby.

A method of monitoring a cleanliness of a hood body of a ventilation hood system, the method comprising:

• installing weight sensors at support legs of the hood body;
• sensing, at each weight sensor, a portion of an entire weight of the hood body which is supported by the corresponding support leg;
• generating data reflective of the entire weight of the hood body over time from results of the sensing;
• interpreting the data to monitor changes in the entire weight of the hood body over time, and
• taking an action toward cleaning the hood body in an event the changes indicate that the entire weight of the hood body exceeds a predefined level.