Range/Rangetop/Oven Help

12 years ago

We're moving into a new home which needs a new kitchen. We're avid cooks (but not caterers or anything). I love to bake. How can I determine which is best for us: Range or Rangetop/Oven.

We were keen to treat ourselves to an all gas Wolf Range, but have not determined if this is our best bet. Any advice or suggestions as to how we can determine what's best for us would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in Advance!

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Comments (8)

Annie Deighnaugh
12 years ago
I love my induction cooktop. It's the only way to cook AFAIC.

I like my separate ovens as I went with a different brand for each. One is Viking and one is GE trivection.

Full disclosure, I admit I'm prejudiced...I see those giant wolf ranges and always think, here's someone who doesnt cook...they always look more show than practical to me. But that's just me.
rhome410
12 years ago
I have a giant Wolf rangetop ;-)... and we use it a LOT. We have separate Wolf wall dbl oven (which has exceptional baking technology and performance) because it's nice for whomever is baking to keep their traffic pattern and project mess separate from others who may be cooking.

Also, I love having my pots and pans so handy in drawers underneath the rangetop, and NOT having a hot oven in front of my legs. Even if the door wouldn't get hot, the oven gets opened and heats up the cooking area.

Other great things are having the ovens at eye and arm-reach level, and being able to keep an eye on things from across the room... no stooping.

The range is a great look that I liked, and to make up for that, I specially configured the cabinets around the range and painted them a different color, so that it resembles a big range/hearth type of area, and the ovens are on the adjacent wall with my baking storage and counter with mixer next to it.
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Hi JoAnn, I'm about the same height as you, and discovered wall ovens would be terrible for me. However, I need to have two ovens sometimes. Not all the time, but frequently enough to want one. I am going to put two standard size gas ranges in my new home. It's unconventional, but I don't care what anyone else thinks. I had the top end GE Profile gas/convection range in my last house and absolutely loved it. Their ratings are still excellent and I am thrilled they still make it. I can buy two of those for under $5,000. It's much cheaper than the double oven and cooktop scenario, and I'll have 10 burners between the two of them, as well as the two ovens. It is also available with a bottom (but small) second electric oven under the regular oven, and serves as a warming drawyer as well. The extra savings means I can use the cash for something else...like better countertops or custom cabinetry. Measuring things and rehersing how you want to cook is most important, even if it delays things a little. Sandy
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I have a 48" double oven range and the thing I adore the most is the smaller of the two ovens. (Which also has an infra-red broiler, which I love!) I would say that I use the smaller oven maybe five or six times as often as the larger one, even though that one is a convection model. Although smaller in width, it is very deep so I can fit tons of stuff in it. (Some brands/models are different, so you should take some typicl pans and check.) I agree with the poster above who mentions the convenience of having the ovens and the cooktop in the same appliance. I am always harping on the Forum about layouts with ovens and the cooktop separated by huge distances. Someone mentioned in reply to one of my many comments about this that they never moved food from one or the other - I can't imagine how you could cook without doing that for nearly every meal! One other combination you might consider is having a single oven, 30-36" range and a separate single wall oven dedicated to baking (if that's your thing). It could be in a different place in the kitchen as rarely do baked items travel from cooktop-to-oven. Meat, fish and (and some vegs.) being roasted -or broiled - really do benefit from being under the range hood, but rarely is that the case with cakes or pies so the lack of a hood over a separated baking oven wouldn't be a drawback. I would recommend my cooker, except that it is no longer made, so that won't help. If it died (don't expect that, ever) I would never replace it with anything less than a single baking oven paired with a 30/36" Range. The only drawback to a 48" machine is the size. It really dictates the arrangement in a kitchen. HTH L.
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To answer some questions... Yes we will have a microwave. Planning on a drawer microwave I think. All ovens will be under the counter because we have no upper cabinetry planned for the kitchen. So, if we want double ovens, it could be a range and wall oven, or Range top and two ovens. We are just learning about combi-steam ovens. Having never used one, DW is trying to figure out what they do and the benefit. So, yes, we are thinking about one as a second oven instead. Thanks for the helping ideas and thoughts!! Keep 'em coming :)
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williamsem
12 years ago
We just got an induction range and absolutely love it! My husband was reluctant as he wanted to run a gas line, but he's completely in love too. More efficient heating, just as responsive to adjustment, but no open flames and no worries about gas leaks.

I grew up with a wall oven, but we have a range. I think that's more personal preference and what works in your space. I like our electric oven with a hidden element and convection mode, but since I don't bake much I'll stay out of that part.
meganmca
12 years ago
Well, the deciding factor for us was that if you go with a range, the vent hood for the range covers the oven as well, as it were, whereas wall ovens rarely seem to have extra ventilation for themselves. We broil a fair amount. But we have a pretty small kitchen, so there were other factors driving us that direction too!
User
12 years ago
The biggest factor is your kitchen space. I switched from a wall oven to a range to gain counter space.

If you have a good spot for a wall oven, they are a little better for those who love to bake, but for me I needed the counters.

--Janet
anrol
12 years ago
I have an induction cooktop (love it!) and a wall oven. They are both Bosch appliances. The induction is pretty instant heat.(boils water in about 90 seconds, has burners that shut off if you remove a pot after 20 seconds...good safety feature) Some people say they are as instant as gas. I have never had gas but I really did not want to clesn grates after having the smooth tops for years. I must be getting lazy!
boxerpups
12 years ago
I have a bosch and love it.
I agree it depends on the space. If money is not an issue
look at a Blue Star, Bertazzoni or Lacanche
all are fantastic. I hear wonderful things about them.
~boxer
ci_lantro
12 years ago
We were keen to treat ourselves to an all gas Wolf Range...

I bought a Wolf 36'' rangetop (center griddle) and will have separate wall ovens. The reason that I shied away from the range was because of the 36'' oven (because it's so big). In hindsight, I could have gone with the range and a small (24 or 27'') single wall oven. The larger ovens usually take a long time to preheat and seem like a waste when you're baking only a 9 x 13 cake.

As far as the Wolf range-top goes, I love it. Bought it four years ago and just got it installed in February. Mine is an open burner version that Wolf has discontinued. (I specifically wanted open burners.) The only time that I wish for a more powerful burner is when I stir-fry. For all other tasks, the Wolf burners are way more than adequate. I'm anxious to give it a go come canning season. I suspect that I wouldn't be happy with anything other than a commercial wok burner when it comes to stirfrying. Those puppies produce 90-125,000 BTU's, dwarfing anything put out by Wolf, BlueStar, Capital & company's burners.

Went with Wolf because I found a good deal on this one at an appliance warehouse sale and because of Wolf's reputation for stellar customer service. And since Wolf is a Wisconsin company (I live in WI), I knew 'where they lived', so to speak, if I had any problems. As I expected, have had zero problems...not even a hiccup of a prob.

Oh, I love the expanse of rangetop where I can fit my largest cooking vessels on front to back burners. I was sooooo frustrated w/ my old 30'' gas range using normal but largish pans that just wouldn't fit. Canning was just about a forgedaboutit on that thing but, somehow, I managed.

Range/Rangetop/Oven Help

Comments (8)

Annie Deighnaugh

rhome410

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