48 inch stove versus double oven and cooktop

11 years ago

Hello,

What is the opinion on this forum on 48 inch stove versus double oven and cooktop?

here is my pro/con list for one appliance (48 inch)

Pro

one less appliance

more design options for kitchen

Con

stove will be gas versus electric

cost

Anything else I should consider?

Thanks

Featured Answer

liriodendron

11 years ago

Not all 48" ranges have ovens "on the floor". Mine certainly doesn't. The bottoms of the oven aren't very low and anyway I use racks which make the level of cooking just at the bottom of the easiest-reach zone. Not problem for me to reach, and easily look down and into the pots. And the broiler is in the ceiling of the small oven so it's at about the level of the bottom of a typical top drawer in a cab.

I do a lot of cooking that evolves from stovetop to oven and vice versa and its very convenient having it all in one spot. I wouldn't like hauling a very hot cast iron skillet across the kitchen to the oven to finish a sear roast. And I would sorely miss being able to warm up the oven and easily stow serially-cooked things (like pancakes, or fritters) that I was accumulating - and keeping warm - before plating the whole meal.

I like having all the HOGS-generators in one place and (theoretically) under one hood for extraction. (I say theoretically because my range doesn't have a hood as it's still in my "temporary" kitchen.)

I don't find that it's overly hot standing in front of my ovens, nor a pain because of having to stand aside. I rarely have both ovens and all 6 burners going so I can switch things around as necessary. (I only have 6 burners on the 48" because I have removed the char-grill section and replaced it with a granite slab, but that's a whole 'nuther story.)

My machine is all-gas because I wanted it that way. And it's older - verging on two decades now - so it's not as high at BTU as some available now.

I really, really, really love my tall, narrow, smaller oven and use it more than 75% of the time. The larger one (a convection model) is almost too big. And if I had larger wall ovens I would be fussed about heatng them up for a couple of baked potatoes or a single cake.

The major con I can think off is that a 48" range is inevitably one of the main drivers in kitchen design simply because of its size. It is the proverbial 400-lb gorilla.

My range is an old Jade/Dynasty, no longer available but will probably outlast me. But if it should die, I'm pretty confident I would always replace it with a range, not a cooktop/double wall-oven setup. I'm not sure I would get another 48" model, however, so I might wind up with an additional single wall-oven used only for baking, not roasting or broiling.

HTH

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Comments (15)

ayerg73
11 years ago
My pros for getting a 48" range instead of wall ovens...

More counterspace
Can use the vent hood to help with odors and/or heat from the oven

I got a dual fuel range, so I still have an electric oven and a gas burners.
poohpup
11 years ago
I prefer wall ovens and a cooktop because I don't like having my ovens on the floor and I don't like cooking at the stove directly in front of hot ovens. When I cook at my sister's house on her range, someone is always having to scoot out of the way so someone else can get in the ovens. I'm not one of those people in love with the look of a range, so for me, it is all about function. Just my personal preference.
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palimpsest
11 years ago
More oven space with double wall ovens.

Separate cooking station with ovens, things can be coming in and out, and being checked when the cooktop is in full use.
friedajune
11 years ago
I vote for separate double ovens. You may think that bending for range ovens is not an issue, but let me tell ya, once you have worked with a wall oven with no bending, you won't be able to go back to the bending-thing.

Also, are you certain you need a 48" cooktop? How many burners are you cooking with now? I can't imagine using more than 6 burners at once, but perhaps you cook for a lot of people. If not, think about a 36" cooktop which would give you the bonus of added counterspace.

Remember, you will need a hood over the 48" range or cooktop that is 48-54" wide. Have you priced that size hood? Do you have the proper ductwork for that size hood? The duct must be 8" or 10" diameter, no smaller, for that size hood. Again, my recommendation would be double wall ovens with a smaller 36" cooktop, which means a 36"-42" hood, which means more counter space and more upper cabinet space.
User
11 years ago
Poohpup brings up a good point about the heat. Now that summer is here, I am glad I have a wall oven.
lynn
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks for the great feedback. You always give me so much to think about.

6 burners are more than enough. The reason why 48inches is not because of burners but more so because of oven space. Is oven space in 36inch comparable to 48inch? I know there are 36 inch ranges with 2 double ovens stacked below but I always thought the oven space was even more limited than the 48inch. Is this not the case?
deeageaux
11 years ago
I have a 24" wall oven and a 36" range.

Most 48" ranges are a 36" oven plus 12" oven.

So the big oven in the 48" is the same size as the 36" range oven.

These 36" ovens almost always have bigger oven cavaties than 30" wall ovens. My range oven fits full size baking sheets. Stacked wall ovens has one oven a little low and the other a little high. So for me the utility of the larger oven trumps the small ergonomic advantages of stacked 30" double ovens. And the range oven is not on the floor as in putting an independent wall oven underneath a seperate cooktop.

The heat on your legs from a range oven depends on the quality of the oven door you are getting. Some are quite hot others are just warm to the touch.

My wall oven is my daily oven while my range oven is more of the special occasion oven.

If you have room to place two seperate wall ovens side by side or both at countertop height in seperate areas with one being a 36" oven and the other a 24" oven then that would be IDEAL IMO.
ginny20
11 years ago
The advantage for me, although it is particular to the setup of my kitchen, is that the double wall oven actually is in a wall, not the cabs, so it doesn't take up space that can be used for cabs. It sticks out into the garage. The area under the cooktop is three drawers, for cooking utensils and pans. Since I have an induction cooktop, it doubles as counter space.

I do prefer a double wall oven, though. I like the convenience of the utensil drawer right under the cooktop.
PRO
Tom Carter
11 years ago
my wife and I were not fans of the 48 range...I think it needs to have a big kitchen to handle the mass of the range. I also find the look of range tops somewhat incomplete...like where is the rest of it... So, if you have a big kitchen...the scale of the 48 works, otherwise I like a 36 or 30" range and a wall oven if you want the second oven.
Caspian
sixtyohno
11 years ago
I have a 30 inch 5 burner and a double oven 30 inches to the left. I love the set up much more than I loved my very excellent stove. 5 burners are fine for me. If I ever have an occasion when I think I need more, my plan is to buy a 1 burner counter top induction cook top which will live in the garage and come out when I need it.
lynn
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks Everyone. You gave me a lot to think about.

I am including our plan for the kitchen (blueprint). As you can see it includes the double oven right next to the stove. Part of my consideration of changing to 48inch is so that I don't have the double oven visible as you are looking into the kitchen. Something aesthetically does not sit right with me and one of the kitchen designs I have been shown shows one cabinet between the double oven and cook top and 3 or 4 cabinets on the other side of the cooktop. It does not center very well for me, if that makes sense. The other option I am considering based on a design I was shown is the double oven on the left as you walk in from the mudroom and the fridge on the right. I will have a sink at the island which is currently not shown. Now I am waiting to see design with 48 inch. I would appreciate any feedback!
zelmar
11 years ago
We went with a 48" range because the only place I could put wall ovens would have blocked the light coming in from our windows. I like angled views, not just straight-on views out the windows.

I absolutely love our 48" range. I love the huge burner space. Even if I'm not using all 6 burners (+ griddle) at once, I love having spots to allow pots to cool. I love having plenty of space to spread out kettles and large fry pans instead of having them knock into each other. I love using cool burners as landing zones for hot items from the oven. This allows separation of the hot area from the prep area. Otherwise, I would probably be spreading trivets out on the counter and interfering with my prep space. I love standing at the prep area on the peninsula next to the stove and being able to check on pots on the stove and items in the oven without moving. I love using the vent hood on hot days to remove the heat from both the oven and the burners. I also appreciate being able to exhaust smells from both areas. I don't cook in the summer nearly as much as I do in the fall, winter, in spring and during those months I appreciate the extra heat form the ovens.

I love the look of the range. It anchors our kitchen. I love having a small oven and a large oven. I use the small one 90% of the time and I don't feel wasteful heating up a large cavity when a small one will do.

I think this is an individual decision based on your cooking style.
wallycat
11 years ago
If you wanted 6 burners, you could get a 36" cooktop/rangetop and wall ovens allow you to pick and choose...maybe one regular and one convection or speed cook or combi-steam oven where the range is either all one way or dual fuel.
If you have more than one person cooking with you, someone can baste in the oven or pull things out without bothering someone else at the cooktop.
The advantage is that if you sear something and then want to put it in the oven, it is right there for you.
I've had it both ways (previous house, rental and my new-to-me house) and I think I prefer having cooktop/wall oven.
asm22
11 years ago
We are going for 36" rangetop - bluestar, and wolf electric wall oven and combi steam convection. The only debate was whether to get th range in all gas - hard to justify 3 ovens for a family of 4. We do a lot of entertaining and hav big extended family. convincd after cooking on both cooktops the bs has it down. Yes the wolf range looks a bit better, but we are going for function over looks.

48 inch stove versus double oven and cooktop

liriodendron

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