I just went with the open burner in a Capital Cuinarian Rangetop, the only other option I looked at was the Bluestar. Because of the open burners. I got the Capital at a slightly better price, thats why I chose Capital. I wanted the Bluestar cooktop, but my wife liked the rangetop look. I got the rangetop, LOL. In general total your BTU's then divide by 100. For the Bluestar that's 610 CFM, maybe go a bit highter for fudge factor. For me the only cooktop I would even consider in the Bluestar.

Comom27: I've got an old Thermador 5-burner gas cooktop. I've had this unit in two different homes. None of the burners align in a row. When I use a griddle, I have to adjust for the different BTU size by adjusting the flame. Sometimes I do better than others. This alignment issue will happen in other brands, too. Jan_in_davis: I'm replacing a closed burner Thermador cooktop for the Bluestar 6-burner Range Top. I want to go back to open burners. I am replacing a Thermador 5-burner sealed gas cooktop. It is a 15 year old design. It's okay. If I had to select a gas cooktop and by definition no open burner, I would look at the Thermador cooktop. But, only if I could get it with the star-shaped burners. The star-shaped burner is an excellent design. I think everyone else is pretty much the same sealed single ring design. I seem to remember Wolf having a double ring design. Other than this difference, it makes it pretty easy to compare BTU's. It sucks to have a stainless steel cooktop. Greasy stuff gets on it, burns in and only scrubbies, steel wool, brillo pads and elbow gease remove the blobs. Inevitably, you end up scratching it. My old black enamel Thermador cooktop didn't show the baked on grease blobs nearly as much. The electric ignition does randomly spark upon occasion. Usually, after I clean the cooktop. Soap or cleaning gunk will get embedded in the igniter. This causes random sparking. It goes away if you will start up the burner of the offending igniter for a minute or so.

I have a lot of experience with commercial grade cooktops and ranges. I have a degree from the CIA. I'd like to think that I have cooked on pretty much every burner known to mankind. Due to my husband's job, we have moved many times, owned many homes and renovated lots of kitchens. My mother has a commercial range in the home she purchased. So, I am completely familiar with the problems involved. While commercial units may be attractive from a purchase price standpoint and seem very simple, I wouldn't want one in a home setting. The continuous pilot light alone is enough to dissuade me. Proper ventilation is expensive and noisy. Even commercial kitchens are known to shut off the gas when not open to save money. Continuous gas is dirty. It makes a mess on the walls and ceiling. You have to run the hood constantly. The cost of running a continuous pilot and constant ventilation will begin to eat into any savings immediately. It will take a few years, but in the end you won't be saving money. Your insurance company will have a fit. If they find out you have one they will either cancel the policy, refuse to pay if you have a claim, or if they will even cover it they will charge you more. What you want is an open burner residential appliance. That reduces your options to two specialty manufacturers, Bluestar and Capital. You might find a used Wolf if you look around. My preference is the Bluestar. My primary reason is the burner design. It's the old Garland stove design. It's a superior design that has been tested and found to be excellent. The unit is a pleasure to cook on. You can remove the grate and wok directly on the flame without a wok ring. The difference in price is electric ignition and fit and finish. Capitol makes a nice range top, but it's not readily available in my area. I don't feel qualified to offer an opinion on Capitol. I don't know if you ever plan to move from your home, but I have walked away from purchasing homes due to the presence of a commercial range. And, I know how to use one. While you should please yourself, you never know when your circumstances will change. You always need to plan for change. Doing what you propose will not help you in marketing your home. A heat diffuser disc will take care of any simmer issues on any grate. Last, there is an appliance forum. It's an active forum with lots of participation. That's where the appliance geeks and experts hang out. We love to talk appliances. Pose your question in the appliance forum. You may get some creative solutions.

“does anyone, know if you can install a wall oven under the Wolf cooktop?” @susanrhill34 - there are issues with installing a wall oven under a cooktop. First, there is a clearance issue. You must make certain to abide by the clearance specified for below the cooktop, and the clearance specified for above the wall oven. There often is not enough room for both, so you’d have to find another combination of cooktop and wall oven where there would be enough clearance for both. Second, the wall oven installed under a cooktop will be so low to the ground that when the oven door is open, it is nearly touching the ground, and that low height is awkward and cumbersome for taking things out of the oven that are boiling hot, heavy, and/or sloshing. Third, you would be better served with buying a range. A range would cost thousands less than a cooktop with wall oven underneath including the challenges of installing them.