Width: 58" - 30" = 28" 28" / 2 = 14" of landing space/work space/safety margin on each side Depth: 36" - 24" = 12" behind the cooktop for safety margin Realistically, your island is not big enough to accommodate a cooktop...even the original dimensions were not sufficient...it would have only been 15" on each side. If you truly want to put a cooktop in your island, then your island, with a 30" cooktop, should be at least 78" wide and 42" deep, preferably 48". For a 36" cooktop, you would need an 84" wide island. That would give you 24" on each side of the cooktop for landing space/work space/safety margin and 18" to 24" behind it for safety...seaters/leaners or passersby. There was a thread a couple of months ago where we were helping redesign a kitchen that had a range in an island that was much too small. The OP's sister (??) hated the setup b/c there wasn't enough room to work or move. I think she had 12" on each side..which was only 2" narrower than yours. I searched for the thread, but I think it must have dropped off. Are you sure you cannot put your cooktop elsewhere?

Actually....it's recommended your hood be at least 6" wider than your range/cooktop...so a 36" hood over a 30" cooktop is perfect...especially if you do any high-heat/frying/stir-frying/meat browning/high-smoke cooking. Since you also want open shelving, I also recommend getting a high-cfm hood as well as a 24" deep hood. Oh, and mount it according to the specifications. The combination of high-cfms (at least 1,000 cfms), 6" wider, 24" deep, and mounted properly should eliminate the vast majority (if not all) of the grease/steam/smoke/etc. in the air and help keep items on those shelves grease-free. It won't prevent the dust build-up that's natural for any open shelves, but that dust won't be mixing with grease in the air causing a "gunk" that's difficult to clean off. (If items on the shelves are used frequently, then there shouldn't be too much of a dust build-up.) An added bonus for the high-cfm hood is that you will be able to run it on a lower setting most of the time and it will be quieter than getting a lower-cfm and having to run it on high all the time. Looking at your picture, I see a couple of problems that explains the grease build-up... (1) The hood is mounted too high...most hoods should be mounted around 30" off the cooking surface (2) The hood is too narrow and, I think, too shallow (it's hard to tell from the pictures). Good luck!

Have a DCS 30" dual fuel. No complaints about the fan, but that's a subjective issue. My Zephyr hood is noisier. In general, a very nice, heavy duty appliance. The bead blasted stainless cooktop requires patience when cleaning. You can get it perfect but it takes elbow grease and multiple steps using oven cleaner and sturdy cloth. Don't use any abrasives like Barkeeper's Friend or Scotchbrite pads. You'll scratch it and there's no way to repair it. When you first get it, wipe the cooktop down with some acetone before using it. They use sticky tape to hold down the burners in shipment and the glue residue from that tape will burn right into the cooktop. And it's extremely difficult to get off. The acetone will help you avoid that issue.

I have a 36" range hood over a 30" range. I removed a 36" base cabinet that had a 36" electric cooktop in it, but used 3" fluted spacers to reduce the 36" opening. I didn't have need for a 36" gas range, and the price jump between a standard 30" gas range and a 36" gas range was a jump of several thousand dollars. I used the same granite slab on my counters for a backsplash, so it has no grout. As much as I love my granite, I'm glad to have it on the backsplash, too, but even if I went with a grouted tile backsplash, I doubt it would have been a big burden to keep clean. I use my rear burners infrequently, preferring to set flame on lowest setting to simmer on front burners.