Kitchen cooktop woes
Rivsung
last year
last modified: last year
My husband and I bought a 2002 house with original appliances. The cooktop barely functions and I need to find a replacement. It's a JennAir down draft that is roughly 34x21". I haven't been able to find another cooktop that would fit the opening in the granite especially as a downdraft. We had someone out to give us a quote to install a normal exhaust but the way the 3story house is build there is no where to run the ductwork above the cooktop so I'm stuck with a downdraft. I've tried contacting various appliance stores, contractors, remodelers and even granite shops to try to find a solution and they say they don't do small projects or suggest that we replace counters, cabinets, remodel the kitchen or give some other expensive option. While I wouldn't mind some form of remodeling and it might be an option down the road, I need a functioning cooktop now. I'm out of ideas on what to do and would like some suggestions. The granite at the front and back of the cooktop appear the be glued in place and the back piece is broken so they probably wouldn't be hard to remove if needed.
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Range Woes for a Non-cook
Comments (34)My 0.02 (worth what you pay for it :) ): Don't buy any built-in appliances. By that I mean anything that doesn't have dimensions standardized across the industry and needs to have cabinetry or countertop cut to fit it, like cooktops; some wall ovens are also like this. OTR microwaves are more expensive than countertop ones, and they require labor to install/uninstall, so if I were you I'd get a countertop one. We used to have our MW on the counter; after reno it's in an upper cabinet. It was more convenient on the counter. (It's better for us to have it where it is now, but there is no doubt it was easier to reach on the counter.) As for the convection/microwave combo: that is an optional convenience but definitely not required. I cook for a family of 4 every day, usually from scratch, have been cooking for a couple of decades, and have never had one of these. My mom is an excellent cook in her 70's and has never had one either. Would it be nice to have? Sure, and so would a lot of other things. But as a pp said, they do have a learning curve and cost more than a plain microwave, so buy one if you think it would be fun; but it's not a must-have. Re. countertop oven: my mom has one and finds it more convenient than her range oven sometimes, when she's just cooking for 2. But she also has a TINY kitchen and it takes up counter space that she really needs for other things (in fact she has moved it to her back porch). So in your case, if your kitchen will also be limited on surface area, it would probably be more sensible to get a normal 30-in range. If I were you I'd stick to the basics: 30-inch range with an inexpensive range hood (ours was from Lowe's, works fine), smallish upright fridge (the kind with the freezer on top and no ice dispenser in the door), countertop MW, either 18- or 24-inch DW depending on your space. Or no DW if you don't wash many dishes; it used to take me most of a week to fill mine when I was single, by which time -- yuck. Would be a good idea to have a 24-inch cabinet near the sink in that case, so it can be swapped out for a DW later on if needed. We've bought appliances at Sears in the past, no trouble for the most part (you probably realize that Kenmore appliances aren't actually made by Sears). And we have an Ikea kitchen and I love it. Good luck!...See MoreKitchen woes...
Comments (8)I think before advising i would like to see the kitchen space. My guess this is a load bearing wall so you will need to address that first. I would try just lowereng the raised bar to see if that makes a real difference in the openess or as mentioned just remove that section all together but either way you need to have a designer to make this happen without looking like a bad DIY job....See MoreKitchen Backsplash Woes- advice needed
Comments (15)Thanks for all the comments so far. I will admit some of the remaining issues I may not have noticed much if the overall job had been better to start. However it was initially much worse- this is the improved version after the most obvious stuff has been fixed. So in all fairness there may be some of the whole, "once you notice it, it stands out more" scenario going on. That being said, given there are so many remaining little issues (below are a few more examples, but still not all) is why I'm still leaning towards asking for further repairs or a re-do. I'd welcome any further thoughts though. (I really do want to be reasonable.) Is it really unreasonable to want to be satisfied with something so "in your face every day" after spending hundreds of thousands though? Plus as London Staging and Design, LLC mentioned, the tile being an issue at re-sell is also a very real concern. Oh, for those that mentioned the tile was a poor selection- we didn't pick the tile. The tile wasn't up, but was already selected by the builder by the time we put an offer on the house. Thanks again....See MoreKitchen window - above cooktop and framed by kitchen joinery? feedback
Comments (9)I don’t think you’ll get much feedback from people who have put a cooktop in front of a window because I don’t think it would occur to many people to do this. It seems like a bad idea. You will constantly be cleaning it. Bump a pot the wrong way and you can scratch or crack the glass. It seems what you are envisioning is a direct-set window, with the glass flush with the countertop/cabinets. This would mean if you ever had to replace the glass, you’d have to do it from outside by removing the trim, as the window frame would be behind the countertop and cabinets. What direction does the window face?...See MoreRivsung
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PROJoseph Corlett, LLC
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