Any opinions on downdraft ventilation for stoves?

I'm house hunting, and a lot of the homes I've seen use downdraft ventilation for the stoves. The few reviews I've seen indicate that downdraft isn't very desirable. Anyone use it and have any opinions? I'm used to an overhead hood that exhausts to the outside and am afraid I'd hate the downdraft.

 

Friends of ours had one of the "pop up" ventilation systems, and it worked okay for the back burners, not so okay for the front. The motor that extended and retracted it filed after six years, as well.

On the other hand, my parents had a Jenn-Air with the ventilation between the burners, like this one, and it worked very well, except for being a PITA to clean. Thirty-four years without a problem, and still going strong.

 

I had the kind pictured above and it worked OK for frying pans, but pretty much sucked for any kind of sauce/stock pot. Where I am currently has the other kind....it works surprisingly well for the back burners.

Still...I want my roof-mounted hood back. that thing was a beast and I miss it fiercely.

 

Small Viking hood. Won't break the bank. We have low ceilings, the previous downdraft stove was like no fan at all. I still cook outside on twin burners as often as possible weather permitting.

 

Downdrafts are next to useless for any quasi-serious cook. We retrofitted a 1200 cfm hood in our house which was originally built with a recirculating fan, (construction turned out to be a nightmare), but it was the best investment I made.

 

I'd love to have a good hood and fan, but my kitchen wall is not an exterior wall so the retrofit would be tricky. currently there is a recirc that really doesn't do much.

 

That was my situation; ended up routing some very large (12" !!) ductwork through my laundry room. Ugly, but so glad I made that decision. I can crank a steak in cast iron full blast and not a whiff of smoke in the house.

 

That confirms what I expected. It's been interesting looking at houses. Apparently you just slap some granite tile on the countertops and put in stainless appliances and it's a kitchen to warm the cockles of a cook's heart. Function is completely optional. A lot of show over substance in most of the houses we've seen. This weekend we looked at a house with 2 sinks in a long counter in the master bath. The right end of the counter was in a corner with a wall running down the right side, and the sink was at the very end of the counter. If a right handed person stood in front of the sink, they couldn't brush their teeth because the wall would be in the way of your elbow.

 

Heh...yes. few people really cook so the only important part of the kitchen is the appearance. The cooktop in my old home was a wreck b/c I used the shite out of it....much like scratches on a blade from sharpening, I considered it a badge of honor.

 

Whoever built our house put hardwood floors in the kitchen. A nightmare if you really cook to try to keep up with every drip and spill to protect the floor. The only good thing about them is the couple times I dropped knives there was minimal damage to the blades.

 

I guess you had end grain floors?

 

My kitchen is not pretty. After 15 years maybe overdue for a little overhaul. Vermont maple edgegrain countertop, a little scratched. Maple floors. Not great if you're on your feet a long time I guess. My eyesight isnt what it once was, so I dont see the flaws and drips so much. Just a sweep and a mop away from paradise.

 

Typical downdrafts only move something like 450 cfm. Depending on your range/ cooktop, you may need something in excess of 1,100 cfm (if you have a few burners working at the same time). Plus downdraft is pretty inefficient at sucking in stuff from the burners that are furthest away.

When I first switched from an electric cooktop and electric ovens over to a 6 burner gas range I ran the duct (I think 9 inch diameter) suspended from the ceiling of the adjacent dining room and out through the exterior wall. It was trey ghetto, but it got the job done for ~3 years. When we renovated, the range was installed at an exterior wall and the vent goes almost straight out the back of the hood through the exterior wall.

And we have all wood floors, as the space is open into the family room and dining room. At first it was easy to keep clean, but once our son was born all went to heck The biggest issue is him dropping toys, etc. and leaving small dents in the wood surface. As far as liquids. foods, that all cleans up pretty easily.