I really like your plan. I, too, have a view from every window of a ranch house and also took that into consideration when we remodeled our kitchen, so I would absolutely widen the opening into the DR! You will enjoy the view every day and for those times when you are entertaining, the kitchen noise is usually stopped when it is time to sit down to the meal. Even if it was noisy, this would be a more than reasonable trade off for a daily view! After all, you are probably only talking about a couple of times a year that the noise would be an issue.

I also find that I enjoy looking through the DR, one of the most carefully decorated rooms in the house! If we don't use it that often, at least we can enjoy looking at it!

It also looks like the path to the main living area is through the DR, which would make the wider opening even more critical.

Have fun, or at least keep your sense of humor, through your project! (I lived with my 36" range in my bedroom for more than 2 months when we remodeled--the price of DIY!)

The one issue I see with function is the depth of the island and how you've purposed it. I would not have a cooktop there without making it 30" deep. Also, you said you're enlarging the DR opening to see out but you're either going to be prepping next to the sink- facing the wall or next to the cooktop where you'll have an island hood hanging down obstructing your view. At least that's my initial impression. Sounds like you've been around with this bit and I may have missed it so if you've already addressed the points I brought up or made the decision that it works for you anyway... then I apologize for being redundant.

This may have been covered in the earlier thread, but did you consider a prep sink on the island, especially as you're concerned about prep space? It would significantly increase the effectiveness of the island and the counter b/w the refrigerator & pantry as prep spaces and provide a better separation of cleanup and prep space.

I would also rearrange the island so that...

• Increase the overhang on the long side to at least 18" primarily b/c you have seating in front of the cooktop...15" is not really enough of a safety margin for those seated in front of it. 24" would be even better.

• That 18" then gives you room for a prep sink

• No crossing of aisles to access water from cooktop...you can even fill or empty by sliding the pot from cooktop to sink if you don't want to pick it up

• If the faucet is a pullout faucet w/a long enough hose & it's placed on the left corner you might be able to use it for a pot filler!

• Switch the 18" Trash & 30" cabinet & that gives you...

  • more workspace on the left side while maintaining plenty on the other side + the 15" overhang still works on the end (18"+15"=33")

  • The cooking zone no longer overlaps the cleanup zone...meaning there is no overlap of any kind b/w cooktop & Sink (there wasn't much in the first place, but this eliminates it completely)

  • One drawback...the Trash pullout will be a further away from the clean up sink.

Note that one seat is darker than the other three...that seat could be either there or around the corner on the short side. The short side is about 6" shorter than the recommended space for 2 seats, but it would probably work. Why would you want to do this? That darker seat is the one seat that might not have enough room b/w the island and the cupboard behind it.

We are in the processes of doing this same sort of remodel.
We did put in a downdraft so that the hood would not be blocking our opening to the dining room. It cost about $800 to drill out the concrete..but I don't have to look at a big hood.

I also went back and forth with opening up the wall b/c of noise and privacy ( me alone in kitchen..bliss) But I could not stand not seeing the views.

Note, Alterit, that downdrafts are not very effective at venting. They may work for minor things on the back burner, but they do not work for the front burners nor for heavy-duty cooking on the back burners.

The most effective venting is achieved by putting a range or cooktop on a wall run and using a wall vent. Island venting isn't quite as effective unless you increase the capture area and strength (cfm) to account for the cross currents of air that cause smoke/grease/steam/etc. to drift more quickly than when against a wall. The least effective venting is a downdraft....although it's better than nothing, IMHO.

Check out the Appliances Forum for more information on venting.

Here is a link that might be useful: Appliances Forum

Thank you for your ideas. I'm considering a telescoping vent (TSV), to avoid interrupting the view, and won't a TSV take up less room in the cabinet? I don't fry much, so the vent will be to remove the heat and steam. Good idea to enlarge the island, and I will, but will a TSV add an element of safety to the island?

Will a trash container fit in a 36" sink base? Or, would moving the trash next to the door to the garage be a wise decision? What could be done with the 12"? Are 12" drawers good for anything? I'm thinking that I'll put my cookie sheets above the oven.

Any other suggestions?

You really need to look at vents before deciding - even the telescoping downdrafts vary a lot in depth. There is a bunch more unit inside the cabinet and they can eat a substantial chuck of your cooktop cabinet. Most of the loss will be the bottom drawer (or pullout) - but you might have to shorten all the drawers. The thinnest ones have a remote blower attached to the outside of your house instead of at the base of the unit. Those are (of course) almost twice as much money.

The only time the vent would add a bit of safety are the tallest ones. I am unlikely to splash up something 14" - but I'm certainly capable of it. I don't know if I would sit behind one if dh was cooking - likely a piece of fish or something would come flying over the top someday.

They don't vent very well because they are trying to pull the fumes sideways for about twenty inches before sucking it down and out. An island hood is also never going to work as well as a wall hood - it can't get enough suction because all four sides are open.

Below is a article from a well known kitchen designer lamenting the downdraft in the just-bought-it house which does a nice job of explaining.

The height of a hood from the cooktop can vary from 24" to 36" with (of course) the more expensive ones generally having taller clearances. How tall are you?

Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen designer blog

Ok, let's go back to the original layout. I like this layout, but I concerned about the additional holes in a quartz countertop if I don't like the downdraft vent. If I move the cooktop from the island to where the oven microwave is, my cooking area will be about 10' from the frig. Will I find this to far away?

Or, another option is a custon hood. About how far down
will the hood hang from my 8' ceiling?

Please help me with this, I'm ordering cabinets on Saturday.

I put off ordering my cabinets over and over again until I got the layout as close to right as I could. Try not to worry too much about Saturday's deadline (unless you're kitchen is already ripped out).

There are many people on these forums who would never consider a downdraft vent or OTR microwave vent and yet others have no issue with them. While an overhead vent is the most efficient, how important is it to you to have the best ventilation? I had a friend with a downdraft in her island with seating on the other side and it wasn't perfect, but it was a compromise she was willing to make to have some of the other things that were more important to her. There were lots of things about her kitchen I couldn't live with but she loved it.

Now, if it were my kitchen, I'd put the cooktop on the perimeter, get a wall mounted hood (I do a lot of ethnic cooking that smells really bad the next day) and be in heaven with that big expanse of workspace on the island. Good luck.

Cheril27, that is exactly what I'm talking about. I don't relish the thought of having my back to the island, or the stove visable from the dining room, but I also don't like the thought of infringing on an island. We removed a down draft from our last house because of its bulk. I'm not a SS type person so if we went with a ceiling exhaust, it would be custom.
By moving the stove, my prep area would be clear and my cooking area would be contained.
I don't like this layout as well, but I can't live with an "I told you so" downdraft.
Note the upper cab in the far left corner is a 30"
Does this look function?

{{gwi:2105790}}

If you don't like the downdraft, it could be a lot of cash to change it - I'm pretty sure there's no way to "fix" the countertop holes.

If you want specific hood advice, you might try the appliance forum. I only know two things - their installed heights vary a lot. The bottom of the hood can be anywhere from 24" above the counter to 36" above the counter with the distance set by the manufacturer of the hood. The second thing I know, with all puns intended, is that hoods suck!

There is also this...
{{gwi:2105791}}

Won't the cooktop be visible from the dining room either way, whether it's in the island or on the wall? It seems like having the cooktop on your wall actually places it farther away from your dining room and more out of sight. As far as having your back to the island when you're cooking, do you find that you spend more time actually standing at the stove stirring, etc. or prepping, chopping, etc? I definitely spend more time prepping. That's the nice thing about having a sink and plenty of prep space on the island, like in bmore's layout.

I really feel like I'm getting closer to the ideal floor plan for my style of living. I always have to live with the plan for a couple of days to see how it fits. Then I panic and tweak the layout, and the next day I'm calm again. Then I panic and tweak, the next day I'm calm. Then I panic, tweak, calm. And so it goes...this has been going on since November.

No one has commented on the pantry. Do you think it's to close to the wall? Not that I want to move it, but does it need a spacer?

This site is awesome. I would have never gotten this far without you.