They Do make them: Jenn-Air makes a range and cooktops, with a downdraft vent in the surface of the cooktop.

But the more current way to do downdraft is with a pop up downdraft device that raises to a foot or more behind the cooktop and then retracts back down into the counter.

Most people don't think they work very well. I recently replaced a JennAir downdraft with a conventional gas range and island hood for client, and he is much happier with this arrangement.

They make them, but if they are actually effective enough to suck all of the rising heat, steam, and smoke, they'll pull the gas flame and may even pull it out.

If you're going to do an island cooking station, be sure it's large enough, and has overhead ventilation. There are at least 3 threads on here right now where that isn't the case, and people are trying their darndest to find a fix after the fact, and it's not really possible unless you do a complete remodel.

If you envision prepping right beside the cooktop instead of beside the sink, the island will have to be big enough to have enough room to do that and still have your safe landing zone around the cooking zone. 8' is the minimum length for that to happen, with 4' wide. 10' length is even better. It still leaves you twisting back to the sink for water, but you'd have to go 12' if you want to add in a prep sink on the island too.

The logistics of doing a safe island cooking zone just take more space and more thought. If it's done correctly, it can be a wonderfully social space where you spend 80% of your cooking time. Done incorrectly, it can be a safety nightmare where there isn't enough room and you keep your back to the room 90% of the time. It's all about enough space to make what you want happen.

I inherited the JennAir downdraft when we bought our house, and we find it very difficult to use. The downdraft is very powerful, and it does pull the flame over, so it is really difficult to take advantage of having a gas cooktop.

In the house we sold, we had a pop up downdraft, and it was not as powerful, but it also didn't pull the flame with it...we'd like to replace the JennAir, but feel our options are few since the layout of our kitchen prevents a vent over the cooktop. I suppose if we had to choose, I'd go with the pop-up and find the highest CFM. Hope that helps!

We had a Thermador gas cooktop with the pop up downdraft vent with the grill/griddle in the middle for over 25 years. Actually, it functioned fairly well, but it did pull the flame from the back burners, and we had more than a few flare ups that got a bit scary for a moment. I now have a range in the same location with an island hood above, much better functionality...

This post was edited by ctycdm on Mon, Aug 5, 13 at 10:47

With our current kitchen remodel we are moving the cooktop to a fairly large island. We considered a pop-up down draft vent, but it would have taken up a lot of space inside the cabinet. We didn't want to lose that storage space, so we are going with an overhead vent hood. It took quite a bit of cutting into the ceiling to run the ducting and then cutting a hole in the side of the house. That is as far as we are right now, as there was a mistake cutting our island granite, so we have to wait until we can get a new slab lined up and fabricated.

I have a gas cook top with a 7" pop-up downdraft vent on my island and I *can not wait* to move it to the perimeter (I have sufficient perimeter counter)! At 63" long, my island is too small for a cook top IMO but I didn't know any better when we built this house 19 years ago. I only have 16" on either side of my 30" cook top and it's just not enough room so I find myself prepping in multiple places as I make dinner, which is really a PITA.

Even if my island were larger, I'd move my cook top to the perimeter because despite the expense of moving the gas line, I save money because overhead venting is less expensive (often, hundreds of dollars cheaper) than either a pop-up downdraft or an island hood. Additionally, downdrafts are noisier and less effective than hoods and as others have pointed out, downdrafts pull out gas flames (less of an issue with auto re-ignition feature, which most gas cook tops have these days but still) and take up valuable cab space under the cook top.

Why does your KD want to put your cook top on your island? I'm curious about her proposed design.

Yes, you should post your layout. Most of the time, the idea in people's head about cooking with everyone gathered around doesn't end up being the reality because there isn't enough room for that to happen without a pretty large island. Cooking only involves 10% of the time you spend in your kitchen. Most time, 70%, is spent in doing prep work. If you want a truly social kitchen, make the prep work happen on the island. If you have enough room, (but it takes a LOT of room) have a prep sink and the cooking station on the island and you can spend 80% of your time facing across the island.

I don't have a design yet. When she came to look at our space, that was one of the suggestions-an island with a "bump up' bar section. I don't think my space would look right with a ceiling type exhaust and she mentioned the down draft. Should I email her and tell her I'd prefer the stove on a perimeter wall before she gets too far?

Is this KD the only one you can use? She doesn't sound that good, or knowledgeable. I'd find someone else. A good KD tries to steer her client away from a downdraft, not suggest it. A downdraft should be used if you have no other choice, a last resort. But downdraft should not be chosen if you are still in design stages with other options open to you.

And those "bump-up bars" also only work when you have enough room for a very large island. The KD should know that. If your island is small, the bump-up cuts drastically into your island's usable space for prep, as you won't have much counter to spread out for prep, set out dishes, platters, etc. unless, that is, your island is very large.

And as Live_Wire_Oak says, an island isn't that sociable if you are cooking in it. Think about greasy splatters, occasional burnt stuff, smoke, and then will anyone really be wanting to hang out inches away while you cook. Do you have kids? Do you want them to be seated at the island while you are cooking and handling hot pots and sloshing pans? And prep is 70% of your time; the actual cooking is like 10-20%. It's much better to use the island for prep, and then people will want to hang out while you chop, knead, mix, etc. - they may even join in and help! But that won't be possible with a cooktop in the island.

If you put the cooktop or rangetop on a wall, not only will you be able to exhaust much better and more efficiently, but it will cost you less too.

This post was edited by Mrs_Nyefnyef on Tue, Aug 6, 13 at 0:24

If you absolutely prefer your cook top along your perimeter and not on your island, no matter how large the island or how well a plan with an island cook top meets all the rest of your needs and wants, then definitely tell her that. For me, losing my walk-in pantry was an absolute no-go, no matter what else I might gain.

Unless you have a very tiny space and extreme restrictions limiting lay-out possibilities, your KD should be able to present you with more than one possible plan for your kitchen. From what you wrote, it sounds like she will do that. I certainly hope so! There will be an additional cost for her time to draw up more than one plan but I think you'd want to know that you've chosen the best plan out of all contenders before spending a dime on your remodel. I know I would!

A KD I worked with a couple years ago presented me with 5 plans for me to consider (major appliances positioned, aisle clearances marked, cab widths noted but not more than that). The plan that worked best was just like the one I had already come up with. It was beneficial for me to see that even a pro could not come up with a better plan that fit all my family's needs and wants.

Is your KD a kitchen designer or just a designer? There is a difference in degree of knowledge and expertise. For instance, a designer I worked with several years ago tried to talk me into swapping out my 30" cook top for a 36" cook top, leaving me with about 13" on either side of my island cook top, which is less than NKBA recs (12" on one side, 15" on the other minimum). She had great design advice regarding paint colors, fabrics and furniture arrangement but I knew more than she did about kitchen design. If I just wanted a pretty kitchen, she would have been great to work with but I wanted a functional kitchen, too.