Thanks for tour input. I agree, the location is not ideal, but I have only 1 wall in my kitchen taken up by Ref and Oven so no better practical alternative than to use the island for the cooktop

We have an induction with the tallest downdraft we could find. It works great on the back burners so if you know you're using a downdraft, maybe choose your cooktop while thinking through how you will use it. For example, we do little sauteeing but tend to use a larger pan when we do, and that hob is at the front in ours, which is not ideal. We also have large windows that we can crack even in winter but they won't disperse grease.

(I also chose sub-optimal venting so that I could face where I wanted while I was at the stove. I have never accepted the 70% prep time versus 30% stove time statistic; but whatever percentage of my time that I'm actually standing at the stove, I don't want to face our wall.)

My understanding of ceiling vents is that they're not much better than downdraft but it's been awhile since I researched. I hear good things about the Cattura Best downdraft but it wasn't available when we were renovating.

Thank you...had never thought of the configuration of the induction elements in relation to the cooktop. That insight is incredibly helpful, and will definitely influence our choice of cooktop. We got a quote for the 36" Best with a 600 cfm blower today 🙂. May I how tall your downdraft is?

Ours is a Faber, 14" tall and 600 cfm.

Thanks so much. Had also never even thought about the height of the downdraft making a difference - I thought they were all the same. Today, I went a-hunting for the tallest downdraft I could find. Spotted an 18"! 😀

I bet they're making them taller in response to function complaints. Good to know.

It looks a little bit like the Great Wall when it comes up 😄 but it's function over form with this thing I suppose.. Best is also 18".

I will be in this boat soon, so I’m paying attention to these threads.

Doesn’t the downdraft take up a lot of cabinet space? Could you not install a vent hood over the island? We have a single story house, so I think this will be an option for us. I might prefer this to losing a lot of island cabinet space.

It’s a preference but I don't like a hood protruding over the island. There are ceiling vents that mount flush to the ceiling but i have a 2-story home and structural issues keep me from using those. So the downdraft works best for me, especially since my island is big enough and I’ll just be using cabinet space that would have otherwise gone wasted.