Built in ovens

getcarter

I had Wickes round today to measure up and quote for a new kitchen, I said I wanted a built in double oven and also a built in microwave, he started talking about getting a single oven and a microwave / grill.

Is this a good idea or not?

pinkteapot

Do you have a double oven currently and, if so, how often do you use both ovens simultaneously (e.g. on different temperatures)?

If you currently have a single oven, how often are you wishing you had two?

Answers to the above determine whether you want a double oven and a separate microwave, sacrificing cupboard space, or are happy to sacrifice an oven for a microwave.

Personally, so long as I had a bit of worktop space for it, I would always just stick to a freestanding microwave. They are dirt cheap to replace when they break (unlike built-in ones). We hardly ever use our microwave so it sits on the top in the utility room.

SUESMITH_2

we had a new kitchen last year and i went for a built in double oven and kept my old microwave as its an expensive Panasonic one.

i do a lot of cooking and wouldn't have been able to manage with a single oven and built in microwave, plus built in ones seems to be smaller inside than free standing ones

Gloomendoom

How about a single oven and a combination grill/convection/microwave oven? We have one and it works very well.

getcarter

Gloomendoom wrote: »

How about a single oven and a combination grill/convection/microwave oven? We have one and it works very well.

Sorry, that's what he was suggesting, he threw me totally with this, I'd never heard of on before!:)

Ms_Chocaholic

I always think built in microwaves look odd and are often at an odd height to get hot food items out of. I'm glad to have my worktop microwave so when I grab out the dish of hot baked beans and find they're too hot I can put them quickly on the worktop, if it was built in I'd always have burnt fingers or a baked bean covered floor.

In terms of double oven; I couldn't manage with a single.

lil.smartie

We have a single oven & combi microwave works well, I even downsized to a 3 ring hob & even cooking Christmas dinner for 6 we had no issues with space!

Kate

katejo

There was a comment on MSE only last week which recommended the choice of a single oven together with warming drawer over the double oven. it argued that Bosch (and also Neff i think) only made double ovens for the UK market and that their best features were in single ovens.
This surprised me. I have just had my kitchen done and chose a Bosch double oven mainly because I wanted the grill to be separate from the oven. I wanted to be able to grill meat or fish while baking an accompanying dish. I didn't see any ovens with an accompanying warming drawer. I did see ones with a microwave but definitely didn't want one of those as I don't like them. I never use one.

ryder72

While its true that double ovens are made only for the UK market (Europe has moved on to single ovens combined where necessary with compact or combination-ovens) and Miele do not make double ovens any longer, I don't agree that double ovens are made with lesser features.

If you look at the main players in this market (BSH and AEG/Electrolux), all their top spec double ovens feature the main cavity with all or almost all of the features found in their top spec single ovens. The smaller cavity is often lower spec and I don't necessarily see this as a problem as most people want this for grilling or a backup oven cavity.

There is no doubt that a single combined with a compact or combination oven is a much better alternative to a double oven with a microwave, I don't agree that a single oven with a warming drawer is a meaningful substitute to a double oven.

Miele push this concept with their 29cm warming drawers calling the warming drawer a 'sous-chef' and I personally think its a bit delusional of them to get people to think that a warming drawer is goes very far towards being an oven.

CKdesigner

Hi Ryder72

Ah! But the most important feature you don't get on double ovens though do you?

I can't remember the last time we sold an oven that was non pyrolytic.

CK

ryder72

I know DeDietrich do some double ovens with pyrolitic cleaning but its not a product I would touch.

Its remarkable how we are only 25 miles apart and yet we sell an a lot of Neff and our clients absolutely love the slideaway doors preferring it over pyrolitic cleaning perhaps on a 5-1 ratio.

Personally I'd have the pyro over the slideaway but with all makes combining ovens with compacts makes things just a little bit complicated.