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thisishishouse

Double ovens: useful or eye-candy?

thisishishouse
10 years ago

For those of you with double ovens, how often do you actually need/use both ovens? Does the frequency justify the extra cost?

Comments (13)

  • stevep2005
    10 years ago

    We have the Thermador 30" dual convection ovens and have been very happy for the seven or so years we have owned them. Did not get a warming drawer but our VAH has duel heat lamps so between those and often having an oven free (there are warm and proof modes), we get by fine without a warming draw

    We use the heck out of our ovens. I am often baking four 5+qt dutch oven no-kneed breads at a time using both ovens, and run two large pizza stones at a time per oven when we have other families over. We keep our house pretty cool in the winter which is not conducive to effective proofing - and I make bread and pizza dough often, so having two ovens allows me to proof (sometimes 12-24 hrs) while still having an oven for traditional daily uses. Two ovens are critical around the holidays, both for the initial barrage of baking and roasting at different temps, modes, and times, and then holding completed dishes at temp and warming dishes family bring over. And we are often producing large batches of cookies, cupcakes, or bread with both ovens for school fundraisers or events, so duel ovens are key to getting them cooked and out the door without taking up the whole day.

    When we planned our kitchen I did not have a grasp on how useful or how often two ovens would come into play, but after seven+ years with it, there's no way I would have a kitchen without dual ovens again.

    So I think it comes down to how much you cook, what you cook, and how often you entertain. Well, and budget.

  • Fori
    10 years ago

    A few times a year they are great. I've been without them and had to do Thanksgiving sides in a toaster oven (there are some great countertop ovens now though so it's actually a decent option).

    Currently I don't have a double, but I have a range oven and a small (24") wall oven and the versatility is great. I'll replicate the combo in my remodel. Usually I don't need a big oven. Usually I only need one. The other tends to store cookie sheets (not a bad place for potatoes either).

    So, I can do without two same-size ovens because I don't do mass baking, but having 2 sizes is handy more often than having two to use at the same time...

    So, it really does depends on how you cook.

  • ChristyMcK
    10 years ago

    I think it depends on how much you cook. I always thought I'd enjoy a double oven and when we bought our house, our kitchen range came with a double oven. We use it often to bake/roast two things that need different temperatures. I love having two ovens and use them often enough that our new appliances will include two ovens (and a warming drawer but that's another story). I would think about how often when your cook you feellike having two ovens would be helpful.

    If it's not that often you could always get a small Breville or Cuisinart countertop oven. At $300 it's not a bad price for a second oven. I don't have either but people seem to like theirs.

  • rhome410
    10 years ago

    We bake a lot, and have a big family. Additionally, a couple in our family have special dietary needs, so fix different meals. So we use both ovens quite often.

  • nycbluedevil
    10 years ago

    I second everything that fori said except that I don't store cookie sheets or potatoes in the big oven!

    I have a BS 36" range so the oven is really big. I also have a Miele 24" speed oven. I use the speed oven most of the time when it's just the two of us, but when I make a more complicated meal, I invariably use the range oven too.

    In addition to needing two ovens, I enjoy having the two separate ovens (as opposed to a double oven stack on a wall) for a few reasons: (1) they operate independently so I don't have the "one breaks, the whole thing is out of commission problem" that others talk about, (2) I have one gas oven and one electric oven--I like using them for different things sometimes, (3) the gas oven is under the hood so I can better vent food that might be smoky or smelly, (4) having the range oven is really convenient for dishes that get finished off in the oven and (5) I don't have to take up wall space with a deep oven cabinet.

  • wekick
    10 years ago

    It is strictly a matter of how you use your oven.
    I have had a single oven for many years and was always wrangling things to make it work. I always wanted two ovens. I have two now and occasionally would like three! I use them when needing to cook things at two different temperatures or when cooking a large amount of food at one time. I had a thirty inch range with a small upper oven for awhile and used to have a counter top oven much bigger than a toaster oven before this remodel. It was great because you could bake outside in the summer.

  • rwiegand
    10 years ago

    If your "cooking" is done primarily in the microwave then they are eye candy. 350 days a year we get by just fine with one oven, on the other 15 days I'd really love to have a second. There were other things we needed more in the space, so we live with one. One day I'll probably put an old electric range in the basement to fill in on those big cooking days.

    Talk about eye candy, we bought a "used" kitchen out of a house being remodeled, the appliances were 6-8 years old and seemingly had never been used. The sellers were doubling the size of their kitchen to include two 60" Wolf ranges and two enormous sub-zero refrigerators. Apparently this was for the benefit of the caterers, as there was no evidence the old kitchen had ever been used for cooking. (A great deal for us though!)

  • crl_
    10 years ago

    My mom has them and has used them a lot. She cooks nearly all their meals at home and she also has historically done mass baking.

    In our last kitchen I put in a range with a single oven and a baking drawer in the bottom and a wall Advantium, which was my microwave, as well as a convection oven and a speed cooker. So I effectively got three-ish ovens into a fairly small kitchen at a decent price point (the Advantium isn't cheap, but it's not super high end and combined with the mid-priced range it was a good value overall). That combination worked extremely well for me and I would gladly duplicate it if possible in our next kitchen remodel (we moved).

  • lynette1107
    9 years ago

    I had double ovens in my former home and loved them. My husband is a self-proclaimed foodie who prefers home cooking, and with the double ovens I was able to "cook ahead" quite a bit. It saves so much time to have that option.

    We've been in a rental for a while and I've missed the double ovens more than anything in my former kitchen.

    We are building now and I am getting double ovens again, and so look forward to using them. I will never be without them in the future!

  • maire_cate
    9 years ago

    I've had double ovens for over 25 years and use them frequently. When we remodel we'll still install double ovens but rather than having double wall ovens with one set of controls I'll have 2 individual ovens -each with their own control panel. That way if I'm having issues with one I can still use the other oven.

    It will be more expensive and take a little more space but we have the room for it.

  • Errant_gw
    9 years ago

    I love mine and would never go back to a single!

  • johns.coastal.patio
    9 years ago

    FWIW, we need to replace the double oven in time for Thanksgiving, and that is also the last time we had both on at once.

  • alex9179
    9 years ago

    In my last house I had a double oven range. Loved it, especially the little oven. We were only two and that little oven took care of a lot of dishes for us.

    Now, I have a 27" single wall oven, a Breville toaster oven, and a Nesco for our family of 5. I use all three but the first two are used several times a week. The Nesco will be in use a lot this summer, out on the deck, so that I don't have to heat up the house when the family wants meatloaf or lasagna ;) The toaster oven may end up out there, once in a while, too.
    Having 2 portable ovens gives me a lot of flexibility, so I don't think I'd care for doubles that are the same size.

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