Don't know if you have already made your decision, but I would actually describe the burners opposite of idrive65. Front to back to me describes the direction the burners run front to back with them left right and perhaps several in the center. That means that for indirect heat (slow cooking for ribs, brisket, whole poultry and large meats) you can use one or two burners on one end and cook on the opposite end, one on either end and cook in the center, use the center burner(s) and cook on wither side -- gives you options and full use of the front to back grill space. With side to side (not side by side) are burners going across from one side to the other where you have one front back and center. For indirect heat, your options are to use the back only or the front and back and cook in the center. You have the full width of the grill to cook, but less room front to back and the heat may be less indirect for whatever you are cooking. Webber has 3 different types of grates and different stores may carry one or two. Cast iron sears (may give a bit more char flavor) and retains heat well but rusts most easily (they suggest not cleaning after cooking so that the oils from cooking protect the grates until you preheat and burn them off when you cook the next time). Porcelain coated have protection from rusting, but some may feel they don't retain heat and sear as well as cast iron. We've used both and never had any complaint with the porcelain-- the rust factor probably makes it a better choice in our climate). Stainless is an option that comes standard on the higher end Summit grills or as an option or additional purchase for the Genesis. I've cooked on the other ones so long I wasn't sure about the stainless even though the rust proof definitely appealed in our humid climate. We were thinking about it when I realized the charcoal grills I've used all have stainless grates and the Summit ones were heavier and should do even better. So far, they've been working very well. I can cook happily with any of the grates, but the use of space -- having enough, being able to use it efficiently for large of small cooking needs and having it arranged well for what you want to cook would be what I would focus on. The burner direction matters most if you pile charcoal to one side and cook on the other. If you usually place evenly across the bottom, it may not matter to you at all. Have fun looking and hope you find one you enjoy.

That's one of the big discussions on many threads here. The open burners are liked by those who appreciate being able to take things apart to thoroughly clean each piece, and spills and crumbs are allowed to fall through rather than sit on the surface right under the grate and burn on. The flame goes straight up, instead of out to the side, so some will argue that it's more efficient, and better on smaller pans,since the flame will come up underneath, rather than up the outsides. The BlueStar has very open (and star-shaped for efficiency) burners and Wolf offers both sealed and their version of the open burner, which is sometimes referred to as 'semi-sealed', or is it 'semi-open,' because there are tighter tolerances than on the BlueStar, so it's kind of in-between...Not everything can fall through and lands in a kind of a bowl right under the burner. With open burners, you can take components over to the sink for scrubbing and soaking. With sealed, you just scrub and wipe in place. I've read that they often stain or collect gunk right around the burner. Others love the sealed, don't want to take their cooktops apart, and say a bit of Barkeeper's Friend deals with anything that's baked on or trying to stain. This is just a quick synopsis of what I remember from the many discussions I've read. I have no experience myself with either one, but will soon. I wish I could try both for awhile to know which I really prefer, but that, of course, is not an option. You can go to the appliance forum page, go to the bottom and do a search for sealed or open burners and probably get links to many, many previous threads to read.

Have 36" Wolf with grill and 600CFM VH. 1. Would not sacrifice grill for 2 more burners at all. Like the grill way too much. 2. Blanket hood CFM recommendations are pretty much useless--much depends on hood size, configuration, duct run, brand and how surrounding area (kitchen size, cabinets, walls etc.) direct airflow. Ours works well; fish is probably the mildest offender in terms of smoke and odor. If it's a wall mount and flanked by cabinets in a typical NYC galley kitchen that should enhance its efficiency. I'm assuming you'll be externally venting: Given that different apartments can have different ducting connections I'd find out what those are first (e.g., shared stack, max ducting size, etc.) These can make a hood either more or less effective as they determine what the hood has to push against to exhaust ("static pressure" in the trade). Once you find that out try calling the hood manufacturers' customer service lines and see if you can talk with a tech rep. If you can externally exhaust and the kitchen space you'll be amazed at how much cooler the kitchen stays, especially when you're using the oven. Those small kitchens get really hot even with a window open. My $.02 worth.

Thank you very much for your post davidtay. 1. A LED lamp/ strip is more than just the emitters soldered onto some wires (or copper tubing) that are in turn connected to some power supply. My bundled figure for transformers, driver circuits, and wiring may have been a little low, but I think it's close. I didn't break it out b/c I was already a little long-winded. :) I did leave out the cost of copper, though; I'm not sure that's the way I want to go anyway. 2. The LEDs will need to be powered at the voltage (and current) ranges specified by the manufacturer, which may not be 48V. The current might have to be lower than 1A for the sake of longevity. Right, the particular one I mention can be driven at 2A, but it'll last a lot longer at 300mA. I was thinking about driving it at about 700mA. Of course, I would have to design/purchase a driver that will, among other things, step down voltage if necessary and supply the right current to drive at the proper amperage. And, of course, the things burn brighter at 2A than at 300mA, but last longer at 300mA, meaning that you have to buy more to achieve the desired lumens. Definitely a balancing act. 4. The BOM cost goes down when millions of devices are built. However, the manufacturers, especially for something as hot as LEDs, and requiring as much design expertise as they do, set their markups liberally, too. Still, the case can be made (elsewhere) for the value of a purpose-built custom system, when it comes to LEDs, and that case has been made elsewhere, so I won't belabor the point. 5. The wiring and power supply setup for an extensive low voltage system will probably be a significant undertaking. There will be significant design, ... and regulatory hurdles (i.e. - building code) to clear. I believe in most jurisdictions electric code compliance starts at 50V. Anything you do under 50V DC you're welcome to without constraint. Of course code has to apply to the transformers, but generally not after that. At least, those are some of the motivations I've been riding on when trying to decide whether or not to do this.