Thanks, Weissman. I know I should have caught it earlier--it just never occured to me that he wouldn't follow the specs and build to the manufacturer suggestion. Now, I see that there are a number of things that changed without my OK. Some are OK and some are not--and one that's not is going to now cost me $200 to have fixed. It's a small thing, but it's going to bug me forever. (pop out garbage under the prep sink) We are at the end of the remodel and running very low on funds--and the builder can rightly say "you had these cabs in your house for a whole week before the appliances were delivered and you never noticed"? And he would be right--I thought that the drawer was rather large, but not having ever had wall ovens, it didn't occur to me to go back and check those specs. I can actually reach in and get things without hitting the door, but it's close and I have to be careful. I'm just mad at him for not following the specs and at myself for not realizing it until after the ovens went in. There's just so much going on right now in our lives, it's just one more thing on the pile.

I will definately let them know, but I'm not going to hold out a whole lot of hope that anything will be done about it without great cost to us. Worst case scenario, the bottom oven may become the primary oven with the top one in use for a warming oven or holidays, or extra bread baking (which is why I got the doubles to begin with!) The problem with that is that my 12 year old has already called 'dibs' on that one and I might have to wait in line for it!

Cj

The fact that you had an empty cabinet in your house for a week without realizing how high the oven would be until the oven was actually installed is not your fault and it shouldn't cost you to correct it. Have you closed on the house yet? If not you have a lot of leverage with the builder.

It sounds like they made the cabinet wrong. It happens. I would present the whole list of what they did without your OK and very sweetly agree to let them fix only the really bad/dangerous ones for free.

I wanted my ovens high, but they have a side opening door. I asked for the separation to be around chest high on me, because the upper oven is small, and I wanted the lower oven to be as close to waist high as possible. I wish it could have been higher. Reaching up without a door or range in the way isn't bad. Reaching up and across can be dangerous. This really should be fixed.

Just a thought...you might want to check if there's any local code that would reference this. It does seem like a safety hazard, and if it's against code, you could rely on the final inspection to force them to make it right.

Just for reference - the top of the stack of my wall ovens is at 67" off the floor. From what I read that is pretty standard (some installation instruction manuals show that as typical). I'm 5' 8" tall, and that height feels fine to me.

You could also say you noticed, but just didn't realize it would be such a problem until you cooked in it.

I would at least talk with him about it. There maybe a legit reason why it was that way, or he might say--oh wow my employees messed up--let me fix it.

FWIW-I just measured mine and my bottom oven is 19.5 from the floor.

Here's a pic of mine. We installed it so the top oven's handle would be just a little more then shoulder height reach for me (5' tall). I believe the bottom oven is about 12" off the floor. Perfect for me.

The bottom of my ovens is 12" off the floor. The top of the stack comes at 64". I'm 5'9" and it works for me.

I agree that you should not be responsible for this if it was not done according to your plans.

I too have Electrolux double ovens and they are set only a few inches lower than yours. I can honestly say that I didn't check the height on my cabinet plans nor did I check the oven specs. I just assumed the builder, cabinet maker or designer would make sure they were "right." (ha - my fault) Ideally, I'd prefer them a few inches lower, but they are fine for me (I'm 5'7"). I do like that I can store cookie sheets upright and large tall pots in the lower drawer. It also makes the lower oven more comfortable to use.

Not only is the oven high too reach in, but then the controls and readouts are pretty high, too. Not great for your kids. This is a function, ergonomic, and safety issue, and I'd try to get it fixed now. I had mine set so the controls and readouts are approx at eye level.

I have nothing to say about your oven but...
I watched a movie called The Game Plan with my kids. The main character is a famous football player. His expensive high end kitchen had wall ovens where the top oven was at his height if not higher. It looked really rediculous.

I thought GW folks would see the humor of movie kitchens that would never work in real life.

I think you should get it fixed.

Be careful, CJ. This sounds unacceptably dangerous to me, not to mention very inconvenient. I hope you'll talk to the cabinet person and try to get it fixed...I think you owe it to yourself and the cabinet person to speak up...as others have said, the mistake may be unintended, but in any case, they ought to fix it.

A "shorty" (5'3") chiming in--the top of my double wall oven sits at 65" which works fine for me. When the oven door is open it aligns about counter height and the bottom of the ovens is about 15" off the floor. This is an old oven, and how far off the floor would depend on your particular oven specs, but I would think that there is a standard for how high to install an oven. 73" would make an oven useless for me. I know you said it is not too bad for you, but if you ever plan to resell it could be an issue. I would definitely ask for this to be fixed--at their expense.

Another electrolux double oven person, and ours are 17" from the bottom and 65" at the very top.

Hi everyone--I just got in and I really appreciate all the encouragement! I spoke to my builder this morning and he's going to remedy the situation. The specs for the ovens recommend 11.5 inches from the floor, so I'm guessing that's what they'll do. Since I was never consulted about this and didn't notice till it was done and the ovens were in, I may not have a voice in where they actually end up, but I'm considering advocating for 15 inches, as that seems to be a good height for a lot of people who are about my height. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks so much for all the encouragement. I really do appreciate it.

Cheryl

Hi Cheryl,

I have electrolux double wall ovens as well. I am 5'8' and the top of my top oven is at 72 inches. For me, I love this height. When I stand in front of the oven and reach my my arm straight out, it is between the top and middle rack which feels good to me. And I love that the lower oven is at a nice place to use as well and I don't have to bend down as far. Good luck with getting a remedy to your situation!

Glad to know this will be fixed/improved!