# Question about a home range



## meatwonk (Jun 2, 2006)

So, I'm a reformed pro cook, I spent lotsa years line-cooking and sous-chefing and decided I'd had enough... I now run a botiquish (is that a word?) butchery... Finally having $$$ and time at the same time is fantastic, so I'm putting an addition on the house this summer, including a whole new kitchen... Here's the question... I know all the good arguments for not using a commercial range at home, but I HATE consumer burners... I haven't found a consumer range that has the power to really brown large pieces of meat, they just end up slowly boiling the juice out of it... So, what to do? I could easily set myself up for a commerical range, it wouldn't be too hard to build everything around the stove area out of fireproof materials, AND, I have a nice old 6 burner garland at my store right now that I could stand upgrade to a 10, mainly to get another oven(we make and sell stocks), so I'd have a good range and a hood... 

But what are my other options, are there any consumer ranges that make real heat? Anyone here modify a consumer model to get more out of it? I'd really rather have an insulated stove and not have my home kitchen look like a work kitchen, but I cant figure out what else to do??


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## deltadoc (Aug 15, 2004)

I have struggled with this same question for over 12 years. I remodeled my kitchen using a Thermador Professional Gas Cooktop with 4 burners, a grill and a griddle all rated at 15K BTU.

The grill is pretty useless, the griddle is ok since its 1/2" thick stainless steel and has a temp control so I can get it up to 450 or more F.

But, I keep wishing I'd have put in a commercial 60" Wolf while they were still available already insulated for home use. Can't get them new anymore, only the commercial grade (I'm told because of people having insufficient exhaust and make-up air for a powerful commercial grade residential unit).

I'd go with having the commerical range fireproofed regardless of whether it looked like a work kitchen or not. Actually, "looking like a work kitchen" and "cooking like a real work kitchen" sounds cool. Better than "Pro-model" stoves that look like the real thing but are not able to cook like the "real" thing.

Go for the real thing!

doc


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## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

That paretty much sums it up. The commercial range builders won't make "residential" ranges with high BTU oputputs because of fear of lawyers and lawsuits, and because many homeowners neglect to or purposely don't have the proper firewalls, insulation and venting.

Before you go for the gusto and get the venting system firewalls, etc, check with your gasfitter if the residential gas line you have is sufficient for a commercial unit that will draw, um lets see, 25,000 btu's per burner x 10 and then each oven will take 40,000, thats um, well alot of btus....


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## meatwonk (Jun 2, 2006)

Yeah, that's kinda what I had figured... I live out in the sticks, so run on propane, so the gas draw problem is as easy as using the same fat gas line we have at the store... 

What about european stuff? Do they have the same restrictions over there? AGA's and the like? I don't want a real-deal AGA with the radiant cookers 'cause I'm an old dog and like my open flames, but maybe they have hotter burners....

We'll see...


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## mezzaluna (Aug 29, 2000)

Wasn't there a question in this forum earlier about putting in a commerical vent system in a home? It related to furnace operations, air circulation in a house vs. a commercial property, using such a system in a closed, well-insulated home in winter, etc.

Just my $.02


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