A 36″ gas Cooktop provides ample space for additional pots and pans while cooking. They provide up to 6 burners which vary in size for small pots to large pots and frying pans. Standard sizes for the 36″ cooktops are 21″ in depth by 36″ across.

30” Gas Downdraft cooktops can be a little small for some people so smart companies have began to produce 36” gas downdraft cooktops as well. These offer a little more room for the big pots and pans and often also include an extra burner. If you entertain often or cook large meals this would probably be a better choice for you.

Top Four 30 and 36 Inches Gas Cooktop Reviews

A 30 inch width cooktop seems to be a good choice for most people. In this space there is enough room for you to easily fit 4 burners, and I don’t know many people who need more than that in their home and if you do there are always bigger options such as a 36” gas downdraft cooktop which will offer a little more space for big pots and pans.

Jenn-Air Stainless Steel 30″ Gas Downdraft Cooktop

If you don’t need a cooktop that you can move around, a great choice is the Jenn-Air Stainless Steel 30″ Gas Downdraft Cooktop. As I have said before Jenn-Air makes the best performing ventilation system in the industry. It features a three speed fan so you can adjust the airflow based on how much smoke/odor/grease/whatever it is giving off and it is convertible so you don’t have to have it connected to a duct for ventilation.

This cooktop has 4 burners each with a different BTU output, they range from 5000 to 17000 BTUs. It also has a interesting feature. It can sense when the flame is going, and if it notices that the flame has gone out the ignition system will automatically reignite the flame. The burners are all sealed to clean up will be a breeze and all of the things you can remove are dishwasher safe. Even the knobs can easily be removed and put in the dishwasher. It has pretty standard burner control options, if you know how to use a stove you should have no trouble adjusting to this cooktop.

GE Profile 30″ Built-In Gas Downdraft Cooktop

GE also has a 30″ gas downdraft cooktop. This one really has a lot in common with the previously mentioned Jenn-Air gas downdraft cooktop. The most obvious difference is the way they look, and lets face it. We want our kitchens to look a certain way most of the time. I really like it when my appliances match, atleast in color.

This burner comes in black while the Jenn-Air was made out of unpainted stainless steel(which honestly had a kind of brushed-aluminum look to it). One of the things this model does have over the Jenn-Air is that it has a single piece ceramic glass surface. This will make it very very easy to clean. There are no nooks or cranies things can get stuck in because the entire thing is one piece (with burners and grates sticking out above it of course). Burners are also sealed to further avoid messes and the grates are removable and dishwasher safe. The grates are also made out of high quality cast iron materials.

Thermador Masterpiece Deluxe Series

Thermador makes a 36” cooktop that caught my eye. It is advertised for having a breakthrough burner layout. It has 5 burners arranged in a way I have never seen before. 4 burners are on the outside of the stove like you are used to seeing, but this cooktop has a large burner in the middle as well. It could certainly be useful for really big pots when cooking something like pasta. However, I have no idea how this setup would actually work out in practice. It does look like it would provide better accomodation for several different sized pots and pans at the same time but would the center burner get in the way of the side burners? Would the back burners be even harder to get to when cooking multiple items?

They also advertise that the star shaped burner designs help spreading heat out evenly. It certainly sounds interesting to me. When combined with their burners potential 15,000 BTU output, if it actually does spread the head further and more evenly I imagine you could boil water at unprecedented speeds (among other things). The thing I don’t particularly like about this cooktop is that Thermador expects you to buy the downdraft system separately. I would personally prefer if it was integrated into the cooktop or at the very least included in the price. I imagine this might work out better for someone who already has a downdraft system in their kitchen.

Jenn-Air gas downdraft

I must say, they have quite the reputation and a good looking product line to go with it. Like their 30 inch model, their 36 inch model is also made out of stainless steel that resembles brushed aluminum. I really like the way it looks. It doesn’t look like this design would be nearly as easy to clean as say GE’s designs which feature a single piece of ceramic glass. Jenn-Air has the great advantage of having the best performing ventilation system. They call it the JX3 Downdraft Ventilation system. It can be used with a duct or without and features an adjustable 3 speed fan and a duct free filter.

This stovetop has 5 sealed burners (sealing them makes them much easier to clean) which range in output. The large burner on the right is able to put out 17,000 BTUs while the other four range from 5000-15000 BTUs. I’m not entirely sure which is which. The grills, grates, caps, and knobs are all dishwasher safe. The grate is made out of cast iron which has been coated in porcelain. These should hold up for quite some time. Jenn-Air is definitely the leader when it comes to the gas downdraft cooktop niche.

Fuel Source

All gas cooktops can run from the main natural gas grid line. Alternatively, if you do not have a central line connection, the gas cooktops can be adjusted to run on liquid propane instead. Running your cooktops on gas is definitely a cheaper option than its electric counterpart. The only downside to when using the propane tanks is having sufficient room for storage. Your supplier normally runs a service where they will replace the tanks at your home for you.

Advantages of the gas cooktop

• Heating responds more rapidly, setting on high or low.
• Heat is instant, as soon as the burner is on you are ready to start cooking.
• You can use any cookware on gas.
• They are cheaper to run than electric stoves.
• Better fine tuning on the controls as you can alter the burner to your requirements.
• Easy to clean as the grills are removable.
• Provides even heating across the cookware surface.

Features to look out for

As you are looking for a 36″ gas cooktop, there should be at least 5 burners available to use. Depending on where the controls are situated, some cooktops come with a sixth burner.

Automatic ignition is a must as it makes it easier to start the flame. Rather try to have the controls set in front of the stove instead of grouped together on the top. This will allow for a sixth burner on the cooktop.

Burners can now be sealed with a porcelain enamel surface around the surface that is able to collect any spillage. This makes it very easy to clean after cooking.

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