If you're updating your kitchen so you can enjoy the convenience of a cooktop and wall oven over a standard stove, you'll need the help of a residential electrician to get your new appliances installed. Here are a few things to think about before calling an electrician to hook up your new wall oven and cooktop.
Deal With The Old Wiring
Depending on how your current stove is set up, you might want to put the cooktop or range in the same location. Electrical wiring is already present, and that might help with installation costs. Plus, there may already be an exhaust hood over your old stove, and you may want to use that for your cooktop.
If you want to move your cooktop and wall oven elsewhere, then think about what to do with the old oven outlet. If your old oven had a plug rather than being hardwired, you may want the electrician to remove the plug so you can install a bottom cabinet in place of your old stove.
Think About An Island
An island is a good place for a cooktop, but it does have special wiring considerations. Electrical codes regulate how cooktops should be installed and where outlets can be placed on an island. A residential electrician will follow these codes, but if your island will be new, the electrician will have to run new wiring to the island.
This gives you a chance to have extra outlets installed too, so you can use the island for other small kitchen appliances as you cook. You can also have a sink installed near the cooktop, and codes regulate the positioning when a sink and cooktop are near each other. The codes are in place to keep you safe while making your kitchen island convenient to use.
Have A Place Ready For The Wall Oven
You might get a contractor to convert a cabinet or build a custom piece for your wall oven. A wall oven usually has to be hardwired to comply with codes. Your electrician may want to rough-in the new wiring before the cabinet is installed and then complete the hookup to the junction box as a final step in installing the oven.
Your electrician also has to consider if you'll have a double oven, an oven and warmer drawer, or a microwave installed above the oven. It's a good idea to talk to the electrician before renovations start, so you know the exact points you need to stop to let the electrician install wiring and anything else that will be needed when it's time to put in your new appliances.