What Is Island Hob? History Of Island Hob In 10 Milestones

· 6 min read
What Is Island Hob? History Of Island Hob In 10 Milestones

Including a Hob to Your Kitchen Island

Having a hob in your island includes an interesting focal point to the room and works truly well with open-plan kitchen ideas. It likewise allows you to see what is cooking and motivates social interaction whilst food is being prepared.

It is essential to ensure that you adhere to gas regulations by having a clear area of 30cm or 15cm on either side of the hob for safety and workspace. You'll likewise need to consider ventilation and extraction.
1. Space

A hob on an island can add an additional level of function and make the kitchen a central hub for your home. It can likewise assist you create a more liveable space and conserve room that might have been taken up by sinks or cabinets.

Choosing to position your hob on an island can also open up a variety of storage choices and give you a work surface area that is versatile, adaptable, and simple to tidy. Nevertheless, it's essential to keep in mind that a hob will take up important countertop space. This can limit the amount of area you have for other activities like meal prep and serving. In addition, a hob on an island can result in more visible splatters and mess, making it harder to keep the location looking beautiful.

It's important to bear in mind that when you set up a hob on your island, you might need to consider ventilation and extraction systems. This can consist of aspirating hoods connected to the ceiling, downdraft extractors that increase out of the island when not in usage, and filters developed into the hob itself. This can include to the cost and intricacy of setting up an island hob, but it's essential for making sure adequate ventilation to prevent poisonous gases, such as carbon monoxide, from developing in the kitchen.

One of the greatest benefits of having a hob on an island is that you can separate it from the sink. By doing so, you can centre your sink and develop outwards from either side of it to achieve proportion and balance in the general style. This can help to eliminate some of the visual clutter from the area that can often be brought on by having a sink on an island, including dishcloths, washing-up liquid, tea towels, etc.

It's also worth remembering that you will need to ensure that your hob is a safe range away from completion of your unit run and any high units for safety and policies purposes. Conrad advises a minimum of 60cm from the end of your island to a high cabinet.
2. Social

A central hob in your kitchen island can produce a social hub, motivating visitors and member of the family to interact while the cook prepares meals. This can work specifically well if you have an open-plan living space and kitchen. In regards to performance, putting your hob in the island can also make meal preparation more streamlined and efficient, permitting you to keep other locations of the kitchen totally free from mess.

Another benefit of an island hob is that it can offer you more exposure of what you're doing, making it simpler to watch on your cooking and prevent spills or splashes. Nevertheless, this can be a drawback for some people as it can expose the cook to a great deal of distractions and noise.

For this reason, many individuals select to have their sink in the island separate from the hob, lowering the amount of devices they have on screen and creating a more streamlined kitchen layout. This is especially popular with Belfast sinks, which can be a stylish addition to your kitchen and help you keep dirty dispense of sight.

Something to keep in mind when planning a kitchen island with a hob is that you'll need to leave sufficient area either side of the cooking area to comply with gas guidelines. In order to avoid mistakenly touching the flame or the hot surface area, you'll require a minimum of 30cm on each side for gas hobs and 15cm for induction hobs.

In the case of kitchen islands with a hob, you'll also require to consider your kitchen ventilation choices, as it's essential to have sufficient ventilation in an open-plan kitchen. For this, it's generally recommended that you set up a cooker hood directly above the hob, which will supply more reliable ventilation and avoid the accumulation of smoke, steam and cooking smells. These hoods can either vent directly to the exterior through a window or recirculate filtered air back into the space.  island hoods kitchen  is also a good option for kitchen areas with an island hob, as it offers more powerful ventilation than standard extractor fans.
3. Storage

A kitchen island can be a table or food prep surface area however also plays host to your hob and sink. This produces a social hub to captivate visitors and household whilst you cook and clean, and is a great method to optimise area by eliminating the requirement for base cabinets against walls.

Nevertheless, this does entail the added obstacle of guaranteeing sufficient ventilation and extraction for cooking fumes. An island hob requires to be fitted with a hood that effectively catches smoke and odours at the source, and is developed with streamlined and integrated functionality to suit seamlessly with your island style.

Depending upon your kitchen style and personal choice, you can select a vented hob that requires a different extractor hood or surface-based alternatives like a glass draft hood that sits flush with the induction hob to form a trendy and inconspicuous installation. Guarantee that you pick a venting hob with the appropriate size and ventilation power to suit your island cooktop, taking into account design compatibility with your kitchen design, electrical or gas connections, and any structural modifications required.

Additionally, you could think about an open shelving solution that's tucked into the island overhang, as this can be a beautiful centerpiece for your kitchen style. This can be a great method to showcase stunning wooden boards, reactive glaze-ware dishware or artisanal glass wares and adds charm to your homely kitchen. This design of storage works particularly well for smaller kitchen areas, as it doesn't need a great deal of space and is easy to keep neat with a couple of carefully curated bits and pieces on program instead of a mess of utensils in a cupboard. If you aren't an overall minimalist, set up some hooks under the overhang of your island to dangle mugs and valued cooking utensils from to offer the space a personalised touch.
4. Security

A hob put on an island is perfect for producing a dedicated cooking location while keeping your kitchen open and social. It can also be utilized to increase performance by enabling the cook to interact with visitors or household seated around the table while food is being prepared.

Just like all kitchen devices, safety is a crucial issue when setting up an island hob. The hob should be placed at an appropriate height to avoid mishaps and guarantee that it is not too near to other flammable products. For added comfort, select a hob with security features such as hot-plate indicators and a power cut off switch. If you are utilizing your island for seating, ensure that there suffices space behind the hob so that anyone taking a seat does not get too near to any hot pans.

Ventilation is also a crucial consideration when preparing an island hob, and there are a range of alternatives available to meet your needs. For example, a venting hob incorporates ventilation straight into the cooktop for a smooth and unobtrusive style. This option is ideal for decreasing steam and odours while cooking, making your kitchen more comfortable and practical to utilize.

There are also wall mounted extractors that can be incorporated into a wall above the hob, providing reliable ventilation without affecting on your kitchen's decoration or obscuring the view of your island. You could even opt for a downdraft extractor, which is set up underneath the surface of the hob and pulls air down through ducting in the ceiling.


If you pick to install a gas hob on your island, it's vital that it is correctly set up by a Gas Safe engineer. In addition, you must ensure that there is sufficient clearance area on either side of the hob to avoid tripping or unintentional spills. Lastly, when choosing your counter top, go with a resilient material that can endure heat and wetness.