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Stoves and Ovens: Wolf? Thermador? Bluestar? Viking?

cfbuchanan

By cfbuchanan
in Kitchen Consumer

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curls

curls

Posted
Posted
7 hours ago, Norm Matthews said:

Microwave was installed today. It is a little big... or too low... but not so much I can't get used to it, I hope.

20171012_141429.jpg

Indeed! There is not much space between the cooktop and the bottom of the microwave. If you can do without the cabinets that are currently above the microwave, you can move it up quite a bit.

Norm Matthews

Norm Matthews

Posted
Posted
11 hours ago, curls said:

Indeed! There is not much space between the cooktop and the bottom of the microwave. If you can do without the cabinets that are currently above the microwave, you can move it up quite a bit.

My brother-in-law is a contractor. I will ask him about what it will take to move it up.

http://normmatthews.blogspot.com/

rotuts

rotuts

Posted
Posted

@Norm Matthews 

 

how hard or how much work is installing a new micro above a stove ?

 

Ive had nothing but trouble w contractors.

 

my plain vanilla GE seems to no longer work on defrost.

 

its not the end of the world

 

I just do a series of 5 sec regular ' bursts '

 

on my micro defrost involved selecting a lower power level

Norm Matthews

Norm Matthews

Posted
Posted (edited)

@rotutsThe appliance store where I got it, delivered and installed it. It took two guys and about 45 minutes  and involved, in my case, shutting off the electricity, converting direct wiring to a double 110 outlet and installing it in the cabinet over the microwave.  Mine didn't require any venting installation.

 

PS. If you look up a microwave you are interested in, some sites list the installation manual so you can see what is involved in the one you like.

 

Edited by Norm Matthews (log)
  • Like 1

http://normmatthews.blogspot.com/

weedy

weedy

Posted
Posted

It's not terribly tricky if you are reasonably "handy". 

The tricky bit is in supporting a large heavy item while you're marking screws and screwing it into place etc. without two  people to hold it. 

 

I put out my Range hood in myself and it was a major pain. 

  • 2 weeks later...
quiet1

quiet1

Posted
Posted
On 10/14/2017 at 12:18 PM, weedy said:

It's not terribly tricky if you are reasonably "handy". 

The tricky bit is in supporting a large heavy item while you're marking screws and screwing it into place etc. without two  people to hold it. 

 

I put out my Range hood in myself and it was a major pain. 

 

'When we got our Miele fridge we had like four BIG guys from the store there to move everything. It was very helpful.

 

Back on topic - my mom is making noises about buying me a 36" range for Christmas as we can fit it and our GE 30" 4 burner is making me nuts. From poking at display models at home shows, we aren't thrilled with the feel of Viking or Wolf (the controls feel kind of wobbly and 'cheap' for the cost and prestige of the range.) But there are still a lot of brands out there - I really want 5-6 burners and no weird shaped fish burner because I wouldn't use it. I can go gas or electric for the oven - our current range is all gas and eventually I got used to the gas oven. I think I still moderately prefer electric, but I'll deal if it means an overall better range.

 

Any brands come to mind as things I MUST check out or that people have had really horrible experiences with? (I've read the thread in the past, but with the way things progress maybe there's something new? Or someone no longer makes the products they sell, they just rebadge?) 

 

(We considered induction but honestly gas is just more fun to cook with. Also I've only seen 5 burner induction.)

 

I want multiple burners because due to my health I'm more likely to cook a lot at once when I'm feeling up to it than to cook with 1-2 pans every day, so with 4 burners I frequently find myself cramped for space and juggling things around. Also, we like to try to make larger batches of things to keep some in the freezer, and basically only one of the burners on the current stove really works for the larger pan, and it completely blocks access to the simmer burner, plus crowds the other front burner, so it's hard to cook anything else if you have a big pot on the stove. (I'd like two ovens also, but can't figure out how to fit that in. Kitchen just isn't big enough for a 48" range and there's no good place for an extra wall oven. Bummer.)

 

I had a Smeg range in England and it worked quite well for me, but that was some time ago so I don't know if that brand is still any good - plus they don't seem to have a local distributor which makes me worry about service calls if there is a problem.

weedy

weedy

Posted
Posted

i would respectfully suggest that unless you've cooked with induction for a bit,  you don't really know what 'fun' it is or isn't.

 

it takes a bit of getting used to, but it also has its advantages. (e.g. I can lift a pot while it's cooking and do a quick wipe underneath and around for spills) and is just as controllable as gas, if not more so.

 

I also don't think you'll fit 6 eyes in a 36" top. 

the problem, to me, with the 5 eye models is that the centre eye invariably takes up some overlap room once you have a pot on it. I don't think it's a terribly practical layout.

a small grill in the centre, between 4 eyes,  is probably more useful, to me.

 

 

MelissaH

MelissaH

Posted
Posted
47 minutes ago, weedy said:

I also don't think you'll fit 6 eyes in a 36" top. 

the problem, to me, with the 5 eye models is that the centre eye invariably takes up some overlap room once you have a pot on it. I don't think it's a terribly practical layout.

a small grill in the centre, between 4 eyes,  is probably more useful, to me.

 

 

We have a 36" GE Monogram dual-fuel range with 6 burners. We opted for that layout, rather than 4 burners with wither a grill or griddle in the middle. I believe all the other high-end manufacturers offer the same choice of configurations. More than once, we've had all 6 burners going at the same time, with 6 different pots.

MelissaH

Oswego, NY

Chemist, writer, hired gun

Say this five times fast: "A big blue bucket of blue blueberries."

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Norm Matthews

Norm Matthews

Posted
Posted
14 hours ago, quiet1 said:

 

 

 

 - I really want 5-6 burners and no weird shaped fish burner because I wouldn't use it.

 I am not wishing to talk you into or out of anything but that is exactly what I said about my stove with a griddle in the middle but now that I have it, I find myself using it almost daily, sometimes multiple times a day.  I toast hamburger buns on it and cook sausage and eggs for example.

 

 

http://normmatthews.blogspot.com/

quiet1

quiet1

Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, weedy said:

i would respectfully suggest that unless you've cooked with induction for a bit,  you don't really know what 'fun' it is or isn't.

 

it takes a bit of getting used to, but it also has its advantages. (e.g. I can lift a pot while it's cooking and do a quick wipe underneath and around for spills) and is just as controllable as gas, if not more so.

 

I also don't think you'll fit 6 eyes in a 36" top. 

the problem, to me, with the 5 eye models is that the centre eye invariably takes up some overlap room once you have a pot on it. I don't think it's a terribly practical layout.

a small grill in the centre, between 4 eyes,  is probably more useful, to me.

 

 

 

I've used induction, I'd be happy with it if it was the option, like in an apartment, but general feeling in the household (based on using both) is a preference for gas right now. I'm not sure why my partner prefers gas - he may be more into the 'alternative cooking option' thing than I am, for example. (With induction if your power goes out, you're stuck. With gas you just need to use a match or something to light it.)

 

6 in a 36" is fairly normal as an option. I do plan on taking my big pot with me to try it out and see how much space I actually have - my old Smeg was 36" with 5 with the big one in the middle, and I don't recall having space problems. (It had a round center one, though, not the oblong fish pan thing. I'm deeply skeptical of the oblong shaped burner since I can't see how it'd fit well on any pans I actually own and use. Maybe a roasting pan but that'll fit just as well across two smaller ones if you're just trying to deglaze. I think some companies stick an oblong burner in so they can say it's 5 and appeal to people who don't actually NEED much more than 2-3 burners anyway.)

 

Grill definitely wouldn't get enough use here. I'm willing to consider a griddle since we do a lot of burgers and eggs and pancakes and other griddle-friendly foods, but I do wonder about ease of cleaning. I also wonder if a griddle could be used as a 'burner' to keep pots warm? Not so much for cooking necessarily but if I just want to hold something while I do other stuff?

quiet1

quiet1

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Norm Matthews said:

 I am not wishing to talk you into or out of anything but that is exactly what I said about my stove with a griddle in the middle but now that I have it, I find myself using it almost daily, sometimes multiple times a day.  I toast hamburger buns on it and cook sausage and eggs for example.

 

 

 

How does it clean? Could you put pots on it if you wanted to mostly just keep them warm or at a very low simmer?

  • Like 1
Norm Matthews

Norm Matthews

Posted
Posted

 

2 hours ago, quiet1 said:

 

How does it clean? Could you put pots on it if you wanted to mostly just keep them warm or at a very low simmer?

 It lifts off and cleans in the sink quite easily. An extra is one that you could order is made of cast iron and reversible. The standard one is non stick aluminum If you wanted to use it for other pots, (on mine) you could get as an extra, a grate for pots. Mine has 5 burners. One is 1800 btu, one is 1200, that one is 10000 and the other two are 9500 and the simmer one is 5000.  

http://normmatthews.blogspot.com/

  • 8 months later...
horseflesh

horseflesh

Posted
Posted

It's been a while, anyone have something new to share in the hunt for the ideal range? My oven just started stinking up the house with gas. I am sure it can be repaired, but since it's a 30 year old builder special, I am considering this an opportunity to upgrade. I'm looking for a 30" unit which should include a high-output wok burner. I'm flexible on other features and price, but reliability is critical to me. (Baker-friendly features would be a bonus, my wife likes to bake but she is not a gearhead like me!)

 

I've read that BlueStar is good, though you can expect to need to calibrate the oven and replace igniters on the range, though these are also said to be jobs you can do with just a screwdriver. 

 

As far as hardware store brands go I like the look of the dual-oven-zone Samsung that was posed upthread. I'm not opposed to getting something "boring" like Samsung or GE if it meets my needs. 

 

gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted

I have a Blue Star. It is a beast (in a good way). I love it.

 

Essentially a home model of a restaurant range, it puts out the heat and is without frills. There are no electronics except the oven thermostat and the convection fan and the ignitors.

 

The broiler is nuclear-powered.

 

The only failing is that the burners lack a real simmer setting. Even the simmer burner is too hot. So I use a heat-diffuser.

 

I love the Blue Star

 

 

  • Like 2
Barrytm

Barrytm

Posted
Posted

I have the Bluestar RNB.  As Gfweb says, is it a tank, very solidly built, and puts out a ton of heat.   Years ago, the ignitors were not designed all that well, and could fail prematurely, but I think they have been redesigned and are much more robust.  I did have one fail, but was a 10 minute job to replace, and the range came with a few replacements.    As to simmer, the grids can be positioned in a high or low setting, by spinning them a quarter turn, so if the simmer burner is not low enough, you can just adjust the grate. 

  • Like 1
paulraphael

paulraphael

Posted
Posted

How are the Bluestar grates if you have a very small pan, like a 0.75L saucepan? Some of the pictures and videos make it look like a pan could slip between the grates and never bee seen again.

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Notes from the underbelly

gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted
23 minutes ago, paulraphael said:

How are the Bluestar grates if you have a very small pan, like a 0.75L saucepan? Some of the pictures and videos make it look like a pan could slip between the grates and never bee seen again.

 

My grates are great with small pans. No room to slip. Not even with the irritating and wobbly 1qt saucier.

  • Like 1
horseflesh

horseflesh

Posted
Posted

I've read elsewhere that the preheat on a Bluestar RNB oven is pretty slow. I saw one poster somewhere say they won't bother using the oven on a weeknight, which sounds nuts to me. How slow is it? 

 

Has anyone gotten time on the Bluestar "Platinum" series? It lists a faster oven preheat. It also costs a heck of a lot more, but setting that aside for now...

 

Barrytm

Barrytm

Posted
Posted (edited)

horseflesh,  the manual says it can take up to 1/2 hour to preheat.  I have never timed it, but I wouldn't be surprised if it took 15 to  20 minutes. I have a combi, which preheats in about 5 minutes, so i use that more often. 

Edited by Barrytm (log)
  • Like 1
weinoo

weinoo

Posted
Posted

i've had nothing but love with my Wolf gas range.

 

Especially great at simmering, as all 4 burners have 2 separate settings...

 

2071105139_Wolfburnerupper.JPG.8ad97de969d593c1e5817a48e0118e5a.JPG\

 

When you turn the control knob all the way, it kicks on the lower burner, which is adjustable for simmering...

 

226533877_Wolfburnerlower.JPG.ba6ed3c10d590391b93c5c175dfc48ea.JPG

 

And I upgraded with full-extension racks that hold 50 lbs. each...

 

855413460_WolfOvenRacks.JPG.94022f8339ceb22c1e196c07be4a5e46.JPG

 

Someone upthread claimed the knobs felt flimsy, but I strongly disagree.  And like gfweb's Blue Star, the broiler is a beast. No electronics here either.

  • Like 3
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Barrytm

Barrytm

Posted
Posted

horseflesh,  I timed it today - it took 18 minutes for the oven light to go off when set to 350 F .  Some suggest that the oven be allowed to cycle off and on a time or two to settle in before baking, but I did not time that.  I did adjust the oven dial the other day, and when set to 350 ,  it varied from 340 to 360, which I thought was pretty good for a gas oven.    I am not a fan of the knobs - they are metal, but the attachment to the controls feels flimsy.  I much preferred the knobs on the Viking, and the ones on the Wolf look substantial too. 

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