Go with the Bluestar and don't look back. You might feel like it's too much now but you get use to the power very fast. I had a sealed burner viking for years and finally got fed up with the bad heat distribution and wasted heat. Basically all my pot handles got hot but the bottom of the pot didn't. With regard to clean up. I've had a bad spill on both sealed and open burner cooktops and I have to say that the open is probably a bit harder to clean since you have to pop the top. On the other hand, most sealed burners have the ignitor pretty close to the edge of the burner (of course) so it can easily get liquid under and around it with a big spill. In my case with the viking, it caused the ignitors to not function for a week or more. I'd much rather do some cleaning than have constant clicking and/or no clicking (no lighting) at all.

Good luck with whatever you choose.

Oh boy, looks like Capital might be in the mix now too

I have had a bluestar stove over five years it's the best stove I ever cooked with not one problem in five years. Now I will probably jixes my self.

agree with amcook. I have the 36 inch drop in bluestar for about a year now. It makes all the difference in the world. I can sear fish, steaks, etc. or melt even choclate. Easy to clean.

There is no appreciable difference between house current in the US and Canada (other than in Canada the electrons must also speak french)

The USA shares large, interconnected power grids with Canada and power goes back and forth across the border as blithely as Northern California Cannibus. Any oven sold for use in Canada can be hooked up down here in the same way it may be hooked up in the Great White North, i.e., 2 split phase hot legs, a neutral and a ground. So buy your ovens if they are what you want.

Miele specs their ovens at 208 to 240, btw. But this is AC so it is always a value within a range and it can vary quite a bit without problems.

Might as well check out the Wolf cooktop, too, and DCS, if you'd like simmer capability on all burners.

I'd check out as many as you can in person. Some of the cooktops feel rather cramped in space, especially those with knobs in front.

Oh I've been checking out all the cooktops! I'm driving everyone on my family (and the appliance stores nuts because I can't make up my mind). Drop in, rangetop, double ovens, Miele, Capital, cheapy, expensive...

I love a great deal, and those Miele ovens sure were, but if they don't work, that won't help.

mojavean - thanks for the electrical info. I called the power company, talked to an electrician, talked to the Miele store guys... sounds like these older Chef ovens they still have for sale for super cheap, are only 208V OR 240V (sold out of 240V) and that the newer ovens allow you to adjust depending on what your service is. For the older ones you have to match your service. So running too much power into the oven could cause some problems. Same as having not enough power, the oven won't be running at full capacity. The guy at one of the local appliance stores told me 208V was for Canada, so I just took his word for it. I did a little online research and from what I gathered from most of my sources so far, it sounds like it is not a good idea to run a 208V designed appliance at 240V.

http://applianceguru.com/forum9/9262.html

riverspots...
I did look at wolf and dcs, but I've crossed them off my list (can't even remember why as I've gone around in circles so many times). I think the Wolf seemed expensive, was closed burner and I didn't love the look or configuration (I do like the look of the rangetop though).

The DSC drop in doesn't put out enough heat, though I like the configuration of having the largest burner in the middle.

pvrick and amcook - how's the cleaning on the drop in bluestar? You take off all the grates and burners, then "pop the top?" How much time does this take? And does stuff get baked on inside? How's the stainless steel holding up on the cooktop part? Still look nice? Sounds like Capital may not come out with an open burner drop in for awhile yet. I'm debating the rangetop, but man $$$, should just buy a range at that point!

Here is a link that might be useful: more 208v info

Very interesting link, Hap, and I learned something new. I am somewhat familiar with 3-phase and understand the theory, but have never worked with it. I always think of 3-phase as power for machine tools and big HVAC units. I had no idea they ran 3 phase into residential buildings! But it makes sense. Just use the service you ran to power the elevators to supply the apartments too.

Being 120º out of phase, instead of 180, you get a lesser RMS, 208. Makes perfect sense.

But there is no difference between Canada and USA with this. Same service applies to both countries.

Anyway, thanks for the heads up on the distinction. But I am really just DYING to know if those ovens are really ONLY 208V designs. How do you know? Is it just what the sales guy said? Or are they tagged as 208V only? Is their model number something we could search online and look up or are they one-offs specially built for a three-phase installation?

Again, thanks for the great info and link. And good luck with the decisions.

Thanks! I only understood about 1/25th of what that article said, so I'm glad you could follow (and I did mean 1/25, not 1/4) lol. My husband used to be an electrical engineer, so thankfully he understands all this for the both of us.
The salesman at a local appliance store said that 208V was for Canada... I just believed him. Oh salespeople...

The Miele ovens I wanted to buy are the old novotronic ovens on the Miele outlet site. They're an insane deal, but yes, listed at 208V. They sold out on the 240V. I like the newer Chef oven, but at over 3K for a single oven (and I want 2) that just seems too much for me. Maybe I should just get a Kitchen Aid to match our fridge. I do like the smooth glass interior of the door (good reason to buy an oven right?).

After reading some good stuff about the Capital double ovens, I started thinking I needed those. But I don't really do that much oven cooking...more on the cooktop...so maybe I'll just get a KA double oven, and spend the bucks for a new open burner Capital rangetop. mmmmm!

But ooo, just found some similar Miele ovens tonight on craigslist...maybe it'll work out in the end.

Here is a link that might be useful: miele ovens on the outlet site

First, it's definitely *not* a good idea to run a 208v appliance on 240v service unless the appliance is rated for both. Depending on how good the deal is, you can buy a stepdown transformer to provide 208v from 240 but that might wipe out whatever savings you get.

With regard to cleaning. It takes less than a minute to take all the stuff off the top and lift it. The burners don't usually have to be taken off. Stuff doesn't bake on underneath since all of the heat is above the bowls. The only think you have to watch for is the wiring and plumbing inside. It's not terribly fragile but best not to jostle them too much. The only real design "flaw" I'd say is the little area down the center of the burner ring. There's a rectangular pedestal that the burners rest on and it's open on one side. Cleaning between there is probably the hardest part. I put a bit of foil down in there to catch some of the random things that drop in over time. Not a big deal.

Overall, it's reasonably easy. I prefer this to the baked on stains I had with the sealed any day. The stainless has held up quite well. Since the polished surface doesn't go all the way up against the burner, there's no burned on stains. That also means that anything else can be cleaned with a towel and water (or SS cleanser). The old sealed burner cooktop I had always had stains around the burners that required some scrubbing to get off even when cleaning every week or so. That meant more chances to scratch the surface.