I know BS and CC are very popular, but there have no customer service or repairmen around my area to service these units if anything goes wrong.

You called Bluestar & Capital and they both said there is no one in your area that can service their rangetops?

Burner adjustment, replace igniter, replace spark module. These are relatively simple task that even a moderately competent tech can do. I know sometimes people get grossly incompetent techs but that would apply to all brands.

I think the Thermador rangetop is a somewhat better than KA.

Dishwasher 1)Miele 2) Bosch then 3) KA. No point in paying extra to put a Thermador nameplate on Bosch dishwasher.

Fridge. Thermador only makes built-in and Samsung only freestanding. Apples and oranges. Whirlpool-KA make the Thermador SxS but not the Freedom Towers.

Electrolux builds excellent wall ovens and they manufacture the Kenmore Pro wall ovens and they have big pro-style knobs and handles. They don't have the blue interiors that have been problematic in the past but a grey interior.

Deeageaux, thank you for responding.

I did not call BS or CC directly, was just relying on what my builder and the appliance stores said.

Thank you for bringing up the Kenmore pro wall ovens, they looked perfect in terms of cosmetics and I was excited to hear they are Electrolux built, but the reviews on sear online were pretty horrendous. Does anyone have any positive reviews on thee units?

I would add elux cd fridge to the mix.
Elux oven/ovens(I went with wolf and GE Advantium with elux a close second)
Miele DW
No recommendations on the range top

I did not call BS or CC directly, was just relying on what my builder and the appliance stores said.

Do you think they may be a little biased?

Builders and salespersons get a percentage of your appliance purchases. Posters on this board do not.

Regarding the ovens, the Kenmore Elite(also made by Electrolux) are the highest rated by both JD Power and Consumer Reports. These don't have the easy roll out racks nor the conventional knobs and handles. The Kenmore Pro has too few sales to show up on the JD Power ratings and CR thinks the Elites are a better buy.

I had Thermador in my last kitchen (recently sold house). I had a 5 burner gas cooktop, electric oven, built-in MW & DW (with SubZero refrig). LOVED the cooktop & oven. We don't use a MW much - it did what we needed it to do. The DW was fine, but as someone pointed out, I wouldn't pay a whole lot for it. Our house before last had a Whirlpool basic DW, and when we first started using the Thermador DW, I swore I liked the old Whirlpool better. Inlaws have a Miele, and they love it.

if you are near Atlanta when you say SE - I would recommend you check out Sewell Applicance - nice showroom with model kitchens - have the high end stuff and the more moderate stuff - found them willing to get pretty aggressive in price - matching pricing posted on AJ Madison's site - even accounting for the sales tax -

I started out looking to Sewell to source what I could not get shipped from AJ - like an Advantium Speed oven - now we are in the flip side - and will be buying all I can from Sewell and going likely to AJ only for those items that Sewell does not carry - like a Bluestar range top

Thanks again to everyone for your input.

I contacted Bluestar and they now have a distributor in my area and at least some ability to service if needed which is a great turn of events.

Atlanta is not very close for me, I'm in the Piedmont Triad (north central) area of NC.

Right now, I am looking at:

Rangetop - Bluestar 36" 6 burner $3100
Fridge - one of the Electrolux IQ Touch series, perhaps EI23BC30KS $2300-2500
Ovens: Electrolux Icon professional double ovens E30EW85GPS $3600
Dishwasher: Bosch 800 series SHX68TL5UC $900
Vent hood: ? Still uncertain. Would like dish washable stainless baffles and 400-600 CFM. Have a call out to the local building inspector to see if we have make up air requirements for > 400 CFM, shockingly no one can give me a straight answer.

That puts me right around 10k and still having to get a vent hood which I hope to find for around $800.

Any good recommendations on a less expensive but still very good double oven set? The Electrolux seems excellent and gets great reviews around here but these are another product not commonly sold in my region. Also, any other suggestions on slightly different models of the fridge and DW, there are so many variants it's touch to know which model is the best for the price.

On the DW, I do not a water softener as we have a whole house unit and I do want a third cutlery rack.

Have you chosen the Elux Icon series ovens for looks (they are stunning), because if that's not an issue, the WaveTouch series is about $600 less expensive.

I also live fairly close to Greensboro (in VA) and had the same budget as you when remodeling. I will roughly list what I purchased, from whom, and for how much.

Electrolux 27in. Wave Touch Double Ovens - I paired a sale with a rebate - approx. $2075

Electrolux IQ Touch, Counter Depth Fridge, with Perfect Temp Drawer - again sale with rebate, $1900

Bluestar 30 inch cooktop - Appliance Contract Sales in Richmond, VA (standard price $1574)

Miele Dimension Plus Dishwasher - Floor Model - Appliance Contract Sales in Richmond (approx $1470)

Range Hood - Imperial 30 inch Island Hood w/ baffles (approx. $1700)

FWIW, I looked at Hart Appliance for the Miele and was less than impressed. I went with the dealer in Richmond and I have been really happy with them. The Bluestar cooktop doesn't have too many mechanics and we adjusted our ignitors, etc ourselves. I don't think it will be too hard to service, and I am in a much smaller area than you.

Re: Dishwasher, I compared the Bosch and Miele b/c it was a hard pill to swallow to spend that much on a DW. The quality of the Miele was so much better than the Bosch IMHO and I am really happy I waited for a deal and went for it.

Re: Vent Hood - make sure you have enough vent for your Bluestar (400 may not be enough). I splurged on the Imperial.

Re: Fridge, I wanted my handles on my ovens and fridge to match.

Re: Ovens - I think you may be perfectly fine with the Wave Touch. Lowe's has started carrying them (for an outrageous price), so you should be able to go see them in person - maybe Pisgah Church Lowes? I think this will lead to more folks servicing them in our area.

I think if you shop around and give online retailers a shot like build.com, abt.com, etc you will be surprised what you can get for $10K.

HTH

This post was edited by sreedesq on Thu, Sep 26, 13 at 19:43

Very helpful information, thank you!

Quick question, did you go with the 27" ovens due to existing space requirements, or did you choose those over 30" for another reason?

Existing space requirements. We kept the original cabinets that were carpentered on site.

Also, do you mind sharing who the Bluestar dealer is in Greensboro? Thanks!

This post was edited by sreedesq on Thu, Sep 26, 13 at 19:44

Of course, it's actually in Winston Salem - Bobby Teague Appliances on Stratford Rd.

We are currently living in Winston but I work in Greensboro and we're about to build there and hope to move in late Spring.

I almost forgot to ask, is the look really the only difference between the Icon Ovens and the Wavetouch/IQ touch ovens? I understand the difference in the fade away controls between the IQ and Wave touch but was perhaps under the wrong impression that the Icon was somehow more. Back to the research!

This post was edited by subonim on Thu, Sep 26, 13 at 21:09

Thanks! I actually have to head down to Winston tomorrow.

I can't answer much about the Icon. Since they don't come in a 27, I never considered them. But, it seems like it may be a place to save some $$$ in your budget.

I'm going to throw a plug out for Ferguson for appliances, since my husband works for them (we just moved to NC, Advance actually....corporate relo). You won't find BlueStar, and I think corporately, they cut ties with Miele, but you can find KA, Thermador, Bosch, Wolf, SubZero, Viking, Electrolux, etc. I was in the Winston showroom on Sat, and they have a decent amount of appliances on display. I don't think any Electrolux, but Ferguson does carry it (my husband had it on display at the store he used to oversee in AL). Greensboro may have more. DH isn't home tonight, but I can ask him what they have on display. If you know model #'s you can also call and ask for pricing.

That's where our builder also recommended. I looked and while they do have a nice selection I had some sticker shock at their appliance prices compared to what I could find online and at other vendors and haven't really been back since. I admit, I did not inquire as to whether their prices are negotiable or if they price match some of the competitive on-line vendors.

It's definitely worth a second look and further investigation.

My husband says to call and get an appt to go see Herb in the WS showroom. He says Herb's been doing this a long time, he's very good and has alot of product knowledge. Tell him what all you are thinking and he can get you some pricing. Vendors often run special deals with wholesalers, so yes, their pricing at Ferguson is a little different than buying from a big box store where's the price on the sticker is the price. But Ferguson pricing does include install, etc,...yes, it's going to be more expensive than buying online, but it includes more customer service, which at the end of the day it may not be a significant difference. Also, you can talk with your builder and see if he'll buy the appliances, or let it run through his account (depending on his volume, likely, he can get better pricing than you). Some builders will allow clients to do that and some won't. Good luck!

Hokie98 - thank you for that recommendation, I'll have to do go we Herb.

Does anyone have. An Electrolux rangetop? Model E36GC75GSS or E36GC76GPS ?

How do you like it and what the heck is the difference between the two? The specs are exactly the same but there is a $600 differential.

The only difference I can see are the controls. Have you carefully compared the BTUs of the various burners?