Appliance selection - GE v. Whirlpool - Gluten free cooking

13 years ago

My husband and I are planning a kitchen remodel for next summer and I want to make sure we're getting the right appliances. We're thinking GE or Whirlpool as my husband can get a discount through his company. I'm interested in general brand opinions.

We're in our first home and haven't bought kitchen appliances before. I'm currently dealing with a miserable apartment-sized wall-oven. Baking a chicken is about the limit in capacity. I tried a duck once and the grease smoke set all the fire alarms off. We've had our Whirlpool freezer on bottom fridge repaired twice. The repairman was great and advised us that particular model was a problem and was actually made by Amana and that other Whirlpool fridges were actually better.

Here's the major consideration - We cook a lot. Every night, really. We're on strict gluten free diet. I'd be interested in recommendations from any other GF cooks out there for appliance selection. I don't need a warming drawer. I'm thinking double oven, but I'd still like to fit a turkey or fit multiple casserole dishes in there. We're thinking electric because there's the possibility for solar in the future, though I'm not 100% in favor and could be swayed to gas. I don't know anything about convection cooking. Sometimes, we get a bunch of pots going all at once. More than four burners would be awesome. Should I actually think bigger, professional sized? Any advice for starting this process would be great. If I have to trade stainless for a higher grade of use I'd do it in a heartbeat. Design and looks are nice, but not the first priority.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (3)

dodge59
13 years ago
If you are thinking of solar, I would definitely consider induction. It is far more efficient that radiant (conventional) electric cooking.

I would also consider a speed oven, typically they pre-heat and "Speed cook" in about 1/4th the time as a conventional oven or convection oven. They are of course much smaller inside and not adequate for any "Large Bird", but I do Turkey Thighs, breasts, etc in mine , all the time, takes about 15 minutes (Including preheat) where as the conventional oven would take about an hour. It is also drawing less power than would a conventional oven during the time it is on---so you save "Two ways"--it is on for a shorter time and drawing less power too!

I just did stuffed bell peppers in mine the other nite, I usually use our conventional oven with convection for peppers--usually takes bout an hour (Including preheat), took 15 mins with the speed oven and they came out just as great as had they been done with the large oven.

This of course would not take the place of a conventional oven---you still need that for the big bird etc etc, but if you check posts here about Speed Ovens, You will find that folks that have them use them more than their regular ovens.

As far as Fridges go, I know Jenn-air (Now a whirlpool product) uses the variable speed compressor---Consumer reports found that the JA was more energy efficient than the well known expensive brand that has 2 compressors.
The Variable speed compressor rarely runs at full speed, first it tries to speed up the fan that circulates the air, if it still requires more cooling, then it will start or speed up the compressor but only enough to get the job done--Ie not full on/full off like conventional compressors.
Another advantage to the Single compressor Whirlpool models including Jennair, is in the advent of a power failure, the freezer will sacrafice some of "Its cold" in order to keep the fridge at a safe temp (I just experienced a 10 hour power failure Freezer stayed well below freeing, (14F) while the fridge stayed at about 42 (at the end of the 10 hour failure). With a separate compressor/compartment for the fridge--you are limited to keeping what ever "Cool" is in the fridge, and "No help from the freezer--which is normally at (0F) so it can sacrafice quite a bit before it is above 32.

A poster here wrote that virtually all (Whirlpool Fridges) use this variable speed compressor but your Husband should be able to find out for sure----and if He does, I would like to know "For Sure" too.

Good luck "On the Hunt"

Gary
nerdyshopper
13 years ago
If you mainly want to compare GE and Whirlpool appliances I don't like some GE stuff as well as the better Whirlpool stuff of 5 years ago.
An exception to that would be wall ovens, where the Whirlpools that I saw in relatives homes had tiny interiors compared to GE. I think recent history at Whirlpool would make me very cautious to select the right models from the many brands and levels they produce. If you can get some more recent owners of Whirlpool to respond you might get a feel for which to prefer and which to avoid.
Related Discussions
$8,000 budget - Please help me find the right appliances.
Q
Comments (13)
Just curious: I thought the repair prone Elux ovens were the 2009 versions, and improvements have solved the problem? The reports of problems here on the forum have definitely fallen to nil since then. KitchenAid ovens have had such variable and negative reviews here, and additionally, such problems with non-responsive customer service, that I never even considered them. TGC, I found Consumer Reports to be sorely lacking in broad coverage of brands, certainly of a variety of models, and in judging the appliances in areas which I found important...like over time. A day of testing doesn't show it all. Also, their repair history type of reports are misleading, since they only cover a few types of problems. For instance, I did a survey for them in which it made our Maytag fridge look like a star, because it didn't allow for information about how many times we had to replace parts to the drawers, how much we spent in shipping costs for parts, or the evaporator motor we replaced ourselves when the original went out just after the warranty period. They don't take into account necessary parts and repairs that don't require a manufacturer's service tech. Anyway, you're doing things the right way...Consult CR, but also look to resources like this forum and AJ Madison reviews where you get reports from real life experience, and from people who use their appliances in all different ways.
...See More
All one brand? If so, Whirlpool?
Q
Comments (19)
I have all whirlpool gold appliances. are they great? no. do they work? mostly. would I get them again? no when we bought this house, it had NO appliances. I was able to get a very good discount through my brother and I was pretty much in the "get it done, no research" mode. we've lived here 3 years now. whirlpool duet washer died last fall. this was a lemon though - but it happened out of warranty and whirlpool did not stand behind their product. It made me VERY angry that they were perfectly ok with the idea that a $1,000+ washer could die in under 2 years and the repair would be over half the original cost. Needless to say, we have an LG washer now and I have no intention of buying whirlpool again. our over-the-range micro works well - but the handle split and cracked very early on... and eventually broke off. the plastic covering the venting section also broke off. ??? (so works fine, aesthetically unpleasing) smoothtop electric range: bought an oven thermometer to keep track of heat - doesn't seem to be the right temps, but I can work with it. dishwasher: - does a better than average job. occasionally has things that need to be run through again. Can't speak to loudness, cuz we always run it at night while we're in bed. the silverware basket isn't the best (use bread ties to keep it from opening accidently) and the top rack has the ability to be raised or lowered for dish height -- well, it drops down on one side all the time now. we are constantly pulling it back up where it "belongs" for us. fridge: ok. sometimes freezes stuff, but that may be due to my overfilling the fridge. so... that's been my experience with whirlpool gold. not great, but not horrific (barring the washer). but isn't that what whirlpool gold is supposed to be? a better than average but still "economy/budget/everyman" appliance? as I said, with my whirlpool experience with the washer, I probably wouldn't go that route again out of principle... when we remodel the kitchen, we will be replacing many, if not all, the appliances --- and I want to find appliances that will meet my needs better than "it's ok and I can deal with it's quirks." (and as a freebie fyi -- stainless exterior --ugh! it is a pain to keep clean. I miss my old, easy to wipe, white appliances! keep in mind, I have 4 young kids though.)
...See More
Kitchen Remodel â¦ appliance selection â¦ my head hurts
Q
Comments (8)
zeitgast, Thanks for all the feedback. I have not looked much into induction but I really don't see giving up gas. I would be sad for instance to not be able to roast a red pepper right over the flame. I think the Thermador does not have a preconfigured LP -- it requires a converter and the loss of BTU is a whopping 25% according to their specs. I could be misunderstanding that -- it is hard to keep all this stuff straight. The Wolf cooktop in contrast can be purchased either as NG or LP -- I assume (but am not really sure) this means that the 15K rating is still accurate even for LP. If so, then Wolf's 15K is better than the Thermador's 18K for LP, since the latter loses 25% to 13.5K. The Capital Maestro says 20K, and does not give any different number for their LP version. The GE Monogram specifies that the LP version of their 18K burner is only 15K (so comparable to Wolf at least.) We did look at many different configurations as to where things could go in the kitchen, and the winning layout by far was to put the cooktop on the island, so I know we will stick with that. But I get your point, and I do think this makes it harder for us to agree to go with a range top, even though we would like the power and versatility. For the Advantium -- still waiting on prices from the sales folks. On the web, I cannot find a price anywhere for the GE Monogram, but I see the MSRP is $3400. That is budget-busting if that is really where it is at. But for whatever reason, the over-the-range version is just a bit over $1000 (online), presumably for the same exact technology and mostly the same unit (PLUS an exhaust fan). Microwave drawers: we briefly considered this and it sounded good (and units are ~$1000), but it seemed like microwaving any liquid (e.g. soup) would lead to a lot of sloshing around and making messes. We'll look into your suggestions on refrigerators. Thanks again!
...See More
Please help selecting Dual Fuel range and Counter Depth Fridge
Q
Comments (9)
Thanks for your reply. We are in Canada, Ontario, and our prices are significantly higher than the US prices. There is very little difference between Benchmark and 800 series range - Benchmark has 20,000 BTU middle burner vs 18,000 BTU for 800 series. Benchmark has one telescopic rack - 800 series does not have it. Price difference is about $300. Best deal I found for Bosch fridge in Canada is $3300 (this is with Bosch rebate going on) and I can get ELUX for $2200 + 3 year part warranty from Electrolux thrown in. I would prefer Bosch even though it's smaller than Electrolux, but the price difference is huge, Bosch is almost $1000 more. Another dilemma is how interchangeable these fridges are. The cabinets will be custom made, and the fridge will be in the wall of cabinets. Bosch / JA are 72" high, and Elux is about 70" high. I already accepted the idea that these fridges will not last more than 7-8 years, and then I will need a new fridge to place in the same opening. Would you buy extended warranty with any of those appliances? Is it worth it? Thanks
...See More
noellabelle
13 years ago
We did a 6 month gluten & caesin free trial at the beginning of the year to see if it had an affect on our child, and I never thought about differences in appliances. I'm now wondering if convection would make a bigger difference in gf baking, since it tends to be trickier anyway. I'm planning on a gas double oven, but I think everyone I've seen definitely has a large enough oven for something like a turkey. I don't think you'll have issue with the larger one being too small for anything. Good luck!

Appliance selection - GE v. Whirlpool - Gluten free cooking

Comments (3)

dodge59

nerdyshopper

Related Discussions

noellabelle

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US