have there been any changes since Nov 2007

These are the kind of stories that cause me concern over my purchase (30" RNB on order). It's not so much that folks have problems with Bluestar products but how many of them who do have seem to have them repeatedly and cannot get them fully resolved.

I am sure there is a chance with any appliance purchase to have a problem or problems but how the company responds and works to resolve those problems is very telling. I'm honestly not sure what to make of the Bluestar service issues but there are simply too many of them here to ignore and has me again second guessing my choice.

From "Bluestar vs. American Range"

Posted by trevorlawson (My Page) on Tue, Sep 15, 09 at 0:44

3) Can you read about poor Bluestar service.....YES (that's in the past, Matt Schutte is doing an excellent job)

Why would you have to shut off the gas at the main shutoff for your house to stop a leak in your stove?

What were the nature of the repairs? Were they fixing the same leaks over and over or were they all different? Were they all done by the same person/same company that did the installation?

I have the same question as Laat2. Each of my gas appliances has it's own shut off nearby- cooktop, dryer, hot water tank, furnace. Granted a 48" range would be a tad difficult to move around but doesn't it have a shut off?

There seems to be more to this story then what is being told. BlueStar is very consumer friendly and I am suprised that you are being treated in such a fashion.

Laat2,

When we started smelling gas, we weren't sure where the leak was coming from (it was a constant slight gas smell in the kitchen whether the stove was on or off), so we called the gas company. Our gas company automatically shuts the gas off whenever there is an undetermined leak in the house until it is resolved. It so happened that a week beforehand, a house exploded in our city because of a gas leak, so the gas company was using extra caution. They said we had to call a plumber to find the source and have it fixed before we could turn the gas back on.

We called a plumber, who verified that the source was the oven. That is when I called Bluestar. Then I called the gas company to also verify that the source was the oven.

The main oven repairs were several different attempts to fix the same problem. The first and second times, they realized Bluestar had sent the wrong replacement parts. The third time, the part they had sent turned out to be a temporary fix. The fourth time, they replaced a more expensive part of oven that worked like a charm. All the waiting for parts is what made the repair take so long.

This all happened when another person was in charge of service--I believe his name was John. Hopefully with the new extended warranty option and a new person (Matt) in charge of service, things will be different. However, I will say that I called Bluestar twice and emailed once through the website before I could actually speak with Matt about this issue. That was a little frustrating, but once I was able to speak with him, he was very kind and professional. Since my warranty was gone, he couldn't help me.

Guadalupe,

I am trying to be as honest as possible. Like I said, I love using the functional parts of the stove--it is really a brilliant cooktop. I just wish I didn't have all the repairs to deal with. Had I known beforehand that I would have all these problems and not get some kind of reparation, I wouldn't have bought it. I naively thought that if you're spending THAT much on a stove, the customer service will bend over backwards to make you happy about your choice. I'm not happy.

I WOULD be really happy if the service rep would look at my file, see the number of repairs I have had, and say, "You know what, this is an anomaly. Our customers usually don't endure this. Let's make it up to you by extending your warranty or (in a really happy world) replacing your range with one that will function more consistently." However, I don't expect that to happen, and maybe it wouldn't happen with other ranges, either. You live, you learn, I guess.

It was problems like mine that led to the lemon laws for cars. I wish the same laws would apply to appliances that are this expensive. That is a chunk of change to pay for something that doesn't work the way it should. It really irks me because my husband has an "I told you so" speech ready for whenever the Bluestar breaks down. Ahh, I'll stop my tangent now. But if you have any questions about my story, ask away. I'll answer.

Laat2,
A licensed plumber originally installed the range. All of the repairs have been made by the same appliance repair company that is contracted with Bluestar.

Having been on this forum for a long time, it's really interesting to me that when problems arise with certain brands that the supporters circle the wagons and attack the victim, e.g. "There seems to be more to this story then what is being told."

All brands have some problems but certain manufacturers are better at resolving them. People had problems with Wolf ranges a few years ago and in a number of cases Wolf bought their range back. Now Wolf/Subzero is probably a larger company than PP and can probably afford to do so more easily but apratt81 is right that in a case like this with a long history of a particular problem that PP should step up to the plate and make this right. I know that Bluestar is a great product when working and I gather customer service has gotten better recently but there have been a number of stories like this that may not have gotten resolved satisfactorily.

Perhaps you could list the date, fault found, replaced part names, and repairs/adjustments carried out by repair services up to now. Maybe there is a pattern which might be apparent to someone.

Wouldn't you think that if anyone could determine a pattern it would have been Bluestar?

I know all brands can have problems and there are instances where a manufacturer just kinds of shrugs off any responsibility. After reading Blue Star posts here for the past 2 years I don't have the impression that they are as 'consumer friendly' as Gaudalupe states- especially after the warranty has expired.

Update: The problem is solved.

My mistake: not calling the dealer I originally bought the stove from first.

In 2007, Eurostoves was absolutely amazing in helping me through the decision and installing process. I called them with my first problem almost 2 years ago late at night, expecting to leave a message but instead spoke to a live person who worked on my problem immediately. The former service rep from Bluestar contacted me the next day, and gave me his direct line to handle all the subsequent problems. Apparently, that service rep was not the most effective employee at Prizer-Painter and has since been replaced. In retrospect, I should have continued to contact Eurostoves first and let them handle my repair requests.

So fast forward to today. A few hours after posting, Eurostoves called and asked how they could help. . . again, I am stunned at that kind of service. Sorry to get kitschy here, but it felt like a little guardian angel seeing how sad I was and floating down to save the day. Note that I did not call them. Trevor saw my post, went through his old files to find my number, and called ME!

Within minutes of that conversation, Eurostoves called back to walk me through a simply adjustment that I could do myself. . . and I did fix it just like that. Turns out it was a simple combustion adjustment.

So look for my upcoming post: "One more thing you should know before choosing your appliance dealer." (Hint: it's a happy post.)

Thanks for all your concern and attention.

Laat2, I can still post the receipt info if you want. I have to dig a little deeper to find the first string of them, but the last one, from Apr 08 says "leak rt broiler saftey" and lists part numbers 718901 (Thermovalve), 718301 (pressure Reg), and 701805 (gas valve). It's a carbon copy that isn't the most clear, but I think I got it all. This may seem helpful to those in the know, but it's all Greek to me. Let me know if you still want it.

No need. I think you are on the right track now.

Reminds me of my first car, an English sports car usually sold as a sideline at non big three dealers. I finally found a "real dealer" after about five years where you could describe a problem and the mechanic was already reaching for the part that would fix it. Unfortunately for me I was getting it prepped to sell!