>About 2 years later, our microwave broke. It would cost more to fix than to buy a new one of a different model. Bosch does not make microwaves, they import them from China like almost everyone else. Microwaves are disposable: they're almost always cheaper to replace than to repair. You don't give any details about the specific one you had trouble with, but I'm assuming you got an expensive built-in model. Lesson for next time: instead of a built in microwave, make an alcove in your cabinetry that you can stick any old $150 microwave into. >Just last week (a little less than 4 years later) our fridge doesn't cool. There is an ice buildup at the back preventing it from reading the proper temp, or something like that. Bosch customer service has been less than helpful. Stuff breaks. It doesn't sound like your fridge has been a lemon, a non-major malfunction in 4 years on any appliance is nothing alarming. As for customer service, what were you expecting them to do? Repair it for free even though it is years out of warranty? What makes your situation so special that you think you deserve that treatment other customers wouldn't get? Again, you give no information about the particular fridge you have, but freestanding refrigeration is Bosch's weak point because they outsource it as well. The french doors are rebadged Whirlpools, which are good units but you're paying a price premium for the Bosch logo on the front. The side by sides used to be imported from Daewoo in Mexico, now they are imported from China. Let's just say the reviews on those, erm, haven't been too great. >My advice is to avoid Bosch. My advice is to avoid appliance packages of any kind because you will never get the most for your dollar. If you'd done your research like the OP is doing, you would have known that the Bosch DW and cooking were good choices (interestingly enough, those are the two you apparently didn't have problems with) and you would have gone elsewhere for your microwave and fridge. I don't even know why I bothered wasting the time to write that post as most of these people visit forums once and never come back since they rarely have anything else to contribute. This post was edited by hvtech42 on Sun, Aug 31, 14 at 16:58

I think the Electrolux oven is great bang for the buck. I have had mine 4 years and it heats up quickly, bakes evenly and we use it to dehydrate food and dry art projects. I have had a Bosch 800 series dw for 4 years and my DIL has a Bosch 500 series dw for about a year and we both like them. It cleans everything burnt on. You do have to use a good detergent though. I like just throwing the silverware in the caddy and it all comes out clean. I can too, and have used every thing in the way of burners over the years. The BS 22K burner might be an advantage in using a big canner but the simmer on all the burners of the Wolf might be a benefit while cooking things down if you do that kind of canning. It is hard to compare simmers because the BS does not list it in BTUs but people do not seem to complain about it. It is just one simmer burner though. The configuration of each is unique and it is a matter of your personal preference. As to stirfrying, we can stirfry 1-2 lbs on our 15K btu burners but the more heat the better. This is an interesting post about woking outside and what is a good amount of heat. Restaurants use anywhere from 125K on up but it takes awhile to learn that. As far as cleaning I would look them over and see what you think would be easier to clean. I would read the use and care booklets online, and look at the terms of the warranty. I would also consider what ventilation you plan to have if you plan to do high heat cooking. I would have these comments about the post above. But there is one appliance I would definetly replace; the Wolf CT30G/S with BlueStar RBCT304BSS. Not only more powerful but more efficient. There is no scientific data on to say whether one is more efficient than the other. It will concentrate more of the heat directly to the bottom of the pan unlike the Wolf where most of the heat goes out,up,and around the pan. This results in much more even heat on the pan surface. Here is a picture of the two, and even if you account for some flare of the flame on a sealed burner primarily on the highest setting, the BS burners are considerably wider. You will have some flare of the BS as well at the highest settings. I would say that you could use a smaller pan easier on the Wolf burners than the BS. When you get to a larger pan, greater than 7 or 8 inches, the heat loss will be the same. It has been my experience that if you stand and put your hands to the side of pans on a Wolf burner, you will find you lose very little heat around the pan. If you want to capture more heat from a gas burner, conductive cookware with a "corrugated" bottom makes the biggest difference. Turbo Pot is an example of that. I recently bought a doufeu by Cousances. Cousances was bought out by Le Creuset many years ago but they had the idea for that type of interface with the burner back then. It came with ridges on the bottom for gas and flat for electric.

Thanks, dennisgli. Glad to hear from a happy F-P person. I haven't been able to see the model you have, or the one that replaced it. It doesn't seem to have a FD option any more, which is livable for us. The one in the appliance shop is just a titch bigger, which is actually a downside for us as we want to keep things as low profile as we can. I was impressed with the amount of fridge space, though. Particularly on the door... There were a few GW threads talking about both the freezer and the fridge not being able to get cold enough that scared me off of F-P when we were prepared to purchase. Now, I am rethinking it again and will do more research (ugh). ahoyhere - what people talk about on-line, and it resonates for me, is that when short people with a small arm research (or bad backs) try to bend into freezer drawers and pull large things out of the bottom, it can be difficult (or painful). This resonates with me, as someone with a short reach and bad back. In those cases, it is actually easier to open a bottom door and have full access via squating than having to bend over and reach down and in. I totally get your loathing of squating for the crisper drawers and we are sold on a bottom freezer for that reason. Surely we access the freezer less than the fridge. However, it doesn't negate the point that proper back mechanics (which matter to those of us with back pain) involve using the knees (squatting) versus bending over and using back muscles to lift ourselves and items up. Your Pininterest page is a lot of fun. Appliance eye candy, which I couldn't appreciate until this remodel. I took some repins for my own underused pininterest page. Thank you! By the way, we have one of those single induction burners that we purchased to use during the remodel - it sold us on getting an induction range. Just LOVE it. Ginny20 - I have no idea about whether Samsung's ice maker/water can be shut off. And I really, really do not want water on the door. I'm not loving that the Samsung CD sticks out so far past the cabinets, either. And, apparently the service and repair issues are nightmarish up here in Alaska. The appliance repair folks who used to repair them have dropped them because it is just so bad to work with them. I really don't want to treat a major appliance like a disposable item, which is basically what I'd have to do with Samsung. Take my chances that I get a good one - be prepared to take it to the dump if it breaks... I went out again and did the rounds. Fell in love with the Liebherr's looks again, as I do every time I see it. For sure, it would look the best. It's the thinnest, narrowest and most integrated look. It's also freaking pricey...and the freezer storage seems pretty slim. Thanks for the feedback, folks. I'm still not sure where this boat is going to land.

Thanks Mara. That was helpful. I have added one Maytag to my potential list. @Housefairy - I am skeptical about Samsung for washer/dryer but will surely check out what they have I looked at prices of similar models at Nebraska Furniture Mart and Sears. NFM has better deals currently and have better reviews from friends, peers about a very good overall buying experience from NFM. I did not see NFM carrying any samsungs but will double check. Here are the models that I am considering. Prices in brackets Whirlpool WFW8300SW (675) Amana - NFW7200TW (580) Bosch WFMC2201UC(S) (725) GE WCVH6800JWW (714) WBVH5300KWW (684) Maytag MAH2400AWW (675) If any of you has any experience using any of these models please let me know. Thanks.