does anyone here hate or regret their soapstone?
sonicstef
16 years ago
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sugarbreak
16 years agopickles_ca
16 years agoRelated Discussions
Does Anyone Here Who Went Induction Regret Your Choice?
Comments (159)Expanding on both Hattiecarrol's and Jerry's responses to what you said about being nervous you might hate induction as much as the radiant electric you've been suffering with, let me offer the following. One concern you mentioned is that you find it tough to get a good simmer with your current range which is a radiant electric glasstop model. Getting a good simmer should not be a problem with either the Bosch 800 or the GE Profile ranges. Both offer pretty fine control in the lower heat settings. That makes it easy to get any kind of simmer from still water poaching temps to barely bubbling stock-making temps to a near boil simmer. And, as cpartist points out, induction burners are very responsive and can very quickly take a pot between a full boil and any of those steps. Not possible with radiant electric except by moving the pot from the boiling burner to another one which is already set to your chosen simmer level. Another aspect of getting a good simmer with radiant stoves can be that some of them make it hard to know where to set the knob/dial for the simmer you want. Both the Bosch and GE have digital controls which makes it easy to return to a particular power step once you've figured out that it is the power step that works for the task at hand.. At the other end of the heat settings, you want to remedy your current radiant electric taking a very long time to bring a large pasta pot to boil. Many radiant electric burners top out around 2500 watts although some newer models have burners going up to 3000 watts. That is a lot less power that is applied less efficiently than with the induction ranges. Both the Bosch and GE offer stronger power for boiling a "large pasta pot" with their 3700 watts on the large burners. Also, I do not know how old your current radiant electric is or how big your large pasta pot is, but many of the older radiant ranges had difficulties with boiling larger diameter pots. Bigger diameter pots could reflect too much heat back to the sensors that regulate the power cycling on those radiant burners and so kept the power level too reduced to get to a full boil quickly if at all. Haven't seen much about that since this thread started back in 2012, but I can say that no similar problems have been reported here for either the Bosch induction burners or the previous generations of GE induction ranges. As for choosing between the Bosch 800 induction slide-in and the GE Profile slide-in induction, it is pretty much a choice between mixes of feature trade-offs. Different tradeoffs and mixes of tradeoffs matter differently to different folks. There is no right answer for everybody. Some of these may matter a lot to you, others may matter only a little, and still others could be a matter of complete indifference to you. One example that comes quickly to my mind is the burner arrangements. The GE puts the largest burner at the front right with its smallest burner behind in the back right corner and places two medium sized burners on the left. The Bosch 800 puts the largest burner more or less in the middle with two small burners in the front corners and a medium-size burner in the back left corner. Hard to think about how those designs work for your own cooking without taking some of your regularly used combinations of pot sizes to a store (as hattiecarroll suggested) where you can see how the pot combinations and sizes fit with burner positions and whether those positions work or don't work for the way you like to cook. BTW, the stove does not have to be powered on for this test and it might be a deciding factor for you. Another reason to try to see one in person. Of course the brands' looks are different and maybe it matters to you that the GE may look more harmonious with the other GE appliances you have or are installing. Are you buying other Profile apliances? Ifso, maybe you get a discount for buying the GE range as part of an appliance package, too? That could be a pretty good financial incentive. OTOH, if you meant you already have the other appliances and are just hoping for a better appearance match, then this consideration is irrelevant for you. The Bosch offers timer control for each burner, the GE does not. Some here (cpartist and me, included) have found timer controlled induction burners to be a useful convenience in their cooking. Others here could not care less about that feature. Likewise, the Bosch offers linear burner controls in the front middle of the cooktop surface with the oven controls in a spearate panel on the flat front face of the range while the GE puts the burner "dials" and oven controls in a separated, upward-angled panel at the front face of the range. There, you are less likely to get spills and boilovers on them and maybe makes the oven controls easier to see. The tradeoff there is that the GE arrangement leaves a little less usable depth to the cooktop surface. More important would be whether you prefer the ergonomics of one brand's controls to the other. Again, hard to tell without seeing an actual stove and being able to put your hands on it. The Bosch has a warming drawer under the oven but no surface warming burner while the GE has a storage drawer under the oven and a low-power radiant electric warming burner up top. Warming drawers and warming burners are very much a YMMV thing. Some of us have had them and hardly, if ever, used them while others here swear by theirs. If you want more detail, other examples of design and feature tradeoffs that you might consider include the following: * The GE Profile is designed as a freestanding range with finished sides (overhangs and edging are extra cost options) while the Bosch 800 is the more traditional style of slide-in with unfinished sides and a cooktop with flanges that overhang the countertops for a more "built-in" look (Bosch only offers trim kits for the rear of the range); * As hattiecarroll mentioned, the GE Profile's oven is a bit larger at 5.3 cu. ft. (same size as your GE smoothtop) vs the Bosch 800's 4.6 cu. ft., Both are plenty big enough for many cooks. Does the differnce in oven size matter to your cooking? How big an oven do you need? (If it matters to you, the ovens in LG's knob-controlled induction ranges are rated at over 6 cu. ft.) * The GE has some WiFi and bluetooth connectivity with the advantage of some kind of remote diagnostics. (Check out the manual to see what it actually does.) The Bosch does not. * The GE Profile has two medium sized burners on the left which can be linked (or "synched") to work from a single control. That makes it easier to heat large burner-straddling griddle pans or large roasting pans. The Bosch 800 has a small and medium burner there which are not linkable but the Bosch 800 has a bit more room to fit a longer burner-straddling griddle. (FWIW, Bosch also offers an extra cost option for rectangular griddle pans that are specifically tailored to the depth of the Bosch's induction cooking surface.) I'm sure there are other differences that can be listed, but the point is that none of these design choices and trade-offs are intrinsically better for everybody. Each stove is a mix of design tradeoffs and the mix that works best for me might not be the mix that appeals most to you....See Moredoes anyone regret buying SS appliances?
Comments (39)Just want to add my 2 cents to the "is SS on the way out?" debate. Basically, anyone currently in the market for a kitchen appliance (as I just was) can't help but recognize that there is no more ubiquitous element in late 20th/early 21st century kitchens than SS appliances. It therefore seems reasonable to assume that its days are numbered, that it will soon be rejected en masse, thus rendering all those SS-featuring kitchens out-dated, even the one I am just redoing now, dang it! But here's what I decided. It seems like the trend right now is toward "classical" -- i.e. least ornate, least pretentious, least gimmicky, most functional, timeless, etc -- hence the proliferation of elements that have been in kitchens for decades, even centuries -- white subway tile, straight-edged soapstone counters, hardwood floors, no-nonsense appliances (metal), etc. So if you go with any of those choices, you are basically joining a trend that is about rejecting trendiness! Paradox! All that to say that I don't think you can put those things, including SS, in the same category as avocado or harvest gold. The former have no pretensions other than functionality, and that is what makes them so super-cool-looking. And that is what makes them timeless. End of speech. As far as scratches and dings go, my 3-year-old well-used JennAir fridge has none, but the fingerprints and smudges are ever present. FWIW....See MoreDoes anyone regret their Shaw's/farmhouse sink?
Comments (98)I too am very disappointed, having the same issues with my Shaw; chips, hairline type cracks under(crazing) and doesnt drain properly. One section of the sink creates a little pool that keeps the water from draining, although the sink is level. We have a metal grid, but chips were developing even with that. I rarely use it now because it is too difficult to get the water and debris from under it. Bar keepers Friend is helpful. I occasionally make a little paste and let it sit a few minutes before wiping-I find the powder and liquid to be great. Also Mr. Clean Magic eraser is very helpful especially on the grey surface cracks and around drain. Love the look, but this has been frustrating. I've had it since around 2009 I got no help from the manufacturer....See MoreRegretting my soapstone countertops
Comments (36)We’ve had our Barraca soapstone kitchen counters for 4 years. We oiled them as love the darker presentation. I had a love/hate relationship with it-not because of of the small scratches-easily fixed with black sharpie (works great!) or some mineral oil if you have oiled your counters. We also have a couple of dings which don’t bother me either, although I know they can be sanded out. No-it was rings. Rings from glassware, a hot damp pot lid, anything containing heat like a coffee cup or glasses fresh out of dishwasher left rings. After much reading of comments on Houzz and other sites, I think I’ve finally figured out the answer and realized what I was doing wrong. First and most important-you need to get the ring off before you oil it. (This is from the famous Joshua in Florida that we all wish could come help us with our stone issues). How to get rings off? Someone in this thread mentioned Barkeepers friend. I would have been terrified to try, but I did and it works so great! Use on sponge, Let area dry bfirefly between applictions so you can see if you got the spot. Apply using moderate rubbing until ring is gone. Then you can apply oil or sealer wax. I have used just Mineral Oil, Dorado soapstone wax in the past and still had the ring issue. I have just recently stripped the counters first using Dawn soap, and then used Barkeepers Friend all over to get the finish more uniform. Not as hard as you would think. Then I applied The Real Milk Paint Company soapstone wax/sealer. Also easy to apply. I purchased on Amazon as shipping expensive from the company. Get the 8 oz jar as a little goes a long way, although if you go for larger the company also advises keeping it in the frig. They say it takes 5-7 days to cure, as the walnut oil will harden, however you can use your counters after initial application, just don’t put rubber feet on them and wipe up water spots until they cure. It doesn’t really “seal” the stone, (I know-you‘re not supposed to seal Soapstone-but this isn’t the kind of sealer they are referring to-ingredients are walnut oil and carnuba wax) and you can remove it. Most important-our counters now look much more uniform and I’m not getting rings. You can touch up areas around your sink if needed. I actually missed a ring after Ihad our whole island done. Wen at it with Barkeepers, let it dry, applied more wax, and bingo-it’s perfect again. It’s a drier finish, not as shiny (which I love) and do not miss the oily feel from the mineral oil. I finally love my soapstone again....See Morepupwhipped
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