I would suggest looking into a Miele dishwasher. Nothing but good experiences with these.

I have a Blue Star 36" RNB and I love it. There are many threads discussing the Blue Star and you should read them. But I thought you don't want a range. Are you talking about a rangetop instead?

Second the vote on Miele. If you can do it budget wise, that should be at the top of your list. I would never have another dishwasher. There are several models though. As you go from low to high, number of cycles and features increase. The Dimension is a great one because it has the auto open at the end and the 3D cutlery tray. It is second to top model.

Can't comment on those fridges but others can.

Oh sorry ,forgot to mention the charbroiler. I have one. I love it because I live in an apartment and can't otherwise grill outside. It doesn't get as hot an an outdoor grill would get but it works perfectly well for me. I would get it again if I had to do it again.

Other people love the griddle. Maybe ctycdm will chime in. Chris is a very happy griddle camper and uses it all the time.

Say no to packages, say no to Electrolux dishwashers please. The older ones were junk, the new ones are unproven.

We bought a 25.5 cu. ft. Samsung fridge back in early Sept. and have been quite satisfied with it. I can't speak to longevity, obviously.

I too thought I wanted a separate fridge and freezer. Or even 2 fridges, since we are a family of 9. (We do have separate freezers that are not in the kitchen.) Then I came to the realization that I really didn't have room for 2 units in my kitchen, so I was on the search for one gigantic fridge. I thought maybe we'd try to get one of the biggest French door fridges on the market, instead.

One day DH and I stopped into Lowes to check out the fridges. We got to look at the gigantic models, as well as the others. We came to the conclusion that while the cu. ft. numbers sounded impressive in the advertising of the big ones, when you really start measuring the interior spaces, they aren't all that much bigger inside than the other French door fridges. There was only a few inches of difference. (2" deeper on the bigger units than the one we bought, IIRC.)

The Lowes we were in had a great deal on a scratch and dent Samsung 25.5 cu. ft. unit, so we decided to bring it home. The amount of food that it holds has impressed us. I can do our shopping for the week and fit it all in there. There is room for leftovers, too. I feel like it gulps the food and opens its arms wide for more.

Is there somewhere else in the house where you could put a freezer if needed? In the laundry, garage, basement, etc? If I had to depend on just the Samsung's freezer, I'd be in trouble. It's nicely sized (it'll hold a big turkey in the bottom of the freezer drawer with room to spare), but it wouldn't be adequate for what our family uses. We store bulk amounts of frozen food, though.

Here is a link that might be useful: Our fridge at Lowes

Don't forget to include a hood exhaust in your budget, and the correct ductwork for exhaust in your plans. Particularly if you will have a charbroiler or griddle. Many find that the exhaust hood decision is the most difficult in appliances selection, so put a lot of thought into it.

You need to let us know what kind of budget you have allocated. It will give us an idea of what to suggest.

I just purchased the Kitchenaid Architect II series full sized French door refrigerator freezer. I'm really happy with it. Lots of room. It doesn't freeze all my produce like the side by side I trashed. I also have a much cheaper small freezer in the pantry. That gives me lots of room for storage.

I made a compromise with the Kitchenaid. I could have purchased the Subzero or the Liebherr (we are doing a full renovation) but I chose to go down a step in price a purchased the slide in refrigerator. I am spending spending the bulk of my money on the Bluestar 36" rangetop.

Whatever you do, don't let them sell you a package. Nobody does everything well. Pick and choose. It will all look fine and function even better.

Great feedback.

Mrs_Nyefnyef - we are considering a ventahood - I think we need 1200 com - but will know better once I finalize our rangetop choice. Thoughts?

Homechef59 - budget is difficult. We had set aside 20k - but ran into some build hiccups so it's dwindled away to 10k. I'm trying to figure out if there is anything I can cut elsewhere or put off, so that I can build it up a bit.

Hvtech42 - thank you for confirming what I was thinking. I'm always skeptical of sales people saying any brand is great for everything. Thus I use gardenweb to get the truth! :-)

Laughable - will check out your buy. We don't have a lot of spare room fir another freezer.... Will make the best of what we can do.

Nycbluedevil - love your kitchen and always appreciate your input. How easy do you find clean up with the bluestar? I cook a lot and clean up is my least favorite thing!

Cleanup with the Blue Star is really easy. You wipe down the grates with a scrubbie sponge and can brush crumbs and debris into the drip tray below. The drip trays slide out. You can line them with foil and just periodically change the foil which is what we do.

The grates and bowls are cast iron so there is no shine to keep up. They get a nice patina after a bit, just like a cast iron pan.

There are some videos online that show how to clean the top of the range.

Seriously, this is so easy. I would never go back to closed burners.

With a 1200 CFM vent hood you may also need a makeup air unit. You may want to ask your builder about that before fully deciding on your range/hood, they can be pricy depending on local building code requirements.

ilovepie - I do not have a ventahood, so I am only going by hearsay FWIW. I hear that ventahoods exhaust well, and are well-made. However, they are supposed to be the most difficult of all hood brands to clean. They have a squirrel cage in a box which moves the air. So both the box and the squirrel cage have to be removed and cleaned, plus all the exposed surfaces of the interior of the hood - versus a hood with baffle filters where most of those exposed surfaces are covered by the baffles, and then you put the baffle filters in the DW. My advice to you is to look at the ventahood in a store, and judge for yourself (rather than going by my hearsay) how difficult it will be to clean it vs. a hood with baffle filters. (P.S. do not choose a hood with mesh filters).

Also, if you will have cfms of 1200, or even 900 for that matter, made sure you have the right-sized exhaust duct. If your duct diameter is too small, you will have problems. A lot of people do not think about matching the duct size correctly to the cfms. The duct size requirement is given on the specifications of whatever hood you are buying.

I have a Vent-A-Hood. It's easy. Just pop the squirrel cages in the dishwasher. Done. The vessel where the grease is collected can be washed in the sink after you drain the grease in the trash. The Vent-A-Hood won't require as many CFM's either. Something to do with the design. It's on their website. My Vent-A-Hood came with the house. I like it enough that I'm recycling it in the new design.

Dishwasher - another endorsement for Miele.

I have had the Miele Classic 4225 a year now and it's build quality and functionality are excellent. It can be a bit more involved to install as it needs a power outlet, not hard wired, and I had to use a high loop approach as the siphon break fitting at the counter top was not compatible. $900, but washes great and has the basic functionality that you need to get dishes clean. Normal, Economy, Pots and Pans, Saniwash, Rinse and Hold cycles plus Delay cycle capability. Do you really need any more cycles for the Average homeowner? Quiet to boot.

Good luck.

Laundryvet

UGH!

why is a 42" almost twice as much as a 36"for just 6" of refrigerator?

went and saw some great refrigerators that would simplify my life and make storing all the groceries easier. alas, its way out of budget to get it!

any chance this ss electrolux is any good? it would cost less for a 32" fridge and a 32" freezer than any 36" combo we like. there is a sale on. its a lot better in price than anything else.

truly a 42" would be better for our space - but they are so much more $$.

thoughts on this fridge/freezer?

Here is a link that might be useful: electrolux

The Twins are definitely worth of consideration, in my opinion. They are such a good value and plenty of happy owners have posted here. However if you want them I would take a look at the Frigidaire version instead, it seems like you pay a BIG premium to get a mechanically identical fridge with the Electrolux name.

hvtech42, thank you for the input. We always wanted a lot of refrigerator/freezer space but the tag for SZ or comparable couldn't fit in our budget. And it really started bother me that a good 36 would have cost the same as the separate units.

There is a sale on right now - makes both names the same in price - so Im going to focus now on which model to get. There are 2 available right now - with nominal differences.

So, as it stands today -

rangetop - confirmed bluestar 36"
hood - confirmed vent a hood - model tbd
double ovens - leaning towards Bosch HBL5651UC

thank you all for your ongoing assistance!

I mentioned it twice but not sure you saw with all the other information on this thread. Have you confirmed with your kitchen contractor the size/diameter of your exhaust duct for the 1200 cfms you are planning on? If too small, there may be problems.

This post was edited by Mrs_Nyefnyef on Mon, Dec 15, 14 at 14:22

Mrs_Nyefnyef, yes, thank you for caring! I had already passed along the information to our contractor. Our range will be along an outside wall and we are starting from scratch - so we are good.

Nice selection. I think you will be happy.

Ilovepie, I'm actually in the market for the Electrolux twins as well. Can you please share where you found them on sale?

Michelle1973 - I am in Toronto Ontario - seems to be a promo everywhere here. they are 20% off and 3 yr parts warranty.

As for me - we are confirmed to get:
Electrolux EI32AF80QS with matching freezer
Bosch HBL5651UC dishwasher
vent-a-hood - model tbd

My dreams of a Bluestar may be at risk. I am hearing that there is not adequate service available here and that if anything goes wrong it will be a big issue....

Any Canucks want to chime in?

Otherwise - what is my next best option for a 36" range top?

I really liked the open burners - I know that nobody else offers them. I would like to stay in the price range of BS - not too much more. My must haves are - must be designed for heavy use and easy to clean.

Good Morning Ilovepie ~

We have been using our 36 " Thermador range top - 6 burners for a few weeks now and we love it.
If you are willing to forego the open burners - you may be happy with this one.. you have a choice of 6 burners or 4 burners with a grill/griddle. I prefer the 6 burners and use my own cast iron griddle.

Forgot to mention...we are Canucks too.
In Bradford, just north of Newmarket

Hi Pamela233, greetings from T.O.

I'm stuck on the open burners.... From what I've seen/experienced open is better for us. I do agree that I am better with 6 burners and getting a griddle for the top after. What griddle did you get?

We just purchased our Electrolux icon twins - got a great deal.

So one appliance set!

Hi Pie

Sorry for the delay. We were out of town playing Santa. That was fun!
I do not know the make of our cast iron griddle. It is a gift from a friend of ours who is a chef in Toronto. I love it.
But then, I am in love with our entire kitchen re-do. Especially the fact that it is virtually done. All that is left is backsplash, crown molding and some cabinet pull-outs.
I told the tradesmen that I am happy to wait until January for those items.
Merry Christmas!

Pamela233, have you finished the remaining items? Would like to see your redo.

We are back to square one in some ways. We did a walkthrough of the house (framed) and it feels a bit tighter than I thought it would. Don't get me wrong - its larger than the house we tore down. Ugh...

And, of course the KD rendering was a killjoy. Felt like a lot of stuff crammed into one space.

But what do I give up?

Hi Pie!

I am sorry to know that all is not as you had visualized. All I can offer is to say don't be discouraged! I am sure it will be wonderful.
We built a significant addition to this house 12 years ago (2 storey 28 x 32) and I remember thinking exactly the same way...oh no...this is not nearly large enough! Well, of course, for us it is. Our home is now 4200 sq ft...for 2 people...that's ok!

We are not finished our kitchen reno yet. The cabinet maker lives an hour away from us and does not like to drive in winter weather ...that makes life difficult. However, he is absolutely fabulous at matching new stain to existing cabinets so that is why I have stayed with him.
I fired our K.D. in early November...that is a long story and I should have done so weeks previous.
We are no farther along than the last posting. Our tile man "Sonny" will be coming the end of the week to do the backsplash. Our cabinet maker should be here also at the end of the week. So, fingers crossed...it will all be done in the next week or so Hooray!
I will definitely subit some photos

Hi Pamela,

Wow that is big!

We are on a 25 x 110 lot (shared mutual). Our boys are young - so still have lots of toys everywhere.

We did a walk through and overall it is good (the old house had original plaster that was crumbling, basement flooded when it rained or snow thawed....). I'm in no position to complain - but with all the expense it's such a nuisance that we are still going to have a smallish home (about 2000sqf no garage).

Hopefully, we will figure out how to fit in all the appliances and storage we need.

Keep me posted on your build!