It depends on your definition of "clean." I have the 36@ RNB and I love it.

As as to cleaning, I just brush crumbs and food bits down through the grates and onto the drip tray that gets cleaned out once a month or so.

Then I spray and wipe down the stainless steel ledge above the knobs. Then I do some spot cleaning of the grates themselves, if needed.

All in all, takes less than 5 minutes

The range will never be spotless no matter what you do. But I don't mind that at all. The cast iron grates take on a shiny patina from all the grease and i for one like that look.

Ive had other sealed ranges in the past and you can't just leave them "dirty" like that. They need to be scrubbed clean after each use and it's a giant pain.

I have a 36" RCS and I clean it just like George does. It's very easy to clean and takes very little time. In addition to what he mentioned, I've started rubbing the grates with oil about once a month, after I've pulled all the grates off and cleaned them thoroughly. I saw a BS video that recommended doing so, like you would do to a cast iron pan. I'm sure I could do it more often but I don't. I've only had a couple of boil overs, and once the grates had cooled down it was a snap to clean them.

I have a different open burner range and it really is easier to clean than a sealed burner. Stuff doesn't really get cooked on--either it gets incinerated or it's caught in the drip pan, depending on where it lands. Just about everything can go in the sink for a serious cleaning should one feel so inclined.

This might help. I have sealed and think they are easy to clean but this would have its trade offs in that you can break it down to clean and the cast iron will season so overall just different but not more difficult. Stooxie used to post here and has another video on using a wok.

Hey guys. Thank you for that. It was really helpful. Particularly the video.

I have a tendency toward visible cleanliness in the kitchen (only place really). Once a week I would take everything off the Viking and clean the top. Once a month doing the same for the hood.

After seeing the video I don't think that I'm going to go with the Bluestar (which is a shame), as it'd never be quite clean enough for me and wouldn't fit in our kitchen from that perspective.

Means I'm going to be limited to a 36" rangetop and probably going to get a Wolf. Doing the wolf so I can have a dedicated wok spot (I cook with a non-fully flat bottom pan at least once a day) while maintaining a smooth surface. I'd reconsider the Viking 7 series (for 8 burners) but two years later and they still have zero accessories for it.

Appreciate all the input everyone!

I would try out the Wolf to see how you like the burners as they are capped as well as having a sealed burner tray. This will spread the flame further on your highest heat. I have Wolf dual stacked burners and mine are 15K BTUs and work well for me because I don't require high heat but they do have higher BTUs now which might increase that spread a little more depending on how they are engineered.

Another rangetop you could consider might be the American Performer which I believe Fori above has. It has a semi sealed tray but uncapped burners. They are star shaped and 25K BTUs so would function about like a BS. The downside might be service but not so much with a rangetop as with the ovens. Maybe Fori would comment some more.

http://www.americanstoves.com/performer.php

To each his/her own. But I want to point out that I, like you, am obsessed with keeping a clean kitchen. Even though the bluestar is not "showroom" clean after I give it the daily once over, I still find it to be more than acceptable.

I cook on it multiple times a day and a friend came over recently who hasn't seen my new place yet and actually said "do you ever even cook on this?" True, the hood lights of the vent were not on when she asked this question (bc when they are on, seeing the grease and such is more apparent), but the other 16 lights of the kitchen were. So I guess it's all perspective and personal choice. For me, the most important thing is performance, where the bluestar simply excels. However, I do not feel that I sacrificed cleanliness for performance. And trust me, I do not put a lot of effort into cleaning the range at all. So for me, I feel like I got the best of both worlds.

I line the drip trays with aluminum foil. I just throw the foil away and replace with more foil. This is what is done in professional kitchens. I only have to wipe my grates with a damp rag and push the crumbs into the drip pan below. It's much easier to keep clean than a sealed burner unit.

You should try to find someone with an installed unit, break it down, and cook on it. It might resolve some of your concerns.

I suggested to you in another thread to consider the Dacor 48".

Better yet, find someone with a sealer burner range top, pour 1/4 cup scalding hot milk into that sealer burner and then clean it up. That alone will convert you forever to open burners.

yeah - the porcelain coating on me 48" sealed burner top is a PITA to clean and I end up cleaning with BKF / oven cleaner and there are still some things that simply won't come out - where it appears to have "cracked" or roughened up the coating. Now, that being said - I should clean it and post because it's 19 years old this year and still looks pretty good overall.

On another note - are you the NYC sushi pup that has a rescue dog from the cocker spaniel adoption center and makes the sushi pup toys?

If you want easy-all-the-time-spotless, forget about a rangetop and go with induction. :P

I guess guess you would have to try that hot milk on both and then decide. I have had a lot worse spills than that on sealed burners and it was easy, for me anyway, to clean. If you have ever boiled over caramel or jams that hardened that might be a test as you will have to soak parts on either an open or sealed burner for sure. A large greasy spill might be another test. It is a highly subjective matter though and if you look back on this forum you will find passionate views from both sides.

I had a Dacor range and the black enamel is different than the one I have now and it always looked streaky. This is from my husband who is pretty neutral. So some additional factors might come into play there. I did like the way the platforms were set up on the Dacor but the knobs on mine were cheapie and broke just turning the knob so pull them off and look at them. Mine had the blue lights. The others might be ok.

To the OP, it would be invaluable to find live ranges if at all possible to cook and see how they are to clean for you.

We have a 36" RNB (since '06), and if you're really bothered by the cleanliness, you can always take the bowls and grates off and run them through the dishwasher. It'll be a full load to run them for us for 6 burners. We don't clean the burners or under the hood otherwise very often. Eventually you'll have some of the porcelain come off that you'll need to season with a touch of oil after doing this.

Not me, another Sushipup. I didn't know there was more than one!

I've had a Garland (open burner) and now have a Viking open burner. There's nothing really daunting about cleaning. For a through cleaning I take off the 'decking' and burner trays, put them in the mop sink, spray with Easy Off. Leave that set for an hour, wash off with hot water - sparkles!

Alright guys. You've convinced us both to reconsider the bluestar.

I'm not so worried about cleaning the burners themselves, but the area around them. Our Viking burners looked less than great on the burners, but the area around them was always super clean.

In the end I'm really all about performance, but simplicity matters. As I've said before, I cook a lot...and I'm pretty messy...

So we're going to go look at them again and really give the bluestar a chance. If we go with the 36" for space reasons, we will likely still do the Wolf, but if we can fit the 48" and it makes sense, we're probably going to go with the BlueStar thanks to y'alls recommendations.

BTW: Do we go for the platinum?

I was sold on the BS, but my wife took one look at it and rejected it. We ended up going with the Wolf rangetop. If I recall properly, there's a bunch of wires running between the burners and drip pan. My wife didn't think those could ever be cleaned. My impression is that the BS may be easier if you're happy with a kind of commercial/clean enough kind of look. If you really want things to be very clean/ almost new look though (like my wife), then a sealed burner may be easier.

If you want a sealed burner with a better heat distribution pattern, then you may want to look at the Thermador star shaped burners. I would have considered this, but I hate their simmer burners.

"BTW: Do we go for the platinum?" Tough question. I love the fit , finish and look of the platinum and am doing a minor kitchen reno. We have an 11 year old BS 36" 6-burner rangetop and I'm drawn to the Platinum with the grill. But that raised design of the modular grill/griddle is a deal-breaker for me. Because it sits over the center two burners it will crowd the outside four when using 12/13" pans or a wok. Maybe if I had room for a 48" and was starting the kitchen from scratch, but at this point, I'm passing on the rangetop upgrade until this one dies (then I'll get another BS).

If you are looking at the 36" Platinum with grill/griddle, I would grab your most common large pans and find a place with one for a test run. If you're going 48" then you likely have enough burner flexibility regardless.

You could go with the Platinum if you wanted to have a few more BTUs and you would have the possibility of all 8 burners. You might be able to get 8 as a special order in the RNB. I think you can switch the grill or griddle module for burners in any position on the platinum.

The reason you might go with the RNB would be if you wanted to grill on it. You can read what people have to say but if you want a grill, many seem to think the built in is better but look at it and see what you think.

Some people also prefer a built in griddle. If that is the case, then you would go with a RNB.

The griddle on the Platinum is a fitted overlay, but because it is cast iron does not heat all that evenly. This can be good, if you want cooler and hotter zones that day or if you need something more even heating, you can buy a thicker aluminum overlay griddle and use it. These come in bare aluminum or nonstick coated.

As a three year 36RNB owner with built in griddle, the overlay convertible griddle/grill on the Platinum would be a deal breaker for me.

My built in griddle is the best thing since sliced bread, so versatile I use it as much or more than the burners.

If I had room for a 48", it would be four burners and a 24" griddle!

You guys made a great case for the BS. We went back to the store 4
times to check them out. Found one with a live unit, took it apart to
see what cleaning would be like...I'm sure it is wonderful, but it's
just too
industrial for the kitchen we're putting together. It would be out of
place and while I can tell the performance is going to be better with
it, I'm guessing the performance with the Wolf will be "good enough."

After a LOT of back and forth and uncertainty and looking and trying
them out, we are going to go forward with a wolf 6 burner + grill.

In our last home the grill was 8 feet from the kitchen. In this one
you have to go through a bedroom and down stairs to get to it. So unless
I'm doing something pretty darn fancy, I'm not likely going to be using
the grill (which is pretty sad because I love that grill).

We really want the 48" for comfort of two folk cooking together,
which we do a lot. We can't bring ourselves to do Viking again, and they
still don't have a wok ring for their 7 series after multiple years
(and the aftermarket "works with everything" don't work with it).

Because of the above we are going with the Wolf 6 burner + Grill.
We'll spring for a grate with the integrated wok ring in it. I'm not
100% certain just how often we'll use the grill, but I know we'll use it
more than the griddle. It's also the same height as the other grates,
so you can easily move from one burner to the next.

I'm not 100% sure we're making the right decision, but we're making the best decision with what we know!

Now to figure out: is a 48" hood "enough" or do we need to give up
cabinet space for a 54" hood. And is the 9" low profile Best by Braun
hood really just as "good" as the 18" one, if they both have an external
1200 CFS blower.

daethon, It is hard to know if you made the right decision until you get it. I made a similar decision between BS and Wolf. I do think using a wok, you might benefit from BS but sometimes other things come into play too. I ended up with Wolf and really liked it and still like the range top. The oven is unusable due to blue porcelain chipping but that doesn't enter into your decision with just a rangetop. Hope you enjoy it!

We are doing just the range top. Probably getting a dual Electolux Icon oven. Just can't justify the cost of the Wolf ovens and the monogram don't seem to add much. Plus we loved our last Electrolux icons.

i think we will be happy with the Wolf. I wish they were all the same burner potency, but I'll deal with it! I'm actually excited about the Chargrill!!