OMG! My appliances are about 7 yrs. old now. I take excellent care of my belongings and my remodeled kitchen still looks new. I was told to use Sheila Shine on my fridg, Inox cream on my sink and faucet,&Dacor SS clnr. on my cooktop and ovens. I have been doing that as instructed. But all of a sudden, I noticed a kind of oily, sticky coating on my cooktop,ovens, and fridg. big time! I was going nuts. I read every entry on this blog and ended up using Goo Gone on the electronic control pads and Orange Clean Foam (by Orange Glo Int'l) which seemed to be the only thing that took off the oily, sticky from all the SS. That has left faint streaks which I don't like, but it's so much better than what had obviously built up over the years. I am throwing out ALL my stainless steel cleaners and going to try the water and microfiber cloth that seemed to get the most votes. But if anyone has anything more updated, I would love to hear about it. All these posts are several years old. (BTW...once this can of Orange Clean Foam is gone, it's gone. They don't seem to make it any longer. Why are GREAT products always discontinued??) One more question about the ZEP that many had recommended. WHICH ONE? There are 2 foams. Also on SprayWay...is it the glass cleaner or do they have SS products? Thanks to any and all who read this.

Came across this site when looking for a Graphite gray refrigerator. I have the DW from Adora and love the color and it shows no prints/drips. Unfortunately I am finding that GE Adora is the only manufacturer who makes appliances in this color, AND they only make two S by S fridges, one DW, and one stove choice available in graphite gray. I am hoping I didn't make a mistake buying the DW in a color that may not take off and will leave me little or no choice in design if I wish to match DW. I would love a bottom mount frige rather than S by S, and have no interest in French doors. Any suggestions? Or am I stuck with SS or black?

You GO, @Kathy Linn! I resolved early-on in our kitchen design to adopt a "no-stainless" policy (more for the looks than the upkeep), and so set out to find an antique, enameled stove (for cleanability in addition to looks) and even went with copper sinks to avoid SS. My first kitchen was all-white when we bought the house, and not really in a good way - laminate countertops and mdf cabinets in addition to white appliances. It was more work keeping the countertops white than the fridge (although the door handle did yellow with time) but I was done with white by the time we moved. For our build I settled on a 1929 Glenwood, restored at a shop outside Boston. It was a splurge but like yours (which is also very handsome) one we'll never need to replace. I'd like to think if consumers start throwing the SS junk back in appliance companies' (and designers') faces and going with restored antiques or otherwise reliable, easy-to-clean appliances with actual color options that we don't have to replace after 5-10 years, maybe they'll stop telling us what we should want and start producing quality again.

Countertop materials are a surprisingly difficult decision. There are a lot of compromises between form and function: Granite: heat resistant, scratch resistant, stain resistant if you pick a darker and harder variety, otherwise risk of stains. Small risk of chips when using zero-radius edges; can be repaired. Overall, a great and very functional material, but can look dated. Marble: heat resistant, mostly scratch resistant, stains easily. Small risk of chips when using zero-radius edges; can be repaired. Great material for a backsplash, but for countertops you need to be careful about stains. Soapstone: heat resistant, scratches easily, stains easily. If you don't mind the looks of a "living" material, soapstone is gorgeous and highly functional. It'll develop a natural patina that some people enjoy a lot. Quartz: sensitive to heat, scorches and cracks if exposed to high heat, mostly scratch resistant (and can be repaired), very low risk of chips. Many colors. Modern look. If you are careful about not resting hot pots on the counters, and if you order a heat-shielding backguard for your stove, then many people are happy with quartz. On the other hand, if you order a high-BTU stove with an island trim, then you absolutely cannot use quartz. It's virtually guaranteed to get damaged at some point. Stainless Steel: heat resistant, stain resistant. This is another "living" material. It'll develop a natural pattern of scratches, if used as a countertop. If you don't mind that, it's a very nice and easy to use material. Also, it'll show fingerprints unless you polish it after each use (and who does that!). As a backsplash, scratching and fingerprints can be avoided, and in fact stainless steel is a popular heat resistant backsplash material; make sure to use heat resistant material behind the stainless steel though (cement board and metal studs are recommended). The factory-new finish can always be restored with a Scotchbrite pad, but few people would do so regularly; so, get used to the scratches. Copper: in many ways, copper is very similar to stainless steel, but in addition to a natural pattern of scratches, you'll also get natural variations in color. Sintered Porcelain: heat resistant, scratch resistant, stain resistant. Available in many modern finishes. Looks amazing. If it wasn't for a tendency to chip or even crack, this would be the ideal material. Can be used for backsplash, where the risks of mechanical damage are lower. Be aware that the finish is only on the surface, so unlike natural stone any cut edges will have a monochrome color. Also, avoid any tight corners. All corners should have at least a ¼" radius, and edges should be rounded over to reduce the risk of chipping. If you can live with these limitations, you'll have a beautiful material at hand. Porcelain Tile: heat resistant, scratch resistant, but can stain more easily. This is particularly true for grout lines. Tiles are popular for backsplash but don't make the best countertop material. Laminate: Affordable, stain resistant, many popular patterns, looks cheaper than other materials, sensitive to heat, more scratch resistant than most people think, but over the years will show wear and tear. I have never heard of laminate for backsplash; the lack of heat resistance would probably be the biggest issue here. But for countertops it isn't a bad choice, if money is a limiting factor. Modern high-quality laminate can look very nice without breaking the bank. Expect that you'll want to replace it though at some point. But even then, you should still get at least 10 years of use out of it. So, you really need to figure out what is important to you. For us, heat and stain resistance was the most important factor. We use our kitchen heavily and the countertops are sometimes used as actual work surfaces (e.g. when making pasta, bread or cookies). I love natural stone, so granite or soap stone would have worked well. But it wouldn't have matched nicely with the rest of the materials in this space. So, instead, we used stainless steel. Despite the tendency to develop a pattern of scratches and showing fingerprints unless freshly cleaned, I am very happy with our decision. This is a working kitchen after all. For the backsplash, we picked sintered porcelain. This gives us one solid uninterrupted surface. It looks very clean, is heat resistant, and trivial to keep clean. And as a backsplash, there isn't really an issue with chipping. Really a beautiful material and very happy with this decision. Not cheap though. I now know what so many people opt for subway tile instead.