IMO Wolf is overpriced and I am not sure about a gas range company now making induction cooktops Just like I don’t think GE makes good gas stoves. I love an all fridge all freezer option I do not however like fridges with panels to match cabinets to me money spent there could go somewhere important. I have a few clients now with the Electrolux all fridge / all freezer , my clients have them together with a builin kit . I have the old Fridgedaire ones they are 12 yrs old never had an issue and the pair are less than 4K I like an all gas range because I think certain things bake better in a gas oven so i also have double all electric wall ovens mine are from KA the range is Bertazzoni all gas all the ovens have convection.I have one induction burner I use for delicate sauces I have not found induction works for me I still love gas.Yes your exhaust is missing but I am sure you know about that. I should mention I have a Bosch DW same age as the fridg/ freezer no issues. I honestly have never owned appliances all from one maker there is not a maker that makes all things well. I spend a lot of time with clients choosing appliances that work for them and buitin fridges are a huge expense for really no return as far as performance is concerend.

My chef son prefers gas over induction for cooking. We love our Bosch dishwasher. All our appliances are from different makers. Often, the best isn't the most expensive, exclusive model.

What type of oven do you have now, gas or electric? Do you use convection? This can make a difference in baking. There are multiple threads on induction vs gas, one just this week. There are chefs and competent home cooks that prefer each for different reasons.

I would avoid Wolf products with a blue interior. They have had ongoing issues with chipping for at least 10 years with some posters here having multiple ovens fail. These are some current lawsuits.

http://www.wolfblueovenchipping.com/case-information/

I was looking back at some of the posts about this the other day and noticed that in some more recent posts, even long time posters did not come back with final resolutions after sometimes multiple failures. Wolf in the past finally bought the ovens back but I am wondering if they are telling people they can’t talk about Wolf anymore if they buy them back. Dacor tried to tell me not to talk about my experience with them on gardenweb after they bought my appliances back but it was not until after I got my refund.

If you bake a lot, consider a combi oven which can give you control of humidity as well as fan and direction of heat. Look at the Miele plumbed version. I don’t have one now because I have to have two big ovens due to large gatherings we have and I am able to work around any higher humidity needs I have but if you have room and the budget, consider it for one if your ovens. I would look at the Gaggenau combi as well. Both Miele and Gaggenau have excellent manuals that would give you an idea about what these ovens do. Steam is a capability but it is control of humidity up and down that makes it useful in baking. These ovens are also constructed to use steam, where conventional/convection ovens are not. Miele convection ovens say not to add steam and others might be more prone to damage, especially the electronics.

Eveness is very subjective so you get people that say a particular oven is even and others who say it isn’t. A lot also depends on your bakeware and sugar or butter content of what you are baking. When you add convection, especially the third element, it seems to be even harder to get right, which is kind of funny because they market it to promote eveness of heat. They end up trying to break up the straight line air currents from the fan with multiple fans, reversing fans or baffles all to create turbulence. It is better if you can have a slow and fast fan speed but this is so hard to know if an oven has this in advance of buying it. I have an Electrolux oven which is pretty good but can’t recommend it because I have had blue enamel chipping in it x2. I am looking at Bosch 800 series if the Elux fails. GE also has an interesting feature, “Direct Air” which allows the fan assisted air flow from the top when using single rack bake or roast.

If you want to save on the refrigerator, are you willing to forego the panel-ready feature? If so, then consider the matching Frigidaire Gallery all-fridge/all freezer units. They're 32" wide, but will save you over $10K compared to the high-end built-in models by Miele, Thermador, SubZero, etc.

Thank you for all the feedback. I should have provided a little more info. I currently have an electric cooktop. I don’t like that it gets very hot (makes kitchen hot) and it’s very hard to control the heat. I make a lot of things that call for boiling then simmering, so, I think the induction will work well for us. I’m just uncertain of the brand.

In regards to the built-in fridge. Due to the size limitations and layout of my kitchen, I need to at least do a counterdepth. I cannot use a full size fridge even if I extreme my cabinets. However, after looking at counterdepth models, I don’t think there will be enough space for all of our food (family of 5). So, then I thought, why not do all fridge?! I don’t have the space to do an all-fridge next to an all-freezer, so, the freezer will be in our pantry (space is already there for a 30” wide all-freezer. The refrigerator will go on a wall with the double ovens. New cabinetry but using existing layout. As it is now, I think that wall looks choppy and has too many stainless elements. Hence, my decision to do a built-in panel ready. I realize that it will not add value or function and costs more to service, I just think it will look better in my kitchen. So, again, I’m wondering about BRAND for a 36” builtin panel ready all refrigerator. I’ve looked at Sub Zero, JennAir and GE Monogram. Thoughts on these?

Now for the ovens.... I liked the blower element in Wolf but I’m glad you have alerted me to the issue with the blue inside. I have baked with convection before and really like it. If not Wolfe, what should l look at? PS I can’t do Miele or Gagg because there isn’t anyone to service those within 100 miles :(

Bosch ovens are solid performers, well priced and long lived, in my experience. Electrolux refrigerators may be a good value, some here like them well enough. I have no experience with hem. Worth investigtaing.

I love my subzero all refrigerator and my subzero all freezer. I bought them because they were the only fully integrated built ins when I did my remodel. They were a splurge, but after nearly 20 years I am a subzero convert. I absolutely love them. I had a few problems with both appliances after install (while on warranty) but nothing since.

Yeah, love our SubZero built-in (w/ panel). Very well-engineered fridge -- but that comes at a premium. I can applaud you on the decision to buy a counter-depth all fridge. We did the same thing and it was absolutely the right call. Much more useful than trying to squeeze fridge and freezer into the same space.

Lack of Miele service in your part of the country is unfortunate. The plumbed Miele combination steam oven (CSO) is amazing. I find I cook entire complicated meals and rarely even touch my stove. I also find that for long simmering, I much prefer one of my ovens over the stove top. Results generally tend to be much nicer when there is even low heat from all sides.

I do use my oven for the same purpose I can put the pot in the oven on low and go out no stirring required and I just have a regular wall oven no fancy steam one .

Yes, I think I was a little too terse trying to say two different things at the same time. The CSO is awesome, because of it's fine temperature control and the humidity control. Opens up a whole new set of possibilities.

Talking about possibilities, any oven is great at simmering. And since simmering is important to OP, I wanted to point out that maybe the stovetop isn't the perfect tool for that. That would take some of the stress out of shopping for the stove.

Sorry if I confused.

I am quite happy with my Bosch Benchmark Induction Cooktop. I also have the Bosch side opening oven and a Bosch dishwasher.

I found the Gaggenau induction cooktop quite impressive but didn't want to spend $10,000 :-). You can set a pan down anywhere on the surface.

I have a Fagor induction cooktop and love it! I also have 2 Kitchen aid ovens that I had installed on either side of the cook top which I also have been happy with.

I have Wolf 36 inch induction cooktop. I've had it for about 3 years and I and my entire family love it for many reasons. First of all, it is super easy to clean. If food spills over while cooking, it does not cake onto the surface. Mine looks brand new even though I use it every day. Heat is also very precise and cooks incredibly fast. I can't put a pot of water and walk away because it will boil before I know it. really! In addition, you can have a pot of water at rapid boil and have it go to simmer in a split second. I've played with it going from simmer to boil and back because i found it so amazing. You can't get that from electric or gas because of the residual heat on the grill/cooktop. I simmer a lot on the induction cooktop (soups, bone broth, melted chocolate, etc) and it comes out beautifully. Ever since I switched to induction, i've noticed that i don't get hot when i cook in the summer because there's less heat loss to the air. I paid about $2200 for mine at PC Richards. The only drawback is that you may need to purchase new pots and pans. I went to the Wolf/SubZero showroom to check it out before purchasing mine. I highly recommend you check it out in action if you are unsure. I would never go back to gas or electric!

I've also checked out Thermador brand induction cooktop which was over $4000. The cool function it had was that the entire top is "induction" What i mean is you can put your pots and pans anywhere on the cooktop and it will work. It's not limited to the circled areas on the cooktop.

as for double oven with convection, i ended up buying a KitchenAid because Wolf did not make my size (30 inches?) I am not a fan of KitchenAid double oven because it takes a long time to preheat and a long time to cool down. Heat is also not even. Control panel is not user friendly for slightly less basic functions like delayed start, etc. It looks good though. I paid about $2800 at PC Richards.

Hi,

We have a 36 subzero fridge and a 36 freezer that are humming away in their 17th year with us.

We moved them to our new place and because of our kitchen reno and the size of our compact kitchen , we have to buy more a narrow fridge and freezer. We will be getting a 30" fully integrated all fridge . And, because we have the other freezer not all that far away, we opted for the 18 inch all freezer, which can still store a flat pizza box! Aside from the the longevity, food lasts longer in a sub-zero. Now with new ozone function , food is supposed to last even longer.

I will know once we will try using it. Our reno will be finished by the end of Sept.

I feel very privileged to have lived with sub-zero all fridge and freezer. There is a minimum of stooping. The easy access to the all fridge and all freezer is a pure joy. The 24 in depth is also important as I don't lose food in the back of the fridge or freezer. The storage is amazing. We are not paying for style in the inside, we are pay for the longevity and efficiency.

My neighbour has a 36" Melee with the freezer on the bottom and can't easily fit in large cartons of milk.

By the way when you replace your subzero you can apply for 5% off the price of the replacement appliance(s).

Re induction cooktops. I used a 1 burner induction hob for two years.

I loved the ability to set the cooking mode and walk away. knowing as the cooktop would turn itself off . I did not appreciate how to set the timer, and suggest that you look into how the different models set the time. I loved the rapidity of heating food. And yes, the top was easy to clean. I had to get all new pots and pans but he price has come down for them. Still it is an added expense if you don't have the appropriate cookware.

I did do some looking at induction cooktops for our new kitchen, and I ended up choosing to go for gas for multiple reasons. I would have been interested in the induction brands that had the whole cooktop activated by the pan and note be restricted by the size options of most induction cook tops.

Hope this helps. (-: