Since I searched for so long, with little luck, to find recent
info on Thermador appliances, I figured that I would post something to
help someone who might be looking for the same. We recently gutted and
replaced our entire kitchen and since my wife and I do all of our home
improvements, or at least those within our ability, ourselves, I was
privy to the most subtle nuances of installation. My wife demanded that
we get all matching appliances and after much research, we went with
Thermador.
The package included the 36" all gas range, wall mounted hood, under
cabinet microwave, 36" single door fridge with bottom freezer, and the
re branded Bosch dishwasher. (technically the entire line is re branded
Bosch since BSH Home Appliance Group acquired Thermador entirely)
I have to say right off the bat, the dishwasher performs without any
problems. The upgrade to the "chefs tool rack" was definitely worth it.
This allowed us to take out the silverware holder and we have not used
it once. This opens up a lot of real estate on the lower rack which
makes loading multiple mixing bowls, pots and pans easy. What's more,
the silverware, neatly organized in the tool rack, would make someone
suffering from OCD extremely pleased. The silverware come out sparkling
clean every time. The only downside is the 2.5 hour run time. Which
isn't really a down side since the extended run time results in the
cleanest of clean dishes.
Another good performer is the microwave, which is also re branded, I
believe it is manufactured by Sharp, but I could be wrong. The sensor
cook feature works well as long as you don't cover the food so tight
that the steam sensor doesn't function. Although I don't use it to
cook, more to warm things up that I cooked the night before or melt
butter, occasionally I forget to put the potatoes in the oven and the
sensor cook feature makes it easy to pop them in and forget about them
until it is time to put them on the plate. I know what you may be
thinking, microwaved potatoes sound about as displeasing as anything
else cooked solely in the microwave, but one does what one must to
finish on time. Like anything, there are some less than desirable
nuances. One downside here is that the door must be closed before
pushing start, which is only mildly annoying, having to wait for the
door so shut when you are in a hurry. I can see why they included this
feature though, to prevent the force of habit from taking over and
having someone accidentally push start when they really wanted to push
close and having a dish of butter sprayed all over inside during the
time which may be remaining on the timer. This would be an even bigger
problem because the unit is difficult to clean since the drawer does not
come out. Anyway, nothing goes into the microwave without a plate
under it and a cover over it, so the cleaning isn't really a problem for
those committed to not making a mess in the first place.
Next up is the wall hood. Only mildly maddening to install, it took my
wife and I all of 2.5 hours from unpacking to turning it on for the
first time. What can I really say? It has an internal blower that
moves air from inside to outside. Two notes of caution: If you buy the
optional vent cover, which may be necessary if you decide to bring the
unit closer to the level of the range, you will notice that there is a
slight interference between the transition that they supply, which is
made to go from the square output on the top of the unit to the round
ducting that would be present in most homes, and the cover itself.
Although you can't tell now, the transition actually pushes the cover
out slightly. This is definitely a design flaw. I would recommend
bringing this up with your cabinet maker and at least discussing the
alternatives. Second note of caution: the hood is basically mounted on a
single piece of 1X2 wood. This is fine and would work perfectly if the
length of the piece of wood did not correspond to just less than the
standard spacing of 3 wall studs in most homes. I had to go into the
garage and remove some drywall in order to nail some crutch studs to the
existing studs in order to have something to fasten the mounting piece
into. This was not a problem for me because I had unfettered access to
the other side of the wall in question, but if this is not the case for
you, it would present quite the problem.

Under the hood is, of course, the range. Now, this is where the
debate typically heats up. (Couldn't help myself) The great thing about
this range is the presence of the 18,000 BTU burners. Not one or two,
but all of them are absolute powerhouses. Because of their capability
to bring even the largest pot of water to a boil in record time, some
fail to realize that heating a small, or average size pan on high, is
equivalent to heating a small, or average size pan on nuclear. The star
burners, on high, will definitely spread the flame about the sides of
said wares. When using say, an omelette pan, heating just above medium
is equivalent to high on any other brand's heating element. Once you
figure this out, you will be able to enjoy the use of the burners on
high when making paella in an 18" skillet, and fry your pork chop with
ease on a lower setting. I find, in any case, the shape of the star
burner does indeed provide more even heating than traditional round
burners. Yes they are more difficult to clean around because they
aren't lifted off the surface to allow for my man hands to fit
underneath along with the sponge or towel very easily, and a Ferrari
doesn't have cup holders. The left most burners are the much discussed
"extra low" capable burners. I still use a double boiler for
hollandaise and the like, so I honestly don't use it much. The thing
is, the controller for these ignition elements is much more sensitive
because of their alternative function. (I for one, appreciate this
because my wife and I are planning to start a family soon, and any
inconvenience in the name of safety is alright by me.) This means that
if you do use a large skillet on high, the extra low burner's safety
function begins to confuse itself because the flame spreads out so much
that the heat sensor is tricked into thinking that the flame went out
and it needs to relight. This results in a somewhat constant clicking
as the burner attempts to relight itself while blazing away. The
problem only occurs with a large piece of cookware and only when on
med-high to high but is annoying enough for me to just use the middle or
right two burners for things like griddles and large pans. C'est la
vie. Be smarter than the appliance.
In all, I have never before been so pleased with the results of my
culinary endeavors than I have when using this appliance. But again,
there is one area where the engineers and writers of installation
instructions need to sit down together and agree on something. There is
a safety feature that screws to the floor and accepts one of the rear
feet to prevent the range from tipping forward when the oven door is
opened and possibly leaned on, or something heavy placed on it. The
installation instructions give a prescribed location for this piece of
hardware that is nowhere close to the rear foot. So, only after
installing the safety "clip" and gas line and pushing the unit toward
the wall to complete the installation did I find out about this little
discrepancy. Kind of a pain when dealing with newly finished hardwood
but nothing worthwhile comes easy, right? (hint: sarcasm)
Now, the fridge. I love the function of the fridge as it pertains to
keeping things cool and fresh, and it looks as good as it performs both
inside and out. It makes these perfect little ice cubes and even comes
with an ice scoop to keep your friends' grubby hands out of the bin. It
has dual compressors which means that the fridge doesn't get too cold
if you have recently loaded up the freezer with unfrozen foods, and
there is no exchange of air between the two chambers, which keep your
ice tasting like, well, ice. The fact that it is counter depth hasn't
had any effect on our ability to shop once a week for food and still
have room to pack it full in preparation for those weekend bbq's. The
absolutely herculean hinges allow for fully loaded doors and a
completely flush finish and this unit looks fan-freakin'-tastic
integrated into the brand new cabinetry. Again, one single point to be
aware of before buying a Thermador refrigerator. DON'T BUY A THERMADOR
REFRIGERATOR. The problem is with the compressors. They make this
high pitch whining noise that, while possibly within the threshold for
acceptable decibel level, the frequency will drive you nuts. At first
we thought nothing of it, after all it is a piece of equipment and can't
be completely silent. But after only a few quiet mornings, silently
reading the paper and sipping coffee in my brand spankin' new kitchen,
the noise began to drill itself into my head. I started to hate being
in that room or even in that part of the house and this was completely
unacceptable. We called a service company and he felt that the freezer
compressor was a little too hot to the touch so he recommended
replacement. No dice. The noise persisted. After some persuasion and
careful observation, I managed to get him to agree to recommend that
Thermador pony up for another compressor replacement, but for the
refrigerator this time. Aha! This was the ticket and the noise was no
more. We were lucky though, as he told us that Thermador is aware of
this problem but they don't think it is a problem. He informed us that
they are starting to refuse to replace these compressors because it is
apparently just luck of the draw if you get a good one to replace the
old one with, so people were getting them replaced a lot. My sweet wife
must be credited for his softheartedness and willingness to push this
deal through, but any other service company may have said that the
warranty will not cover it and we would have to pay for any replacement
compressors. You would be well advised to either stay away from
thermador refrigerators or get an iron clad warranty rider that
specifically addresses this problem. Given the amount of money this
package runs, that would have been relatively easy if we had known of
the problem from the get go.
So there it is, my take on Thermador appliances. The items that I own at least.