We have had the Berta installed since November 2011. The only adjustment needed was adjusting the burner strength on both the stovetop and ovens. I originally felt that my simmer burner was a little too hot and once the burner was turned down, it has been perfect. Also, I monitor my ovens with an old fashioned oven thermometer and both of them were originally running around 25 to 50 degrees hotter than what I would set them at. Again, once the burner adjustment was made, they are rock solid. Both the stovetop and oven adjustments were easily done by my husband. My husband is very handy and did almost all of the work in our new build kitchen himself, but according to him, any kind of work that is needed on this range would be very simple because everything on it is mechanical. Almost no electronics and anyone with the most basic of appliance repair knowledge could work on them. We live in rural Iowa, so DH is our repairman. :) My stovetop has 6 burners and the electric griddle. We haven't used the griddle as much as we could yet, but I plan to continue to experiment with it in the future! This is actually my first gas range, I have always had electric before. The ovens did take a little adjustment for me to get used to because I felt like when I baked some items, they were getting too done on the bottom. I don't know if it is from the burner being turned lower, or I am just getting used to working with the oven, that I don't seem to have that problem anymore. I did stop using my darkest metal pans and have switched to more glass and ceramic bakers. I also only use the convection when roasting something. I found for true baking such as cookies or cakes, I kept having problems with the bottoms being too done. Again part of this might be user error, not the range! We went with the pro series because I loved the knobs and thought it was pretty! I know it is superficial, but at the time we purchased, there wasn't a difference in price between it and the master. I personally love my range. I am not a fancy chef and am using it for everyday family cooking/entertaining. It has made me more adventureous to try recipies and techniques that I would have never attempted with my old electric smoothtop. For those who truely have a more gourmet cooking style, this might not work as well for them, but for us, it was the best fit for our needs and budget. Because our appliance dealer gave us a great deal on the range and our dishwasher, we ended up spending just under $6,000 on it.

Ranges, and especially wall ovens, nowadays with electronic controls typically have a cooling fan for the control panel that exhausts a larger immediate volume of heat into the room. In any case, all the heat generated inside the oven cavity during cooking must eventually dissipate into the room, short of having a closed-circuit outdoor exhaust integral to the appliance. Gas ovens need a bit more airflow through the appliance for O2 to burn the gas compared to electric ovens.

I have had gas and electric ranges over the years, but for the last 30+ I have cooked on electric until I moved and our new condo had a gas range. Everyone was all agog over it and told me I would LOVE the gas range that it was so much better than electric. For the last 20 years before our move, I cooked on smooth top electric ranges and loved them! But everyone kept telling me gas was better. Turns out, I DO NOT love the gas range. It doesn't boil water as fast as my electric one did and seems to take forever to preheat the oven. And I've had a hard time adjusting to the fact that if I don't use hot pads to remove my pans off the stove top, I'll burn my hands. And don't leave your stirring spoon in the pot for more than a second if you don't want to burn off a finger or two. My cookies don't rise -and they're either not done enough or too done, can't get it just right like before. AND the worst part is cleaning it! That's the main reason I switched to a smooth top all those years ago - they take a little getting used to the different cleaning method, but when you learn the tricks, they're a breeze compared to the old coil or this gas behemoth! It takes me a good hour to clean around all the burners and try to be careful not to get cleaner or food down those little slots around the sides. And even using a degreaser detergent, it still looks greasy after going over it several times. Give me my smooth top back! . . . where I can just scrap off the burnt on food with a razor blade - or if there isn't anything burnt on, I can just wipe on a little cleaner and polish it off with a paper towel. When wiping down the countertops with a little dish soap, I can include the stovetop and keep it sparkling clean on a daily basis. I have severe arthritis in my hands and moving those heavy grates off the top and then the cleaning around all the little places is just a little too much for me (not to mention getting gunk off the grates). That is why, after 2 1/2 years of trying to get used to it, I have decided to replace my gas range with a brand new smooth top electric range. People tell me I must be CRAZY because I'm the only person they know who prefers electric over gas. The only thing I will miss is turning off the heat immediately when something boils over. So I will have to get used to moving the pan off again. But it's worth it to me to clean up a boil over on the smooth top vs. the gas burner-cover-slots thing. AND I'll have my wonderful convection oven back and maybe my cookies too!

The 'laminate' will be fine...but a vinyl plank floor may not be. Vinyl can warp when exposed to heat...for any length of time. There are many high-end vinyls out there that can handle this no problem...but you have to have the high-end one's. My question is: why is there laminate in the kitchen? If it is already there, then leave it be. But if you are planning to use laminate (the stuff of a photo of wood sitting on a fibre board core) then I question the logic. Laminate's heat rating isn't the issue. It is the issues with water/splashes/spills/missing ice cubes. It REALLY hates water/steam from a dishwasher. Many laminates (not all...but most) will not make it more than 5 years in a kitchen. They will puff up at the seams should they become exposed to spills that are not wiped up IMMEDIATELY. And by spills, I mean ONE lost ice cube. That's all it takes for some forms of laminate.