In February we were making a decision about the AG ranges and were looking at American, Bluestar and Wolf. We did tons of research and looked and looked. At that time I was also thinking I wanted a color range rather than stainless, so that narrowed it down to Bluestar and American. We decided the American was a better value than the Bluestar and were ready to order until we did a final measurement and discovered that the extra depth of the Performer would not work in our particular configuration because a drawer on an adjacent wall wouldn't open. So, much as we would have liked it, that eliminated that possibility. Then, we found an AG Wolf floor model on clearance (one of the old models with the open burner) and bought that. I like it, but personally I wouldn't want the burners on the new model Wolf. And, there have been a couple times (maybe only 3 or 4) when I thought to myself I would have liked to have one of the more powerful burners from the Performer. In your shoes, I'd save the money and get the Performer. This doesn't mean I don't like the Wolf; it just means that I don't think it is worth the extra money now, especially considering the fact it has sealed burners.

I'm midway through a gut renovation of my 1 bedroom condo in Greenwich Village. I love to cook and I had my heart set on a pro-style all gas range, namely the Miele HR1124. However, venting out is not an option. My building will not allow me to vent externally so I'd have to install a recirculating hood. The kitchen is open into the living/dining room. No window in the kitchen. There are windows in the living room, but they are about 20 feet away from the range. The condo board will not allow me to vent through a window anyway. Would it be crazy to install a recirculating hood with the Miele range which puts out nearly 69K BTU's? Miele offers a pro-style range hood (DAR 1220) with a recirculating option, but it's very pricey. I don't mind spending the money on this hood if it would be a good solution though. Any help would be greatly appreciated - I have to buy appliances within the next week or two.

Wow you've given us a lot to think about. Thanks. Hadn't considered repair as a possibility before. Didn't think replacement parts etc. would be available. (And in general it has seemed that service people who know what they are doing - especially with older tech - and who have the skill to repair and not replace can be really hard to find.) iroll, that diagram and info is great. (Never knew the function of those pinholes!) Although my grandmother has said she cleans it well, before proceeding further, I'm going to try "detailing" it next time I'm there. If i recall correctly when the cover is lifted there is corrosion visible in places - but only in what looks like structural support (metal straps have broken off) - whereas gas-related things somehow are still stable.

When we did a full kitchen remodel, the architect, the general contractor, the electrician, the plumber, and myself poured over the installation manuals and technical specifications for all the appliances and materials used and verified every small detail. Took weeks to come to an agreement between the lot of us. And we had to change out several of the choices while making these decisions. The appliance dealer is one of the more reputable local businesses, but all he wanted was the itemized list of whatever we decided on. And he offered to get us whatever documents that we needed from the vendor(s). I would have thought that for high-end kitchens, this is normal procedure. If you take short cuts, that's going to come back and hurt you. But if you hire trustworthy contractors, they would know this. These documents are very technical, but that doesn't mean you can just ignore them. They are written for professionals. That's why we keep telling you to go back to your GC and complain. If they did their job, they should never have greenlit this particular configuration. And that's why they charge ~20% overhead, so that they can make you whole when mistakes have been made. Now, if you bought low-powered mainstream appliances and put them into an all IKEA kitchen, things might be different. None of these choices are pushing the envelope very much. And honestly, people's expectations are much lower too. If things start failing after three to five years or there are minor cosmetic blemishes, that's just par for the course. So, yeah, you can just go and talk to a sales person and whatever they make the most profit on is going to be what you buy; and it'll probably work within the limited expectations. I feel absolutely confident, that I can put together a budget kitchen for you by spending an afternoon in the showroom picking out cabinets, appliances, and materials. And honestly, even if you cut out all the professional contractors, it'll be "fine". Not spectacular, but perfectly serviceable. Your mistake is having high expectations, shopping for specialty materials that come with specific constraints, but then skipping the crucial step of hiring professionals that know how to work with these materials.