Recommendations for New Range?

[westtexman]

Hello All!

I am in the process of purchasing a new house that is in need of some renovation, including kitchen appliances. I am trying to decide which range to purchase and wanted to see if you lot have any recommendations.

The home currently has a GE Drop-In electric range circa 1993. The house has gas, so I will be running a gas line to the kitchen so that I can have a gas stove - or even better - a dual-fuel range.

My requirements/limitations are that I need a 30-inch range, gas or dual-fuel, 5-burners, prefer double oven, stainless steel and either slide-in/drop-in. With these parameters, I keep coming up with the GE Cafe series range. Does anyone have any experience with these? They are beautiful, but for that price I feel like I could go with a Viking, Wolf, etc and get something more industrial-looking.

Anyone have any thoughts? I would like to have a matching microwave above the stove and a matching dishwaher.

 

[norgeway]

You Asked....

After looking at everything on the market, I would say ,do as I have, Go vintage, you will get a consistently better performing range and will not have to spend a fortune on service.But I realize vintage isnt for everyone.

 

[petek]

What about induction? Everywhere I've read and spoken to people who have one rave about them. It's on my list when the time comes. I was tempted a few weeks ago when I was in the store about getting my dw extended warranty. They had a Frigidaire induction stove with two induction burners and two standard glass burners for $1049. I've seen Samsungs with 3 inductions and 1 regular burner as well. The idea being that you still have burners for glass and aluminum pans to cook on I guess. I've seldom used more than 3 burners at a time anyways, mostly just 1 or 2 at a time. The other issue though was they're only available in stainless/black and I really only want white appliances.

 

[aamassther]

We did a kitchen appliance upgrade last year. We went with Frigidaire all induction. They were having a promotion, that if you bought fridge too, the micro hood and dishwasher were free.
Induction is really cool. Literally, our kitchen doesn't heat up as much in the summer and most importantly, it's very responsive. To me, it beats gas, hands down. It's cleaner and as responsive. The oven is convection and very even.
The micro hood is a microwave just like any other, it was more important to match. I actually like it allot, it's quick.
We sold the dishwasher to a friend, she loves it. Looked on the cheap side to me, but servicable for people other than us . The store we bought from had a Miele La Perla 2 floor model, I couldn't pass that up. Glad I didn't, it's dishwasher nirvana.

 

[westtexman]

Induction Cooking . . .

We had a St. Patty's Day celebration over at some friends' house and they have an induction cooktop. It works very well! I was amazed at how quickly things came to the boil!

I'm not sure what my obsession is with gas. I have always preferred cooking with gas over electric. Perhaps I should just get over it and buy the induction. It appears that it will be much less expensive than the range I was planning to purchase. I just don't want to experience buyer's remorse - especially when I am finally getting something close to the kitchen I've always wanted!

 

[mixfinder]

Zap, Bam, Dinner is Served

I would definitely opt for induction. Its less expensive to operate and you wouldn't need to run a gas line. Most dual fuel ranges are limited to the BTU's they can offer on burners making them slower when housed in a small space above the oven. Many upscale retailers have induction cooktops in place you can use for yourself before buying. Most induction burner technology come from limited sources that have been making induction cooktops for years in Europe and Asia. If you choose induction burners are pretty much same as same from brand to brand while the more important piece in choosing is the oven. Both GE and Electrolux make 30 inch slide-in models. The Electrolux is more expensive and has a smaller oven cavity but it is cool blue porcelain. The GE rates highest among most ovens for capacity, evenness of baking and cleaning and unless you choose the GE Café series the standard GE slide-in range is less expensive than Electrolux.