Stainless Steel!!

[fan-of-fans]

I was watching a program on TV where buyers look for a house. I watched two episodes with two couples, on one episode the wife was adamant she wanted stainless appliances. They were looking at new homes, and the realtor stated the house would have a black self-cleaning range. The woman yelled "oh no!" and later said she would negotiate stainless appliances.

The other episode, the husband seemed adamant he wanted stainless. They looked at one house that had what I thought was a nice kitchen - light wood cabinets, and white, but certainly not bottom end appliances. It had to all be less than 10 or 15 years old. But the husband said, oh no, this would all HAVE to go.

I would have been perfectly fine with either kitchen. I must admit, I don't care for a lot of the 70s and 80s kitchens around here with the dark laminate cabinets, and almond appliances. I would probably redo those somehow. I prefer wood cabinets and white or black appliances, and I really like modern kitchens with higher ceilings and the top cabinets at different levels. But I couldn't care less if it has laminate countertops or white appliances.

I wonder though, were buyers in the 70s only concerned that a kitchen had those avocado or harvest gold appliances and not white?

 

[toploader55]

What slays me...

Are these young couples that are held to a budget what they can spend and are just so damn picky about everything. Perfectly good kitchens with nice appliances and Nooooooo ... She has to have Granite Counters, SS Appliances, the Cookie Cutter Kitchen and then they will probably order Take out until they have their first child, and then it will be frozen prepared crap that they will Zap in the Wave or Maybe, Possibly use the ready... OVEN !!!

They just make me sick with all their obsessive whining about the door hinges being wrong or the toilet seat is wood.

 

[ea56]

Having been a young adult in the 70's I recall that yes, people did want either harvest gold or avocado appliances in new homes, and in the the 80's the cry was for almond. So, in that sense I guess people that now want stainless steel appliances aren't much different than previous generations. That being said, now that I've been around for 64 years I have long ago come to appreciate more idividuallity and loath the current trend towards stainless and granite. When I watch these HH programs with the prospective buyers whining about white appliances and tile or lamanite counters I want to scream. They need to realize that in 10 years, or less this coveted stainless, granite, oiled bronze and all the other current "cookie cutter" swag they lust for will also the be "dated" as they say in HH speak. In my opinion white appliances never go out of style and tile or laminate counters, if taken care of, and neutral in color can remain servicilbe for decades. Also, all this mania for complete "gut jobs" just puts more needless waste into our landfills.

 

[iheartmaytag]

Everybody had different taste

Most of the young buyers that are featured on these shows are first time homebuyers.  They are trying to keep up with the Joneses and have the current trends.  

 

When I was buying my home, I had a budget to stick to, the house is 80 years old, in very good shape for her age, and . . . .has the original kitchen.  It has character (I keep telling myself) and when I win the lottery I plan to update the cabinets, I have updated the appliances but they are white to fit into the style that fits the house,.  

 

Others on the home buyers shows I see practically barf if there isn't top of the line hard wood floors, I personally like carpet.  How else would I ever get to use the 20 or so vacuum cleaners I own?  

 

 

 

 

[toploader55]

Ah... Good Point ea56

Hey Eddie. Eddie here !!!

 

I forgot about the Landfill thing.  True. Can you imagine what the Landfills will be like when Boomerang Formica comes back into style ??? What will they recycle all that Granite and Marble into ?

 

[turquoisedude]

Headstones for the appliances that didn't last perhaps?   (ducks and runs....) 

 

[lordkenmore]

>Most of the young buyers that are featured on these shows are first time homebuyers. They are trying to keep up with the Joneses and have the current trends.

Absolutely.

And I wonder...how many people out there LIKE stainless steel and how many people want it because its THE TREND?

 

[iheartmaytag]

No question

Stainless looks pretty.

But it too will be dated someday.  I shudder to think what the next trend may be.   Alls I Know is I won't do black again.  Shows everything, finger prints, dust, smudges.  Actually some stainless finishes are the same, difficult to keep "pretty".

 

 

[fan-of-fans]

I think stainless is okay. It used to be only high end, but now even BOL is available in stainless, and then there were the rust issues. I don't know that it will ever look outdated.

I think it looks neat when one matches an older appliance with stainless or brushed chrome parts with a new stainless one. I know someone has an 80s Jenn Air range with stainless stovetop and trim, and recently replaced an older fridge with a stainless steel one. It ties together really well.

 

[lordkenmore]

Funny thing...

As I think of the kitchens I've used over the years, the one that is probably my favorite is the one in the house I grew up in. Now, to a degree, part of that is sentiment...

But there is another factor at work. It was not a trendy kitchen: it had painted wood cabinets. Built in appliances were about 30 years old, and probably looked dated compared to whatever they had in this month's BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS. The standalone appliances were a white hand-me-down refrigerator, and a coppertone portable dishwasher. All in all, not the kitchen of 1980s interior decorating magazine dreams. But...my mother had a certain flair and creativity. A wild enough paint scheme (which somehow sounded awful, but amazingly worked out), and one would never notice how dated the kitchen really was...

And meanwhile, I look at the dream kitchens of the Jones today, and see something often cold, sterile, and no personality.

I don't own a home, but if I ever were in a position to buy, my priority for the kitchen would function. The appearance can be addressed by various cheap, creative fixes.

 

[gusherb]

I don't mind stainless but I prefer white over it. Not too crazy about having fingerprints showing all over everything. I've seen stainless that isn't kept up and it ain't pretty.

I'm not crazy about hardwood floors in kitchens either, then you gotta be real careful about spills or else it'll buckle. I think id go for that tile that looks like hardwood, or just plain tile.

As for the countertops I'm interested in the concrete ones, or better yet a tile countertop.

After we painted my grandmas original 1950s cabinets off-white from what after 35 years turned Into radioactive vomit green, I really dig her kitchen with its 1960s Coppertone Caloric cooktop and wall oven. It still has the original Formica countertops from the last remodel in the 60s, and although worn now they still look decent.
And it especially cleaned up well when we tore down that absolutely hideous translucent drop ceiling with fluorescent lights above it from the 70s and put in a track light to accent everything.

All the family thought we gutted and redid the kitchen after that and all we did was replace the floor, paint the cabinets & walls and redo the lighting! [this post was last edited: 4/4/2015-17:52]

 

[circlew]

I like stainless steel, but more for sinks and countertops than appliances.

One thing about these stainless steel range, refrigerator and diswasher finishes is that many times they are not 300 series stainless (such as 304 or 316), but rather the inferior 400 series, that does not have the corrosion resistance of the better grade, but is of course less expensive.

As for everyone wanting Harvest or Avocado in the 70's, that wasn't necessarily true. I worked at a hardware store that sold Frigidaire and Maytag appliances in the spring-summer of '77, and helped with delivery. I remember most (at lest 75%) being White, especially laundry equipment. However, this store's customers were mainly more rural people. I'm sure colors were more popular in suburban areas.

 

[retrogirl]

Those shows are pretty much all fake anyway. House Hunters for example, the people have already bought one of the houses and the other 2 they look at are just for the show. In some cases the other houses aren't even for sale.

 

[gusherb]

House Hunters

I liked it until about 10 shows in realizing it was the same BS over and over again, and all the houses were ugly and boring. I'd sooner gouge my eyes out with a melon baller and stuff my ears with cement then watch those stupid house reality shows again.

 

[frigilux]

If you buy at or near a brand's top-of-the-line, you're often limited to stainless steel as your color/finish choice. I don't mind the look of stainless; it's timeless and goes with everything, as does white (at least in my eyes). Upkeep is simple having discovered these wipes.

 

[dustin92]

I wouldn't have stainless appliances if you paid me to. I house sat for family members once that had just bought Top-of-the-line LG appliances- French door refrigerator, dishwasher, smooth top range and range hood etc.. They had spent over $3000 to replace white appliances that worked perfectly. Anyway, I decided to clean all the appliances (finger prints mostly) and spent all of an HOUR wiping and polishing with various cleaners. They still were not up to my standards and were smeared terribly. Anyway, they were at our house about a month ago complaining about each and every appliance. The dishwasher doesn't wash properly, the stove and oven cook terrible, the refrigerator is hard to reach the back, blah blah... and they are so hard to keep clean. I just replied that our white appliances all work perfectly (1961 Frigidaire range, 1999 GE refrigerator, and 1998 Maytag dishwasher) and are a breeze to clean, just wipe them off and they look great... Couldn't help but laugh. Our appliances have a combined cost of $40. Fridge came with our last house, dishwasher was free, and the range cost $40.

 

[gusherb]

I was looking at all the refrigerators on display at Lowes, and a local appliance showroom last week and the LG and Samsungs drove me insane just to look at. They seem too gimmicky and flashy for my tastes, and the lighting in some of the Samsungs was blue LED's that I would think would make everything look awful. BLEH.

I was ok with everything else, the Frigidaires, GE's, and especially liked the Maytags & Whirlpools (and found out they still make our french door bottom freezer Maytag with a Whirlpool badge now). The two latter had the best shelving layouts and made the most sense overall.

The only LG appliance I'd buy is one of their front load washers, and Samsung appliances aren't allowed anywhere near this premises (especially after just ridding the house of that evil Samsungtag washer)

 

[tolivac]

SS steel and White-black kitchens--Geeze I want a KITCHEN--Not a hospital or morgue lab.Thats what these kitchens and baths look like to me-maybe they should put in an autopsy table,too-just be sure its SS!!For hardwood floors-be sort of careful here-remember the days when hardwood flooring was 1" thick-later to 3/4 in.Now you don't know what you are getting-is it REAL hardwood or a hardwood laminate?Don't overlook salvaging the thicker hardwood flooring from older buildings-my brother did that.Best flooring I have seen!!!Came from an old motel that was being torn down in the area he lives in.I like the formica counters-they last and are easy to maintain.If you must go granite-get the REAL stuff-NOT cultured-that stuff looks TACKY!!!!But REAL is REAL dollars!!!!I have learned to ADAPT to whatever kitchen is in the house I move into.For new householders--Do they have the MONEY to redo the kitchen or baths in the place they just moved into?Beginning householders may not have the money for redos-they often have to live with whats there until the funds become available.

 

[tolivac]

Why is it they have the TV tuned to those dumb Home shoppers shows when you are in the waiting room at the car place,the dentists office or the doctors office???At least at the car place you can go out and look at cars on the lot.At the dentist or doctor place you are stuck listening to folks going thru the home and complaining about this or that.YOU DON'T HAVE TO BUY IT!!!!

 

[whirlcool]

We have found that to get SS to look right, you need to clean it well then use a SS polish on it. The polish is kind of greasy/oily, but it keeps fingerprints off for a day or so. But dog nose prints on SS is far worse than human fingerprints any day.

Now for awhile, GE had appliances in that "touchless" SS finish. Actually is was not SS at all, but a gray paint the same exact grey tone of SS. From 4 or 5 ft away it still looked like SS, but without all the printing problems from touching it. This is what we wanted on our GE refrigerator originally but was told the touchless SS look was available "on selected models only" and ours was not one of them.

 

[askolover]

I still prefer black any day. When I bought this house, it had a 1956 plywood cabinet kitchen in it. I like retro, but this wasn't even retro, it was just hideous and had to go! I kept the newer stove for a while as it was a '90's Caloric in white with black door and it was gas with pilots. Then when I got the money I took out those hideous cabinets and replaced them with white-washed oak cabinets with formica countertops and a white fridge and microwave. The dishwasher was black, but it matched ok because it was placed beside the stove with the black oven door. Over the years the white plastic handles on the fridge and microwave door "yellowed". So I just went back to all black....same fridge just black and new microwave in black, then I got a new Frigidaire gas range without pilots in black with stainless knobs and door handle...made it match the stainless and black range hood and the stainless sink. I almost went with the stainless look all over but quickly came to my senses after keeping that range hood and backsplash clean. And I'm still using that same black Maytag dishwasher and now have a brand new unused Kitchenaid to go in its place when the time comes...also in black!

A few years later my mother got my same fridge also in white...and now is also yellowing...she wishes she had gone with black too.

Gusherb....I second that about the Samsungtag....had one in 2005, used it for 2 days and back to Lowes it went!!

 

[askolover]

I still prefer black any day. When I bought this house, it had a 1956 plywood cabinet kitchen in it. I like retro, but this wasn't even retro, it was just hideous and had to go! I kept the newer stove for a while as it was a '90's Caloric in white with black door and it was gas with pilots. Then when I got the money I took out those hideous cabinets and replaced them with white-washed oak cabinets with formica countertops and a white fridge and microwave. The dishwasher was black, but it matched ok because it was placed beside the stove with the black oven door. Over the years the white plastic handles on the fridge and microwave door "yellowed". So I just went back to all black....same fridge just black and new microwave in black, then I got a new Frigidaire gas range without pilots in black with stainless knobs and door handle...made it match the stainless and black range hood and the stainless sink. I almost went with the stainless look all over but quickly came to my senses after keeping that range hood and backsplash clean. And I'm still using that same black Maytag dishwasher and now have a brand new unused Kitchenaid to go in its place when the time comes...also in black!

A few years later my mother got my same fridge also in white...and now is also yellowing...she wishes she had gone with black too.

Gusherb....I second that about the Samsungtag....had one in 2005, used it for 2 days and back to Lowes it went!!

 

[toploader55]

I thought I was alone.

I never liked Stainless because I am a Chef and I'm around Stainless all day.

My little galley kitchen is Eclectic. Sometimes a Coppertone Dishwasher, Sometimes White, the KDS 20 I changed recently to Black. White Fridge, White Stove, Imitation Wood Grain Formica, and you know something ? I can produce, cook, bake all sorts of delicious products without the "Trendy" stuff. It's all about the ingredients and who's behind the range and oven. People complain about electric stoves. Well, I just adapt my menu and success of cooking around what I have to work with.

Stainless is a never ending battle to keep clean. I spent 6 weeks in Florida cooking at a friend's house with all the G,SS,and Wood. I could never get it the way I wanted it to look. One appliance would look great when the others just couldn't get out that last streak or hazy film.

Colors, wipe them clean and a touch up here and there. Look how much time you will save in your life to do other things without having to obsess over schmears and fingerprints.

 

[cranraspberry]

We have all stainless appliances, and I have never quite understood the complaint about fingerprints and keeping them clean. Maybe we got lucky with a quality finish, but we have zero issues with fingerprints/dog nose prints, and the fridge and dishwasher are virtually maintenance-free while the range requires a quick wipe with a damp microfiber cloth after cooking on it (no special products needed). So really not much different than any other color appliance. In fact I'm pretty sure I spent much more time cleaning the exterior of the white fridge at my parents' house growing up than I do now.

We are also now starting to think about moving, and when browsing Zillow white appliances are definitely a turn off since we will have to deal with the hassle of getting rid of them and getting new ones brought in and installed. I could possibly live with black, but white is absolutely not to my taste. So for us it's a matter of convenience, and having the house as move in ready as possible at the time of purchase.

Just thought I'd share the voice of the young homebuyer who wants only stainless.

 

[xraytech]

I personally have white appliances throughout, but when I go from a portable dw to a buit in it will be black.
If I were to go for colored appliances it would be Coppertone.

as for cleaning stainless steel, a friends in-laws had a stainless 1958 Frigidaire wall oven and cooktop, and a thermador built in fridge. They kept a bottle of mineral oil in the fridge and used a bit of the oil with a soft cloth to polish their stainless and it worked beautifully.
I'd assume it would work on modern appliances.

 

[lordkenmore]

>We are also now starting to think about moving, and when browsing Zillow white appliances are definitely a turn off since we will have to deal with the hassle of getting rid of them and getting new ones brought in and installed.

This goes without saying...but that hassle may have to happen regardless of appliance color. There are a lot of not-very-good appliances out there, and that "it looks OK" black dishwasher may be a bad design that has aged so poorly that it can't clean even a lightly soiled load of dishes. Or the dishwasher might work OK, but be a builder's grade that is so noisy that the people 3 streets over call the police to complain about the noise when you run it after 11 PM.

I have never bought a house, but if I were in that position, I don't think I'd even worry about the appliances included. It can be factor worth considering, but the chances are that one will live with the house itself a lot longer than any appliance that is included. Unless, of course, one lucks out--say, a nice 1960s kitchen, in good repair, with original appliances that are in good running order, and repairable if/when needed.

 

[lordkenmore]

I have been thinking of this thread a lot. Above, I made the case for "creativity" and "make do". But...what color would Lord Kenmore select if he could select any color he chose? He is not sure...

Indeed, this is a question I've pondered regularly over the years. As much as I hate to say it, I think "white" would probably be a top choice. I don't particularly like white. But I like some common alternatives even less. White shows dirt to allow cleaning, but isn't as obnoxious as black. Plus white goes with everything, unlike, say, Avocado.

And...white may be in some cases either the only, or the only viable choice with some old appliances. I am not sure that I would want a GE Monitor Top as my main refrigerator, but I am not ruling the possibility out.

The color that interests me, though, is turquoise. I think I've seen it once in real life (a broken refrigerator in my grandparent's basement), but have liked the color from what I've seen here. Problem is...finding it. The other color that interests me is Harvest Gold. I am not sure how much I like it. But...it's "different" than white, and not as...ah...strong to my eyes as Avocado.

 

[countryguy]

I dislike stainless steel appliances also. My washer, dryer, freezer are white but all the appliances in my kitchen are black. I find them very easy to keep clean.

Gary

 

[askolover]

Oh I'd love turquoise and have hinted about it to hubby many times...but he hates it so we both agree on black. But that thread about the turquoise Maytags and the other kitchen appliances a while back looks awesome!

found the thread..I love that look!

http://www.automaticwasher.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?58320

 

[sudsmaster]

Most restaurant and commercial kitchens use stainless for practical reasons: it can be cleaned up better than just about anything else without destroying it. Now, they don't use it for looks, mind you. Because serious scrubbing will leave marks and such. But in a commercial kitchen looks don't matter as much as cleanliness. I would guess that porcelain (baked, not powder coated) finishes come in second to stainless, but they can be destroyed with harsh cleansers, which can quickly eat through the glass surface and expose the softer material underneath.

 

It's a bit unfortunate that people have confused stainless with professional/quality. There's some real crap out there with stainless surfaces - although mostly it's in the low end small appliances such as you might find at Walmart.

 

Also, there are different types of stainless. The best for general non-corrosive surfaces is 304, or 18-8. That's 18% chromium and 8% nickel. Better yet is 316, but due to the higher nickel content, it's also more expensive. It's usually marked "18-10". Lower quality might be of the 200 series, which has lower chromium than the 300 series and very low nickel content, as in "16-5". I've seen some cheap flatware marked "18-0", presumably with no nickel, and probably not very corrosion resistant. I remember buying a cheap set of flatware back in the '70's. It was probably 18-0. In any case, I remember dropping an 18-0 spoon in the back yard, and within a year it had significant corrosion/rust.

 

The less corrosion resistant stainless alloys tend to be magnetic, and the more corrosion resistant non-magnetic or slightly magnetic. However, very good quality 304 or 316 that has been formed, or "cold-worked", can be magnetic enough to hold a magnet, so magnetic attraction isn't necessarily a fool proof indication of alloy composition. A good example is some nice 18-10 flatware I own. It is somewhat magnetic but has shown no sign of corrosion. Interestingly, some of the spoons are more magnetic than others, but they are all marked "18-10"...