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dario_

Another range inquiry...

Dario_
9 years ago

Hi all,

Currently have a Dacor. Hate it. The oven is practically unusable for baking. Have had it looked at. This is my 2nd Dacor and both of them have been problematic and have issues with oven temp. (I didn't buy either, they came with the houses). I'm looking at selling the Dacor and getting something else.

Been reading a bunch and see several options. I'm hoping to get some help with our specific requirements. We need a 36" range. I'm not interested in a kitchen remodel. I would like a range with identical burners all the way around, but that's could be flexible. I very much dislike ranges with a "simmer" burner. I'd prefer that all burners can go to full BTUs and also simmer.

A good oven is a must have. When I set it to 350, I want pretty close to 350 consistently. I get that it will vary when the element comes on. I don't care about pre-heat time - I usually give it 40 mins or more. An oven that will go to 550 is preferred. An oven that will go below 200 is also preferred. Down to 150 or lower is better.

A friend of mine has a GE with a lower oven that looks like a warming tray. It's actually a 2nd oven. This seems like a great feature. The burners on his GE are not good for me, but he likes them. I don't expect to find this, but it would be a nice option.

We cook a lot. It's not unusual to have 4-5 burners going at once. Sometimes we have all 6 going. This means we spill stuff. A spill-friendly stovetop would be very nice. (The Dacor is not particularly good in this respect.) I think this mean open burners rather than sealed. The wife will probably hate the look of open burners, but I'm open to suggestions.

I'd prefer dual fuel, but am open on this. In case it helps, we cook primarily on carbon steel pans, some aluminum pots, stainless steep stock pots, and enameled cast iron. We occasionally use non-stick, but this rare. We us a griddle enough that a stovetop with a griddle that fits well is nice to have.

So we need: 36", 5-6 burners, prefer all full-sized burners that can simmer, good oven, 2nd smaller oven if possible, spill friendly, and something more reliable than a Dacor.

Comments (10)

  • hvtech42
    9 years ago

    What is your budget?

  • Dario_
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Up to $5K. Maybe $6K if I had to go there.

  • wekick
    9 years ago

    Almost all "same" burner ranges have a small pot burner. This is because the regular burners are big. BlueStar makes this. It has open uncapped star shaped burners. These would be good for you steel and ECI if they are sized to the burners.
    RCS
    It has one small burner but you might be able to get it switched out. The simmer is listed as a temperature so it is impossible to compare with Wolf (excellent simmer)BTUs to BTUs. Most people seem to think the 15K burner simmers ok but maybe someone will comment. Monogram and Thermador both make ranges with all the same burners. The Monogram has dual stacked burners. You would have to read further reviews to see how the ovens are.

    None have a small oven but small ovens have a lot of limitations. They are good for pizza but food is very close to the burner so you have to consider that. I had one and I would preheat it 50-75F more than the recipe called for and then put what you are cooking in there and turn the thermostat down. That way it would be awhile ttill the element would come on. Anything that took awhile to cook would tend to burn on the outside. High sugar items were bad for that. Verona makes a 36 inch range with side by side ovens but the burners are different.

    Not sure what the lowest temperatures are but you will most likely get to set a temp below 170F if there are specialty settings like keep warm or dehydrate.
    There all kinds of options for overlay griddles. Some are more fitted. I would ask the manufacturer what they recommend if you want a fitted overlay.

  • Dario_
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thanks wekick. I get the point on a small oven. I would not want to give up quality in the main oven for a secondary.

    Went to a local place to look - they have Wolf, DCS, American Range, GE, Kitchenaide, Electrolux, Dacor, Thermador, and a couple of others I'm not recalling. They sales guy listened to our requirements and recommended Wolf. He said they all have issues, and he thinks Wolf has fewer.

    Curious and frustrating that nobody who sells these seems to be aware of any chronic issues. I mentioned the issue with my Dacor oven - he said he's never heard of this. I can't imagine how that's possible and makes me suspect they just don't want to badmouth anything.

    I will take a look at the Bluestar if I can and do some more reading. I'd prefer to get a U.S. made stove, but not a hard requirement.

  • hvtech42
    9 years ago

    Avoid the Wolf DF - it has issues with the blue porcelain. The Wolf AG should work well, though.

    I wouldn't immediately jump to blaming the salesman for not knowing about issues. They could be concealing something, but more often they don't know for the simple reason that nobody tells them. The manufacturers don't tell them (they want them to sell the products!) and customers are usually focused on getting it fixed they don't think to tell the salesman down the road.

  • mkemom
    9 years ago

    dario i was thinking that a range must be one of the most expensive things we buy with no ability to try it out! i'm also replacing an unreliable dacor and while I understand that showrooms can't have dozens of stoves hooked up, it seems crazy not to be able to even see how the burners work (important to me since, on my dacor, they don't...).
    i don't really have any advice for you, other than be careful how much time you spend on gardenweb: after some research here i landed at lacanche, fell in love, and there went the budget. good luck!

  • Mrs_Nyefnyef
    9 years ago

    Mkemom - Subzero/Wolf does have showrooms around the country where you can "test drive" the appliances. There are other high-end brands that offer this, like Miele. Go to the website and see if there is a showroom near you.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Subzero/Wolf Locator

  • Nacogdocheskim
    9 years ago

    Has anyone used Bertazzoni or Thermador? I am looking for a 6 burner dual fuel range. There seems to be problems with every range I look at. Would appreciate any information/suggestions.

  • greasetrap
    9 years ago

    We've had a simple Thermador dual-fuel 30" range (not a professional model) for almost 10 years now. The top and bottom oven heating elements had to be replaced on 2 separate occasions (in both cases it took 2 service calls because they don't stock the parts), but other than that we haven't had any problems with it. The oven temperature has been off recently, but there's a way to adjust that yourself.

    The one thing I really don't like about the Thermador, is the 2 so-called "simmer burners". These work by cycling the burners on and off endlessly on the lowest normal flame setting. I guess this averages out to a simmer over a period of time, but I don't like it. The simmer burners also don't work during a power outage. You can get a perfect simmer though, from the 2 normal burners. All you need to do is adjust the knob slowly between the High and Off settings.

    The Thermador burners are sealed and built up a lot of caked-on grease around the burners over the years. I recently read the manual (for the first time) recently and it said to use some Easy Off Oven Cleaner for this. I tried it and it worked like a charm - it looks almost new.

    The stainless steel top around the burners is easy enough to wipe clean, but it's a bit of a pain to keep smudges from showing up afterwards (we wipe it first with a soapy sponge, then a clean sponge, then a damp paper towel and then a dry paper towel). The SS top also shows scratches if you try to clean difficult spots with the scrubbing side of a sponge. Every once in a while we take out the burner tops and grates, and wash these in the sink.

    The oven works well and we've never had any problem with the self-clean - the interior looks almost new.

    Aside from the 2 simmer burners, I've been relatively happy with the Thermador. I don't quite understand why typical consumer ranges seem to work fairly well with no problems, but so many people have problems with professional style appliances. It makes we wonder sometime whether we should really upgrade our appliances when we renovate the kitchen this year.

  • teachmkt
    9 years ago

    Along with Bluestar if burners, ovens, the look and a pull out spill tray are important I'd suggest looking at an open burner AG or DF Capital.