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dzaner

Bluestar Platinum Owners - How is your Range

dzaner
9 years ago

How is it to use the grill and griddle? ie ease of use, quality of cooking.

How is the new oven. Is it faster? Does it cook evenly?
Have you broiled? How big is the broiler and how well does it work? How hot does the large oven door get?

That is to say, did Bluestar succeed with the improvements they made? Thank you.

Comments (230)

  • joanbb13
    7 years ago
    We own one and if I could lift the griddle/grill, I would weigh it for you.
  • Evan Trent
    7 years ago

    Yeah - it is a heavy assembly. My wife would not be able to easily remove or install it on her own. I can do it myself, but it is a bit easier if we work as a team. Having that been said, we have the 60" so we just leave the grill/griddle rig in place on the same bank of burners all the time. Very, very occasionally we will be doing something so elaborate that we need all of our burners to be burners and we will remove the assembly but that's been quite rare for us. Obviously your mileage will vary depending on the size of your cooktop, how you cook, how often and for how many people, what you cook, etc. I probably would not advise you to plan on swapping the grill/griddle assembly in and out with great frequency as I think that's a bit unrealistic. It's totally doable, but enough of a slog that you won't want to do it constantly. I love the flexibility the modular design provides both in terms of removing the grill/griddle altogether, or moving it around on the cooktop as our needs may vary depending on what we are cooking. Hope this is helpful.

  • homechef59
    7 years ago

    It weighs a ton. I wouldn't plan on moving it very often. Honestly, I've never used mine. It's in a drawer. I have an All-Clad griddle that I just pop on the burners when I need one. Once you have it place, you will think twice before you move it. But, if you need to, you can move it.

  • charlesbroccoli
    7 years ago

    yes at least 35 lbs probably more


  • PRO
    Trevor Lawson (Eurostoves Inc)
    7 years ago

    Grates 7 lbs each, Griddle plate 16 lbs, frame 17 lbs..... easy to lift and move unless you decide to do it all in one, but then that would be foolish

  • Evan Trent
    7 years ago
    I have been away from this thread for a while and so have not been paying attention to the comments about the PowR burner and the efficacy of the oven. Obviously others are entitled to their opinion, although I would perhaps suggest that those who don't actually own the appliance avoid disparaging it. I have owned multiple high end home ranges, my last range was a Wolf which I enjoyed very much. My BlueStar Platinum is superior in every way both in terms of the cooktop and the oven. The broiler is superior, and the convection oven is at least as good. We roasted an 18 lb. turkey in one of the ovens this Thanksgiving using convection and I have to say it was by far the best Thanksgiving turkey I have ever made period full stop. I do a lot of roasting, and am a heavy user of the convection mode in the oven. My wife on the other hand is a serious baker and has used the oven to make all sorts of cakes, pies, tarts, cookies, and has found it to be a consistently excellent oven for those purposes (she would say better than our old Wolf). So while there may be some philosophical issues out there with the PowR burner, and it sounds as if unfortunately some owners are having problems with their units, all I can report is superb results and total satisfaction as an owner. We've had our Platinum now for about 18 months and we cook pretty seriously most every day of the week with it.
  • rlax52
    7 years ago

    I'm about 8 months in with my Platinum 42", and I still love cooking on it. I assumed that I would love the burners -- and I do -- but I didn't expect to love the oven as much as I am. It heats up incredibly quickly, cooks very evenly, and I love being able to fit full size baking sheets.

    I'm still trying to find a use for the griddle, which takes up two burners but has seen almost no action. Its super heavy, and I really don't know how to cook on it without making a holy mess. Very interested in other's experiences with how to use it effectively.

  • Daniel Berry
    7 years ago

    We've used our BS platinum 48" range for almost two years now. It was an expensive indulgence. Does it have flaws? Sure it does. It won't boil water as fast as an induction hob. The wok feature (remove the grate on any hob) is cool, but 25K BTU isn't enough to do real wok cooking. You can get pretty close with a heavy pan, but it's not the same.

    I've been looking at mods that would up that to 100K. I contacted BS and asked if I could have another simmer hob as we use that low heat burner far more than we anticipated. They said this was impossible. Lower heat/less risk. Something strange there.

    I wouldn't change my decision to buy a BS range at this time. It really works well when you learn to live with it. You have to turn the oven on about an hour before you need it. The grill works in a way. You need a huge exhaust fan to cope with the smoke. The griddle is almost useless unless you use sandpaper to get it smooth.

    I don't think there is anything better out there right now, but it does require attention. Overall, we are pretty happy, but there are some minor issues BS hasn't fixed yet.



  • rlax52
    7 years ago

    @Daniel Berry I have to disagree that you can't do real wok cooking with a 25K BTU burner. Most of my everyday cooking is done in woks, and I don't mind saying that my food is excellent. Correct technique is important though, and if you are using a "heavy pan" you are doing it wrong. I suggest that you get a hand-hammered carbon steel wok (12"-14") and you will have much more sucess. If you live in the USA you can get these at The Wok Shop (in SFO) online, and if you are very lucky you can find a remaining "Artisan Hand Hammered Wok" at Williams Sonoma which will be an instant collectors item (the workshop in Shanghai which made them has closed and WS got the final stock of them, jacked the price to $150, and you can probably sell it on ebay for double immediately). These thin carbon steel Chinese woks will get blazingly hot on top of 25" BTUs, cook food in seconds without giving them a chance to steam, and will a good cook to produce excellent food. Restaurants cook on top of more power, but also are generally cooking on 18" woks, making making much larger portions of food, and have industrial ventilation and fire prevention that we don't have in our homes. You really don't need more, and in my opinion don't want more -- very few people can use more power in a safe or effective manner.

  • Daniel Berry
    7 years ago

    I have a proper Asian wok, actually several going up to about a 36" industrial size that only works on a huge burner like a turkey fryer. I'm not saying you can't cook a nice meal on the BS range, just that it won't be quite the same as a restaurant with a great chef and a foot pedal on a jet furnace.

    There are large obstacles to getting this type of performance in a home range, and I get it. Throw in stupidity and BS is probably about as hot as it will get without an insurance rider.

    I'm not unhappy with my range, just that it isn't a real screamer for heat. You can overcome that with a heavy cast iron wok and small batches. The light weight woks are at home in a huge heat burner. You can't get that on any US range. The best you can do is induction or a heavy pan that can retain enough heat to sear food in an instant.

    I'm sure your food is excellent because you don't spend as much money as a small car without caring deeply about it. We care about our craft. We are snobby and dismissive too. First world problems...

  • rlax52
    7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    @Daniel Berry We are in agreement that the BS will not cook an industrial size meal on a 36" wok -- and neither will it cook an industrial size Western meal. But I think you are doing interested persons a disservice by suggesting that you need or want more than 25K BTUs for wok cooking in your home, or that you cannot cook a proper Chinese meal for your family or friends on this range. And to be clear, I'm not suggesting that it is "good enough," but rather that a skilled cook can make a meal better than typical restaurant quality.

    I think it is an unfortunate fact that many people think that all they need to cook Chinese food is a massive burner, and then are surprised and disappointed that their food is still not up to par. If the 25K BTU burner gives poor results, the conclusion is that they must need a 100K BTU burner, perhaps with a foot pedal. Its always easy to blame the equipment when a meal doesn't turn out as expected. The reality is different, in that just like Western food -- or even more so -- cooking Chinese food requires more than a big burner, but also training, knowledge, skill, and lots of practice. What you don't want is a heavy cast iron "wok" which will take ages to heat up and cool down, and which simply can't be used for cooking Chinese food in the classical way, despite popular myths served up by marketing departments of Western houseware companies. Some cookbook writers trying to gin up the romance of the mostly ephemeral concept of "wok hei" can be equally responsible for making beginning cooks think that they can't cook without massive heat.

    But you absolutely can do this on the Bluestar Platinum -- and can probably get good results with as little as 20K BTUs (and even less if you reduce your recipe size). The main challenge is to be able to assure that proteins are cooked in seconds so that they are cooked by the heat of the wok, rather than ambient heat -- radiation as opposed to convection. 25K BTUs is more than sufficient to heat a wok and keep it heated so as to be able o quickly cook say 200-300g of protein, which is more than sufficient for any normal sized dish -- vegetable dishes require less power still.

    Bluestar unfortunately seems not to appreciate the market for these capabilities -- as I mentioned I based my own purchase decision almost exclusively on this capability but needed to find it myself with the help of a dealer located in Chinese neighborhood whose customers value wok cooking above all else. Its a pity on many levels that Bluestar instead focuses their marketing on TV celebrity chefs, and doesn't have a single video on their website demonstrating real wok cooking by a cook trained in wok cooking.

    I can assure you that I do care deeply about food, and have devoted much time and energy in learning about it, so I feel well qualified to tell anybody who wants to cook Chinese food on their Bluestar Platinum to get one of the above carbon steel hand hammered woks (The Wok Shop has great ones for all of $20 or so), and a good basic Chinese cookbook such as Fuchsia Dunlop's "Every Grain of Rice." Start with simple dishes such as Fish Flavored Eggplant and Gong Pao Chicken, and I guarantee that you will be shocked at how delicious they turn out, and will probably never order Chinese take out again.

  • homechef59
    7 years ago

    When I was a student at the CIA, our master chef Asian cooking instructor emphasized small size of batch. Smaller was better and quicker. Water was the enemy. Small batches allowed the steam to evaporate instantly. Even though we had a Asian kitchen set up with proper woks and implements, our batches were very small in relation the size of the wok.

    Thus far, I haven't done any wok cooking on my Bluestar. I'm willing to bet I could get some satisfactory heat off my 25,000 residential burner.

  • Evan Trent
    7 years ago

    I am not an experienced wok cooker so I won't weigh in on that thread - but the comments raised about the oven needing to preheat for an hour is totally inconsistent with my experience over the past 18 months. Both of our ovens in the 60" Platinum preheat very quickly, quicker than my old oven in my Wolf range. And I have checked temperatures with a thermocouple so I am not just trusting the preheat light on this.


    The griddle I will agree is imperfect in that it has holes on the opposing corners. While I appreciate that this was intended to make it easier to remove the griddle, you really do need to keep food and oils away from those holes to avoid big flare ups. If you do that, the griddle works well. I have not needed to sand mine. I know some people like to sand their cast iron, but I don't find the rougher surface problematic. I suppose it depends on what you are cooking on the griddle. If you want a perfectly smooth griddle, the stainless griddle offered on the BlueStar RNB (which is not removeable/moveable like the Platinum assembly is) would be a better choice. However the RNB does not offer 25k burners.

  • JazzyzGurl
    7 years ago

    Lots of great information here! I'm thinking of going with the Platinum 36" range top with the idea that the grill will 'live' on the center burners full time. I am a little worried that this will leave too little room for pans on the burners to the left and right of the grill. Unfortunately our dealer doesn't have one set up with the grill in the middle to really get a feel for it. For any that have theirs set up this way, do you feel the grill crowds the burners?

  • JazzyzGurl
    7 years ago

    Lots of great information here! I'm thinking of going with the Platinum 36" range top with the idea that the grill will 'live' on the center burners full time. I am a little worried that this will leave too little room for pans on the burners to the left and right of the grill. Unfortunately our dealer doesn't have one set up with the grill in the middle to really get a feel for it. For any that have theirs set up this way, do you feel the grill crowds the burners?

  • Evan Trent
    7 years ago

    That really depends on how big your pots/pans are and how you cook, how many you are cooking for, etc. I would say most of the time this is not an issue for us. Occasionally leaving the grill in place does slightly crowd out an adjacent burner if we are using a very large pan to its left or right.

  • rlax52
    7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    My experiences with the oven are consistent with Evan's. Heat-up time is very quick -- much quicker than my last Viking -- and is not a problem at all.

    I would love it if Bluestar would post a good instructional video on its website demonstrating the practical use of the griddle, instead of all of the pictures of Bobby Flay standing in front of his range. I have no idea what I'm supposed to do with the griddle without making a huge mess and creating a fire hazard.

    A warning to JazzysGurl: the griddle assembly does crowd the burners next to it. For example, it would block the use of a wok on the adjoining burners, or any cooking vessel that is wide. I have a 48" and keep it to the far right bank, where it is never used, but at least leaves one 25K burner completely free for a wok (and looks cool). I will probably put the griddle in storage and open up the space on the cooktop, as I'm not likely to use it and it takes up two banks of burners when accounting for its interference with its neighbors.

  • JazzyzGurl
    7 years ago

    On a day-to-day basis I'm cooking for two, so pots and pans are small, but I often use two to four pots/pans at once. About once per week I cook for larger numbers of people - and on holidays I cook for upwards of 20. Yes, I do use a wok sometimes, so it is a concern if I can't use it next to the grill. I've heard many recommendations for putting the grill/griddle in the center bank of burners for the most effective venting, but suppose I could try it off to the side if it feels too crowded in the middle.

    rlax52 - try searching YouTube with more general search perimeters - not just BlueStar. I know that Thermador has some good videos on using their griddle and/or grill and though they are not just the same, it might spark some ideas for you.

  • Evan Trent
    7 years ago

    We leave ours in the center for ventilation, but we are using a 60" range so we have a good amount of space. I think the suggestion of putting it off to one side makes good sense on a smaller cooktop so that it impacts fewer burners. It definitely would interfere with a wok.

  • Evan Trent
    7 years ago

    In light of some of the comments around the griddle not being terribly useful - has anybody considered something like this? It appears it would work based on the dimensions and the open burner design of the Platinum. I'm half inclined to buy one and see how well it interfaces with the cooktop. Thoughts? http://www.webstaurantstore.com/fmp-133-1002-11-x-23-add-on-griddle/3591331002.html

  • george1498
    7 years ago

    Hey Evan. I have that EXACT same griddle. Used it a few times, but it's so heavy and cumbersome, I just had to put it in long term storage. I never use it anymore. I just use the Lodge Logic griddle. Yes it's smaller but also much easier to clean and move around.


    Im more interested in how people like the interchangeable grill option.

  • homechef59
    7 years ago

    If you located the griddle in the center, you will just slide pans across it when you are using the four outer burners. You won't lose any real estate. Do remember on the 36" range top, the 25K burner is in the center front position.

    I find myself using the two front burners 22K at the ends more often than the fire breathing center burner. I'm not sure why, probably because I have multiple pans going and it's easier to slide pans off the flame to the center to control the heat. The center rear burner is my least used burner with the right rear next in line. I use the simmer burner on the back left quite often, with a heat diffuser. I do a lot of pot and pan sliding. It's how I was taught. The Bluestar lets me do that with ease.

  • stevep2005
    7 years ago

    OK homechef59, since you specifically mentioned it: with the griddle/grill in the center, don't you find that the raised design of the Platinum crowds out 12"+ fry pans? That's my one concern with the way they designed that removable unit. I wish it would have been more inset like the permanent grill or griddle.

  • homechef59
    7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    I've never installed the grill attachment in my Bluestar 36" range top. I know, I know, I paid for it. It's in a drawer still wrapped in the bubble wrap.

    I can't speak to whether the grill impedes pan sliding. If I grill, I go outside to my grill. I don't want to have to clean up the mess. I throw out enough grease as it is without adding grilling to the mix.

    I'm ambivalent about grill marks I use an non-stick All-Clad griddle when I do pancakes and set it on the burners. It works fine, cleans and stores easily. Anything else in my house happens in a sauté pan. I like the option to pop it into a hot oven for finishing, if necessary. That 25K burner with an oven ready sauté pan can't be beat for nice outer crust results and control of heat.

  • Evan Trent
    7 years ago

    We haven't found that to be an issue most of the time - on the 60" with the grill/griddle assembly in the middle, each of the burners in front flanking the assembly are 25k burners so we use them all the time. We do use larger pots and pans, including larger fry pans. Yes, the largest pans sometimes end up slightly off center. But I haven't found it to be overly problematic. Again, a larger cooktop helps and means that we have other burners that are not affected, and I could see how on a 36" or 48" this might be more of a concern. Also to an earlier comments, I use the grille much more than the griddle option. But I suppose it depends on what/how you cook.

  • Evan Trent
    7 years ago

    I wish we had outdoor space - we live in a high rise condo with no balcony or back yard, which is why we were excited about the grill option on the Platinum. But it can be messy and it does generate a lot of smoke, though our hood does a nice job with that. But I'm with you, if we had a back yard or even a balcony, I would probably never use the gill. I'd either broil, or go outside and use a real grill!

  • Ted Haines
    7 years ago

    A couple comments as I just past 14 months with my BS Platinum 48". First off, customer service is top notch. Any issues quickly resolved. Second, I stir fry a great deal on the 25k burner with a 16" hand hammered carbon wok from The Wok Shop. It does an excellent job. With regards to the grill/griddle, I do use quite a bit and I keep it on (to the far right). My only dislikes of the use, the griddle vents are DANGEROUS!! I have singed my arm hairs more than once with the heat escaping while I am using spatulas. I have tried to make a mental note to get griddle up to temp, then turn it down to avoid, but I often forget. I wish there was a silicon insert to block this "fire port" from nailing me! Also, I sous vide and then sear meat. I have done Prime Rib (standing rib roast) several times. This last go around, i did the 8lb rib roast in the Sous Vide, then pulled it to sear. It had a large fat cap on it and when I did this over the 25k burner with grill platform, the fat dripped below and onto the stainless pan as it should, but it then caught fire. This melted the igniter wires. I was able to get the fire out and I did replace the wires, so all is good now. From now on, anything that large will be seared on my Primo ceramic outdoors! Overall, I enjoy my BS Platnium 48". Stove and wok cooking, grill/griddle use and oven.

  • rlax52
    7 years ago

    JazzyzGurl thanks for the pointer to the Thermador videos, which are interesting. Putting aside that they seem a bit overly stage managed -- no splatters, no smoke -- I can see how this is designed much more practically than the Bluestar, and potentially more usable. The lack of a real grease trap is a big problem with the Bluestar -- cool but nor really usable. On the other hand, looking at those Thermador closed burners reminded me why I didn't buy one of those.

    Ted Haines I have had generally ok experiences with customer service, and I'm very happy with my range generally (especially the burners) but I do feel rubbed the wrong way about the whole retrofit issue on the oven. The PowerBurnR is a cool idea, and seemed to work very well but for the fact that it melted my racks and terrified my wife. The retrofit on the other hand is a very bolted on looking affair, and looks very much jury-rigged and not elegantly designed for high end equipment -- its not what I was sold or paid for. I have had no problems with my oven, and in fact I'm happy with how it performs, but I don't like that bits of the retrofit glow bright red, and wonder how safe this design is in the long term. I do think that the burners are the best available, but it would have affected my purchasing decision if I knew about the retrofit, and I don't think the way that Bluestar has handled this issue bespeaks great honor or honesty (or engineering prowess) on their part.

    I have another usability question: has anybody managed to spill water into the oven door and dirtied up the glass like I have? I think it was a boil over while cooking pasta on the stove which dripped into the perforated spaces in the oven door. Now how do I clean the inside of the glass?


  • John
    7 years ago

    I was once told by a Bluestar rep that the inside surfaces of the oven window panes can be cleaned by first unscrewing and removing the interior metal door panel. I have not tried to do this procedure yet, but Bluestar tech support can most likely give step by step instructions.

    If you do decide to do it, please take pictures or video so the rest if us can see how it's done!

  • Ted Haines
    6 years ago

    Looking for expert opinion on how to clean up this type of build up on my Bluestar Platinum 48" gas range. This is the spot where the grill/griddle sits constantly, so a great deal of heat baking this on. I tried lysol, I tried vinegar, lemon juice and straight dawn detergent. Nothing does it. Any tips greatly appreciated! Thanks!


  • John
    6 years ago

    Bar Keeper's Friend might be the next thing to try:

    https://www.barkeepersfriend.com/


  • Evan Trent
    6 years ago

    Yup - Bar Keeper's Friend is my go to for cleaning just about everything. Stainless, copper, etc. I use it with a non-scratch abrasive sponge like a Dobie, and apply a lot of elbow grease. Sometimes very stubborn build up like that in your photo may require a pretty concerted effort but with some patience you can likely get it back to a veritable spit shine.

  • Evan Trent
    6 years ago

    Yup - Bar Keeper's Friend is my go to for cleaning just about everything. Stainless, copper, etc. I use it with a non-scratch abrasive sponge like a Dobie, and apply a lot of elbow grease. Sometimes very stubborn build up like that in your photo may require a pretty concerted effort but with some patience you can likely get it back to a veritable spit shine.

  • Renee
    6 years ago

    We've decided to get a BlueStar Platinum Range in 36" and a 24" French Top Range Top. Since you can't get the French Top as part of the Platinum Range, and my husband (former chef) has been fixated on having one since a restaurant he worked in years ago made use of them, we're doing this somewhat ridiculous setup. If we could get 25,000 BTU burners and a French top in one range, we would happily do that. But it seems we can't. Like others before us, we grappled with the decision to forego the service reputation of Wolf for the performance of 25,000 BTU BlueStar burners and BlueStar's less than stellar reputation for quality/service. We were also considering induction, but then I realized that my husband wasn't actually considering induction as a replacement for the gas but as a supplement. So we would have had 7 feet of cook surface, which is just absurd. We tried to make an appt with the Wolf showroom where we live (we're in San Francisco, the showroom is 20-40 minutes south depending on traffic) and they were almost comically difficult to deal with; so much for their service reputation (which may in no way correlate to their sales aptitude, but still). We had wanted to compare their highest BTU burner with an induction burner- bringing our own pans and steaks. But given my realization that there is no way my husband is giving up powerful gas burners and the difficulties getting in at Wolf to test out their equipment, we're going with Blue Star. My husband happens to work with two RNB Blue Stars at the club he manages, and the igniters on them need to be replaced with a painful frequency. And the BTUs on that stove aren't enough for him- the curse of having worked in professional kitchens with BTUs you can't have at home. That said, Blue Star shouldn't be used in any public setting, they're for residential use, so we're opting to ignore his trepidation. We're happy to read any advice or insight from current owners of BlueStar ranges!

  • bogle821
    6 years ago

    @ Ted Haines -I'm shocked at how easily that buildup comes off with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, with no cleanser of any kind!

  • Evan Trent
    6 years ago

    @Renee - my mother worked in commercial kitchens her whole life (she owned a catering business) and used a mix of induction and commercial high output gas ranges. Ultimately when it was time for her to do her own dream kitchen she bought commercial equipment and made arrangements for it to be usable in a home environment (e.g. surrounding the range with non-combustible materials, etc.) I cook in her kitchen a fair bit. There are pros and cons to her setup but I understand why she did it. It’s hard to change your ways when you were trained to work in a certain environment on certain equipment. Given your husband used to be a chef he may want to consider this. In my experience the BlueStar is the closest thing to cooking on my mom’s restaurant range. The 25k BTU burners are pretty comparable to the output on her range. However, there is no French Top option on the Platinum as you rightly point out. I do not think a professional chef would be terribly happy with the Wolf. It has sealed burners which cook differently, and the heat output is considerably lower than the BlueStar, let alone a commercial range. Just because it has a French Top doesn’t mean that French Top will perform like a commercial unit. The underlying burner will be lower in output and so your husband may be disappointed when he goes to use it. The same statement may be true of the induction burners. My mother bought a commercial induction unit which is a delight to use but I am fairly certain it is much higher wattage than what is in most residential units. You might look at the new Thermador 60” range which I think, next to the BlueStar, is probably the best option for the home in terms of heat output and burner design. Another thing to consider is that many professional chefs are used to salamanders which is where so much of the cooking actually gets done. The infrared broiler on the BlueStar is great, but it’s still different than a salamander functionally. (Although BlueStar does sell those too.) Honestly it may just make sense to build out a commercial setup at home. You might be surprised at how inexpensive that equipment is by comparison to top end residential stuff like BlueStar. I was shocked at how little my mother paid for her restaurant range. Then again, the one challenge my mother has faced in going commercial is that it isn’t great for resale. Most people don’t want to buy a home with a commercial kitchen and so will price in redoing the kitchen when making an offer. Just some food for thought.

  • homechef59
    6 years ago

    You won't be disappointed with the quality and finish of the BlueStar Platinum. I wasn't and I was a professional chef in a past life. If it were me, I'd give up the French ring idea. You can accomplish everything you want with a regular burner. It's a want not a need. LaCornue makes a French ring, too. My service history with my BlueStar was excellent. It didn't receive the kind of treatment that a commercial range receives. Your DH will be able to service it himself once it's set up. What time is dinner?

  • Renee
    6 years ago

    Thanks for the helpful comments! We wish we could go with commercial- but it becomes an insurance nightmare and it isn't safe for kids. I did forget to mention that we do plan to put in a Blue Star salamander, for the reasons @Evan Trent mentioned. We're most curious about the French Top comments. It's true, it only has 18,000 BTUs, but we want it for the very large are of diffuse heat it provides, not for the mega power.

  • homechef59
    6 years ago

    I'm thinking about your French top. When I used these professionally, we turned it on in the morning and it ran all day. It takes a while to get one up to temp. You don't want to be turning it on and off. Most homeowners don't want to use that much gas. Just think about how you are going to use it. I really think burners are more useful and versatile in a home application.

  • lambos2serve
    6 years ago

    I don’t see my particular problem addresses here but was hoping someone could give me some insight. I have a Bluestar RCS open burner liquid propane range. This is my first experience with any type of gas range so not sure what to expect. We have had it almost a year. Not all of the time but quite often when I light a burner it will make a big poof sound and shut off, sometimes will do it when I intentionally turn off also. When this happens I have to turn it off and then turn it back on again. Most of the time it will light ok then, sometimes it will take two or three tries though. Also, sometimes when turning on a burner it will go out and make a loud sound like it is sucking air. I proceed to turn off and back on again and will be fine.

    i have had a service person out to work on it (warranty) and he adjusted the shutters, he thought himself it still didn’t seem like it was working quite right. I don’t know if I should have him back out or not? There are really no qualified service techs in the NW it seems.

    Anyway, I’m wondering if this is maybe normal for liquid propane gas? When he adjusted the shutters it did seem to work better at first. I can live with it as I do love the range itself, just don’t want it to be a danger or lead to other problems.

    Thanks for any advice.

  • M
    6 years ago

    Just to point out the obvious, did you make sure you actually have a stove that is configured for propane? If you have the wrong jets, you can still (almost) make it work by adjusting all the other setting properly. But it will be a good bit more temperamental than it should be. So, that could explain the symptoms that you are seeing.

  • lambos2serve
    6 years ago

    Well I ordered with LP so should have been converted at factory. But it is a kit that put on at factory so maybe that didn’t actually happen. Is there anyway to tell easily?

  • M
    6 years ago

    It's a pretty simple task. You just remove the old orifices, check whether it is the one you expected, and if necessary install the correct new ones. I think the orifices are labelled with their respective opening sizes. But I am not 100% sure about that. You could ask your dealer if he has an LP conversion kit in stock and can take a look at the markings on the orifices; or maybe he can send you a copy of the instructions.

    You can ask a service technician to come out and remove the orifice for inspection. That would tell you whether the range was correctly converted.

    It's a really easy job, but the technician will probably still charge you about 30min of labor. You can also do it yourself, if you feel comfortable with this type of work. But you'll need an appropriate socket set. It's a little hard to reach otherwise. A wrench will most definitely not work, as I found out the hard way. When replacing the orifice, you want to make sure it's tight, but you don't want to overtighten it.

    I think, all of the orifices have the same size thread. So, it is also theoretically possible that somebody messed up and didn't match the correct size orifice with the corresponding size burner head. Maybe, they accidentally swapped orifice sizes around. Again, something that is easy to verify. All of the technology is super simple; any service technician can do the work, even if they are not specifically trained on Bluestar. But this is the reason why Bluestar recommends one of their trained technicians verifies everything is done correctly, when the stove gets delivered. Mistakes can happen.

    I never had to do the actual conversion on the model that you have, so I forgot whether you also need to change the orifice for the oven burner and/or the broiler. Also, I don't know if the gas pressure regular needs to be adjusted. That's commonly needed for most gas appliances. But if you end up buying the LP conversion kit, it would come with appropriate instructions.

  • John
    6 years ago

    As far as I know, the only differences between natural gas and LP versions of Bluestar ranges is the internal pressure regulator and the gas orifices for each burner.

    Some of the regulators are convertible between the two gas types by flipping over a plastic pin under the top access port.


    The gas orifice fittings screw onto the output of the gas control valves and produce a jet of gas into the end of the tube with the air shutters. The is were the gas gets it primary air supply (the secondary air comes from below the open burners). The orifices (small holes in the brass fitting) are uniquely sized for each gas type and burner power:

    The size number is stamped on one of the hex flats. You would need to remove the orifice fitting to see it.

  • catinthehat
    6 years ago

    Great info John very helpful. To add to John's post, the 25k burners on the platinum use a #47 orifice (although if you are adventurous a #46 is a possibility). If the regulator issue is easy to resolve, the orifices themselves are generic and easy to replace, and cost a few dollars online.

  • stevep2005
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    This is super helpful info. I'm replacing my 12 year old burner heads and igniters this weekend and BS sent me an extra 22k by accident. I was going to swap a 15k with the extra 22k but see that I need not only a 22k orifice first, but specifically the BS-709555 propane orifice. Thanks M & John.

    As for that 'pop-back', from an older post.

    "This phenomenon occurs mostly with LP gas and even has an industry name of

    "extension pop".

    This pop is caused by the nature of the LP gas (but occasionally with

    natural gas) which burns hotter than natural gas and runs at a higher

    pressure. When the flame is on LP gas is being pushed into the burner at a

    certain pressure and when it is turned off the pressure inside the burner is

    immediately reduced to that of the surrounding atmosphere. Because of the

    high heat of propane it ignites most of the gas inside the burner at once

    and causes a popping sound. The hotter the burner and the bigger the burner

    the louder the pop. "

    -Trevor's info also jibes with other sources.

    The other contributing factor that I've learned this winter is that LP is a PITA. It is incredibly finicky, especially in the cold, and your line pressure will vary depending on your tank volume (if you get down in the 20% range lets say) decreases when very cold. In extreme cold the combustibility of LP decreases to the point where some modern appliances won't fire (my furnace for example until it was readjusted several times), and the moisture content is inconsistent from batch to batch. So these variable factors can play with what is under stable conditions, a perfectly tuned range. Natural gas is typically a nice, boring , consistent commodity.

  • lambos2serve
    6 years ago

    Thank you all for your input, since this is mostly foreign to me I will be calling our service tech back out to have him check these possibilities.

    Steve P, I had wondered if this was maybe normal for LP gas, I just didn’t know. That explains the popping sound. But the big wind type sucking sound that happens sometimes doesn’t seem right. My husband said it’s not sucking air it’s probably blowing out gas.

    It does have a built in safety if the flame goes out for some reason it will relight automatically. Well tonight I tried it (watched our service tech do this as he’s the one that told me about it); I blew out the flame and then it made that huge vacuum sound but didn’t relight. And then every once in awhile it will randomly do that (sound) when I turn a burner on. It’s always loud and kind of scary so I just turn it off quick then turn back on and it’s fine.

    I appreciate everyone’s feedback. Again I love the Bluestar, cooks great, just having these issues when turning off and on. Not all the time but often enough.

    Thanks all!

  • John
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    lambos2serve,

    The loud, scary, sucking sound is called "burn back" and is not normal. If allowed to continue for a long enough time, it is potentially dangerous since it is heating things that are not designed to get too hot.

    It is caused by the flame travelling back down the gas tube and burning in the area of the orifice and air shutters. Among several possibilities, it can be caused by too low a gas pressure, improper gas/fuel ratio (air shutter adjustment), wrong sized orifice, defective burner or tube, etc.

    I recommend calling Bluestar for advice.

  • recrx7
    6 years ago

    About that Blue Range Platinum Range-Top: I LOVE this thing. I've been happily using it about 7-8 months now--no problems, no service call, no warranty issue. The center iron pcs. positioned between burners were missing in the shipped pkg. but Blue Star sent them--no questions asked, even after installation (and crate opening)was 8 mo. after delivery since complete renovation was in process. Think I was lucky. Now on to cooking details. Blue Star's grill system is superb, well planned and executed with quality material and workmanship. You can do ANYTHING on it. At the risk of sounding like a commercial, this satisfied customer's expectations have been exceeded. All that iron is heavy, so expect a workout and store unused components of the "system" conveniently close by. One of my favorite things is the ease of cleaning whatever may fall through onto the crumb drawer beneath the burners. Cleaning them is so easy, unlike the iron components of each burner since they must be lifted out, washed, dried thoroughly then replaced. Not difficult--just time consuming. Oh! Almost forget to say that the ss star was not properly attached to the front of the range-top and fell off during installation before use. Still haven't gotten heat resistant glue to adhere it. We opted for an American Range gas oven instead of Blue Star and reading some reviews makes me glad. The American Range cooks great and the French doors open 130 degrees instead of Blue Star's 90 degrees--a major factor in the decision.

  • lambos2serve
    6 years ago

    John,

    Thank you for some insight to this, I really appreciate it. I will be calling Bluestar and or the tech that came out on the service call again.

    The warranty is almost up so want to get these issues dealt with. Like I said it’s better since he adjusted the shutters but still not right.

    Thank you!