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sweetfish_gw

How would you spend $9K on appliances

SweetFish
10 years ago

We have a $9000 kitchen appliance allowance. How would you spend it if you needed it for a cooktop, double oven, microwave, refrigerator and range hood?

I was thinking a Thermador 36" range top
Thermador convection oven /convection microwave
Thermador dishwasher - included with the rangetop and oven
Samsung counter depth fridge
Zephy 36" 600 CFS Hood

This brings me to about $9300

Comments (12)

  • gpraceman55
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I wish I would have found this forum before making our appliance selections. We were trying to go matchy matchy but that is the wrong approach. Some manufacturers make one type of appliance really great but they may suck on another type of appliance. So, do your research on each particular appliance and don't worry about matching brands. You will be happier in the long run.

    Also, is that oven and microwave a combined unit? If so, you might want to consider individual units. It is more likely that the microwave will quit well before the oven. Then you have to replace the whole unit at a much greater cost. We are putting a countertop microwave with a trim kit on a shelf above our oven. It will give us the same basic look as a combo unit, but gives us the future replacement flexibility.

  • tulip55
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We have a 36"Thermador induction cooktop, double ovens with one being a convection oven, dishwasher and regular microwave. I have never used the convection function on any microwave I have owned, so I decided to have a plain microwave. I have a Liebherr 36" freestanding single door with two freezer drawers on the bottom. I think it was about $10K for everything, but we got a terrific deal on the fridge, so maybe would have been more.

  • lzhwong
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I'm also getting a Thermador package to take advantage of the free dishwasher. I'm getting the mirror finish induction cooktop, single wall oven, steam oven, and dishwasher. For the fridge/freezer, we plan on getting the Electrolux fridge and freezer towers. In total, everything will be around 14K.

    I'm not sure if you are used to a counter depth fridge, but there is not a lot of room for storage. We are currently a family of 4 and I purchase a lot of fresh produce every week. A counter depth fridge would not provide adequate storage for us.

  • Vertise
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I did get the convection microwave and am so glad I did. This is, however, a small kitchen and there's no room for a small counter top toaster oven like the Breville.

  • lascatx
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    It looks like you pay more to get the convection oven/convection microwave combination than you do for double ovens. I'd get full double ovens and a regular microwave or even a convection microwave if you think you need that feature too. It would give you a lot more flexibility, more cooking capacity for holidays and such and you wouldn't have the issue of replacing both ovens if one dies first (though I'm not sure that microwaves are still shorter lived).

  • gpraceman55
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We have burnt out two microwaves and never had to replace any of our ovens in any of the homes that we have had. Maybe that is just bad luck, but I'd rather not have the microwave attached to the oven just in case it happens again.

  • sixtyohno
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I agree with double ovens and a separate microwave. Most of the time there is just 2 of us here and I still use both ovens. I have a $99 micro in the laundry room. We just use it to warm tea, defrost sometimes and cook veggies.

  • SweetFish
    Original Author
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thanks for the feedback. The reason we are going with the convection micro/oven combo is we dont really use the microwave that much and want a second oven for the few times we'll need it a year. We didnt want to waste cabinet space with a built in micro and a double oven so we thought this was good compromise.

  • msl511
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I can tell you how I'm spending about $7K on appliances and I think I did really, really well. First of all, I'm buying them from AJ Madison, which has excellent prices and, so far, excellent customer service. But, full disclosure, some people have had delivery issues. I think it depends on where you are and which local delivery service you're dealing with.

    Obviously, I'm not suggesting you have to buy my appliance package exactly, but you asked, so here goes: what I'm getting and, briefly, why.

    Dishwasher - Kitchen Aid KUDE48 - Top rated dishwasher are KA, Bosch and Miele. Miele was out of my price range. I considered Bosch and KA. The configuration of the racks in the KA worked better for us than the Bosch. This model is, for us, the right combination of features and price. ($804 after rebate)

    Bosch 500 series induction cook top - I decided I really wanted induction. I would actually have preferred a range, but the ONLY company I could find that made controls I really liked was Bosch and they only make a cook top. ($1494 after $300 rebate for this specific appliance)

    Bosch 500 series double oven - I want two ovens. Top rated ones in my price range seem to be Bosch and Electrolux. I picked the Bosch over the Elux because of slightly more interior space. I don't think there were any other compelling reasons.

    Bosch 800 series MW/Convection. This is preposterously expensive on its own, but Bosch is running a good rebate if you buy 3 items. Because of the rebate, net cost of this oven is about $200 (compared to only buying 2 Bosch items and buying a reasonably priced MW from some other company) and I figure $200 is a very good price for a well reviewed MW/convection. ($761)

    Refrigerator - LG LMX25988. I like the configuration and features of this SD refrigerator. LG gets pretty good grades for reliability, although I'm aware that if there is a problem, getting parts is a tremendous hassle. There was actually a Samsung I preferred, but I had a conversation with my appliance repair guy. He does warranty repairs for several companies, but not LG. So if I need an in warranty repair, I'm stuck with someone I don't know. But once it's out of warranty, my guy does repair LG's, so that's good. However, he says that getting Samsung parts has become such an incredible hassle that he just won't repair Samsung anymore and thinks I'll have trouble finding someone locally who will. If I can't call this guy even for a non-warranty repair on a Samsung product, I'm not buying Samsung. I figure everything needs work eventually and I want to know that I can call someone I trust. ($2515)

    Vent hood - Zephyr AK7136ASBF. This is a highly rated company. This hood gives me the CFM rating I need for the induction cooktop. It's low profile, not a big chimney showcase, but that's fine with me. ($539)

    With 2 different rebates for the Bosch appliance package, one from Bosch and one from AJ Madison, the whole thing, including tax, comes to a little over $7K.

  • lascatx
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    If you don't use a micro that much, that's all the more reason not to have that kind of money tied up in one and to give yourself more use and flexibility with a regular oven. Can you tuck a small micro into another spot? I can't remember what the price difference on the ovens was (and don't know if that's the pricing that you are getting) but I'd even leave a spot for a micro drawer and add it later if I needed to. The micro drawer has things like sensor reheat (put in something frozen and come back to something ready to eat -- did it with a portion of pulled pork for a sandwich yesterday at lunch), keep warm function (holds a dish for 30 minutes at a time) as well as the usually thawing and heating. It won't do micro/convection fast baking, but it doesn't seem most folks use that. I had it in a countertop model in my last house. It would cut maybe 20 minutes off a bundt cake, but only 1-3 minutes off of most of the things we used it for, so I didn't miss that.

  • a2gemini
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Have you considered a speed oven for your second oven. I did that and am very happy. I can use it for slow cooking (keep warm, high setting), baking casseroles, reheating food quickly, baked potatoes that are amazing in a flash (9 minutes for 2 one lb potatoes with crispy skin!). You can bake, microwave, convection, and even brown...
    OK - I sound like the sales person on TV - but wait, it can also....

    Bottom line - since only 2 of us, we only need extra oven space occasionally and this meets the needs. (GE Advantium but others also make something similar)

    I hide my old DeLonghi convection counter top oven in my pantry which I powered. It was my life line during the reno and I couldn't make it go away.

  • kathleencam
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    If you want to save money on some of your appliances, you could always check out ikea. I believe some of their stuff is made by Whirlpool. Inexpensive and "good enough" quality.