That stinks, Vicky. Are there no other kitchen places nearby that have the appliances you're interested in?

Did you go to the BlueStar website, Vicky, and search what dealers were in your area? That's how I found mine. They had a functioning stove, too. It turned out later that Ferguson also carried BlueStar but I'm glad I went where I did because you couldn't test it out at Ferguson's.

that's surprising, timhoffer, but lucky for you. I too have owned higher end GE profile and monogram with no end to problems. The ovens (convection and regular) don't keep heat, knobs on my monogram cooktops that broke and melted due to irregular heat from the gas burners, a built in monogram fridge that had a leaky water line and no end to problems with temp regulation. I am done with GE, but good for you if you have had luck with it!

Vicky, we replaced our GE monogram fridge in our last house with the 42" wide Kitchen Aid built in French door, pull out freezer drawer fridge. It was a great fridge, although we did have an extra fridge/freezer in the garage for overflow. In this house, we also selected built in fridge by Subzero due to availability of parts in our area. As far as having built in vs counter depth, the decisions were made for us because of what was existing. In our first home, we had a kitchen Aid architect series double door fridge, counter depth. Worked great and fit into the space well. Next house, we had the GE monogram which was already built in--had to replace with another built in product due to lack of space. In this house, we designed the kitchen to take another built in. Built ins are typically more shallow, so that's why we had an extra fridge/freezer in the garage. If you have the space, counter depth is nice because it gives you just a bit more room inside the unit. I hope this helps!

Vicky, I got a Miele dishwasher. From what I could tell from my research they're the best out there. Mine performs well and has a skinny tray at the top to place silverware, a nice use of space.

My fridge is pretty modest. It's a Samsung side-by-side counter depth. It's good enough. It hasn't had any problems but does hum a little at times. It's storage space is ok for two people. If you keep a whole of food in the fridge it will get tight. The quality of all the high end fridges seems to have dropped off.

Forgot to mention dishwasher--we got a Bosch--adore it and highly recommend. Super quiet and cleans beautifully.

Thanks for posting! I'm in the market for a range for a kitchen remodel too and just went through the Consumer Reports buying guides for 2015 and 2016 hoping to find more info on "professional style" ranges. There's limited info and only for 36" models that I've found in hardcopy at the library, but both years mention that Wolf has poorer performance when it comes to broiling.

I will post separately but I am enamored with the La Cornue Cornufe 110, which is 43" with dual fuel - gas burners and two electric convection ovens. I cannot find consumer information on this stove. It's beautiful. And I live in a metropolitan area so service will be more available, but I'd like to know how available, whether these have issues (I've heard they have less because there're less electronic components), and how expensive are the issues to fix generally.

I'm a personal chef/caterer and have worked in dozens of very high end kitchens over the years. Most of my clients have either a Viking or Wolf 48" range. In my personal opinion the Wolf is far superior but in both cases the 48" rangetop is unnecessary and solely for aesthetics. First off, there are several reasons I prefer Wolf over Viking. For starters the simmering. Simmering (or trying to) on a Viking is terrible. You have to try and turn the knob a matter of fractions of a millimeter to get it all the way on low without the flame going off. Wolf's dual stack burners are awesome for simmering. The knobs turn 360 degrees and have a completely separate flame for different degrees of simmering. I've also found the Viking ovens to be wildly inaccurate and inconsistent. This seems particularly true of the half oven included in the 48" range which is pretty useless. Lastly the controls of the Wolf are far more user-friendly in my opinion. The Viking has no timer (which I personally find annoying) and two knobs to control each oven (one for setting, one for temperature). I much prefer Wolf's design of everything on one knob. Having said all that, I still think having just a Wolf rangetop and separate ovens is the way to go. You pay a fortune for the dual fuel range and the side oven is fairly useless. If you have the space for it you can save a lot of money by getting a 36" Wolf rangetop (48" if you really need a grill/griddle-I don't recommend either) and then something like GE or Bosch for the ovens. Even if you HAVE to have all one brand I'd still recommend this route. The freestanding Wolf ovens seem to have more features and you're not overpaying to have one appliance with two fuel sources. Best of luck!

Ventilation and Make Up Air cost as much, or more, than the range does. And that comes as a surprise to a lot of people. Don't be surprised. It is required, in order to keep your home clean, and your family healthy.

I agree with Matt! Love the look of the professional range, but I love to cook and knew it would not be that practical for me. Adore my 36" wolf rangetop and E series double ovens. We moved in 6 days ago, and I had a blast cooking Christmas dinner. The burner control is amazing. I was simultaneously making multiple main dishes with plenty of room to maneuver and cook everything. Clean up was pretty easy as well. Overall, so, so happy with my choice!

If you want High end quality with the prestige check box buy Thermador. The Best! Sub-z used to be the best, but now they are crap and Wolf is a small company late 90's also jumping into the Commercial kitchen look craze of the 90's.

Mr. Carl, a home builder in Mississippi, founded Viking in the mid-1980s after noting that some of his customers coveted restaurant-style gear.

Mr. Bassoul said he began trying to buy Mr. Carl’s company in 2006 but “he kept on turning me down.” After Mr. Carl finally agreed, the plan was for him to keep running the company, but the two men clashed and Mr. Carl left within two months.

Middleby slashed costs, partly by outsourcing manufacturing and laying off more than a third of the 700 or so people Viking employed in Mississippi.

Since the acquisition, Viking Range has recalled more than 100,000 products, including dishwashers with fire hazards, refrigerators whose doors could fall off and gas ranges prone to turning on by themselves. Mr. Bassoul said he felt “blindsided” by the extent of the quality problems that surfaced.

Thank you so much for the insight... I finally made my kitchen decisions.. I went with Thermador dbl wall oven, Thermador micro., Thermador steamcook. BlueStar 48" center dbl griddle rangetop with a 52" prizer hood, Kitchen Aid dishwasher and Fridge. It was a grueling process. Thankfully, it's done and I'm very excited to put it all together. I also ended up with the Electrolux washer and dryer.

Let us know how you like your blue star! I think I'm going that route as well

Awesome.. thank you. I'm building so I'm not ready to buy mine yet. I'll keep following!

We have a double oven, 6 burner 48" five star free standing gas unit and I litterly hate it!! Has a cheep rubber seal for the oven doors that does not hold up to the heat so the oven temperature can not be regulated. Each oven has a split broiler on the bottom that is awful. Hard to close the doors and keep them closed which addsto the inconsistent oven temperature. The only items that function correctly are the burners on top. The grill is waisted space... I would give this stove zero stars and can't wait untill I can replace!!

A long thread, so forgive me if it's been mentioned: Before committing to any appliance, make sure that there are repair people with experience in your brand- and enough of them to keep any needed repair costs competitive, especially if it's high end.

Ditto if you fall in love with a brand not sold in your area. If it's not well-represented, you're likely not to find a local repair person who's familiar with the brand. let alone an expert.

busyblonde3, is yours a Blue Star?

Meghan,

busyblonde3 is probably referring to this company's 48" range:

http://www.fivestarrange.com/products/ranges/48_range#

Ok. So we (our very busy contractor) are finally getting ready for The Remodel.

I've decided to go with the 48" Wolfe range with double oven combo. It sounds like the duel fuel is most consistent for baking purposes which is my daughter's thing. Plus my brother has one and he cooks every day and loves it.

(The Blue Star color choices are definitely hard to pass up though)

At our last home I had a Thermador range which I thought was super easy to keep clean and double wall ovens which were fine; I'm just ready to try something else.

We also had a Miele dishwasher for 15 years (vacuum aa well) and it was great; quiet, efficient and I will never be without that cutlery tray on top again. Before we sold the house we did have to replace it and chose a Bosch. We only lived with it for a few months but it was also great so I will absolutely be choosing Bosch or Miele again.

We are going with Sub Zero again, the french door style because I want the expanse within and I want to try the freezer drawers beneath. We inherited our last one (10 years old) and lived with it for another 15 years; plus when I open and close different models at the showroom there just isn't any comparison for me. The french door style only comes in 42" so we are getting a 24" wine and beverage refrigerator in addition.

I will also add that I wish I had space in this kitchen for a warming drawer (well, and a second dishwasher as well) because I had one before and used it all the time. Awesome!

I had a Bertazzoni gas range in my last house, and loved the look of it, but the gas oven couldn't keep temperature inconsistently. Bread wouldn't bake properly, and roasting a small turkey took 2-3 times as long as it should have. I don't know whether that was a function of it being gas, or something inherently wrong with the oven, but I could never recommend it.

I've had a 48 inch Viking range for 17 years, and I love it. Gas is the only way to cook on top of a stove. My oven is a wall oven and it's electric. Love both of them and hope they last another 17 years.

I have a 48 inch Wolf, and I've been warning everyone I know NOT TO BUY it. It's the dual fuel, and we've had it serviced multiple times. The ovens DO NOT HEAT to the correct temperature, even though it says it is. We've had the heating element replaced, and the service tech confirms it is working, but it's still broken. It has ruined so many dinners! I am an avid baker and home cook, but it really makes me worry about hosting dinner parties. The only saving grace is that the gas top works great. I would not wish this upon anyone. DO NOT BUY WOLF DUAL FUEL RANGE!!!

I have a Viking 48 inch Gas range for 28 years....Never a problem. Just had replace a valve and they still make the parts!

WOLF is the Best! Real High End. Forget pity Viking quality and village style customer service!

Wolf does cost a lot. For a lower priced range, my personal favorite is KitchenAid.

Love seeing all these comments - very helpful. We have a 48 inch gas Thermador. double oven It's 15 years old (which something this expensive should surely last 20+ years). Thermador has stopped making many parts for it and technician just gave me $1000 price tag to get burners and broken starter fixed. And that doesn't even touch the oven door which won't close properly and to fix that, I would need to find a 2nd hand hinge since it isn't made anymore. I think that means that I should just live with only having 3 burners work and an oven that leaks slightly until I save up to replace it. I will NOT buy another Thermador.

Update: I went with the Wolfe range with the dual fuel oven. We finished the remodel last September and so far we love it. It's been great for cooking and baking. No complaints at this point.

I have a 48” Dacor dual fuel oven for about 15 years and have had problems with it since day one.

During this time I have had at least 12 repairs. The biggest problem for the last few years has been temperature dropping significantly during cooking. I would never recommend Dacor. I am now researching for a new oven and unsure what to buy. It seems they all have problems!

@Vicky Knecht It's been a few years. How do you like your BlueStar?

@paulajayewitte Do you still love your Wolf?

I got a BlueStar almost 6 years ago, and was very happy with it at the time. The stove is a bit much, like if you want something on low, you have to use the one simmer burner, but overall I was happy. But soon it started rattling when the convection was on. Recently, I found that the rivets that hold the bottom (the heat deflector shield? Drip pan?) up had broken. Now the oven won't start at all. I don't know if the gas line is compromised because of falling material from the failed rivets. BlueStar will not cover the expense to fix this, and could not recommend a repair person. The place I bought the range from won't send anyone, either, because it is out of state.

I have the Dacor 48” gas range and it has ruined so many meals, that it has literally brought me to tears. It will heat up fine but randomly stop working halfway through the cook time. It’s also hard to find appliance repair people who are willing (and able) to work on it. I have other Dacor appliances too and all have been terrible. So frustrating.

I’ve been shopping for a new 48” range and it’s surprising how poor the warranties are for these high end brands. You would think for the high cost of the ranges, and for small risk of abuse/misuse, they would be willing to guarantee their $12,000 range will work longer than 2 years. That doesn’t give me much confidence.

I have no idea who is reliable anymore. The range I had before the BlueStar was Viking (bought 15-20 years prior), and it was even worse.

Im still happy with my Wolfe

My maintenance guy came out for some minor thing -cant remeremember what exactly but the part was covered by the warranty- and he said he has found them to be the most reliable by far . I only wish i could have it in a color

I bought a wolf range after gas line was lowered in my kitchen, the flames were all over, they couldnt fix it went back after two months technisions coming and going did not get fixed.

waited 7 months, lowered the gas line got viking gas range, had to go back after a week, lots of defect and problems, waited another 3 months got another viking, the loud noise of the fan the heat in my kitchen and extremely hot backsplash specially the loude noise of the fan that does not stop even after its off for more than an hour, i am so frostrated 10months no stove, i guess this one is going back too, expensive and disappointing.

Bluestar stepped up and paid for the repairs. They're back on my good side. Funny thing is, I got a nice toaster oven in the meanwhile, and since it preheats so fast I haven't used my real oven yet!