O, come on Ellene--you don't really need a vent hood to do two woks at once! ;)

Hi there. I just wanted to tell you all about our first big test of our 30 rnb. We have had it a few months, and have cooked on it extensively. Since we live in an apartment that doesn't allow outside venting, we rely on a Prestige Proline recirculating, an additional boost of air from the Whirlpool Velos- about 5 feet away, and a window exhaust fan about 5 feet in the other direction. Up until now it was enough!

We had a dinner party, and had all 4 burners going at once- having to cook items at the last minute. In addition, had the oven up to 475 degrees. Whew!

Although being pretty toasty in my tiny NYC kitchen, everything came out great. I am so glad we bought the Bluestar. What made it outstanding was the cleanup. My husband just took off the grates, and bowls, and put in the dishwasher. They came out clean as a whistle, and believe me- I had gotten them really dirty. We haven't even had to replace the silver foil on the drip pan yet.

We just couldn't be happier with the Bluestar.

Hi - I have a question in regards to the new Blue Star wall ovens. I am almost on the brink of pulling the trigger on a Blue Star cooktop and really like the look of the ovens. As they are brand new and not shipping yet I know that no one can comment on them directly.

However, for those of you with a lot of experience under your belt - would you worry about buying a first release product like this from Blue Star? Just wanting some opinions.

Thanks!!
Kevin Barker

cpovey, we have a Chef King griddle and have tried it over two burners on our Blue Star. Unfortunately, it doesn't do well. It is stainless steel which isn't as good a heat conductor as aluminum or cast iron so it doesn't distribute the heat well across the surface. One ends up cooking in two circles over the two burners and having cool grill area in between.

We may try the lodge griddle sometime. What I would prefer to find is a stainless grill with an aluminum core for heat distribution but I haven't seen a two burner one yet.

We have the rangetop with island trim in an island. Two of the screws that hold on the island trim are on the back above the countertop with the rangetop mounted according to instructions. I think it would look better if Bluestar had all the screws below the countertop. Our granite guys make a granite trim to go around the bluestar to cover up a little oops they had making the cutout so that hides our screws.

Not sure if anyone posted this, but you can now post yor personal BlueStar photos on Prizer's website. Here's the link:

Kevin Barker,

I saw in person the Blue Star wall ovens at the KBIS show in Las Vegas in May. Granted, they were prototypes, but I would not buy them personally. The industrial design that I saw was not done well nor finished well. If you want a french door wall oven like that, I'd look at Jade Range or American Range first. Maybe in a year, the BlueStar ovens will be better. Good luck.

Ordered my BlueStar this past weekend and a Vent-A-Hood the day before. I have taken the advice and gotten a 27 inch deep hood. Now the tedious process of waiting for all of this to arrive. The range could be delivered immediately but the hood may take a few weeks, so lots of time to obsess and fuss while waiting. Any suggestions for first meals on the BlueStar? Cheers!

My order is in -- RNB364CBSS! Coupla questions. First, does a SS cover for the grill come with it or must it be ordered separately? The BS slide show on the Eurostoves website says this model comes with the grill cover standard, but the RNB sell sheet on the BS website refers to "Char-broiler Covers" in a list of accessories (which makes me think you have to purchase them separately). Does Eurostoves throw the cover in if you order from them, but otherwise you have to buy it? Anyone know approximately how much they cost?
Second, the installation instructions say that if you get the island trim (which I'm getting) without the recommended 6" clearance (they don't explain what that means, but I'm guessing it means the back of the range must be 6" from the wall, right?) then a non-combustible rear wall extending 6" below the countertop must be used. If my interpretation of the 6" clearance requirement is correct, I will have to cover the wall below counter height for 6". What do you recommend for this -- continuing the backsplash down an additional 6" (seems needlessly expensive), a sheet of stainless steel or something else? Thanks for the help.

Bluestar owners:
Did anyone of you order a Bluestar without seeing one in person?
What configuration would you recommend for a 48 if I would like to use a wok?
I don't need a grill but do you find the griddle usable? 12" or 24"?
Thanks so much, I really appreciate any input! I really want to order my appliances so that I can finalize my cabinets.

reposado, a sheet of stainless behind the range would do it.

reposado, if you use durock for your backsplash substrate, that would be fireproof for the 6" below. That's what I did (no tile on it). I'm not sure I'd use stainless. The purpose is for heat, not flame (as the stove is already unperforated sheet metal there, and sheet metal is an excellent conductor of heat to what's under it, if it is bonded to it.

BTW, how expensive would it really be to add tiles 6" more? If you don't use decorative tiles, but just continue with some of the plain tiles, then it shouldn't be too much. The labor will be hardly anything beyound what they're already charging and the materials should be minimal too--plain tiles are usually pretty cheap, it's the decorative ones that are pricey (scratch all of this if the entire backsplash is decorative).

I say this because who knows what the next range you get will be like, and if it's only another $30-50, it's better than having a mess back there in 10 years (or 30).

Great points guys. Thanks much. Now who knows whether the grill comes with a cover? Would be nice to have that as a landing area when the grill's not in use.
R.

I just unpacked a 48", 4 burner, 24" grill custom cooktop and it came with a cover for the grill.

Does anyone have the "french top" and how does it work please?

Vent hood - 42" Windcrest with the higher hp blower - works great - sounds like an 'engine' - thankfully I have an understanding spouse since I couldn't find a demo unit so ordered it by the specs - the blower is external, big, but only 5 feet away from the hood since we have a ranch house (I suppose if someone had 2 floors and had vented it up the attic, the noise would be significantly less) Along with the BlueStar range, our Chinese nanny says it's the best thing she's used so far. Yes, we wok it up every day. The Windcrest filters do get greasy though so we have them in the dishwasher once a month at the rate we cook. Otherwise, it'll need a douse of heavy duty degreaser (no kidding).

Grace Young - very nice lady - stories in the book are relevant and recipes are authentic - she came by our place one time and took a couple of recipes from my mom-in-law for her second book (Breath..Wok)

New Bluestar looks - I bought mine over 2 years ago so have the SS knobs - pics above has black - both look great - didn't realize they were getting into the color game with their ranges as well until joining this site

Using a Wok - we just remove the inner ring and plop the wok on top of the front left 22K burner - don't need to turn it all the way up otherwise it'll lick the sides unnecessarily - yes it takes over space on adjacent burners but we manage since there're 3 that are unaffected (6 burner cooktop)

Has anyone found an easy way to slide the considerable weight of the Bluestar in place after the gas has been attached. I recall that someone has mentioned sliders -but what kind?

Thanks

we just ordered a BlueStar 30" range. Our kitchen counters will be about 38 inches (to indulge our longstanding tall cook fantasies) so we'll need to elevate the range. Has anyone come up with an ingenious way to do this? We were thinking of either building a platform and covering it with a kickplate or having longer legs custom-milled. Thanks for any advice you all can offer.

Angela

I think you could remove the lower portion of the leg, knock out the threaded insert, and reinstall it with J.B.Weld into a longer tube of stainless or the like. Or ask Bluestar if they'll make a longer lower leg portion.

The sliders philnmtl asked about are usually under the name "magic sliders" or similar, sold in Hardware stores, you'd need at least a 60mm diameter.

BTW, the recent HGTV Kitchen & Bath 2007 show (there's 2 segments 1/2 hr each; sometimes they show them separately and sometimes sequentially) had a quickie intro to the Bluestar custom colors, plus the sales rep said you can send them anything and they will custom-match it (have 22,000 colors available).

The display exhibit showed the new wall ovens, including the French door oven. Just the looks alone of the latter in color was enough to make you swoon - absolutely gorgeous!

Bringing this thread back from the dead, yet again...

I still haven't ordered my range. It's about 99% sure that it will be a Bluestar, and I do hope to commit next week, get that sucker coming.

But my plumber wants to run the gas pipe tomorrow.

I'm looking at the website, wondering if it would work to just keep the pipe and valve within 3 inches of the floor, and use flex pipe to run from there into the inlet on the range.

Also, would love to hear any thoughts on the Heritage models v. the regular ones. This will be a 48 inch, and I was wondering how useful that permanent broiler on the Heritage is-- is it big enough to do a couple of steaks? Would it make an awful mess to do bacon in there [thinking it would contain the spatter]? Is the grill worth using for just a couple of burgers, or will a pan with a lid give similar results with less cleaning hassle [assuming I use a loose enoug lid to let the steam escape, of course]?

Oh, and does anyone know how much more the Heritage costs?

Thanks in advance for any and all insights!

From the floor or the wall, the very top of the gas pipe should be UNDER 3". So that if the pipe is coming out from the wall the center of the hole should be at 2 (TWO)inches. Yes, then flex pipe would connect it to your range. If the pipe is coming up from the floor, the pipe or the shut-off needs a right angle so that the flex line runs along the floor before going over to the range fitting.

Of course the pipe can come out higher if it's not directly behind the range,(gas comes in on the left rear as you look at the front of the range.) But, assuming you have a cabinet to the left of the range, this would also require drilling holes in the back of the cabinet for the shut-off and flex hose.

pretty sure a BluStar 36" cooktop is the right upgrade in a NE rural country cottage.
1) Seems that 6 burners is more practical than grill?
(I love havg 5 burners on my crappy Thermador drop in unit in Manhattan...and often use 5... but moreover the way it lets you space out larger pots).
2) Wd a BS propane version perfrm as well as natl gas?
3) any suggested vendors for RI or Southeastern Mass (Attleboro) or quiet corner CT (Pomfret/Danielson/ Putnam)

PS I read this thread in entirety. and thank you all for generous sharing.

PPS may b this isn't the best thread to ask:
4) any one installed the new BS 30" oven???
by way of backgrd:
had actually preselected DCS 2 yrs back (this renovation is delayed!!!) b/c of the infrared broiler + convection features. But maybe that is not the best brand...seems that an odd assortment of vendors carry it
Am ok with having elect oven (espec for the cleaning cycle) tho' i like gas in general. Not a master baker so dont know if elec v gas is a factor for that. Gas of course lets you broil in the old fashioned way.

Grill v. burner is a matter of the kind of foods you cook, IMO-- if you do bacon and french toast every morning, get the griddle; if you don't plan on a good gas grill off the kitchen, you might want one on the cooktop.

I'm very much a grill person, but the Bs range has a monster broiler in the oven and I'm planning a gas grill for the screen porch, so I don't *think* I need one on the range...

I'd say if you like having 5 burners now, getting 6 would be a pretty easy choice.

Bluestar is one of the few brands that isn't supposed to loose any heat when burning propane instead of NG.

I've got a question for other Bluestar burners about your broiler. One of (the only, really) main reasons I purchased a range, instead of a cooktop, is that I was blown away by the Bluestar broiler when I was able to test cook on the range before purchase. Now that I actually have it, it doesn't seem nearly as good as the one I tested on. I know we didn't preheat the broiler when we used it, though it may have been on a bit before, but now I'm told by Bluestar that they need 20-25 minutes preheat time, minimum, before using the broiler. Did they change the design or am I just confused? Is this normal for your broiler use?

-Susan W.

I do not preheat the broiler. It takes about a minute to turn on. If you preheated the broiler I think it would keep cycling on and off.

Getting the height right and the timing takes a bit of practice. I have had success using a shallow aluminum foil pan set on the top rack position. Tonight I broiled chicken breasts for about 4 minutes on each side.

Hello. I got gas to the BlueStar last week, have survived the "new stove" smell, and am in love. So far the only problem is too much heat from the simmer burner. I've been reading that there is a flame adjustment screw under the knob. I got the knob off, but I see two screws, one above the little curved stem that the knob fits over, and one below it. Is this what I'm looking for? Which one should I turn?
And, cloud_swift, I agree that the island trim screws are badly placed. Mine are just in the middle of my countertop so the range doesn't fit in well; there's a gap back there. I've called my granite guy to see whether he can grind out a spot or whether he needs to make a trim peice.

Agrippa, there's a picture with directions on p 17 of the installation manual. I haven't had to adjust the low flames on mine, so i can't offer any personal help, but I hope the picture there helps you out.

I may have missed it, but I've got a question about the RNB ovens. What is the lowest temperature set-point available? Has anyone checked how accurately the oven can hold that temperature?

I have a Bluiestar coming but I have cooked on one at my sisters. To cook Garlic Bread we open about the door about six inches. That allows us to see the progress of the garlic bread and also lets heat to escape from the oven. That is what you want if you need the broiler burner to stay on continuously......otherwise it cycles on and off as the oven gets up to temperature. The problem in doing that is that you heat the cooktop burner knobs with the door open, and they will get extremely hot for the brief time you are doing this. You could get burned by accidentally touching them.
In order to work around that and still get crispy Garlic Bread in a hurry, we slide the stainless drip pan out a few inches, which blocks all that broiler burner heat from the knobs. Once again, broiler on, oven door six inches open, drip tray slid out to deflect heat from getting to knobs, and watch that Garlic Bread brown up in a hurry.
I can't wait to get mine.

hello bluestar owners, my bluestar 48" was installed approximately three weeks ago. I have cooked on all burners and baked in both ovens with no problems. Last week, I used both ovens at the same time and everything was fine. Last night, I used the broiler for the first time and everything was fine. Tonight, I went to turn on the bigger oven and waited for the 15 minute preheat and realized the gas never turned on. The little oven is working fine, however, I noticed that nothing happens when the bigger one is turned on. I'm pretty sure I didn't smell gas either. Does anyone have any idea of what could be the problem?

I'm panicking right now because it took a long and difficult time for my installer to put the range in its place. He had to do some extra notching on the backguard and had to remove the cabinet reveal in order to slide it in. Its a tight and perfect fit. If the technician has to pull it out, my heart will sink.

I was looking at the Eurostoves website today, finally near a decision to go with a 48" Bluestar range, and I saw a picture of a bluestar range with french doors! It was absolutely lovely looking! I can't wait to call them tomorrow and see if they are available yet. Does anyone know anything about them?

I saw that, too. I was wondering if the vertical oven handles got in the way (shin busters). Right now, sometimes I bump into my oven handle, but it's horizontal, so no worries. Also, I noticed that in pictures of the regular French door ovens that were displayed at the kitchen and bath show, that the doors were not always lined up properly. I think if they're not lined up well at the company's launch of a product, they'll never be lined up in a house. It definitely gave me pause.

French door ranges are news to me too but a really interesting idea.
I can see it having applications in tight spaces or possibly for people who are mobility-impaired.

Histokitch, the KBIS show French door ovens were prototypes only.
I would guess they rushed to get something to the show.
Have any been shipped yet?

I've got both a griddle and a grill. The cover for the grill is hard to keep in place over the grill. I've got to position it just right or it falls off to one side or the other. It seems like it's slightly too wide. I tried switching it with the griddle over and they seem identical - so using that one on the grill has the same problem of it dropping down on one side. It's a pain if you want to put a pan or some plates on the cover.

Anybody else have the same experience? I was thinking that perhaps I should try to bend the edges inward to keep it from falling off. ???

deegeegirl, what kind of vent hood do you have? We are planning to get the Bluestar RNB with grill and are stuggling with hood choice. (I know there are other threads on this topic...)

Thanks!

deegeegirl, the grill cover for my RNB36 4 burner and grill also doesn't fit well over the grill -- the rim on one side or the other falls into the space between the grill and the burners -- and I too have been thinking of bending the edges slightly. Would like to be able to put a tray on top of the grill cover to hold seasonings, oil, condiments, etc. when I'm not using the grill, which is most of the time, but I can't do that with a tilted or unsteady cover. Please let me know how the bending goes.
cbj, I have a Prestige 42x27 pro style hood with 1200 cfm blowers over the RNB36. Only installed a few weeks ago, so haven't used the grill much, but the hood seems to work well so far.

cbjmidwood,

We've got a Prestige hood and went with the 48" 1200 cfm inline blower. We did make provision for make up air as well.

So far, so good on the hood's ability to deal with smoke and grease. I've grilled steaks, pork chops and halved red peppers (with olive oil on them) so far (we've only been cooking for a week or so). I held my breath the first time smoke was billowing up, because in our older kitchen with an in-counter fan next to a Gaggenau grill, the slightest puff of smoke would set off the smoke alarms. No problem here! I was very impressed with the Prestige's ability to handle smoke,grease, etc. And, the inline blower is relatively quiet, even on the high setting. Glad we made the investment in Prestige.

Reposado - I know what you mean - it would be nice to have the flat surface be usable. Plus, it looks silly when the covers are tilted to one side or the other. People think there is something broken on top of the stove!

deegeegirl - I have the 36" w/grill. I've never had a problem with the grill cover. I throw my grill cover on with out even thinking about how its sitting and it holds my timer and spoon holder perfectly with no wobble. Maybe the grill cover you received is defective? It would definately irk me if it didn't sit right...

I will be ordering the 36" RNB tomorrow. Problem is, the range will be hooked up before the vent hood is ready to go. My DH had a 6" vent pipe installed,and we obviously need 8" to get the CFM's we want. The ceiling must be ripped out(of my brand new kitchen addition) to do this!!

My question: The burn-in is strictly for use of the oven?
Can I go ahead and cook on the range top and do the burn-in later when my hood is hooked up?

Yes. You can also remove all plastic and wipe down the insides that might have oil.

Thanks, Alexr. I see you're quite knowledgeable re: bluestars. Would you mind taking a look at my question re: 6" vs. 8" duct I posted last eve? Appreciate it. Jenn

I am getting dangerously close to ordering a 30" RNB and am looking for some advice...

1. burner placement--is it better to have one 22k burner in the back instead of both in front? Scorching shouldn't be a problem because the range will be 5-6" from the backsplash (which will be fireproof if it ends up close enough to be necessary).

2. ventilation--we can only go 30" wide but can do 27" deep IF we can find an appropriate hood. It does need to be under and in-between cabinets. VentaHood seems to have some, 18" high, that go up to 600 CFM. Is 600 enough? Are there other brands with lower profiles? I assume a 19" deep hood would be inadequate, even with 600 CFM. Would it be OK for most cooking though? (There's a nice selection of 9" and under models, but they don't go out to 24+"). If I put both 22k burners in back and get a ~20" deep hood, could that be mostly OK?

If I could pull off a compromise with the spouse that would involve a 36" wide hood, but only 20" deep, would that be approximately as good as 30" wide and 24" deep? (I might be able to pull this off for 2 reasons--first, the 20" deep one would have more reachable storage above that would partially replace the cabinet space lost because we could get a shorter hood and second, the shorter hood would not be as visually overpowering as the 18" tall one in a 36" width. It's a small room.)

Are there other cabinet-compatible brands that are as good as VAH that have 30" wide, 27" deep hoods, preferably shorter than 18" tall? I haven't been able to locate any, but they must be out there!

3. Any potential issues to to having the range not quite against a wall but instead tucked into a 30" deep counter with island trim and an appropriately mounted hood?

4. Where the heck can I get an RAL color chart? The local shop is more than happy to sell me the appliance but won't loan me their color book--not even long enough to run to the hardware store to make my own book.

Not sure I'm making sense here....but thanks for trying!
:D

fori,

4. RAL Color Chart: I researched this with Google and spent about $70 for a chart. I just could not stand to not have a chart. You may find a metal fabricator/paint shop with an RAL color chart to loan you. Ironically, I selected a color not on the RAL chart, "Little Red Wagon." My range is not yet installed and is sitting in the barn. We hope to install it within a month.

Good luck.

Teresa

I burned mine in today, and didn't have the hood set up. I scrubbed everything down really well. Some of the unpainted steel parts were pretty oily.

The metal plate attached below the enameled oven bottom was bare, not painted as has been previously described. It was pretty oily, and I couldn't access the inner surface to wash, although I suspect it was oily too.

There was some smoke for about 15 minutes, but it really wasn't very bad. Much less than when seasoning some new cast iron. I did have windows open and some nice breeze blowing through, however. (Probably at least a few thousand cfm!)

Thanks for the tip, Teresa. Ug. How goofy!

bluestars web site shows some ral colors. so does some of their distributors, grand chef in particular. also, many of the dealers have color chip fans too, but may not have extras to share with everyone (though they should)

Did those of you that ordered a different burner configuration pay extra? And by that I mean, moving around the burners that come with it as opposed to ordering different burners.

And while we're at it, what's the actual BTU output of the simmer burner. It's hard to use 130 degrees in a gas calculation.