I would start by calling BlueStar to check on your options and/or the Bellingham store to see if they've sold to Canadians (I'm betting they have encountered this situation before) to see what the procedure is. Best wishes!

Also, have you seen the slide shows on the Eurostoves website? They show some awesome closeups of the BlueStar burners...both the flame and how they come apart for cleaning, etc.

Hi there,

A lot of Canadians are really interested in buying a Bluestar but it has a lot of challenges.

There are no dealers for Bluestar in BC - it is sold through a distributor in Montreal. There is a different distributor for Alberta, hence the ability to see a Bluestar in Alberta.

The challenge with buying with something from a US distributor or retailer is related to the CSA approval (or lack thereof) - specifically, there is a requirement for CSA approval to the best of my knowledge to ensure that you have the appropriate coverage from an insurance perspective.

Bluestar is really intriguing.....I agonized over whether to drive to Ottawa/Hull (the closest retail location to me - I live just outside of Toronto)would be worth it to me to see a Bluestar as there is no retailer on Ontario either.

Finally, I decided against the Bluestar.....I am sure that it is a great machine but there is no support network to speak of in Ontario or BC - so you are really on your own should you need service or support. Now I know that folks say that these are really simple machines - burners and ignitors but if something doesn't work with this simple machine it appears to be tough to get the support that you need in Ontario at least.

I went with the Wolf - it should be delivered in a couple of months as my reno was delayed.......

Check out some of the other recent posts about Bluestar in Ontario or Canada......you will get a sense of the concerns/challenges that we are up against....

Marion K.

Marion-thanks for putting me onto the threads relating to Canadians and Blue star. I see that Mrzed is in BC and decided to get a Blue Star. I wonder if he has had any service problems since aquiring it.
I, like you were, am extremely hesitant about buying an appliance across the line-service issues, service issues, service issues.
I love the Wolf cooktop, but want to see a Monogram as it's high output burner is 18k BTUs. I've read plenty about open vs. sealed burners, but the choice is taken out of one's hands when a cooktop is involved. What made you go to Wolf over anything else?

rhome410-the Eurostove site had some great photos, thanks for recommending it.

After saying how reluctant I am to get an across-the-line appliance, I will be going Stateside in a few weeks and am going to definitly check out a Blue Star.

Maria

For me it was always either Wolf/Viking/Thermador. Those ranges best fit the style of my house and the size of my kitchen (a French range would be lovely but would also be out of place in the kitchen that I have and besides.....I can't afford most of them....) I wanted to go with a manufacturer that has been doing it for some time and some of the others (Capital most notably) haven't been around as long or I had read on this forum that the quality level either wasn't there or was declining.

The service stories on Viking scared me to death although my sister is getting her reno done at the same time and she went with Viking so it will be interesting to see what her experience with it will be. The Thermador was interesting but the stories of the clicking on simmer made me worry - I am sensitive to sounds a lot of the time and that would make me crazy.

Then I started reading on this forum about Bluestar.....checked out their site, checked out the Eurostoves site and I was very intrigued. Really intrigued. Convinced myself that it would be worth it to drive 5 hours to see one in a showroom (not hooked up but there against to see with all of the others).....then I read the thread from Keitel and his experience with the distributor in Montreal. Seemed somewhat disturbing given that you are looking at spending over $5K for a range....no service network to speak of in Ontario and certainly no going in to speak with someone live and in person if there is an issue with the range.

Add to that that the price difference between the Wolf and the Bluestar was negligible (less than $500) and I decided to go with the Wolf. Now, part of the pricing may have come from the fact that I am doing a complete Kitchen reno and my appliance bill is quite large (for my standards.....).

So the combo of local support, an established service network and a longer out of the box warranty convinced me to go with the Wolf. Mine's a 36" 6 burner AG by the way.....

The disappointing thing is that according to the distributor, he is shipping a lot of product to Ontario, Quebec (which has Bluestar in a local retail stores) and BC but there might be 4 people that have posted from Canada about their experience with their Bluestar.....so either people are not posting about their experiences or more likely, the shipped volumes are a lot lower than is being advertised....

Hope this helps.....

Marion K.

I'm not in Canada, but in rural central Virginia I might as well be when it comes to visiting a BlueStar show room, so I sympathize with your concerns about buying one sight unseen. However, after much research, I took the plunge, and you might be interested in reading my comments on my Web site, linked below. And you do realize that the BlueStar is a slide-in, not a drop-in, don't you?

---Margaret

Here is a link that might be useful: My New Kitchen --- The cooking area

I did need service on mine. It wasn't perticularly responsive, but I'd judge it at least average.

I can also confirm that getting a qualified person to service it is not an issue. When I did have a problem (with the ignitors and control module), I ended up getting the same gas fitter who installed my line to do it. Anyone who services gas stoves of any kind could service a Bluestar. They come apart easily, and it's all pretty standard stuff.

I origianally wanted a commercial stove. Research convinced me it wouldn't be an option. Looking at the "pro" stoves, I thought they were all out of my budget, but I decided to go for it anyhow when I found out about the Bluestar. It didn't hurt that it came in cheaper than Wolf, Viking or Thermador.

I'm very glad I did. A few months ago, I was browsing all the high-end appliances at Handy Appliances in Vancouver, where they have all the other top end stuff. I can easily say I'd rather have mine than any of those.

Oddly enough, I just came back from a week-long holiday to Alberta-took the family to West Edmonton Mall. Long drive, but there were friends to visit along the way. I didn't bother to look up Blue star there, because Bellingham is a 45-minute drive away for me.
Anyhow, Margaret, loved your remodel. Interesting backsplash! I totally agree with grout-yuk!. The house I am in now has tiled countertops and back splash-it gets very grotty! According to the Blue star web site, they make a 36" and 30" drop in cooktop. It will give me a bit more room to put a wall oven underneath(I prefer having an electric oven, so I'll squeeze a wall model under there).

Mrzed-what part of the lower mainland do you live in? I'm in Mission. Good to hear that it's not a problem getting someone to service your BlueStar. Why didn't you consider getting one from Bellingham?

Well, I finally made it Seattle to view the mythic Blue Star. I did love the burner set-up. I spoke to the most knowledgeable person I could find there. I asked if the units had CSA approval-yes,they do. He did mention that at least one in four Blue Stars need tweaking right out of the box, and that for people who have ordered them from his store to bring back to Canada, getting Blue Star to pay the techs who fix them, even though they are under warranty, is a difficult procedure.
Guess it's the Monogram cooktop for sure for me afterall! I don't think I'll be unhappy with it.

I didn't get one from the US because

1. I live on the island
2. Service issues

When I first started looking, the US prices were much lower, so I was strongly considering going that route. Then the canadian distributor changed prices to better reflect exchange rates, and it suddenly made sense. Bluestar came in about $800 cheaper than viking and $1200 cheaper than Wolf (both locally sourced) for the 30" range. Made the decision much easier.