help this skeptic make the leap to built-in appliances

[Anonymous]

i'm completely renovating, so anything goes. but i'm leaning toward opening up the kitchen to the living room, which means i'd like everything in the kitchen to look nicer, which gets me to the new, confusing, and expensive world of built-ins.

i've never had any built-ins, so i'm still in sticker shock.

A. why are the refrigerators so expensive? i paid $3.5k for my counter-depth lg fridge, and i thought that was a lot. what more will a $10k built-in do for me? is this just about getting the clean cabinetry look? (i'm legit asking if i'm missing something, in case that reads as sarcastic.)

B. i've only ever had freestanding gas ranges. i mean, i'm fancy now with my dual-zoned convection oven, but it's still just a regular range. for whatever reason, and it's not the price tags, i'm sure that i'm going to upgrade here. however, i'm really confused about the ovens.

(1) on the cooktops, i've seen a style that i like, which is more expensive than my current range, but let's not dwell on that right now. most brands have a version of it: https://www.ajmadison.com/cgi-bin/ajmadison/PCG305W.html -- i assume "professional" has no real meaning. really, i just like that the knobs are in front, not on the side, because i guarantee that i would drop a 10-pound creuset pot or lid on those side knobs the first week i had it. and that would be right after i spilled soup on them. just no knobs on the counter where i can ruin them. definitely no electronics.

(2) on the wall ovens:

(a) why are most wall ovens electric? at aj's, just as an example, there are 491 electric wall ovens but only 13 gas wall ovens, 2 of which are more than $10k. wtf?

(b) i've only ever had gas ovens. has anyone else made that change? is broiling with an electric oven the same as broiling with gas? how about preheating? i've always thought of gas as better for cooking than electric. what is wrong with gas wall ovens?

(c) speed ovens? again, wtf? is it a $2k microwave? a $2k air fryer? a spare convection oven? bosch's description is that it "delivers oven-like results." does anyone have one? "oven-like results" doesn't sound appetizing.

(d) steam ovens? i just learned today, in a thread here, that those existed. there's a reservoir system? if you steam seafood, the steam from the seafood must get back to the reservoir, so how do you clean that? i'm an en papillote person, so a steam oven sounds truly interesting. but maybe i need to stick to my paper.

(e) warming drawers? do people use them or are those there just to balance the size of the microwave with the size of the oven?

(f) any other cooking appliances that i should consider spending my pennies on?

any advice will be appreciated.

[Anonymous]

Electric ovens are better for baking. That's one of the nice things about a dual fuel range. I've never used an electric oven broiler because mine is part of the gas range so IDK but I bet it does fine. I mean, a toaster oven is good at broiling. Broiling isn't terribly complicated.

[Anonymous]

The cost of a subzero fridge is criminal but it’s top of the line and aesthetically makes a difference. You could probably do a Jenn air fridge with a similar look that costs less. I went with a subzero fridge, range and microwave and did a kitchen aid wall oven. At the time the wolf one available was too modern for my taste.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The cost of a subzero fridge is criminal but it’s top of the line and aesthetically makes a difference. You could probably do a Jenn air fridge with a similar look that costs less. I went with a subzero fridge, range and microwave and did a kitchen aid wall oven. At the time the wolf one available was too modern for my taste.

Also, I prefer electric ovens because they bake more evenly. Didn’t bother with the warming drawer. I just use oven on low temperature.

[Anonymous]

Careful with professional cooktops, the btus require a higher velocity range hood which can add to overall cost.

Electric ovens do heat more evenly so that is worth it.

Built in refrigerator, that’s a pass for me. They are constantly updating the energy efficiency of refrigerators so I usually stick with counter depth.

[Anonymous]

i'm hear and listening. so baking is the difference. makes sense. it's not something i would notice because i've only ever had gas, so i've adjusted, and i don't bake pastries and cakes hardly ever.

still thinking about losing my open upper flame to really brown/burn the heck out of some things. i can't imagine electric doing that same job.

it seems that's the tradeoff i'll be making. maybe i need a blow torch.

[Anonymous]

Forget the warming drawer. No one uses them (of the people I know who have them).

I did a built-in wall oven unit with the top part a microwave/convection so that I would have a second oven. Would not do that again. Instead I have a countertop toaster oven that also air fries and it is a fabulous second oven and usually it’s become our primary oven because it heats up so quickly.

If you are going for a streamlined look consider getting a microwave drawer instead.

[Anonymous]

The build in fridges are completely about aesthetics. Also go a little bigger because it makes a big difference having less depth, even though it’s better organized cause stuff can’t get buried back.

[Anonymous]

Remember that with big ticket appliances come big ticket repairs too. My aunt has a beautiful sub zero fridge with a non working ice maker because she doesn’t want to spend the money on the repair!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:i'm hear and listening. so baking is the difference. makes sense. it's not something i would notice because i've only ever had gas, so i've adjusted, and i don't bake pastries and cakes hardly ever.

still thinking about losing my open upper flame to really brown/burn the heck out of some things. i can't imagine electric doing that same job.

it seems that's the tradeoff i'll be making. maybe i need a blow torch.

Gas cooktop and electric oven it the way to go. Look for duel fuel options. I have electric now and am used to it, but would switch in a heart beat to gas if I could. DH is all about renewable energy, and with solar being electric that’s what I get...

[Anonymous]

yeah, i could turn into the aunt with the nonworking icemaker. i had servicemaster replace the icemaker on my last fridge, and it was a lot. i imagine it's a lot more of a lot on a subzero.

right now, if i can not harm the aesthetics by keeping the fridge out of sight, maybe that's option A. i'll have to see if i can work around the design by getting my counterdepth fridge in a corner. or maybe the cabinet person will be able to sell me on the built-in. so far, i'm still not there.

and i hadn't thought about the "professional" part for the btus on the cooktop. i don't want to mess with that, so thanks. i'll make sure to check.

[Anonymous]

Ice makers are always a potential leak problem

[Anonymous]

I’ve now lived in two houses with build in refrigerators that I couldn’t swap out for standalone without a major renovation. If I had my druthers I would never live in a house with built ins again. They are extraordinarily expensive and do not have the same features available as standalones. You can get standalones that have close to the same aesthetics and benefit from so many better features.

[Anonymous]

The refrigerator in particular makes a big difference aesthetically. At a certain price point, it's more expected.

Warming drawer, don't bother.

Speed oven, don't bother. It's an expensive toaster oven and microwave combo. Instead plan your cabinetry and/or walk-in pantry if you have one to have a place for a toaster oven and small microwave.

The cobmi steam oven is life changing. Get a plumbed one of if you can. No water reservoir.

The electric ovens definitely bake better.

Look into induction if you haven't. It's better than gas. Just not common on the east coast or in the US generally so many people don't even think of doing it. Much better control over temps, faster to achieve temps, much easier clean up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ve now lived in two houses with build in refrigerators that I couldn’t swap out for standalone without a major renovation. If I had my druthers I would never live in a house with built ins again. They are extraordinarily expensive and do not have the same features available as standalones. You can get standalones that have close to the same aesthetics and benefit from so many better features.

They age and cost a fortune to repair or replace. But I’m a much more simple person than the OP who obviously wants a designer kitchen.