Kitchen Appliances

Simon

Simon

I am looking at building a new home in the New Year.

Just read that Smeg post and figured I better start learning about appliances.

So I guess I will be after a dishwasher, gas stove, electric oven, a fridge and a microwave.

I imagine that all the same brand would be most aesthetic.

I don't want the most expensive, nor do I want the cheapest. I would like the most reliable as I have had awful trouble with a Omega dishwasher in the past and don't wish to repeat that.

Any ideas about what I should be looking at?

What is the best way to buy them?

Some people suggest a builders discount at an appliance warehouse.

Others suggest to watch for sales at major retailers.

Some even say to follow Gray's Online auctions.

I'd like to hear what you think.

Cheers,
 
We were bought a dishwasher for a wedding present. It gave up the ghost after only 16 years. Rubbish stuff.

My only suggestion is the one from Dilbert.

Have two dishwashers. One has clean dishes, one has dirty.

That way you never have to unpack a full dishwasher.
 
The best stuff does come from Europe, which means it ain't cheap.

We have a German washer (best we've ever had), a Pommy stove, Italian stuff in our IP. Do it once and do it right, spend a few extra dollars.

Don't have one, but starting anew I'd have an induction range top.
 
Got cash and room - Commercial stuff from likes of Viking etc..

Cash, limited room to a 'normal' kitchen - Gaggenau, Miele

Bang for buck - look at Bosch, similar build to Miele, but a tad cheaper just make sure its made in germany.

Miele you won't get much discounts as they are run and sold by Miele in appliance stores and then pay a commission or rental to the store/salesperson so don't expect 1000's off, usual package deals of like 200 off specials.

Mostly other than this - get what you pay for ie. Westinghouse, F&P, Electrolux...
 
Yes, that Smeg thread was interesting, Simon.

My Smeg experiences have been great. So have my F & P (washing machine and dish drawer) but sometimes it's luck.

When you've decided what you want, you need to come down to the big smoke and visit Sams Appliances in Dulwich Hill. Best prices I've found. Plenty of stock, too.

Scott
 
I've had experience of Bosch and Smeg dishwashers, and both were lemons, and didn't dry the dishes. I've now had three Asko dishwashers, and they are fantastic.

Same with washing machines.... Asko all the way.
 
EGB18CT said:
Got cash and room - Commercial stuff from likes of Viking etc..
Click to expand...

Viking makes semi-commercial - that is, for resi. So you need money but you don't need much extra room. I had a Viking stove for years that I put in a remodel in California. Loved it to bits, especially the heavy metal grids on top where you could bang humongous stock pots about and the grids wouldn't budge.

Wouldn't it be a bit impractical to import into Australia? You'd have to have a transformer and wow, the extra energy those things suck up is amazing.

Simon, don't go with one brand. Get the best one no matter what brand it is.

I don't like Euro stuff because everything seems to be small and skimpy and lightweight. The Americans do appliances way better.
 
Amadio's post prompts me to add that we have a DiLonghi gas cooktop with lovely heavy cast iron grids and whilst they are heavy to remove and clean, they certainly don't move around.

The other thing I would never go back to is a four burner gas cooktop, after having a longer five burner one. The one before this was the size of a five burner, but the fish burner was just a blank space. I now have the long fish burner in the middle which is good for a cast iron griddle thingy that we use most days for eggs and frying, but even when we just had the four burners, that space in the middle was fantastic for resting pots on and just being able to fit big pots beside each other. I would never go back to a square four burner hob again, especially cooking for a family.
 
I bought a Fisher and Paykel dish draw dish washer last year and i love it no getting on my hands and knees to load and unload the dish washer it has 2 draws but the bottom one rarely gets used. It takes 43mins to go through the eco cycle and that always cleans things perfectly. If I was buying now id buy a single draw one and use the space for another storage draw.
 
In the building I live in, there are around 200 apartments, that have identical fitouts. All appliances, except for Fridge are Siemens.

It appears that Ze Germans know how to make a great appliance, our oven is great, our dishwasher is absolutely superb, It even dries tupperware......yes that is not a misprint. Our cooktop sucks, but it is one of those electric ceramic top deals, and they pretty much suck by design. Gas or induction for me please.

Having a chat with the building manager the other day, and he said that they have rarely had any issues, and those appliances have been in use for 7 years, tenant turnover is usually pretty high, with new people in every 1 to 2 years.

When I get back to Australia, I will be investigating Siemens
 
imonmyway said:
It takes 43mins to go through the eco cycle and that always cleans things perfectly.
Click to expand...

Ever since using a commercial dishwasher, I've wondered why it takes so long for resi models to wash dishes. There are dishwashers which clean in seconds.

This one is 2 minutes.

http://www.sydneycommercialkitchens.com.au/catering-equipment/dishwashers/electrolux-dishwashers

Of course, you pay for it, but it may pay for itself over the long term. Don't know - never run the numbers.
 
I have used one of those commercial dishwashers at school tuckshop, and they do wash well and very quickly, but the one I used didn't have a fitted interior. Instead, things were plonked on a plastic rack. I'm sure they might have a fitted insert for packing things in better, but my question would be "do these commercial dishwashers dry the dishes?".

The one at tuckshop didn't dry the dishes, and they had to be dried by hand, or left to air dry.

I always wondered when using this at school why our domestic machines take so long, but drying dishes is not something I want to do.
 
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