Hot, Hotter, Hottest

Time for your first quiz in the almost 4 year history of The Yale Blog.

Which is the hottest and fastest to boil (it's a semi-trick question)?

Wolf Pro

GE Cafe

Electrolux induction

Although Wolf has multiple power burners of 15k, the GE Cafe has 1 burner of 17,000. So the GE Cafe is technically hotter and therefore faster.

The induction (whether Frigidaire, Viking, Samsung, GE or Electrolux) will be considerably faster than the hottest gas burner.

Shallow Depth

Shallow depth refrigerators do not protrude beyond your cabinets. Its really a much nicer look than a regular depth refrigerator. A shallow depth will deliver the same type of look as a professional (yesterday's post) at a fraction of the price.

But which one do you consider?

Bosch

Electrolux

Cafe

Samsung

KitchenAid

Buying Guide

1. Do you want french door or side by side?

2. Price varies from $1349 to over $3000

3. Consider rebates...they are huge, buy the same manufacturer if possible to maximize potential savings

Electrolux Vs GE Cafe

You are looking at two of the best brands in the industry. They have actually benefitted from the recession since consumers are not spending money on the premium brands.

But how do they compare?

Gas Stove:

As I have said in previous posts, the Electrolux induction is the best stove in terms of performance...but what about gas?

GE Cafe CSG9800

Electrolux EW30GS65S

Both are great products with convection and 2 ovens. I like the Electrolux intuitive controls, but GE has a fifth element with griddle capability and a 17,000 BTU burner. I would call it a draw or a slight GE advantage.

Shallow Depth Refrigerator:

Electrolux EW23BC

GE Cafe CFCP1N1YSS

Both good products and virtually the same price, but Electrolux has 3 models to GEs 1 and is 2 cubic feet larger. Electrolux advantage.

Dishwasher:

Electrolux EID610

GE Cafe CDWT9800

I like Electrolux better to be blunt. It has better racks, more options and a great interface.

Both manufacturers have designed great lines, so this is a good choice. The prime consideration would be style with the Cafe looking more professional, and the Electrolux being more European.

Electrolux does have a significant advantage in the overall, since they have a significant induction offering

Pro Alternatives

Ah...The Wolf dual fuel DF304

Wolf is one of my favs. Each burner has 15,000 BTU at its high yet simmers at 500 BTU. It has electric convection for even baking. In short, this is a great range, but at $5599, it should be.

Unlike in years past, there are good lesser-expensive alternatives.

GE Cafe C2SG9800

I like the Cafe. It has five burners with one at 17,000 BTU and one dedicated simmer at 5,000 BTU. It also has an electric convection oven and yet another oven below. Price of the Cafe is $2599 (in dual fuel as described).

Frigidaire FPDS308K

Frigidaire is a great value brand. For $1729, this range has a 17,000 BTU burner and a dedicated simmer with an electric convection oven and a warming drawer below.

Wolf still has a better top as all their burners have power and the ability to simmer, but for $3000-3800 less, there are other choices to consider.

Tomorrow, we will look at electric...

Pro Alternatives

Once upon a time, professional ranges (defined as fast burners of 15,000 BTU with a commercial appearance) were widely sold. This segment has been decimated with the economy and general housing market.

However, there are alternatives...

GE Cafe CGS980SEMSS

In many ways, this could be a better unit than a pro oven with a 17,000 BTU power burner, griddle burner, convection oven, second oven and self cleaning...Good value at





Bertazzoni A304GGVXE

Faux pro. Looks like a pro, but has regular burners and a much more ordinary price at $2299.





KitchenAid KDRS467VSS

Ok, this is a pro range. It is the hottest at 20,000 BTU with a clock, timer and self cleaning. At $5499, it is $3000 less than similar products.

Pro Options

Happy Monday...As The Ole Blog turns 800 posts today, we must reflect on how times have changed. Value is now our watchword. The best segment in our battered industry is the affordable luxury brands like Bosch, Frigidaire and GE.

Now I will show you the reason, but first have a look at this:


The Wolf DF304: It is a truly great range with 3 power burners, dual convection and great simmer on all burners. However, at $5599, it may be out of the realm of most. Don't fret, there are alternatives:


GE Cafe CGS980SEMSS: This is a great range. It has a 17,000 BTU burner(avarage 10 year old stove is 10,0000-12,000 BTU max) along with an oblong griddle burner as well. It is also convection(just nor double), and has a second oven below...At $2489, it is less than half the Wolf.


Bertazzoni A304GGVXE: I like the range in a lukewarm type of way. It is very stylish (style does emanate out of Italy) and has one power burner, but little else...and it is not self cleaning, unless of course, you clean it yourself.


Frigidaire FPGS3085KF: Frigidaire is the value leader without question. For $1549, you have a 17,000 BTU burner, convection oven and warming drawer..Not bad.

Not My Rules

Every month I review our numbers in the store. Over the past 18 months, I have watched GE grow their business. At the same time, I have seen a dramatic drop in JennAir's business. I have tried to explain nicely to the JennAir representatives to no avail.

I had to show them (what I will show you)



For roughly $200 GE Cafe will offer a 17,000 BTU griddle burner as well as a second oven (instead of a warmer) below the main oven. The GE is also more aesthetically pleasing.

In other words: Improve your old design or continue to be outsold...

Handle This...

So Whirlpool is Maytag, GE Cafe is GE Profile (in some cases), Bosch, Thermador and Gaggenau can also be similar. Here is the one uniform feature difference...

The Handle





Quick suggestion to save you money: Forget the brand, buy the least expensive yet similar model. Unless of course you did not like the style of the handle.

Owens Renovation Part 2

We delivered GE Cafe appliances to Owen in yesterdays post. Today, lets look at his lighting issues. Lighting is more challenging, because there are tons of options. We also have to consider his sense of style and blend that with his new decor.

Issue 1: Glass cabinet

His glass cabinet did not leave much room for traditional strips or undercounter lighting, so we used LED tape...Nice effect (terrible pic).





Issue 2: How to light a big painting.

He had existing old recessed, but replacing with wall washers would have been inadequate. We used stainless Tech track with customized black glass heads.





Issue 3: How to light ambiguous art object.

Two ways really (for now)...Low voltage track or recessed...Owen chose the track.

Owens' Renovation

This is Owen, my next door neighbor.




I like Owen. He is a great next door neighbor always polite, mostly quiet and just an all around likeable person. One day Owen asked me to help with his renovation. He had a number of lighting and appliance related issues which are my specialty.

Lets look at the appliances first.

Issue 1: Old Appliances....Did not want to spend a ton of dough replacing.







Answer: GE Cafe....It has style for a fraction of the price of SubZero/Viking/Wolf. We could have substituted Bosch (he liked the GE range better plus Bosch does not have a french door) or Frigidaire. As I have posted previously, you can renovate affordably and still have very good products.

2008 Winners

2008 was a great year for appliances....Not. Although 2008 was a difficult year for every industry, certain segments of the appliance and lighting business saw big increases.


Appliances: Affordable luxury...Bosch, GE Cafe and Frigidaire




Lighting: LED (finally) and color rendering fluorescent.




2008 will be remembered as the year we turned the corner certainly for many of the energy efficient products which will be the standard in the future.


Happy New Year

The Meaning of Brands

In my view, there are 2 classifications of appliances...Have a look.


Consider these brands for value and replacement.



1. Frigidaire
2. Bosch
3. Ge Cafe



Consider these brands for name recognition and resale in a competitive market.



1. SubZero/Wolf
2. Viking
3. Miele

Desperate Times Call For....Rebates

There seems to be a theme to The Yale Blog. Every month, I seem to be amazed by the sheer magnitude of rebates. Actually, Sears does a pretty good job advertising their 20% off sale.

With the economy in recession, most manufacturers are offering individual and package rebates, which can total 40%. Consider rebates when you researching an appliance purchase. Buying a complete kitchen from one company will maximize the amount of rebate dollars.

Lets look at a few individual pieces by brand...

Frigidaire: Their best selling dishwasher and washer have $150 in rebates




Bosch: $200 on their popular slide in ranges and $150 on their best selling dishwasher.





GE Cafe: $150 on the dishwasher and $100 on the refrigerator.





KitchenAid: $175 on their best selling dishwasher.

Atlas Shrugged

Great book, btw. I am concerned with the economy like everyone but consumers to some degree need appliances. Of course, that does not entail buying poor quality products cheaply.

Here are a few value lines worth considering in todays market:

Frigidaire: Quite simply, the best value in the industry. Their comparable products are 10-20% cheaper than the competition, especially in ranges and laundry.






Bosch: It is amazing how inexpensive Bosch has become. Their dishwashers, integra refrigeration and laundry are their strongest products.





GE Cafe: I never thought GE would be part of my favorites. For consumers looking for upscale products at decent prices, GE is worth consideration.

Yale 2008 Vs 2006

In many ways, Yale is a microcosm of the broader markets. We are very lucky to have a better year than in 2006 (so far). It is, however, a way different mix of products, which reflects the market uncertainty.

In 2006, we sold SubZero, Wolf and Miele to a much higher degree than today. In a way, their decline in sales is a shame. Both companys enjoy compelling products and are truly unique in many aspects. They are victims of the current economic reality. Without equity and declining home values, people are not spending at the same rate. Like other iconic brands, they will be back and will continue to sell to the super premium segment.



Three brands have benefitted from the market weakness. First, people need appliances and will always remodel even in a down market. Two brands, Bosch and Frigidaire, do not surprise me, but the revamped GE line, especially GE Cafe does. The common thread between all three brands is style at a more affordable price....As they coined in the book, Trading Up, the new phrase is called affordable luxury.

A Few Of My Favorite Things

LED recessed from Cree: First, for a $30-40 more per can, LED uses 1/5 the power, emits zero heat(saving HVAC and electric costs) and has a 20 year lamp life.




Bosch integrated refrigeration: Integrating a refrigerator is a great design idea. Bosch is the most affordable way of achieving the look.




GE Cafe French Door: GE refrigeration has staged a huge comeback in refrigeration. Dumping LG as the source may be a reason. Deciding to build a better product may be another reason. I am just speculating.




Frigidaire slide in: Frigidaire has not been hurt by the recession, because they manufacture nicely styled yet affordable products. This gas range has power and simmer burners as well as convection and warming drawer for about $600-100 less than their competition.




Induction: Any induction, really. Induction is 90% efficient versus 60% for gas and 55% for electric. The technology is vastly superior in heating, simmering, child safety and does not emit heat like the others. A hybrid unit starts at $1500, which is way less expensive than a Pro.

Handle This

Two different refrigerators from GE...One is GE Cafe and the other is GE Profile.

So what is the difference?



If you said handle, you would be correct. You have to love marketing. Change a handle add a series. They both do have huge rebates($200-300) this month...

The Best Gas Slide In ranges

Slide in ranges were once dominated by JennAir and Frigidaire...Frigidaire for price and JennAir for quality. In the last few months, there seems to be many more choices including a brand new Electrolux range as well as GE Cafe.

But which one is best?



I look at this 2 ways. Which range has the best features, and then the best overall kitchen package


Frigidaire: Still the best price with power burner, warming drawer and convection. Great rebates depress the price further when adding more pieces, but choices for refrigeration are limited

JennAir/KitchenAid: Still great names with great features. Although they are not the newest and therefore the "hottest", JennAir/KitchenAid have great kitchen packages with very good dishwashers, french door refrigerators and tons of rebates.

GE Cafe: Great specs with 4 burners, a griddle burner and finally some very good complimentary pieces. GE does not have an especially robust rebate program, however, and is more expensive than comparable pieces.

Bosch: Great name, but the range is just ok...However, Bosch has never been more affordable.

Electrolux: Great style and great features...18,000 BTU burner with the best simmer and 2 ovens. However, a tough range to package in an overall kitchen. Still this is a product worth considering.

Ge Cafe..Part 2

GE is a funny company. Rather than rebrand with new names, they use their own name and then rebrand...Their best appliances became GE Monogram and their second best is GE Profile.

Their latest iteration, GE Cafe(who thinks of these names), is arguably their most successful. Cafe is full featured, commercially inspired products that seem to market to the premium segment of the market.

As successful as the line has been, it is strangely limited. The most notable exception has been a french door, shallow depth refrigerator. Its an odd omission because, french doors now outsell regular side by sides by 6 to 1.


Well now the GE Cafe french door is now available.








The rest of the line(for now):

Rebates...How to Buy a KitchenAid Kitchen

We have a very large display of KitchenAid appliances displayed in their own vignette. I would place KitchenAid with JennAir, Bosch and GE Cafe in the premium segment just under SubZero, Wolf and Viking...

But with the housing industry in turmoil, how good are the rebates on KitchenAids best products...



The total price for a professional refrigerator, induction cooktop, canopy hood, double drawer dishwasher and single oven with steam assist is 13,165. This represents the most expensive appliances in their line. The total rebates offered in April is 1,825 or almost 14% of the purchase price


Not a bad deal, but the average package rebate for 3-5 pieces in April is 18-24%

Have a look:

Electrolux Kitchen packages - up to 25% off
Jenn Air kitchens - up to 25% off
KitchenAid kitchen packages - up to 20% off
Frigidaire kitchen packages - up to 20% off
Frigidaire laundry packages - up to 35% off
Bosch kitchen packages up to 20% off
Bosch laundry packages up to 30% off
GE kitchen packages up to 15% off
GE laundry packages up to 25% off