Kitchen Appliance Brand Suggestions - Steer Me in The Right Direction for Cooktop/Rangehood/Oven

Hi all,

Looking for brand suggestions for gas cooktop, rangehood and oven. Currently stovetop is built in but since I'll be looking at replacing the oven as well, I'd consider a freestanding unit too.

Not looking at spending huge $ but want decent quality, especially a cooktop with good heat control.

I'm seeing various brands at the good guys and similar but honestly not sure which are decent and which I should stay away from. I have some knowledge re Bosch and Siemens type appliances but a bit ignorant re others.

Suggestions or insights appreciated.

Comments

  • -7

    Have you walked into a kitchen appliance shop and asked the question?

    • +7

      Yes they immediately burst into tears and said they didn’t know, and that their collective knowledge falls well short of the forums section of Australia’s foremost bargains sharing community.

    • +11

      God forbid a person try to get some opinions other than those of a sales person.

      • +3

        You'd think some people viewing the forums, don't actually want forum discussions.

        Anyway, it'd take a lot for me to ask, let alone believe a salespersons suggestion. Once you've worked retail and sales with margins, add ons and all those KPIs and commissions, you end up believing very little from salespeople. It's their job. I know I used to stretch and spin stories if they helped lock in a sale.

    • +10

      Yes, they told me the brands they had in stock were the best on the market.

      • +7

        They added that the highest-margin items were endowed with magical fairy dust that gives good luck.

        • +2

          Fairy dust sounds appealing.

    • +2

      Do you normally ask that opinion of salespeople over first hand user experience? If I valued that, I wouldn't be asking on ozbargain for first hand experience. Do you have any to offer or just wanted to ask if I'd gone for a walk?

      • -2

        First find a budget, go check in the store what you can get, then short list, google it and ask.

        Sales person will tell you which one you can get and the deals, features, then you go home and research.

        You don't even know, is it 600x600, or how many burns or wok compatible or auto gas cut off etc, or what brand or model. And you after user options lol

        • I think you've misunderstood my post, which is about brands of appliances, not specific model options.
          You obviously purchase differently to me, I can see that. But you seem to have a problem understanding that not everyone researches and purchases the way that you do. Did this post trigger you or something, I mean you've suggested no brands and yet opened the forum post and commented to show you feel I should close my eyes, pick a retailer and just walk in and be guided. You must have something useful to offer. Anything?

  • +4

    We have purchased Westinghouse for a rental. They seem to have some built in timer that causes them to die at around 5 years. Would suggest that you avoid them. We also have ASKO and they’ve been good for around 8 years now.
    At the risk of waylaying your question, I have to say that we’ve gone away from gas to induction for a cooktop and haven’t looked back.

    • +1

      I like the flame (like every other pyro that prefers gas), but we cook with cast iron woks and griddles etc and I feel like gas is better for this than induction. Why do you prefer your induction over gas?

      • +1

        We were gas lovers, then used induction when travelling and found it was as good and much more convenient.
        Gas adds to greenhouse and is becoming less popular and many houses apparently have minor leaks which can be unhealthy. As gas becomes less popular less and less customers may end up paying higher supply fees to maintain the system.
        When our gas HWS died we bit the bullet and swapped our cooktop to induction and are now gas free. Pretty happy with the induction cooktop. Heats super fast when needed and dials back as quickly as gas when you need to drop temperature. My wife used to use woks to cook. Changed to flat bottom and is happy with it.
        Induction will work with cast iron and griddles. Most have the ability to bridge 2 cook areas and will evenly heat the griddle area.
        We had to fit an existing stone cutout for our kitchen. If we could have fitted it we would have been quite keen on the Haier ones. They are priced well, have a decent warranty and are a well known and popular brand in China.

        • Curious where did you get flat bottom wok

          What brands good btw?

  • +3

    Stay away from any wood fired ovens Gil Gunderson tries to sell you. They are old stock

  • +1

    Keep Ikea in mind for these. They only do one basic gas cooktop, but have a range of decently built rangehood & ovens. Probably better quality than the normal stuff from place like goodguys etc.

    • Really? I hadn't considered ikea but will check them out over the weekend, thanks. Have you used any of the ikea rangehoods and ovens?

      • +1

        I haven't no. But if I was in the market for a new oven, I would probably choose one of the ikea basic ovens (without the pyrolytic cleaning options) as from what I've read they seem to be good value.

        • Thanks. I'll investigate.

      • +2

        I built a new kitchen recently and all appliances you mention are from IKEA. Didn't go for their lowest cost products, mostly midrange. Induction cooktop is great, same for the oven. Island rangehood cost a fraction of what competitors charge, and it's working well too.

  • +2

    For your own place or for tenant's use? Gas, electric or induction? What rangehood do you have already - ducted or recirculating? What type of cooking do you do? Will you consider pre-owned, factory seconds, ex-demo?

    • Own place. As mentioned gas cooktop
      The rest is just standard electric. Recirculating currently but I'd consider ducted if it wasn't going to cost a fortune as we cook a lot (i have no idea re cost on that one). Wok cooking, frying, sauces and grilling. I'd consider, but would have to be a brand I'm confident in. Still in the research stage of brands.
      Any suggestions or even what to stay away from, would be appreciated.

      • I renovated my kitchen 18 years ago. Miele gas on glass cooktop, range hood and oven all still in service. I wanted a high powered wok burner but discovered the hood would need much more clearance. I'm planning to do a new build in the next two years and will be looking at the gas and induction combination cooktops. Why did I choose Miele? The 90cm cooktop and range hood fit in 60cm cabinets. Gas on glass is easier to clean than stainless. I like that Miele makes huge oven dishes to fit their drawer runners; and you can option telescopic runners whiich are awesome.

  • +1

    Isn't there talk of banning gas appliances?

    I'd be looking into that before making any purchases.

    • +3

      Vic, banned gas in new builds. Can't ban gas in ppls homes, you'd have ppl on pensions eating even more cat food then.

  • Baumatic have been very reliable for me, though the oven controls could be more intuitive.

    • Thanks, hadn't heard of them but will take a look at their offerings.

  • +2

    Well I have been very satisfied with my Westinghouse stove top and oven. I did have some trouble with my Westinghouse rangehood but, even though it was out of warranty, Westinghouse replaced it AND paid the electrician to do the job > excellent customer service :)

    • That's great. Must care about their brand image. I did see a nice looking 6 bnr freestanding unit by Westinghouse, that I'd consider adjusting the cabinetry to fit.

  • +3

    Whatever brand, consider a rangehood whose motor is outside the house. If I ever redo my kitchen, this will be mandatory.

    • Good point re noise. Do you mean to get a ducted rangehood? I'd prefer this but I'm not sure about cost as yet.

      • +2

        Yes, rangehood should vent outdoors. The motor being outside also helps with a quiet kitchen

        • This would be my preference but we'll see how much it costs for installation etc. thanks

  • -1

    The problem with asking for advice on this sort of thing is that everyone will justify their decision to buy whatever cheap junk they bought by telling how good it is.
    Converting a built in hotplate to a freestanding stove professionally is expensive, with little benefit.
    Imo stick with gas and German/Austrian made appliances.

    • I figured we could get a bigger oven and cooktop that way but yes, it'll be more than using the existing spaces. Thanks for the suggestions.

      • Are the old ones 600mm?

  • Had Neff oven and cooktop in our old house, moved to a new house that had Westinghouse. Definitely could tell the difference in the build quality between them … ended up replacing the Westinghouse stuff with Neff.

    Neff and Siemens are the two brands I would recommend.

  • +3

    It comes down to your budget, Ive renovated over 10 kitchens and only use Bosch or Miele. If you’re after freestanding then look at some semi commercial brands. Designer brands made in Italy like Ilve look great but don’t last and can’t handle daily use. Look for long warranty and heavy weight build as indicators of quality. Rangehoods need to be powerful and quiet. Ovens - look for good capacity, adjustable shelving and easy to clean. Cooktops - tough heavy trivets and a layout that works for you or induction which is the current trend. I personally use gas for better control and speed.

  • +1

    Westinghouse or Electrolux. They go through a lot of local testing of their oven products to Australian standards. Also if something goes wrong they repair or replace it and they have a local repair team. I found them easy to deal with. Rangehood just buy one from Bunnings. If something goes wrong take it back to refund.

  • +1

    Have a look at appliances online. Great service and advice

  • Miele if you can afford it. Otherwise, don’t mind Bosch or Smeg. As for gas, watch out for the new laws coming in, could make your gas top obsolete in years to come.

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