I'm about to start remodeling my kitchen, and being a fairly serious chef,
would like to go for something better than the usual home-quality range.

My understanding is that true commercial ranges (e.g., Garland, Vulcan,
Wolf, etc.) cannot be used with 'zero-clearance' environments. Is this
accurate? How about if I use some kind of heat-resistant material between
the wall, cabinets, etc.? Also, I've noticed that most/all of these ranges
have a very high backsplash, which wouldn't work in my layout (I have a 10"
backsplash, below an opening to the dining room). Whatever I do, I don't
want it to void my homeowner's insurance ;^)

Thus far I've been mainly looking at "Pro-style" units, from DCS, Viking,
and Wolf. I realize that these will not perform to the level of a real
commercial unit, and are far more expensive, but I'm wondering whether I'd
just be paying for cosmetics. Any thoughts from owners would be much
appreciate. The feedback I've gotten elsewhere is that the DCS is not as
high quality as the Wolf, but I haven't read anything about the Viking. I'd
be looking at a 36" unit, btw.

Thanks in advance,

Joe

Oh yeah -- I'm looking at gas ranges ;^)

On Mon, 16 Jul 2007 14:51:14 -0400, "Rootworker"
rootwerx.com> wrote:

Your local building codes inspector might not approve of what
something in another state would approve. Check with them first.
They hold the key to occupancy of your house.

I had a Wolf Rangetop installed without any question from the building
inspector. We had a SS backsplash installed and that is all they
required.

Rootworker rootwerx.com> wrote:

[snip]

My cousin and his wife (an extremely serious and skilled cook) have a six
burner Wolf range in their home. I was quite astonished to learn recently
that it's uninsulated, to the point they don't use it in hot weather.

Perhaps that made sense at one time in a commercial environment, but I'd tend
to think of superior insulation as a natural part of a superior range.

On Mon, 16 Jul 2007 18:26:34 -0400, Ward Abbott terian.com>
wrote:

"Rootworker" rootwerx.com> wrote in message

Yes, it is true. There are minimum clearances and no, there is no way to
make it a zero clearance. Some have been installed in residences, but it
takes some work, needs extra venting and generally now worth the effort for
99%% of us.

Also, I've noticed that most/all of these ranges

Don't even THINK about it in that location. Pretty crappy location for any
range for that matter. You will get carry over splatter into the dining
room.

In article newssvr11.news.prodigy.net>,
"Edwin Pawlowski" snet.net> wrote:

To the low end of this comment, I'd like to throw in that I have a low
end Roper, and it has three very powerful large burners, plus one simmer
burner that meets the Viking lower simmer challenge; Viking brags that
their simmer is low low, it can melt chocolate chips on a piece of paper
without setting the paper on fire. I have done this same thing on my
stove several times for friends. The three burners cook as well on the
hot side as any, and since a good portion of my cookware non-stick, I
don't need stove top kilns anyway.

The point is that there are some excellent stoves out there at the lower
end of the price spectrum, you only need to look.

Interesting - I have a low-end Roper fridge, and it's actually worked quite
well too.

Thanks to all for the insightful comments.

Joe

"jt august" wrote in message
news:starsabre-F20813.23074516072007@inetnews.worldnet.att.net...

"jt august" wrote
......................................

==
Heh--But, they don't *look* impressive, and that afterall, is the most
significant factor.
What bothers me is "stainless steel" itself. It's ugly. I predict that
within a few years,
everyone else will have figured that out as well. OTOH, I am so glad that my
beautiful gleaming
white appliances were all a great percentage less than stainless in the same
model.

On Tue, 17 Jul 2007 15:41:52 GMT, "Gini" verizon.com> wrote:

The point of stainless steel is its functionality rather than its looks. That's
why it had dominated commercial kitchens for decades. And that's what justifies
its higher price.

The fact that some of us find white revolting and like the looks of brushed
metal is simply a bonus.

Although I suppose John Delorean would dispute that...

-- Larry