Focus on performance and avoid hype when remodeling your kitchen, says Consumer Reports.
The August issue of Consumer Reports delivers their most comprehensive evaluation of kitchen tools ever.
We've been waiting for this report on Great Kitchens for Less and we highly recommend it: When people ask us what to do when they're starting to re-do their kitchens, we tell the to subscribe to the online version of Consumer Reports before they buy even a single cabinet pull.
Consumer Reports released a top ten list of the Most Hyped Kitchen Products with this issue. While we don't agree with every part of their list (we love high-end faucets, especaily in small hard working spaces), it is an excellent guide to avoiding hype when setting off to re-do your kitchen or upgrade appliances. We've posted their full list after the jump.
10 Most-Hyped Kitchen Products and What to Buy Instead
1. Pro-style ranges. Spending more on pro-style appliances doesn't
guarantee better quality. Consumer Reports' tests continue to find
that $4,000-plus professional-style ranges perform no better than
less-expensive, conventional models. Some pro-style ranges still
lack common features and have high repair rates.
CR Advice: Consider faux pro-style ranges from mainstream
manufacturers that combine stainless-steel style, performance, and
reliability for thousands less.
2. Speed cooking. Faster doesn't mean better. Found in some
microwaves, ranges, and ovens, speed cooking combines microwaving
with convection or baking and broiling to cut cooking time. CR
found the performance of speed cookers to be spotty in tests; some
foods came out great, while others were undercooked.
CR Advice: Look for ovens and ranges with convection, which uses a
fan to circulate hot air so food can bake and roast at lower
temperatures for shorter times.
3. Steam ovens & ranges. Steam didn't melt the fat away. According to
CR tests, food cooked in some of these types of ovens, which all
cost more than $1000, had just as much fat after steaming as before.
CR Advice: Skip them.
4. Multimedia Refrigerators. Side-by-sides with TVs and
calendars promise to help consumers organize their lives and their
leftovers, but none of the models CR tested out-cooled the best
conventional fridges.
CR Advice: Save $2,000 or more by buying a top-rated refrigerator
and a capable flat-panel TV.
5. Turbocharged Dishwashers. Despite claims of maximizing "washing
pressure to ensure superior cleaning for the toughest jobs," CR
tests revealed that most regular dishwashers including ones without
a turbo cycle do very good job of cleaning dishes, even with baked-
on food.
CR Advice: Choose a lower-priced dishwasher that blends top
cleaning with quietness and shorter cycle times.
6. Appliance Drawers. Although touted as flexible, space-saving, and
stylish, CR tests of drawer versions of refrigerators, dishwashers,
and microwaves show that their lower capacity, efficiency, and
overall performance, plus their higher prices, negate those perks.
CR Advice: For style and accessible storage, choose a good French-
door fridge. Run the rinse-only cycle on a regular dishwasher for
small loads. Consumers who can live without a range hood's better
venting can free up counter space with an over-the-range microwave.
Each costs a fraction of what a drawer costs.
7. Pricey Faucets and Sinks. CR found few performance differences
between the least and most expensive versions of faucets and sinks
from major brands.
CR Advice: Faucets in chrome or with physical vapor deposition
(PVD) finishes performed best regardless of price. All of the
stainless steel sinks CR tested resisted dents, stains, scratches,
and heat similarly, whether they were thick or thin.
8. Trendy Counters. CR tests found concrete to be fragile and
susceptible to scratches, chips, and hairline cracks. Limestone may
start out smooth, but it scratched, stained, and chipped in CR
tests.
CR Advice: For a stone look, go for granite or quartz.
9. "Green" Flooring. Bamboo, cork, and linoleum are all considered
renewable alternatives to standard hardwood and vinyl flooring.
However, some did not hold up to the usual spills, scratches,
dropped plates, and sunlight in CR tests.
CR Advice: For high traffic areas, consider plastic laminate and
vinyl; both proved toughest overall in CR tests, generally for less
money. Also, solid wood floors can be sanded and refinished several
times.
10. One-Stop Shops. Shop around. Consumer Reports latest surveys
reveal that no one retailer was impressive for design help,
installation services, product quality, selection, and price.
CR Advice: Check out CR's Ratings for the stores with the
attributes that matter most. Check retailers' return policies
before buying. Consider local independent stores and personal
references as highly as preconceived notions about price, quality,
and convenience.
As someone who is currently building a "green" home, I was disappointed to see green flooring dismissed in favor of vinyl/plastic laminate. VINYL, of all things! (Watch the documentary "Blue Vinyl" to find out why the stuff is so awful.) And bamboo isn't such a sustainable alternative if it has to be shipped halfway around the world from China. We're going with linoleum for kitchen and bath floors, and local wood for the others. I think it's a shame that so many people may read that article and dismiss green products in favor of harmful "standard" materials.
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Or better yet, instead of buying the issue, or paying for access online, stop by your local library. Almost all libraries carry Consumer Reports, and may let you check them out for a short amount of time.
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As a Certified Kitchen Designer for many years, and frequent AT commenter, I'd like to tackle these findings and will respond below.
1. I totally agree. I have been telling my clients for years not to get "sucked into" the pro range/cooktop/appliance hype. That, most of all, if they really want the appliances to speak loudly in the kitchen, they will, and that's a certain look. But, if they want the kitchen to look more like a living environment, consider lower profile appliances. Hardly anyone heeds this advice because the pull of these appliances is so strong. It's a pity, I think.
2. I think speed cooking definitely has a place in our fast paced lives. Not every food can be cooked perfectly in every type of cooking appliance anyway. I'm very impressed with the quality of speed cooking appliances. I sat with other media people as Charlie Trotter prepared a four or five course meal with a Turbo Chef oven in under 30 minutes, each course coming out within that time. A great variety of foods, done to perfection. Steamed asaparagus in 45 seconds! No, I don't agree.
3. Possibly get a combination steam/convection oven, which will enhance certain types of foods, keeping them moist yet crisp. For steam alone, I agree, get a $2 metal basket steamer and put it in a pot for the veggies.
4. I don't see much value in these at all. I don't see it as being a realistic "nerve center". I agree.
5. I agree.
6. I couldn't agree less! The microwave over the range is the worst possible solution for 3 reasons. It's at an unsafe height, the venting actually DOESN'T suck, which means it sucks, and it's downright dangerous when things are cooking on the cooktop and something has to be manipulated in and out of the MW by adults or children. Separate appliances as mentioned? Yes, I see them as very flexible, particularly for large kitchens, families, entertaining needs.
7. I totally agree. Lots of great lower cost faucets these days.
8. Totally agree. Consider slate. It's denser than granite. Consider wood too, at least for one small area.
9. I have heard that bamboo flooring does not hold up to pressure. I'm a wood floor person, like wood. I also have vinyl in my apartment, Chilewich, love that. It's ok to be green in some areas and not others in my opinion. Sometimes it's hard to be 100% green oriented. Plastic laminate flooring is just ugly IMO!
10. Too large a topic to expand on. Look for tangible credibility/experience in the industry when choosing a designer. There are ways to evaluate it. Yes, watch out for those restocking fees!
I couldn't resist responding in depth to this post!
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