Kitchen Appliances: Stainless Steel vs Black vs white

[chiqanita]

Just curious what's out there and what you think.

[kusiakje]

If you go stainless, pay for the fingerprint-proof kind. Otherwise you'll be constantly wiping down the appliances because of iddy biddy fingerprints that are visible from 50 feet away. Total PitA.

--Jessica

[racerl1]

If you go for the stainless look, avoid "titanium". It is advertised as magnetic (stainless is not) and fingerprint-proof. We were going to buy a titanium refrigerator, but we found out if it gets scratched, there is a permanant white mark that shows up more than stainless scratches. The scratches are very obvious. We ended up going with stainless.

[TracyBee]

Also avoid the "stainless look". It's just paint and will do the same thing - show scratches terribly. If you go stainless, get real stainless.

[rgors]

I've done some kitchen design work. A few notes:

- white shows fingerprints/stains MORE than any other surface.
- I think old stainless showed fingerprints more, but really all of the stainless available now is fairly textured and doesn't show fingerprints like it used to (even if you don't get the "upgrades" to "hide fingerprints")
- black shows the least dirt, overall
- that said, everything shows dirt, really, if you have kids.

Stainless has by far the highest resale value, and it's not just a "trend" -- this has been proven over ten years and stainless sales are not going down by any means.

If you plan to move in the next 5 years or so, what matters more than anything, is what type of appliances your neighbors have. Go look at some open houses in your neighborhood. If everyone has white, then putting in stainless might turn off eventual buyers who assume you are out of their price range. If everyone has stainless, and you put in white -- might as well plan to redo your appliances again when you move!

[TracyBee]

I'd disagree about the black appliances. My neighbor has black appliances and 3 kids - all under 5 - and her appliances ALWAYS look dirty - the fingerprints show really bad. My white appliances, however, always look clean (even if they aren't - lol!)

[Jo..]

stainless is great because it's reflective and makes the kitchen look bigger!

[rgors]

If you've got 3 kids under 5, I think the finish isn't going to really make much difference... ?

[rgors]

I guess I should clarify the texture too. If going with the black "polished" glassy look -- certainly fingerprints will show as they would on glass. The black "textured" finishes, however, hide dirt well.

The opposite is true of white... not that there is much "glassy white" out there. But, if you get the textured white, the dirt that catches in the grooves/creases shows up terribly.

"Textured" vs "glassy" is much more common these days so I was assuming textured in my reply. The old 80's "black glassy GE" look however is still common in older kitchens, though.

Also, if you have really "hard" water vs "soft" water in your area will also make some difference, as the mineral deposits can be pretty visible.

[Corie]

I have always preferred white.

Never been a fan of black. Not in my wardrode or in my kitchen. The house we
just bought has a black microwave, stove, and dishwasher.

Since we have a white refrigerator and the current appliances are older, we went
to Sears during the Kenmore sale (10% off) and Friends & Family sale (additional 20%)
and got new appliances in white.

My sister has stainless steel and while she loves it, it makes her kitchen seem
cold and uninviting. Just my opinion. I guess it is all the metal staring back
at me!! :)

[carolines mommy]

We had stainless in our last house and aren't likely to do it again. It scratches and shows streaks much more than white or black. The streaks drove me nuts and the fear of the kids putting a big dent in an appliance always had me on edge when they were in there. We have black appliances in this house. They still show fingerprints but are easier to keep looking clean. The "glassy" finish does scratch and they are pretty visible on my fridge where my mom's right hand ring hits the fridge door by the handle. I'd go with a textured finish on the fridge if I were to buy a new one (this one was here when we bought the house). White shows dirt, but a Magic Eraser works like...well magic.

It does depend on your cabinets, flooring and counters too.

Erika
Mommy to Caroline Nov 03 and Chelsea April 05

[KBecks]

This is a tough call. I think black is prettiest, but white is easiest to keep clean looking.

[mariza]

My Brother has all black and it always looks dirty (single guy, no kids) My Mom has stainless and black dishwasher and black fridge, DD's fingerprints show terribly on both. I have white and while it shows splashes and such the most, it doesn't show smudges and fingerprints as much. Splashes are easy to wipe down, it the fingerprints that are a PITA.

Mariza
Mommy to my "Thing 1" DD 1/05
and "Thing 2" DS 9/06

[kcimato]

I have a mix of black and stainless appliances and really like it.

[sweetpea]

I voted for black, because that's what looks best in my kitchen.

[emilys_mom]

We had off-white before and they were so easy to clean. When we built our second house, it was no longer an option, so we went with black this time and they never look clean no matter how hard I scrub!

I wanted stainless, but friends who had it mentioned the finger print issue.

[almostamom]

I had stainless in my apartment, white in my single gal house, and black in our current house. For a gas stove, I prefer black or at least black grates, no question. The carbon was impossible to get off of the white stove (gray grates). It's still on the black grates, but not visible unless you're inspecting (and my mother does!) I think it depends on what else is in the kitchen (cabinets, counters). For our current kitchen, black looked best, but I refuse to have a black sink, so that is off-white.

[priscilla73]

I have always liked white but I chose stainless for my new house and I LOVE it. I haven't had much of an issue so far with fingerprints with my new Whirlpool Gold s/s appliances.

[MaiseyDog]

I agree, I have black appliances and they are awful at showing dirt and fingerprints. The fridge, which is textured is fine, but the stove is a PIA to get clean. It streaks horribly since I have never been able to get a stove completely grease free. The microwave is mounted over the stove so I have the same problem with it.

Margaret

[kijip]

I frankly think the current trend towards stainless appliances with granite countertops is going to look as dated as avocado green or burnt yellow. Every single place we looked at had this kitchen- granite or granite tile with wood floors, darker cabinets and stainless appliances. I like the white. Fresh and airy IMHO. That said, we are moving to a brand new house that already has brand new stainless with black handles dishwasher and range/microhood so we are going to get a black or stainless fridge to match. White would look silly in that context.

[KrisM]

Gosh, I disagree! Our old house had a black dishwasher and oven. Our new has white. I had to clean and wipe the black every day for it to look decent. I do the white ones once a month, unless I spill. White seems to show no finger prints or water streaks at all. Black showed everything!

[kijip]

>Stainless has by far the highest resale value, and it's not
>just a "trend" -- this has been proven over ten years and
>stainless sales are not going down by any means.

I can think of a few trends that lasted a decade/defined a decade and are now out of date. Avocado or Bisque anyone?

[danagee]

We have black/stainless mix which is fine. But, ds has crashed some big toy trucks and cars into the drawer below the oven and at certain angles, you can see the dents....oops.

Dana
ds 8/04 * dd 1/06

[fattytuna]

We just moved to a new place that has all real stainless appliances. Although personally I think appliance color depends on the rest of your kitchen (countertop, cabinets, floor), stainless does give a very clean look. The only thing is now DD's LeapFrog Fridge Phonics and Fridge Farm are just Phonics and Farm - I have to find something else to stick them to.

[marinkitty]

I have had all three at one point or another and I have actually been really happy with our stainless stuff that came with our current house (it is all just GE middle of the road stuff plus the Bosch dishwasher we bought when the old one died). I don't find the fingerprints to be a big issue - wipe the stuff down with a paper towel with a bit of lemon oil and it resists fingerprints fairly well.

All that said, we have been looking at houses in the Chicago suburbs and I have been shocked how much the white kitchen seems to be making a comeback. Lots of the 1-2 year old remodels or new construction we have seen have had white cabinets and either white or stainless appliances - such a different look from the ubiquitous dark granite/wood cabinet/stainless appliance look that has been so prevalent around here for the last 10 years or so.

Holly
Mom to Mia (3.03), Jack (3.05) and another arrival expected this fall!

[C99]

I agree. It is the "standard kitchen" these days.

We have white appliances and are slowly replacing all of them...w/ more white appliances.