Pros and Cons of Stainless Steel Appliances

All About Stainless Steel Appliances

Since it is officially 2021, many kitchen appliance companies are becoming innovative and changing how they manufacture appliances. However, our team at Appliance Educator wants to go back to the basics, and show why stainless steel appliances will always be trendy, no matter how innovative the industry is becoming. 

Pros:

The number one pro to stainless steel appliances is that they are timeless, and can complement any kitchen. Regardless of any personalized touches, you may have in your kitchen, stainless steel is one of the easiest materials to work with.  In our opinion, there will never be a point when stainless steel goes out of style. Stainless steel is also very durable and easy to clean. Most of the time, a towel soaked in soapy warm water will do the trick. Lastly, they have a very long life expectancy, so you won’t need to purchase a new product in the near future. Lastly, filling your home with stainless steel appliances could even help to raise the value if you decide to sell in the future.

Cons:

One of the strongest cons of stainless steel appliances is that they smudge easily. While easy to clean, you may need to do this often depending on how often you use your appliances.  Another con is that they usually are not cheap to purchase. While widely available, they can cost a bit more than other options. A very minor disadvantage is that some stainless steel is not magnetic, meaning you might not be able to hang up beautiful works of art done by little ones in your life or pictures of the family. 

Different Types of Stainless Steel:

One of the most common questions we get is the difference between all of the types of stainless steel that are on the market. The three most common types of stainless steel are Austenitic, Ferritic, and Martensitic. There aren’t many differences, and some are more common than others, but it is good to know which type is being used in the appliances that you are purchasing. Austenitic stainless steel is the most frequently used stainless steel. This type has high chromium content compared to other steel alloys, giving them a higher resistance to corrosion. It is also one that is not magnetic. Ferritic stainless steel is the second most commonly used and is magnetic. Martensitic stainless steel is the least common. Its corrosion resistance is a bit lower, but it has high hardness. This type of stainless steel is best used for situations where high resistance is needed.

ZLINE DuraSnow® Stainless Steel

This product is unlike any other on the market. One of our partners, ZLINE Kitchen and Bath created this new type of stainless steel that solves the problem of stainless steel smudging easily. This new type of stainless steel has a non-directional finish, and is fingerprint-resistant. It’s also a bit more gray than regular stainless steel, so make sure to keep this in mind when purchasing. ZLINE has also created a fantastic video, to talk more about the differences between regular stainless steel and DuraSnow®, found here

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