What is Black Steel? Should I buy Black Stainless Steel appliances?

Black steel has become a leading colour amongst our appliances. This bold and daring finish has risen amongst the ranks, becoming one of the most popular choices for a contemporary kitchen. Especially when it comes to fridge freezers. But is this new-fangled colour worth investing in? Will it look good in my kitchen? All of your burning questions will be answered below!

What exactly is black steel?

So what’re the benefits of black steel?

We’ll start with the obvious benefit: the appearance. Noughties kitchen trends really did favour wooden cabinets. Oak, pine and lots of other dark wood options were rife in kitchens everywhere.

And then our design choices changed. Contemporary kitchens favour grey and white cabinets, for a more overall streamlined and fresh look. And what better way to break up the cabinets than with dramatic black appliances? This is where black steel comes in.

Matching black steel appliances across your kitchen will give you a punch of colour, but not step out of the monochrome design that you desire. And as we all know when it comes to colour design, black goes with absolutely anything. So if you ever want to change up your kitchen cabinets, these dark appliances will match perfectly no matter what colour you choose. Even if it’s bright yellow!

Stainless steel is known for being a pain to clean. Fingerprints pop up easily, and then when you try to wipe them down, there are solid streak lines left behind. Black steel hides this. You’ll definitely spend less time seeing the fingerprints, so you’ll spend less time wiping them too! Especially if you decide to go for a “Fingerprint resistant” one like this Samsung French Style Fridge Freezer.

Are there any problems with it?

One of the main complaints about black steel is it’s scratch resistant quality. Samsung claim their black steel appliances can resist the scratch of a pencil. However, we all know pencils aren’t the most common utensil in the kitchen. We’re constantly busy in the kitchen, and things like baking trays, washing baskets and kids toys can easily ding and scratch appliances without even noticing. Unfortunately with black steel, a scratch will show rather prominently due to the stainless steel beneath.

It is possible to find touch up pens, however, they’re not as common as you’d think! If this doesn’t seem like a good way to go, you can try following the instructions of The Appliance Doctor.

Another thing we find wrong is the differing styles between manufacturers. Although similar, the grain of the black steel appliances can often differ greatly. For example, the Hotpoint black steel has a greener tone to it, whereas the Samsung black steel has a horizontal grain. We find that LG, Samsung and Liebherr are incredibly similar, so much so that you can barely see the difference.

When it comes to buying appliances across different brands, it’s always worth doing extra research. Give yourself some time to go to your local appliance showroom, and try to see if the models you like are similar–or not. Obviously if you’re buying one appliance, this shouldn’t be an issue! But if you’re going for many appliances, you should take a look into our Multibuy savings tool. We’ll give you a discounted price for your own bespoke package, making it much cheaper than a lot of other retailers.

How does black steel look against other colours?

The biggest pro of black steel is the gorgeous colour of it. So how will it look with your colour design? We think grey, white and black are the best base colours for going with black steel; this keeps it incredibly monotone. So if you’re in love with the monochrome aesthetic, fantastic! But don’t think you can’t go for a bright and beautiful colour either, as we said earlier, black goes with anything. Just look at the bold blue kitchen design below!

Where can I see black steel before I buy?

Here at Appliance City, we have a fantastic selection of appliances on display for you to look at. We’ve got a massive selection of range cookers, washing machines and fridge freezers ready for you to measure and inspect. Quite a few of these models include Black Steel, including this gorgeous Instaview model!

If you’re local to the East Midlands, you can find how to get to us here. But if you are planning on coming down, make sure to give us a call to double check exactly what models or styles we’ve got on display. This way, it’s not a wasted trip for you.

Conclusion…

Black steel has been on the market for about two years now, and it’s firmly planted itself as a staple in the appliance industry. It’s a great way to make a statement in the kitchen, no matter what style you like. And it’s never a bad time to jump on the black appliances trend!