Glass top electric range?

[BE Mike]

We've had the glass-topped stove for a couple of years now. It is a black topped one. I love it. Compared to our old electric range it is far less trouble to keep clean and no burner rings to replace. If you are coming from a standard electric range to a glass topped range, you will love it. We aren't real careful about the types of pots and skillets we use and so far so good. Some people would complain if they were hung with a new rope.

 

[oldfella]

One more vote for gas - can't go wrong.

Pete

 

[AKA-plinkster]

My wife REFUSES to even look at the glass top ranges because you can't use Cast Iron cookware on them (the pans get and stay too hot and crack the glass surface) They look nice, but for someone like my wife who can really cook, gas is the way to go, followed by traditional electric burner

 

[enfield]

Pluses:

*Easy to clean up (mine has a black top)
*Heats just fine
*Can use cast iron skillets
*Top can double as a work surface (as long as it's not hot).

Minuses:

*Heat retention - stays hot a long time after turned off and you have to move pots off of the burners to stop cooking.
*Can't use some pots as the bottoms are warped concave or convex and don't contact the surface well.
*Can't make popcorn on it.
*Doesn't work during a power failure.

 

[mkk41]

Can't put a lead pot on an electric burner either. Use the other burners to keep moulds warm.

 

[ladder13]

One more vote for gas - can't go wrong.

Pete

Wasn't too many years ago when a crew of firefighters were blown to bits, perhaps KC or somewhere in OK. Check that it was a dynamite explosion, I don't want to be like MSNBC , but here's a few propane fires:


STATter 911: UPDATED: Buffalo firefighters killed this morning are Lt. Charles "Chip" McCarthy & FF Jonathan Croom. Fireground audio of mayday.

Firefighter Killed in Toronto Propane Explosion was Radio Amateur

Two Firefighters Killed In Store Collapse - KTLA

Part of the job some would argue, and the propane itself did not start the fires, but propane tanks make nasty projectiles.

 

[rondo]

I have a blacktop and hate it. Not because it's hard to clean (it isn't) or because you can't use cast iron (you can), but because it's electric. Sure do miss natural gas, but have no choice - no gas here and don't want a propane tank.

The electricity here in the middle of nowhere has problems with spikes and outages, and I have had to replace the "brain" in the thing twice in only four years. Not a cheap, btw.

If you have a woodstove, I have found the glass cleaner for woodstoves to work better than the glass stovetop cleaner. Even better is woodstove ash. Just wet a paper town and dip it in the ashes (not hot ashes) and scrub the stovetop, then wipe clean.

 

[ladder13]

Sure do miss natural gas, but have no choice - no gas here and don't want a propane tank.

I miss NG too, but don't want a 100lb keg of dynamite sitting near my house. I do have a regular grill with a 20lb bottle though, but it's kept a distance from the house with no chance of fumes finding an ignition source.

 

[Farmer17]

I build houses and always use gas for heat, hw, and cooktop if its available. I have a built some houses and used large underground propane tanks because NG wasn't available and that worked o.k., but not quite as well. For me personally I would go all electric if I didn't have gas available, since most people(even master chefs) can get used to electric tops after a short time of use. When you meet a plumber ask him to tell you some stories about the negatives of natural gas, and if he doesn't have any scars to show you he can probably tell you about some people that do.

 

[sonny]

My wife loves it; I like it. She cleans it with a razor-blade and some Sears scouring stuff. Sometimes there is a small faded ring around a burner; just depends on how hard you rub to clean it. No holes that anything will drop through. I think it's great. The glass burner area stays hot for quite a while after turning off the heat, but there is a red warning light... but yeah, watch out for little ones' hands.
Cooks just fine. No scratches, as glass is a heck of a lot harder than any steel or aluminum pot. My wife just agreed.
sonny

 

[Hofstet]

We replaced our gas cook top with a Thermador glass electric cook top about five years ago. Couldn't be happier. My wife doesn't miss the crackling and popping of the electric gas igniters.
We use aluminum, stainless steel and cast iron cookware on ours. It doesn't scratch and looks as new.

 

[Lenshappy]

..Sterno works just fine, plus, you can fling it onto the floor when lighted and stomp on it.....

 

[oldRoger]

"Viking" or "Wolf" is the way to go. After several electrics including glass we are now gas (Viking propane/convection oven) If no natural gas, then propane.
You will save much money with a gas water heater and clothes drier....... If cap and tax passes save even more.

 

[Amici]

You will save much money with a gas water heater and clothes drier....... If cap and tax passes save even more.

Amen. I really resent the local builders shoving oil heat down our throats, with the attendant electric water heater, dryer and stove, because they're too cheap to run a gas line to the street.

The ONLY benefit I get from oil heat is having something useful to do with the old oil from the vehicles.

 

[Bassamatic]

We had a gas stove for about six months and we ripped it out. What a pain in the ass.

Fortunatelywe have a full basement so wiring in for an electric was easy. We put in a black glass top and have had it for five years now and love it. Yes, you must wipe up spills and do your best to not let it "cook on". Sandy picks up a special cleaner at Lowes and it works very well and is cheap. We may use it about twice a month.

I use my Lodge iron skillet on it all the time and with a little common sense, it is glass by the way, you will have no problems.

Oh, for those with a glass cook top, try windex...it works wonders.

 

[Walter Rego]

I would have preferred gas but it would have cost a fortune to run a gas line to the location in my kitchen. I did a remodel last year and chose a ceramic glass top stove and it works just fine. I read the directions and have no issues with clean up or the type of pots or pans to use. They have their idiosyncracies which have been mentioned but if the only choice is electric, I would never use a conventional electric top range again. They look like something out of the 1950's and are a pain to keep clean.

 

[mtgianni]

I miss NG too, but don't want a 100lb keg of dynamite sitting near my house. I do have a regular grill with a 20lb bottle though, but it's kept a distance from the house with no chance of fumes finding an ignition source.

Just curious where you park you vehicles at night. 35 gallon of gas in a pickup and 20 in a car @ 165,000 btu per gallon will flat level your house.

 

[ladder13]

Just curious where you park you vehicles at night. 35 gallon of gas in a pickup and 20 in a car @ 165,000 btu per gallon will flat level your house.

In my garage. In 30 years of firefighting I never saw a house leveled by an "exploding" car.

 

[m1gunner]

BLEVE is normally associated with propane, not gasoline.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

gas-nuff said. Plus it's far more greener than electricity. I mean what do you think they burn to make the electricity??????
My wife was electricial when we married but I beat that out of her real quick Now she won't touch an electric cooktop.