LPG bottled v electricity for ovens/hobs

pineapple

Can anyone tell me if cooking on bottled LPG is cheaper than electric?
The nearest gas is too expensive to connect to plus I am trying to avoid the upfront costs of alternatives. For the moment bottled LPG or electric are the only options.

matelodave

Look at the price of bottled gas per kwh and the price of electricity per kwh to compare the prices. I'd doubt there's a great deal of difference in the amount of energy required (in kwh) to boil a saucepan of carrots on a hob or to roast a turkey in an oven. 1kg of propane is around 7.1kwh so a 47kg cylinder contains around 330kwh.
Flogas want around £65 for 47kg. The same amount of leccy at 12p kwh would be around £40. Smaller cylinders cost more per kg. So it's pretty obvious that leccy is cheaper by quite a lot.


Electricity is cleaner than gas and induction hobs are very efficient. Leccy also has the advantage of being instantly available, whereas you'll have to monitor & order LPG cylinders to avoid running out.

lovesgshp

We use LPG on the hobs in the house, but the oven is electric (1 metre wide, with 6 gas burners ).
There are 2x47kg bottles, of which only one is turned on at a time. 1 bottle lasts between 6-9 months.

pineapple

Cheers folks
I can see the downsides of possibly running out of LPG. Though I have to counter that with the possibility of power cuts - which we do sometimes get in my corner of Cumbria - even without the recent storm.

A._Badger

pineapple wrote: »

Cheers folks
I can see the downsides of possibly running out of LPG. Though I have to counter that with the possibility of power cuts - which we do sometimes get in my corner of Cumbria - even without the recent storm.

It's not a problem at all. You simply have an automatic changeover device installed, which switches from the empty canister to the full one automatically. You then have however long it takes to empty the full one (six months it takes me) to order a fresh cannister..

Electricity can be unreliable in country districts and is likely to become more so, thanks to a succession of idiotic 'green' government energy policies.

The downsides (and they are significant) are a very restricted number of LPG gas cookers on the market and the high cost of gas canisters - the prices of which seem mysteriously impervious to wholesale or international gas price fluctuations.

taxsaver

We've a range cooker that has two electric ovens and an electric grill, with only a 5 burner hob that runs on LPG. We've had it for at least 15 years and have (fingers crossed) so far been extremely happy with it. The gas hob is supplied by two 47kg cylinders (outside) which have an automatic switch-over valve between them, to ensure you don't run out of gas mid-meal preparation. In all the time we've had it we've only used a maximum of 4 cylinders in total, even though originally we were cooking for a family of 5; now it's only my wife and me. Bottom line then, we've found it extremely economical and excellent in that gas on a hob is so much more responsive than anything else, plus it does give us great options when we have power cuts - three of those this week!!

A._Badger

That 'three power cuts in a week' is what worries me. I'm currently looking to replace my (atrocious) Cannon LPG cooker but finding a decent stove (ideally a range type) that runs on LPG alone is seemingly impossible, unless you opt for the commercial type designed for pubs and restaurants.

Owain_Moneysaver

AO allow filtering on LPG for gas range cookers. although the selection is rather limited.
http://ao.com/l/gas_range_cookers-lpg/1-10/13-14/?sort=aol_saleincvat

Quite a lot of standard gas cookers that can be LPG converted, although AO don't offer it as a filter option they do seem to list in the individual product specs.

A._Badger

Thanks for that search. Sadly, this has been a two year epic so far and I'd already found those Rangemasters, the downsides of which are serious. They have electric fan ovens and need the mains working to operate even the LPG side, apparently.

Most LPG cookers tend to cluster at the bottom end of the market, I'm told, and after a bad experience with a supposedly 'quality' Cannon, I'm determined to buy something that works properly this time.

Of the apparently 'quality' products, all of them seem either to include an electric oven or require mains power to operate at all - which defeats the object.

The one LPG cooker I've found that almost fits the bill is a Belling yet even the people selling them have curled their lips and shrugged when I've asked if they are good. Not the most encouraging response!

The search goes on.

pineapple

Perhaps we can search together badger as I am in the same boat.

A._Badger

pineapple wrote: »

Perhaps we can search together badger as I am in the same boat.

I'm happy to share anything I can find, pineapple. So far, though, beyond a few pretty average looking ordinary cookers from cheaper makes I don't really trust, Belling is the only one that I've found that offers a range-style cooker that doesn't rely on mains electricity for at least one of its functions.

http://www.rangecookers.co.uk/belling-country-classic-100gt-lpg-product,3469.aspx

The problem is that I don't know whether it's a well made, reliable product. I've been bitten once (with my Cannon) and it's left me very cautious.

The obvious alternatives are the sort of commercial stoves they use in country pubs and restaurants, where they can't rely on electricity. These are pretty unpleasant to look at though and come without grills (commercial restaurants use separate grills, I suppose).

Please let me know if you find anything that is LPG only.