Induction hob not simmering correctly

Mazbridewel

My neff induction doesn’t seem to simmer correctly. After boiling if I turn to a slow simmer say number 2 it seems to cool down more than it should and then if l leave it on number 2 after a short while the temp eventually rises to correctly simmer as it should on number 2. I the same happens on a medium simmer too. So I’ve resorted to after boiling turning the temp down gradually to a 7 for a few mins then 5 for a few mins then a 3 then a 2 which helps. But it’s rather annoying. My hob specified it needed hard wiring but electrician used a plug so it’s plugged in. So because it’s not hard wired could this effect the simmering problem. And does anybody else experience this.

frogglet

We have moved into a house with a Beko induction  hob and at the lower numbers it seems to switch on and off to keep the pan simmering. 

neilmcl

Mazbridewel said:

My neff induction doesn’t seem to simmer correctly. After boiling if I turn to a slow simmer say number 2 it seems to cool down more than it should and then if l leave it on number 2 after a short while the temp eventually rises to correctly simmer as it should on number 2. I the same happens on a medium simmer too. So I’ve resorted to after boiling turning the temp down gradually to a 7 for a few mins then 5 for a few mins then a 3 then a 2 which helps. But it’s rather annoying. My hob specified it needed hard wiring but electrician used a plug so it’s plugged in. So because it’s not hard wired could this effect the simmering problem. And does anybody else experience this.

What's the model and do you have other pots on the hob at the same time? A setting of 2 would be a very low heat on any induction hob.

neilmcl

frogglet said:

We have moved into a house with a Beko induction  hob and at the lower numbers it seems to switch on and off to keep the pan simmering. 

This is the way some inductions hob work by cycling the power at low settings.

michaels

Mazbridewel said:

My neff induction doesn’t seem to simmer correctly. After boiling if I turn to a slow simmer say number 2 it seems to cool down more than it should and then if l leave it on number 2 after a short while the temp eventually rises to correctly simmer as it should on number 2. I the same happens on a medium simmer too. So I’ve resorted to after boiling turning the temp down gradually to a 7 for a few mins then 5 for a few mins then a 3 then a 2 which helps. But it’s rather annoying. My hob specified it needed hard wiring but electrician used a plug so it’s plugged in. So because it’s not hard wired could this effect the simmering problem. And does anybody else experience this.

We have this - I am not sure if somehow the water at the bottom is boiling but the rest of the liquid has not yet reached 100 degrees so if you turn it down to simmer as soon as it boils then as the liquid mixes it is actually not hot enough to maintain the low boil.  With a regualr hob t takes much longer for the heat to be reduced so the effect may not appear?

We also get the cycle on off simmer others have described rather than a steady lower temp simmer, the overall energy supplied is reduced by not being on half the time rather than by being on all the time at a lower output - is this common to all induction hobs or only cheap ones?

michaels

Also I think if you put all the burners on on our hob it could draw over 40A and is on a major piece of cable, certainly not a regular plug socket level of draw!!

FreeBear

Mazbridewel said: My hob specified it needed hard wiring but electrician used a plug so it’s plugged in. So because it’s not hard wired could this effect the simmering problem.

A two ring hob could be wired to a plug, but only if it is low powered. A four ring hob is likely to draw 6.4KW or more (27A) at full power. A 13A fuse should blow pretty quick - If this "electrician" has bypassed the fuse, then there is every chance the plug could overheat and cause a fire.

If the manufacturer has mandated "hard wired", then this needs to be fixed urgently.

My induction hob (a cheap one from B&Q) will simmer quite nicely at low settings - It does pulse, so any liquids need to be watched to make sure they don't boil over, but it is something I have grown accustomed to.

fenwick458

connecting it using a plug won't cause the issue you are having, but If it says it should be hard wire, then it should be hard wired.
Hobs don't draw their full rated current all of the time. as they heat up, they use less power. 
13A fuses don't blow very quickly even at twice the rated current by the way, so it'll work but i'd imagine the plug/socket will burn out within a year or so.
there are quite a lot of 4 ring full power induction hobs available now that come on a plug, they have a controller that limits the power used at any one time, which works for domestic situations fine and the average person wouldn't even notice the difference.

FreeBear

fenwick458 said: 13A fuses don't blow very quickly even at twice the rated current by the way, so it'll work but i'd imagine the plug/socket will burn out within a year or so.

... and there's me trying to put the fear of god in to the OP and get an unsafe installation rectified.

Yes, a standard 13A fuse will take 15-20 seconds to blow at 26A, but this is still plenty of time to overheat a plug & socket, especially a cheap make. Further info on fuse blow times - https://www.pat-testing-training.net/articles/fuse-operation-characteristics.php

Mazbridewel

neilmcl said:

Mazbridewel said:

My neff induction doesn’t seem to simmer correctly. After boiling if I turn to a slow simmer say number 2 it seems to cool down more than it should and then if l leave it on number 2 after a short while the temp eventually rises to correctly simmer as it should on number 2. I the same happens on a medium simmer too. So I’ve resorted to after boiling turning the temp down gradually to a 7 for a few mins then 5 for a few mins then a 3 then a 2 which helps. But it’s rather annoying. My hob specified it needed hard wiring but electrician used a plug so it’s plugged in. So because it’s not hard wired could this effect the simmering problem. And does anybody else experience this.

What's the model and do you have other pots on the hob at the same time? A setting of 2 would be a very low heat on any induction hob.

It happens with 1 pan and even with 2, 3 or pans on at the same time. It’s as if it cools after boiling to lower than the temp it should simmer at on no. 2 but if I leave on 2 after about 5mins the temp rises a bit so it’s correctly simmering on 2? The model is a neff T40B31X2GBKIT 

neilmcl

Mazbridewel said:

neilmcl said:

Mazbridewel said:

My neff induction doesn’t seem to simmer correctly. After boiling if I turn to a slow simmer say number 2 it seems to cool down more than it should and then if l leave it on number 2 after a short while the temp eventually rises to correctly simmer as it should on number 2. I the same happens on a medium simmer too. So I’ve resorted to after boiling turning the temp down gradually to a 7 for a few mins then 5 for a few mins then a 3 then a 2 which helps. But it’s rather annoying. My hob specified it needed hard wiring but electrician used a plug so it’s plugged in. So because it’s not hard wired could this effect the simmering problem. And does anybody else experience this.

What's the model and do you have other pots on the hob at the same time? A setting of 2 would be a very low heat on any induction hob.

It happens with 1 pan and even with 2, 3 or pans on at the same time. It’s as if it cools after boiling to lower than the temp it should simmer at on no. 2 but if I leave on 2 after about 5mins the temp rises a bit so it’s correctly simmering on 2? The model is a neff T40B31X2GBKIT 

OK, so it is a low powered induction hob (under 3kW) that can safely be used with a 13A plug, in fact Neff themselves says it comes supplied with one here so I wouldn't be too concerned about it in that respect.

Power level 2, as I said, is a very low setting on any induction hob, suitable only for keeping things warm, rather than a low simmer so it sounds like it's working OK to me. I can't see anything wrong with what you're describing tbh, induction hobs don't produce heat so I can't see how your food will suddenly drop in temp as you say then rise up again. All that's happening is your pan is coming off the boil then staring a very low simmer which takes a few minutes to become noticeable.