Time to get rid of a gas hob?

MalMonroe

When we moved to our council ground floor flat out in the countryside there was no gas connected. Then the flat was upgraded/refurbished and gas was connected, thank goodness, so we could have gas central heating. BUT there was a stipulation that we couldn't have a gas oven as it was dangerous to have gas ovens in flats - for obvious reasons. Even though our flat is only one in a block of two.

Now it appears that we can have a gas oven if we wish - and several of my neighbours do have them. However, the council in its wisdom when refurbishing the kitchen left a 60cm space for a cooker. Most gas cookers, even 59cm wide ones have a stipulation that they need space all around them for safety reasons. There isn't space all around our cooker.

So we're stuck with an expensive electric cooker which really annoys me as it isn't our choice. If we have a power cut, and we've had one or two, we can't even boil a kettle.  

What I'm trying to say is no, please don't dump your gas!  Electric stinks AND it's much more expensive. The cheapest times to use electricity don't even start until most of us are in bed anyway. You can't control electric hobs as you can gas. And if there's a power cut you can at least still boil up a panful of water if you have a gas hob. I'd love to be able to have the choice of gas or electric but for health and safety reasons it isn't possible where we live. 

If you have the choice, choose gas. (Or did I already make that crystal clear?)(Sorry.)  Gas is good. Electricity - not so much.   

markin

A slow cooker or pressure cooker pot would make good use of the solar at least in the summer.

[Deleted User]

FreeBear said:

brewerdave said:

Astria said:

No need for a new cable if the hob is 3kW or less. I tried to include more information but it got regarded as spam/suspicious.

Fair enuf; when I was looking at them a couple of years ago to replace gas I thought they required a 20A supply . 3kW is just about OK for 13A ring main.

Check the reviews of the model you intend to buy if it has a 13A plug on the end - You won't be able to use the zones on a four ring hob at full power all at the same time. You may even struggle to simmer on three and boil on the fourth (depending on model).

Good point and I think my induction (13 Amp plug) goes into 'power cut' mode to some of the induction areas if the total on the areas is above 12(?) so using our induction is really only good for maybe 2 pans at most (8+4, 10+2, etc) or 3 on a gentle simmer whereas with gas there is probably no problem.  Only 2 of us to cook for so only rarely use >2 areas.

ShipstonFoxile

markin said:

A slow cooker or pressure cooker pot would make good use of the solar at least in the summer.

Already do that to some extent.

Coffeekup

I was looking at this very question the last few months as my old gas hob is still working but tired, but more importantly I need a new kitchen so will be replacing everything.

Induction hobs over ring and ceramic hobs convert heat better with virtually no heat loss as the surface of where the pan sits only heats up (or something along the lines of). Gas as far as I understand is the worst converter with lots of heat loss, also causing moisture in the air even before anything has boiled.

With electricity going very more "greener" (for the environment) seems the way to go however cost of running these things comes into it.

Here is a link I found.. "Is an Induction Hob Expensive to Run? (Average UK Running Costs in 2021) - Chef's Pick" https://chefspick.co.uk/is-an-induction-hob-expensive-to-run/#:~:text=Induction Hob Running Costs&text=The average cost of electricity,hob ring is 1.95 kW.

Edit: To add to the link what wasn't mentioned but other poster's here have said you'll need specialist pans, and if you buy some of the higher end one's with more heat settings or ones that kick out more heat you'll need a larger power cable to connect the hob too

Mstty

At present 1kwh elec = 4kwh gas

Come October 1kwh elec = approx 3.5 kWh gas

It may not seem a lot but these differences do now make a lot of previously expensive electric solutions comparable or even better than gas

E.g. induction Hobs, Air Source Heat Pumps and heat pump air con systems and heaters.

If Electricity is further distanced from gas pricing as is being mooted that ratio could drop further leaving gas the most expensive way to heat the home/heat the water/cook food.

Interesting times when people come to the board asking what central heating shall I put in/oven/hobs etc as come October I suspect the tipping point has been reached.

Cardew

MalMonroe said:

. You can't control electric hobs as you can gas.

Simply not correct! An induction hob is more controlable than gas. The heat goes directly into the food being cooked and I suspect there is little difference in the running costs.

There have been many threads and hundreds of posts on gas v Induction hob comparison and I cannot recall a single post from anyone who has used both types who would opt for gas - induction hobs are in a different league!

QrizB

Cardew said:

There have been many threads and hundreds of posts on gas v Induction hob comparison and I cannot recall a single post from anyone who has used both types who would opt for gas - induction hobs are in a different league!

I agree; while I have a gas hob and have never had an induction one, my recollection from the threads is that no-one with experience of both would choose gas for daily use.

(Pacemaker users might want to avoid induction hobs, though.)

FreeBear

Cardew said:

MalMonroe said:

. You can't control electric hobs as you can gas.

Simply not correct! An induction hob is more controlable than gas. The heat goes directly into the food being cooked and I suspect there is little difference in the running costs.

Induction hobs heat the base of the pan, not the food directly (you are thinking of a microwave for that).

The one downside to induction hobs that hasn't been mentioned yet - If you have a pacemaker, you need to keep your distance from them as the hob (when in use) could affect the pacemaker.

jbuchanangb

We switched from gas to induction about 3 years ago and it has been wonderful. We had to use an induction which would operate off a 13A socket, because the kitchen fitter who had installed the gas hob had run a 13amp socket off the 20A cooker point, so as to operate the ignition of the gas! We would have had to rip out the kitchen to get back to the proper cooker supply. On the rare occasions that it has been necessary to run all 4 rings at once, the induction hob has not batted an eyelid.