New cooker or repair?

[nicknack]

I'd just got the pizzas (homemade dough, sauce,etc,) ready to go in the oven when the oven circuit trips out. Reset trip and see what happens. Nothing. Oven stays cold. so I guess the event that tripped the circuit was the oven element blowing.

After finishing our grilled/microwaved pizzas (not recommended) we thought, "What now?".

We can attempt to replace the oven element (<£50) on the >9 year old (it was here when we moved in) Kenwood range type cooker (gas hob, fan oven) or replace it for many pounds.

If we go for replacement do we stick with the gas hob or go for an electric super whizzo modern one?

Anyone got any useful advice/comments?

[Canardly]

You don't get much for £50 these days. I would be tempted to repair if the rest is in good nick. ( 9 years is not that long for a cooker). The cost of white goods has rocketed since Brexit and range cookers are not cheap.

[Hot Flatus]

On my 3rd oven in 25 years. First one was gas and it was a bit crap with uneven cooking.

Then went for a high-spec Hotpoint with all the bells and whistles. It was very idiosyncratic and after about 7 years quite a few of the settings didn't work. It would trip the circuit on almost every use.  I got really sick of it and bought a fairly basic Bosch model for about £270.  As it was a plug one I installed it myself.

So far (3 months) it has been rock solid and hasn't tripped circuit once.

[Bledlow]

Our last cooker lasted 27 or 28 years before half the grill (it could be switched on half at a time) started flipping breakers. Replacement elements were difficult to find, & our tame electrician suggested that given its age, other bits might start failing & we should bite the bullet. So we decided to buy one.

Before it arrived the other half of the grill was tripping the circuit breaker.   

[Kim]

I'd quite like to replace our gas/electric cooker with an induction one, largely on this basis:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/sep/16/your-gas-stove-is-leaking-air-pollution-inside-your-own-home-go-electric

Prior experience of inferior electric hob technology suggests that the ease-of-cleaning advantage is substantial, and experiments with a single induction hotplate suggests that the induction cooking experience is as good as gas for everything we care about (it's actually superior for stir-fry).


On the other hand, £50 is a lot less than a new cooker.  And a gas hob might be useful if there are going to be power cuts...

[nicknack]

Thanks for your thoughts.

Another factor complicating the decision is that I don't really like the broken cooker. The oven is too big and the grill (in the oven) extends the whole width of the thing, so it's complete overkill for a piece of cheese on toast, for instance.

I get the point about keeping gas in the event of power cuts, but I think I fancy trying an induction hob.

I've got used to a range sized cooker but probably now is the time to downsize and fill the liberated space with a bit of storage.

Also contemplating replacing our 30+ year old microwave with a combination one. Reluctance to part with something that still works may prevent that.

[fimm]

Note that your existing pots & pans may not work with an induction hob. I have some very nice pots that fall into this category.

[lissotriton]

The hob and oven don't need to be part of the same cooker. Separate appliances could give you more options. And could put them in different sides of the kitchen if you want.

[jiberjaber]

I've been regularly replacing the element in our oven every 3 years or so. the oven is now over 15 years old, seals and knackered and door needs the bike stand leaning on it to get a good seal and stay shut... I replaced the last element I had in stock a few months ago. 

It's a built in 3 pin plug oven, but most new ovens (of the type I would like) now require a dedicated spur, so more than just buy and replace.

Quick google shows elements for Kenwood ovens from £10 to £30, unless you are really wanting a new oven and just need the slightest of cases to justify the replacement, then I'd just replace the element...

You could always fix the oven and sell it to offset the new one...

[Wowbagger]

How many do you cook for?

Almost all our cooking for which we previously used the oven is now done in the air fryer. Today: sossidges in one draw, taters & carrots roasted in the other. I did fry some onions on the hob and also boiled a few peas. We only cook for two, but the drawers are easily big enough to cook for 6, I would say.

We bought one of these: https://www.argos.co.uk/product/8023333?clickSR=slp:term:ninja%20air%20fryer:1:55:1

Had it just over 6 months. Have hardly used the oven since: Jan has made a couple of apple crumbles in it, but I'm pretty sure you could make them in the air fryer.

[Kim]

Note that your existing pots & pans may not work with an induction hob. I have some very nice pots that fall into this category.

I've been mindful of this when buying pots and pans ever since I learned that induction was a thing, in the interests of future-proofing.  The notable exception being the cheap aluminimum frying pans preferred by barakta for weight reasons, but those are effectively disposable.  A student-style mishmash of pans helps in this respect, as you're less attached to any one item.  I can see it would be pretty galling if you had an otherwise-decent matching set.

I was pleased to discover that our long-serving wok works just fine on induction.  I was expecting the bottom to be insufficiently flat.

[citoyen]

I get the point about keeping gas in the event of power cuts, but I think I fancy trying an induction hob.

There are two kinds of people: those who love induction hobs and those who haven't tried them yet.

OK, so maybe a rash over-generalisation there, but we've had an induction hob for 15(?) years and you couldn't persuade me to go back to gas.

The camping stove does the job for us when we have power cuts. You just have to recalibrate your dinner expectations slightly (much like you do when you're camping, in fact). We once had a power cut that lasted a whole weekend and lived to tell the tale. Such is the amazing resilience of human beings.

Also contemplating replacing our 30+ year old microwave with a combination one.

I also love our combi. It's surprisingly versatile. One of the best things about it is a proper crisp-skinned baked potato can be done in 20 minutes instead of an hour. (Yes, you can cook a potato in a microwave in 10 minutes, but what's the point of a baked potato without the crisp skin?)

[Woofage]

There are two kinds of people: those who love induction hobs and those who haven't tried them yet.

I agree.

One thing I have noticed about our new (well, 3 years old now) electric ovens is how well insulated they are so I assume they're much much more efficient than our old gas cooker. I can turn off the power and they stay hot for ages. This can only be a Good Thing.

We did a minor kitchen re-fit at the same time and installed the ovens at worktop height. None of us is getting any younger!

[nicknack]

We going to go and peer at a few things in Currys tomorrow. Standard sized cooker with induction hob is looking favourite at the mo.

[Mrs Pingu]

I love my high level oven but I wish they came with doors that open to the left of right. When I'm humphing a GBFO cast iron dutch oven in and out for baking bread it's a strain having to lean in over the open door.

[Woofage]

I love my high level oven but I wish they came with doors that open to the left of right. When I'm humphing a GBFO cast iron dutch oven in and out for baking bread it's a strain having to lean in over the open door.

Some ovens have a slide-out tray accessory thingy-joggle. It might be worth you looking to see if you can get one for yours.

Our old gas cooker had removable a tray that hung from the door. An excellent feature .

[Cudzoziemiec]

We've had an induction hob for about 15 weeks not 15 years – actually it's probably only 10 weeks but it feels like 15 centuries because builders – and didn't even know it would be here, but it's great. So much quicker, cleaner and just works. Except on one previously favourite big pot which is the wrong sort of stainless. Small price to pay.

what's the point of a baked potato without the crisp skin?)

Word.

[fimm]

There are two kinds of people: those who love induction hobs and those who haven't tried them yet.

OK, so maybe a rash over-generalisation there, but we've had an induction hob for 15(?) years and you couldn't persuade me to go back to gas.

I did not like the induction hob in the old place, and am very happy to have gas now we have moved. This was partly the pan-compatibility problem (I resented not being able to use the nice set of pans I got for a birthday sometime before the year 2000) but I do just prefer gas.

[Cudzoziemiec]

A third kind of person might be those who have a pacemaker, or who live with someone who has one.

[citoyen]

One of the attractions of induction for me is the speed - if you're cooking pasta, say, it will bring the pan to the boil much quicker than gas or ceramic hobs. I had assumed that induction being so much more energy efficient meant they would be cheaper to run, but it turns out it's not that simple, according to this article:
https://chefspick.co.uk/is-an-induction-hob-expensive-to-run/

Interesting!
 
If you have cast iron pans, eg Le Creuset or Lodge, they work very well indeed on induction.

A third kind of person might be those who have a pacemaker, or who live with someone who has one.

FPWM

[lissotriton]

One of the attractions of induction for me is the speed - if you're cooking pasta, say, it will bring the pan to the boil much quicker than gas or ceramic hobs. I had assumed that induction being so much more energy efficient meant they would be cheaper to run, but it turns out it's not that simple, according to this article:
https://chefspick.co.uk/is-an-induction-hob-expensive-to-run/

That seems to be based on dubious assumptions and a lack of actual data. It is calculating cost based on an "average" hob using 1.95 kW, but then quoting the fastest time to boil a pan of water. My induction hob is more like 7kW on full power. I'm sure some models are even more than that.
But yes, mains gas is cheap (if you have it available). That may outweigh the inefficiency of a gas hob.

[Cudzoziemiec]

Mains gas is cheap and electricity expensive at the moment. We don't really know what the situation will be in the future. I'd vaguely expect both to carry on increasing in price but at what rate, especially relative to each other... ?

[ian]

The element for our oven was £17 and I bunged our handyman £25 to fit it. A bargain since the screws at the back of the oven didn't offer an avenue to an easy replacement, instead they were just big lies that revealed that the entire oven needed to be extracted to access the other two hidden screws that were required to release the bazorked element. Someone was having fun there. Not my handyman, though.

I have to say that we use the Ninja standalone multicooker thing more than the oven these days, which is sort of enjoying a Chinese kitchen afterlife as pot and tray storage.

Induction hobs are generally pacemaker-safe these days though you're not supposed to get too close to them, just in case. The usual inverse square/cube law applies.

[Kim]

That seems to be based on dubious assumptions and a lack of actual data. It is calculating cost based on an "average" hob using 1.95 kW, but then quoting the fastest time to boil a pan of water. My induction hob is more like 7kW on full power. I'm sure some models are even more than that.

That's for the whole hob, shirley, not a single ring?

But yes, mains gas is cheap (if you have it available). That may outweigh the inefficiency of a gas hob.

Indeed.

The other reasonable comparison is the electric kettle that BRITONS habitually boil the water in before adding it to the pan.  It's hard to beat the efficiency (and crucially, speed) of an electric kettle, but induction comes a lot closer to it than other types of hob.

[Kim]

Mains gas is cheap and electricity expensive at the moment. We don't really know what the situation will be in the future. I'd vaguely expect both to carry on increasing in price but at what rate, especially relative to each other... ?

If there's any sense in the world, gas will continue to become more expensive and at some point overtake electricity.  At this point, rumours of sense appear to be somewhat exaggerated.