Gas cooking ranges

[Red Squirrel]

Gas stoves are typically able to output higher BTUs than electric since electric stoves are limited by household electric currents (15 amps). They are also often cheaper to operate, per BTU, depending on your local utility costs.
Electric stoves are better suited for temperature control, e.g., a simmer is very easy to manage on an electric.

Now, there are various types of electric stoves: coils (cheap, but ugly), ceramic\glass surface (easy to clean, takes a while to cool down), and induction (only works cookware that has some moderate amount of iron in it, e.g., steel and some cast iron, and is high end).

I prefer gas to stir fry. I prefer electric for a nice simmer.

Actually most stoves are rated for 40 amps. I have a 40 amp breaker for mine and like 8/3 wire.

The stove top part might only be 15 amps though... not sure.

My next stove will probably be induction. The concept is so wicked. I was reading up on that.

Probably the safest way to go too, I don't think the top even gets hot. The pan itself is what gets hot and actually becomes your heat source.

 

[DrPizza]

Once you go gas, you don't go back. Gas ovens simply cook better. As gas burns it produces humidity in the oven, keeping food from drying out as much as in an electric oven. If I was buying a house and two nearly identical houses were available, one with gas service and one without, I would place at least a thousand dollar premium on the one with gas, considering only the cooking benefits. Note that this applies to a house I intend to stay in for a long time.

Generally, electric ovens cook better & more evenly than gas ovens with much better temperature control. Gas cooktops are preferred over electric cooktops. If you hunt around, you can find dual-fuel appliances with a gas cooktop & electric oven.

Gas stoves are typically able to output higher BTUs than electric since electric stoves are limited by household electric currents (15 amps). They are also often cheaper to operate, per BTU, depending on your local utility costs.
Electric stoves are better suited for temperature control, e.g., a simmer is very easy to manage on an electric.

Now, there are various types of electric stoves: coils (cheap, but ugly), ceramic\glass surface (easy to clean, takes a while to cool down), and induction (only works cookware that has some moderate amount of iron in it, e.g., steel and some cast iron, and is high end).

I prefer gas to stir fry. I prefer electric for a nice simmer.

Fail. Let's just start with the fact that I've never seen or heard of an electric stove that's 15 amp.

It may be a bit easier to install, they are practically maintenance free (I find they are easier to clean) and the safety factor isn't really an issue. You're MUCH more likely to burn down your house because of what you're trying to cook than what you're using to heat up the stove.
Gas is significantly better for cooking. Sure it's a bit harder to install (you don't just plug it in) but once it's in there it's just nicer to use.

A couple people mentioned installation. Seriously? A gas appliance is not difficult at all to install. Just because some people lack the intelligence to test for gas leaks doesn't mean it's difficult at all to install. In fact, many electric stoves don't come with a power cord pre-installed, making their installation a bit more time consuming.

 

[Rubycon]

Generally, electric ovens cook better & more evenly than gas ovens with much better temperature control. Gas cooktops are preferred over electric cooktops. If you hunt around, you can find dual-fuel appliances with a gas cooktop & electric oven.

Fail. Let's just start with the fact that I've never seen or heard of an electric stove that's 15 amp.



A couple people mentioned installation. Seriously? A gas appliance is not difficult at all to install. Just because some people lack the intelligence to test for gas leaks doesn't mean it's difficult at all to install. In fact, many electric stoves don't come with a power cord pre-installed, making their installation a bit more time consuming.

Hot plate type burners would be limited to 15A since they are portable devices.

In some locales it may be required to have a certified gas fitter connect the lines for insurance purposes. I agree it's certainly easy enough to apply pipe dope and seal against pressure of a few inches of water column. When in doubt, flick a Bic!

Electric stoves are usually on dedicated 50A 240V circuits fed with 6/3 NM-B wire. Four burners - two small and two large. The wattage of the elements should be stamped on them near the plug in point. In the oven box there is usually a large element in the bottom for baking and a smaller element up top for broiling. These cannot be run at the same time. The self clean feature is interesting - it turns on the oven at full power with the door locked for several hours reaching temperatures in excess of 900 degrees to burn off remnants of cooking.

Finally a range hood should always vent to the outside. The ones that don't and use an activated carbon filter to help with removing odors are a joke. Especially when the homeowner ignores the fact these need periodic changing and forget out it. Turning the fan on just makes a noise and circulates stale air around. Basically the same as playing Linkin Park on the table radio with the volume at the five o'clock position!

 

[Red Squirrel]

Finally a range hood should always vent to the outside. The ones that don't and use an activated carbon filter to help with removing odors are a joke. Especially when the homeowner ignores the fact these need periodic changing and forget out it. Turning the fan on just makes a noise and circulates stale air around. Basically the same as playing Linkin Park on the table radio with the volume at the five o'clock position!

LOL yeah. I never got the point of unvented range hoods. When I got my new over the range microwave I made sure it was properly vented outside. The air flow does not seem all that impressive though, but guess it's better then nothing. Mine is a pipe that goes to the roof so probably lot of static pressure as opposed to straight out an outside wall.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

Hot plate type burners would be limited to 15A since they are portable devices.

In some locales it may be required to have a certified gas fitter connect the lines for insurance purposes. I agree it's certainly easy enough to apply pipe dope and seal against pressure of a few inches of water column. When in doubt, flick a Bic!

Electric stoves are usually on dedicated 50A 240V circuits fed with 6/3 NM-B wire. Four burners - two small and two large. The wattage of the elements should be stamped on them near the plug in point. In the oven box there is usually a large element in the bottom for baking and a smaller element up top for broiling. These cannot be run at the same time. The self clean feature is interesting - it turns on the oven at full power with the door locked for several hours reaching temperatures in excess of 900 degrees to burn off remnants of cooking.

Finally a range hood should always vent to the outside. The ones that don't and use an activated carbon filter to help with removing odors are a joke. Especially when the homeowner ignores the fact these need periodic changing and forget out it. Turning the fan on just makes a noise and circulates stale air around. Basically the same as playing Linkin Park on the table radio with the volume at the five o'clock position!

Yah but he specifically said stove... Just sayin.. and short of a toaster oven or trailer/mobile home/rv appliance you will not find a 15a stove.


AWESOME I CORRECTED RUBYCON!!!!


Edit:

Doh, reading fail.

 

[IronWing]

Generally, electric ovens cook better & more evenly than gas ovens with much better temperature control.

Lay off the meth, crack, booze, geritol, and flintstones chewables. Electric ovens pretty much suck in every way it is possible for a working oven to suck. They produce a horribly drying heat. Temperature control in an oven is a function of the thermostat, not the heat source. In blind taste tests the overwhelming majority of participants who ate foods prepared in gas ovens were very satisfied with the results while in the case of electric ovens, 83% of those surveyed died from their wounds.

 

[Rubycon]

LOL yeah. I never got the point of unvented range hoods. When I got my new over the range microwave I made sure it was properly vented outside. The air flow does not seem all that impressive though, but guess it's better then nothing. Mine is a pipe that goes to the roof so probably lot of static pressure as opposed to straight out an outside wall.

The ones with fans are not very strong!
A much better (and quieter) way is to house a blower box up near the roof line, and run flex duct down to your hood (8" would be decent for a 1/3hp squirrel cage type blower). A multi speed or variable drive (motor master) could be used so you don't always have 1000 cfm getting sucked out which can be wasteful in the winter as you will need make up air for that!

 

[vi edit]

Best would be the hybrid "duel fuel" option that has a gas range and electric oven.

The *only* drawback that I could say about gas ranges is that they aren't as easy to clean up as an electric with a glass cooktop. But on the upside your chance of a boilover is almost nonexistant so that helps some.

 

[DrPizza]

And in other locales, it may be required for an electrician to make the electrical connections (on appliances that don't come pre-wired).

And, you very likely wouldn't be using pipe dope - at least the last couple stoves I've installed, they were *flare* fittings. Although, if you don't have the proper fitting after the gas valve, you'd need pipe dope to install that fitting.

*edit: thanks igas. Error on my part.

 

[iGas]

Large electric range heating element = 1250W

Average gas range large burner = 12000~15000BTU / 3.41442595 = 3514.5~4393.125W

Greater power = shorter cooking time & better searing.

PS.

I agree it's certainly easy enough to apply pipe dope and seal against pressure of a few inches of water column.

Gas code call for air "test pressure shall not be less than sixty (60) pounds."

Erroneous or meddling with gas can earn you $200,000 USD fine & 3 years jail time. It also void the home owner insurance.

 

[Rubycon]

And in other locales, it may be required for an electrician to make the electrical connections (on appliances that don't come pre-wired).

And, you very likely wouldn't be using pipe dope - at least the last couple stoves I've installed, they were compression fittings. Although, if you don't have the proper fitting after the gas valve, you'd need pipe dope to install that fitting.

If a house has an electric stove that you are replacing there would not be a gas pipe there. The flex line you are talking about goes from the line in the wall to the stove itself. They usually have a small shut off valve and screw onto a nipple or into an elbow or tee with a male fitting, etc.

If switching from gas to electric there is probably not a 50A circuit handy in the wall!

 

[BoomerD]

Best would be the hybrid "duel fuel" option that has a gas range and electric oven.

The *only* drawback that I could say about gas ranges is that they aren't as easy to clean up as an electric with a glass cooktop. But on the upside your chance of a boilover is almost nonexistant so that helps some.

No thanks...I don't want my energy sources fighting.

We looked at dual fuel gas ranges when we bought the GE, but they all require 240v, and we only have 110/120 available in the kitchen. It'd cost too much to have 240 wired for the range, so we opted for straight gas convection.

 

[nerp]

Temperature control better in an electric? Well, when you digitally program the temperature you want in a gas stove, i see no difference.

 

[RadiclDreamer]

I'm in the process of buying a house and I'm pretty naive and have a lot of questions about gas ranges. I would really like one since I cook a ton, but I've never used one before. Half the places I've looked at have them and half don't.

How much easier/better is it to cook on a gas stove instead of the current electric flat tops? If you like to cook a lot how much emphasis would place on finding a place with a gas range?

From what I see, most ranges now use natural gas, is this correct? All the places I've seen certainly didn't have any propane tanks anywhere.

How much would it cost to install a gas range if you already have natural gas heating?

Just depends on how close a gas line is you can tap into. Most plumbers do this kind of work and charge the same rate as if they were doing water work. I prefer a gas range 100x over electric, instant heat and its instantly gone if thats your intent. No waiting on a heating element to heat and cool.

 

[vi edit]

Temperature control better in an electric? Well, when you digitally program the temperature you want in a gas stove, i see no difference.

Not sure how other gas ovens work, but mine constantly turns on...burns for a bit. Then turns off. Then back on. Then off again. Rinse and repeat several dozen times over the course of a 45 minute bake. I'm sure there's some fluctuations while this occurring.

With electric once it gets to operating temp I would have to imagine that it can hold that temp much more reliably.

 

[Red Squirrel]

The ones with fans are not very strong!
A much better (and quieter) way is to house a blower box up near the roof line, and run flex duct down to your hood (8" would be decent for a 1/3hp squirrel cage type blower). A multi speed or variable drive (motor master) could be used so you don't always have 1000 cfm getting sucked out which can be wasteful in the winter as you will need make up air for that!

Yeah I was thinking of this actually. Same thing for bathroom fan. Why is it that typical bathroom fans need to be so noisy anyway? I'm sure a small squirrel cage fan would do better and be more silent.

Don't want TOO much CFM though like as you say, need to make up for that air. Also don't want to suck down CO from the HW or furnace vents. Furnace less of an issue as it has a draft inducer blower and guessing a damper, but in my case my HW is passive.

 

[Rubycon]

Not sure how other gas ovens work, but mine constantly turns on...burns for a bit. Then turns off. Then back on. Then off again. Rinse and repeat several dozen times over the course of a 45 minute bake. I'm sure there's some fluctuations while this occurring.

With electric once it gets to operating temp I would have to imagine that it can hold that temp much more reliably.

They all work that way - there are no proportional controls out there.
Induction is a different story as it can be designed to hold a temp you want. Of course if you have lots of different pots it takes a while to adjust to how they work, etc.

A PID controlled oven - either electric or gas - would be interesting. Of course baking does not have the precision requirements as keeping crystals at the perfect temperature for accuracy!

Yeah I was thinking of this actually. Same thing for bathroom fan. Why is it that typical bathroom fans need to be so noisy anyway? I'm sure a small squirrel cage fan would do better and be more silent.

Don't want TOO much CFM though like as you say, need to make up for that air. Also don't want to suck down CO from the HW or furnace vents. Furnace less of an issue as it has a draft inducer blower and guessing a damper, but in my case my HW is passive.

Many bathroom fans do use small squirrel cage fans but they are very small and have to spin at higher rpm producing lots of whooshing noise. Moving the blower away reduces that noise considerably. Balancing out the airflow vs. duct size will make the noise blend with the ambient yet move still more air than a cheap Nutone!

If you're reversing air through a gas dryer or furnace your house is too tight or you're moving way too much air!

 

[DrPizza]

Lay off the meth, crack, booze, geritol, and flintstones chewables. Electric ovens pretty much suck in every way it is possible for a working oven to suck. They produce a horribly drying heat. Temperature control in an oven is a function of the thermostat, not the heat source. In blind taste tests the overwhelming majority of participants who ate foods prepared in gas ovens were very satisfied with the results while in the case of electric ovens, 83% of those surveyed died from their wounds.

Before laying out a couple grand on a new stove, I researched the hell out of them. I'd love for you to back up your statement. Having spent 20 years cooking with gas ovens, and just recently switching to an electric oven, I'll say that I'm amazed at how much more evenly it cooks. Also, electric is much easier to control the heating rate on & much easier to control temperature.

First 3 hits with a google search: gas vs electric ovens
(I even put gas first, as if that might make some sort of difference.) All have the general consensus that electric ovens are better.
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/448315
http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f84/gas-oven-vs-electric-oven-2902.html
http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/cooking.html

Even with the same thermocouples for temperature control, gas ovens have much higher temperature spikes during heating cycles. i.e. they can't maintain as consistent of a temperature as electric ovens can. Gas ovens, by necessity of having to use oxygen, return a lot of burned gasses to the environment - a gas oven will heat up a kitchen considerably more than an electric oven. As far as humidity - for the few times when a higher humidity cook environment is needed, you can add humidity to an electric oven. But in many cases, a dry heat cooks better - you can't take the humidity out of a gas oven.

For shits and giggles, try explaining, using your logic, why there are dual fuel stoves - electric oven & gas stovetop, but not the other way around?

On another topic - stovetops - when you turn of electric stove tops, they continue cooking for a little while - you have to move the pan to another burner. This isn't as much a problem with gas cooktops.

 

[iGas]

And in other locales, it may be required for an electrician to make the electrical connections (on appliances that don't come pre-wired).

And, you very likely wouldn't be using pipe dope - at least the last couple stoves I've installed, they were compression fittings. Although, if you don't have the proper fitting after the gas valve, you'd need pipe dope to install that fitting.

Gas fitters have electrical endorsement certs can connects all gas appliances electrical wirings to the panel up to 600 Volts.
Gas pipe dope & tape are use on threaded pipe/fittings, and nothing on flare fittings (compression fittings are not allow to be use under gas code).

You're right - I wasn't thinking when I typed that - I meant flare fittings. (Weird, because I was thinking about a flaring tool for copper pipes, yet still said compression.)

 

[nerp]

Not sure how other gas ovens work, but mine constantly turns on...burns for a bit. Then turns off. Then back on. Then off again. Rinse and repeat several dozen times over the course of a 45 minute bake. I'm sure there's some fluctuations while this occurring.

With electric once it gets to operating temp I would have to imagine that it can hold that temp much more reliably.

Well, I have an oven thermometer in mine and I can tell you that the temperature doesn't fluctuate and my cooking doesn't suffer. I prefer the way gas cooks over electric so 1 or 2 degrees of fluctuation is a reasonable tradeoff for higher quality food.

 

[JC]

Large electric range heating element = 1250W

Gas code call for air "test pressure shall not be less than sixty (60) pounds."

That sounds more like the inspection gas line test in a new house. Exactly how are you going to test your new oven connection with 60psi of air?

 

[iGas]

That sounds more like the inspection gas line test in a new house. Exactly how are you going to test your new oven connection with 60psi of air?

Flex connection from wall to oven only requires working pressure test (soap test).

Add: flex hose can't exceed 60" or 2 meters.

 

[DrPizza]

If a house has an electric stove that you are replacing there would not be a gas pipe there. The flex line you are talking about goes from the line in the wall to the stove itself. They usually have a small shut off valve and screw onto a nipple or into an elbow or tee with a male fitting, etc.

If switching from gas to electric there is probably not a 50A circuit handy in the wall!

Of course. And if you install a dual fuel stove, odds are that you don't have both. Since I had just remodeled our kitchen, I had to run both the gas line & 220V line. To be honest, I think it was a tie between incredibly easy & incredibly easy. Both took about the same amount of time - 15 minutes.

Electric: measured the length of wire I'd need
Gas: measured the length of Gas-tite (or whatever brand it was) that I'd need.

Electric: snapped a new breaker into the panel, ran the wire, made connections at both ends. Flipped breaker on.

Gas: Put in a T at the propane tank. Ran the gas tite to the stove. Installed a fitting to the floor, installed a valve & flare fitting.

Gas line took a little longer to put in, by a couple minutes, but the connection to the stove was quicker by about the same amount of time.

---
Back to the advantage of an electric oven: I can cook a 20 pound turkey in my kitchen on an 80 degree day with no air conditioning in the house & that oven doesn't raise the temperature in the kitchen even one degree. You can't do that with a gas oven.

 

[Rubycon]

Back to the advantage of an electric oven: I can cook a 20 pound turkey in my kitchen on an 80 degree day with no air conditioning in the house & that oven doesn't raise the temperature in the kitchen even one degree. You can't do that with a gas oven.

Why would you do that? It just dries the bird out!
I thought most Americans deep fry their turkeys?!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hznx7Ky5EUI

 

[DrPizza]

Why would you do that? It just dries the bird out!
I thought most Americans deep fry their turkeys?!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hznx7Ky5EUI

Whoa! Rubycons account has been hijacked again!
No, most Americans cook their turkey in the oven. A small, but growing percentage of them deep fry them, although that seems to be a bit of a fad that's wearing out.