Ovens, Stoves, Cooktops

Plan ahead

The first decision you need to make is what form you want these appliances to take. Do you want them together in one central location? Do you want the oven and stove separated? How will these appliances fit in with the architecture of your kitchen? There are three distinct options for this most basic question.

Ovens: Technically, an oven is a large cavity with a door that is used for baking and broiling food. Your oven can be part of a range, or can be separated and built into a wall or cabinet space.

Stoves: Stoves have four or more burners on which pots are placed to cook food in. Stoves can be part of your range or can be built into your kitchen separately on a countertop or even in a kitchen island.

Ranges: Ranges are a single appliance unit that combines both an oven and a stove. These are the most traditional forms of ovens/stoves.

Read about the type of appliance you are thinking about purchasing for more information about the many varieties available, their pros and cons and helpful tips to choosing the correct model for you and your family. Expect to be overwhelmed; there are a variety of options in styles, sizes, features and fuel sources. Feel free to contact the experts at Ralph’s Electric for more assistance as you shop for your new oven, stove, or range.

Size

Ovens come in three main sizes: single, double and combination. Consider the following questions. How many people like to cook at the same time in your home? How often do you entertain large numbers of guests? And do you or your family members have any physical limitations that make opening the oven or taking pans in and out of the oven difficult?

Single ovens are the most traditional model of ovens. They have one door which almost always hinges at the bottom of the oven opening from the top down. Single ovens are great for those that have limited space in their kitchens. However, only one temperature is available at a time, meaning longer cooking times if multiple items must be baked at different temperatures.

Double ovens have two separate cavities. Each cavity can be heated to any temperature independent of the other, allowing cooks to bake food at different temperatures simultaneously. They take up more space than a single oven, but are great for prolific cooks.

Combination ovens are a single or double oven combined with a microwave installed on top of the oven. This provides a very sleek kitchen design with all these appliances in one central location. These units are usually quite large and usually require a custom space in the kitchen cabinetry.

Cleaning Method

Nobody likes to clean their appliances and it’s even worse to spend time thinking about cleaning them in the future! But you owe it to yourself to consider your future cleaning when picking out a new oven. You can choose between standard cleaning, self cleaning and continuous cleaning ovens.

Standard Cleaning ovens must be cleaned by hand with soap and water. Some models have removable doors to make cleaning hard to reach spaces easier. This cleaning method is usually the most inexpensive option of the three methods available.

Self Cleaning ovens use an extremely high heat cycle to turn soil inside your oven into a fine powder that can be easily wiped away with a damp cloth. Self Cleaning ovens are very fast and easy to clean and require very little of your own effort. They have special safety precautions that lock the door when the high heat cleaning cycle is in use. This added convenience usually adds to the price as well, especially since special porcelain enamels and door seals are required for safety purposes.

Continuous Cleaning ovens also get rid of oven soil without your elbow grease, but these models do not require the extreme heat cycle. Instead, the walls are treated with a special catalyst that oxidizes the soil continuously. Because the extreme high heat cycle isn’t needed, these units consume less energy which reduces the cost of their operation. However, most people find that these models do not clean the ovens quite as well as Self Cleaning models and still require some scrubbing at times.

Heating Method

Ovens can be further classified by their heating method into one of two types: conventional ovens or convection ovens. Below is a description of each type of heating method and their relative pros and cons. It’s important to ask yourself how vital cooking quality and price are in your decision, as well as what power sources you have available.

Conventional ovens are, well, the conventional type! These ovens have two heating elements; one for baking and roasting and another for broiling foods. Most people use their oven primarily to bake items, during which heat comes from the bottom of the oven. Some more modern conventional ovens will have heating systems which use both upper and lower heating elements during baking, which can amount to a more even heating of the food. Conventional ovens are usually the less expensive option of heating methods available, but some cooks notice they do not always heat food evenly.

Convection ovens all have an extra critical component that separates them from conventional ovens: a fan. The fan helps to disperse the hot air faster and more evenly throughout the cooking space. This helps food to cook more evenly throughout and also uses about 50% less energy than conventional ovens. Because the hot air will circulate faster, convection ovens reduce cooking times by an average of 30%.

As if there were not enough choices already, there exist two types of convection ovens. Fan assisted convection ovens disperse heat from the bottom and the fan is located at the rear. Fan forced convection ovens have the fan surrounded by the heating element. This allows the food to be placed anywhere in the entire oven. Keep in mind that fan assisted units come in both electric and gas compatible models, while fan forced is only found in electric units. Fan forced units are usually louder and can make food dry out faster if it is not covered properly.

Electric Coil Elements

Stove tops with electric coil elements are fueled by electricity rather than gas. There are several advantages to using this kind of stove top. They are usually less expensive than gas models. They are also safer because there are no visible flames. They do not require a gas hookup, which can be expensive to install if one does not already exist. They are also very easy to maintain and inexpensive to repair.

Though stove tops with electric coil elements can be less expensive than gas models at their initial purchase, they can cost you more over time in most areas of the country. Check into the relative cost of electricity and gas in your local area. Also, heating and cooling these burners takes longer, meaning you have less immediate control over the temperature you are cooking with. In general, electric coil elements are less responsive than gas, making most professional chefs prefer to have the increased control allowed by gas burners.

Ceramic Glass Burners

Stove tops with ceramic glass burners have increased in popularity lately. They offer a smooth surface that is very easy to clean and is very visually appealing. When the stove top is not in use, the top can be used as extra counter space. No crumbs or spills can get into the burners which not only makes this unit easy to clean, but also reduces the chance of little kitchen flare ups.

Because ceramic glass burner stove tops are fueled with electricity, they are not as precise and responsive as gas stove tops. It is sometimes difficult to tell if the burners are still hot after turning them off, which could be a safety issue, especially if small children have access to that area. Because of the upgraded flat smooth cooking surface, ceramic glass burners can be more expensive than standard electric coil burners.

Magnetic Induction

Magnetic induction stove tops are relatively new on the market and many people have never heard of them. They are very similar in appearance to stovetops with ceramic glass burners. They both offer smooth surfaces that are easy to clean and are very attractive. However, that is where the similarities end between these two types of stove tops.

Magnetic induction stove tops only work with steel and cast iron pans (or any pan that you can get a magnet to stick to). Because they only cause the pan and its contents to heat up, the rest of the surface unit remains completely cool at all times. Because of this, these stove top units are very safe. They are also extremely responsive and precise, making them very similar to cooking with gas stove top units but without the need for a gas line and hookup in your kitchen.

Like most new technologies, magnetic induction stoves come with a premium price and are usually more expensive than other types of stove tops. Also, make sure to consider whether or not the pots and pans you currently own will work with this type of appliance. If you’re looking for the accuracy and performance of a gas stove top, but more safety and no need for a separate gas line and hookup, look into magnetic induction stove tops.

Solid Disks

These stove tops are very similar to electric coil stove tops. Instead of open coils, they have solid cast iron disks in which the burner elements are contained. This makes them very easy to clean and also unique and attractive. The extra ease of cleaning and unique look come at a price though; the solid cast iron disks are very slow to heat up and cool down, which can lengthen cooking time and decreases the control you have over temperature.

Ranges

Many people choose to have their oven and stove come together in one convenient appliance; the range. Though choosing a range eliminates the need to choose two places in your kitchen for a separate stove top and oven, there are a myriad of other choices available to you when choosing which range is right for you.

The two main choices you will have to make involve your fuel choice and how it will be installed in your kitchen. Read about the different fuel choices available in ranges and their relative pros and cons.