I can't give an opinion on the smooth top stove since I don't have one.

I did want to tell you I am very sorry for your loss. It's so sad. It's a great stove story to pass on fondly for years to come. I pray for peace for you and yours.

Sorry about your sister Anne...is that the sister who had been sick for a long time...I'm thinking she had cancer but not sure anymore. So many people and so many bros and sis's...that I get confused.

It sounds like she still had a little humor even toward the end in telling you that you needed a stove.

I hope you are used to cooking on an electric stove. I had one for 6 months at one time...We ate burnt meals for 6 months...never could get used to the darn thing..was so happy when I got a new gas stove.

I got a new reader for Mother's day...and I think I'll really like it when I learn all there is to learn about it.

The nice thing is I won't have to store more books. I have a hard time letting them go...silly I know...

Glad you got the kinks worked out whatever they were..I missed seeing you around here...

Do you still do "Farm Town"?

patti

I'm sorry for the loss of your sister, Anne.

Shirley

Oh, I'm sorry for the loss of a sister; can't imagine how painful that is!

quite honestly, I had an ceramic stove top for years. Didn't think it was that bad until I got a gas one. I LOVE gas. I actually got a dual fuel; gas stove top and electric oven. LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!

Anne, you will have that special memory of your sister whenever you use your new stove. Enjoy!

Sorry for your loss and sending special thoughts your way!

I didn't buy that type of stove, but I did recently buy a Sears Kenmore wall oven and I do regret the purchase.

It heats very hot - over what I've set it at. I don't know if that can be corrected; I've got to really sit down and look through the book again.

Hi Anne, it's good to see you posting again. I'm so sorry about your sister and hope you're coping as well as you can.

I know exactly how you're feeling about your new stove. We got a ceramic top last fall and I'm still having a hard time adjusting to the burner temps. It is easier to keep clean, though. So that's a plus!

Before you give your pots and pans away, I'm not sure what you mean about deep groooves, but my Belgique as grooves and they work fine. As long as the bottom is flat, they should be fine. I'm still not sure about my cast iron, though.

Anyway, just wanted to welcome you back. You've been missed! So post often, okay? :-)

So sorry for the loss of your sister, Anne. Now it is time for you to take some "me time" and give yourself the care and comfort you are always giving to others. Did you ever finalize your trip plans to visit with your relatives? As for the ceramic top stove, they are no harder to take care of than any other, actually easier nothing to fuss about and digging out parts to clean under them. I have had mine for over three years and it still looks new, but I have seen others that are a year old that look aweful. I would be sick if I had to look at that every day. Clean up is very easy, a razor blade in a holder comes in handy if there is a burned on spot..gentle scraping will clean it quickly and a quick swipe with lysol wet ones or the like will leave it sparkling and get all the crumbs etc that a dish cloth would leave behind. (If you cannot justify the cost, just put it in a little baggie to keep it damp and use it a couple of times, sometimes more depending on how dirty it gets.) The cooking is a bit different the plates heat up and cool down to maintain a constant temp, but I find you don't have to cook as long as conventional stovetops. As far as pots and pans I have used all even cast iron..just don't drag it over the surface, lift then and place on a cutting board if you want to take it off the burner. Good Luck!

My deepest sympathy for your loss, how sad for you and your family.

this house I bought has possibly the same stove in it. It is a kenmore like you describe and also has the hidden elements in the oven. I had never used that type of top / burners and I have to say it has been extremely hard for me to get used to it. I tend to burn everything on it, the regulation of the temp is not near as accurate as I had on regular electric or gas.
I personally prefer gas, my last 2 however have been Jen-aire electrics which I did like.

I have been using all my regular pans, maybe that is one of my problems I did not know there were some you should not use. It did say in the book not to slide pots across it.
I have one burner the one I use the most that no matter how much I clean it I can not get certain spots smooth and clean, I use the special cleaner and pad but it must just be really burnt on,that was there when we moved in so I don't know how it happened.
We are planning to re-do the kitchen and even though this is a fairly new stove I will replace it with something gas, we may save it for the outdoor kitchen we will be putting in.

You may love it, I just am not accustomed to that type of unit, now the oven part is fine, no problems there. However don't do what I did and put one of those foil oven liners in there! Nothing can go on the bottom since the element is hidden under there. My only complaint on the oven is it takes forever to get to the temp so preheating needs to be planned for!

this one here looks a lot like mine not sure what my model is but I do have that middle warmer burner, this looks like the glass is not all solid smooth black mine is mine does not have that textured look mine is smooth all over like on the burner.
Kenmore Stainless Steel 30" Freestanding Electric Range

I am so sorry to hear of your loss. In time the memories will start flowing and you will have some laughs again.

I have a new glass top stove and I love it. Just be sure it is clean each time you use it. I use the cream cleaner and a green scratch pad. Never have had a problem. The guy did tell me to never use Windex on it. I just use a soft rag after cleaning it. I look down towards the sun to make sure I got everything off. I would certaintly buy one again.

Sorry about your sister ((Anne)).

I'll be checking in on this thread since I am considering getting one of the smooth top stoves in the future.

That's a great family story, your sister telling you that you need a stove when she can barely speak. I'm so sorry for your loss, and somewhere up there she is looking down and smiling at you and your new stove. You probably just have to get used to it.

Mom bought a Kenmore smooth-top about 13 years ago. It has the 5th warming burner as well. She absolutely loves it. It works fantastic and looks brand new. She cleans up the spills when the top cools down and it looks like the day she bought it.
And if there's one thing she does regularly, is have the potatoes boil over!

She's a regular baker and loves the convection feature.

I'm sorry as well, for your sister Anne.

I'm so sorry about your sister!

We have an electric ceramic top at work and I hate it! It takes soooo long to cook anything. It takes a really, really long time to boil water. But maybe it's just this stove and not all of them.

It's good to hear from you = you've been missed. I'm sorry to hear that your sister has passed away. I'm glad you're enjoying your eReader and it will take a little time but you'll get used to the stove. As for the oven you can use an oven thermometer to check the temperature and if it's still too hot you can call and have their tech calibrate the temperature. It's still under warranty right?

I was at work and rushing when I posted my reply. I neglected to tell you how sorry I am for the loss of your sister. You and she were blessed to have each other, and how wonderful that you were there with her. My most sincere sympathy.

I'm so sorry for your loss, Fizz. That's so sad.

I have a stove just like yours but a different brand. I love it and can honestly say that I've never burned anything on it. It heats incredibly fast and hot and once I learned to lower the heat about one notch below what I think would be right, I never boiled anything over again. Don't ever spill sugar on it, though! That's a booger to get off if it gets cooked on.

My mom told me to not keep heavy things over it, because if they fall onto the stove, it could break the top. I don't know if that's happened before or not, but I guess it is better to be safe than sorry.

I am so sorry for your loss.
My kitchen had a ceramic cook top stove when I bought it 5 years ago. I hate electric stoves but the ceramic tops do look good when they are clean. I recently bought myself a gas stove and I love, love, love it. Electric burners take forever to heat up and boil water. One of the burners on my gas stove is a "powerburner".

I'm so sorry for your loss...I think she gave you great advice...keep the stove...everytime you cook on it...you'll be thinkin of Lizzy...

Enjoy your new ereader...I do love my Kindle!!

I have a smooth top stove, but I'm upstairs right now and I can't remember the brand. I love it because it's so clean and easy to keep clean. Mine doesn't take any longer to cook, or any longer for the oven to warm than any of the other stoves I've had. The stove top burners cycle on and off, but I don't have any trouble maintaining an even temperature and I don't think I've ever burned anything on it. I use all my pots, even my cast iron pans, and like was said earlier, just don't drag them across the top. You also have to make sure you don't leave anything sugary on the burners when they heat up too, or they could pit. I've had mine for seven years, and I would definitely get one again.

Anne; I'm so sorry to hear of the loss of your sister.

I hope you're at the KT more often. I've missed you. I too have had a hard time signing in and then managing to stay signed-in.

((((Anne)))))

I'm sorry to hear about your sister. I know what you mean about taking her advice...one of the last things my dying brother said to me was "check your blood sugar" and every time I do, I think of him and his worry about my health.

Anyway, my niece has a stove similar to the one you bought and she loves it. I hope you like yours too.

Thank you for the condolences. I am having a hard time with grief moreso than when I lost both my parents. I know it has been only a few days but I am really going to miss Lizzie's late night calls from work. I was with her when she died at 3:55 am. I had sat in the recliner just after joking with her about the show we had watched 3 times that day and said I would change the channel at 4 am. I sat down just before 3:50 am and must have nodded right off. I woke at 3:55 and I knew she was gone, the noise of her not breathing was what woke me up. Either that or she tapped me on the shoulder as she was leaving. I am glad she wasn't alone when she died.

Lizzie worked as a nurse until the end of March but kind of figured her cancer had spread because of the weight loss since Christmas and she hadn't been able to eat anything. Lizzie had stopped taking her chemo drug "femara" because of the aches and pains and being a nurse she knew the fluid buildup in her abdomen was not a good sign. She had double breast cancer while working in Saudi Arabia the same year my Mom was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer. She just turned 65 in March. Started chemo again in April, was finally admitted to the hospital to be hooked up to an intravenous bag of food which she tried to avoid having and then she got a blood infection and was too weak for chemo and finally on Wednesday she decided no more treatments or invasive procedures. She ate ice chips and took anti nausea medication and the odd pain med as needed. She had humour right up to the last day. When one of her nursing co-workers came to visit her on Thursday I told her it was Nurses Week and she said she knew that. Her friend said "Lizzie and I were going to go out" and Lizzie said "rats" LOL

Patti, my oldest sister Marjorie is the one I usually talk about. She had inflammatory breast cancer over 22 years ago and then had another type of breast cancer last summer and had a mastectomy. She also has other health problems but you wouldn't know it to see her. She is 72 years old, travels back and forth to St. Louis just about every month and I keep telling her she is going to out live us all. Bahaaha, she gets on my last nerve sometimes but I sure would miss her. LOL She drives me nuts. LOL Lizzie and I shared a bedroom until I was in my 20's and she was only 10 years older than me so we were closer. Marjorie isn't like the rest of us. LOL

While reading the rough draft of Lizzie's obit I kept saying something was wrong, I kept reading the names of my siblings - Marjorie, David, Donald, Raymond, Anne Louise and Paul. I read that over and over and to myself I said there aren't enough names and couldn't figure out who was missing. Then it dawned on me Lizzie's name was missing in the birth order, her name should have been after David's. That is when it really hit me, that she was gone. I have been crying off and on most of the day today.

Okay, I feel better about my decision on the stove. I have always had an electric stove and the almond coloured one I do have still works but the door doesn't shut/lock properly so I can't use the self cleaning feature and I am sure heat is lost when I bake but I knew how to compensate for the temps. This stove is white so it will match my refrigerator. I was going to get the convection oven because I do a lot of baking but I couldn't rationalize spending $200 more for that feature. I would love a gas stove but I am used to cooking with electricity and I would have to run a gas line into the kitchen and I wouldn't have been able to vent out the exhaust because my stove is on an inside wall.

My niece is getting my sisters expensive pots and pans and she is going to give me hers - I think they are Lagostino. I am still using some of my Mom's 70 year old Wearever pots. I was given a set of non stick frying pans for Christmas and the bottom of them are not smooth and are actually quite sharp if you run your hands across the bottom so they would definitely scratch the surface and Billy my friend the salesman said that type of aluminum used in those pans is soft and can melt if used on high heat which would really damage. I will continue to use my Le Cruset dutch oven though even though it is grooved on the bottom. Billy said heavy flat bottomed pots and pans are more suitable for this type of cooktop, and preferably stainless steel. He even said copper bottomed pots and pans were also not advisable. He also told me to get a thermometer to measure the oven because sometimes it could be off a bit with this type of stove. Some of the ceramic topped ovens he showed me were over $2000. I really like the one that came with a griddle feature but way out of my price league. LOL I still wanted to be able to buy my ereader. LOL Time will tell.

My old stove goes out to the curb tomorrow. In with the new out with the old.

I guess I won't be making omelets ala Julia Child anymore. I will have to get used to lifting my pan off the burner to shake the eggs to keep them loose.

Anne

Hi, Anne. So sorry about losing your sis, but she gave you good advice. I hope you will enjoy the stove more as you get used to it. I think we get used to things being a certain way, and it is hard to make a change.

I have an electric Kenmore stove. I found that it does take "forever" to boil water. I personally don't like the ceramic top. I read the manual about how to clean it. It said to let it cool and then clean it. Well, I would forget to go back and clean it, and then it seems like I could never get it clean!

Good to see you back posting again. We need some of your good stories!

Sue

There are two types of electric heating elemnts for cook tops and each behave very differently. The first one starting many years ago was nothing more than a resistance wire buried inside a tube filled with high temperature insulation. The pan sat directly on the element. Heat transfer was by principally conduction and some radiation. The resistor element was made in sections and heat output was controlled by enengizing various parts of the "burner". The ususal number of heat levels was 4. Fine regulation was not possible.

Later, electronic controls were added to provide finer adjustments of heat output. Although the electronic control was an improvement, maintence was more costly due to failure of the power electronics.

The introduction of smooth top heating surfaces presents a nice appearance. Heat is generated in the pan by a very different method. A high frequency coil is under surface. It induces current in the bottom of the cookware and it is this current that produces the heat. The majority of the heat is produced in the bottom of the pan. Special cookware is required for best results. The speed of cooking is a function of the pan and the power of the induction coil. As you can see, heating speed can be highly variable. This type has power electronics and is not expected to be as reliable as the old resistor burner, but offers better control and better appearnace. The old style burners are easy to understand and replace, but are passing away as newer technology increases in popularity.

To get the most bang for the buck: Buy units with good electronics that are designed for ease of replacement. Buy the most popular make and model because at some time in the future, repair parts for popular models are more likely to be available than some off-brand unknown. Most liklely repair will be the power electronic module.

Thanks for the info. I guess that is why I bought the extended warranty for this stove which is something I don't normally buy but I was told if I don't use it in 5 years I get my money back (gift card)

I know how to replace the burners and elements on my old stove but I know nothing of electronics. My Dad used to fix old tube television sets as a side business but when televisions started becoming electronic in the 1970's he gave his client list to my cousin who was learning about electronic repair in school.

Anne

Good to see you back Anne and my heart goes out to you on the loss of your dear sister. How lovely that you could be with her at the end.

Enjoy your new stove .... I would love a ceramic cooktop simply because clean up would be so easy. I have an electric oven and a gas top but I despise cleaning the top.

Hi Anne,
I'm also sorry for the loss of your sister,and thak you for your condolences on the loss of mine.My sister was buried the day yours passed.Maybe they'll meet up there and be friends!!!

Congrats on the new stove,hope you like it and it does all you hope it will,and then some.

Take care
(((((((((((((ANNE)))))))))))))
Kathi

Oh, Fizzy, I'm so sorry to hear about your sister.
I hope you learn to love your new stove!

I'm so sorry about your sister but I bet she is smiling down at you.....big Texas hugs for you...........

Good news to see your byline, Anne: I've missed your messages.

Sorry that your sister has passed to her reward.

Don't have any suggestions about the stove - the one here's likely 30 years old.

(((((Anne)))))

ole joyful

Thanks, I know it has only been a week since Lizzie has been gone and I can cry at the drop of a hat. Every time I go out my door it seems I have to tell someone when they ask after her. Her obit was only in the paper for 1 day and was printed at the bottom so it wasn't too noticeable plus there was no funeral service.

My new stove - I have looked at it since it came Thursday morning and didn't dare use it but last night I put in a turkey breast to roast. Lots of pops and small bangs and was noisy enough to scare the cat. Hopefully that is because it was the first time it was on and those sounds will go away. I do really like that the bottom element is hidden making the oven bigger. My little turkey breast seemed small. I didn't like the odour the oven gave off but again I am hoping it was because of using it for the first time.

Haven't used the burners yet - I am intimidated by the thing. Reading the manual - lots of do's and don'ts. I was used to prepping my food on a cutting board on my old stove or making a sandwich but today I had to clear a spot on my counter to slice the turkey for a sandwich. I am sure once the newness wears off I will go back to my old habits. I haven't seen any little paw prints on the shiny surface so that means Lucy hasn't attempted to jump up there not that she would. Who knows what cats do when you are sleeping or out of the house. LOL

This stove is shorter than my other stove and not level with the counter as my old range was. When I moved my old stove out I found lots of flour from baking that had dropped down between the counter and the stove. I would put my flour container on the stove and scoop it into my mixer which is next to the stove. I guess now I will have to put the container somewhere else when scooping flour. I think I am going to miss the old stove because I used it as an extra workspace LOL

I keep going in and admiring it though because it is nice and shiny. I thought my cabinets were white, but they are not as white as this stove. LOL I am happy though my appliances now match, the other stove was almond.

Anne