Advice needed on induction side in range.
Chris Taylor
3 years ago
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Chris Taylor
3 years agoRelated Discussions
New induction Range advice needed
Comments (9)On the question about 50 A circuits: All of your candidate ranges have been "spec-ed" for 40 amp circuits. Your existing hookup should be fine. Do be aware that you will need to separately purchase and attach a cable and plug for the stove. There are two kinds of plugs and that you need to purchase the type that matches your existing outlet. Assuming that your 240 circuit was installed in the 1980s with the old coil-burner stove, the outlet is most probably a three-conductor outlet (three wires in the cable and three pins on the plug). Since the 90's, codes have required 4-conductor cables and outlets in new construction but usually do not require you to upgrade an existing installation. The stove's install instructions will tell you how to attach both kinds of cable/plug. Just make sure you get the one that matches your existing wiring. (You can buy the connector cable from the store that sells you the stove or just get one from a hardware store.) Regarding oven odors, virtually every installation and user manual for every kind of currently available stove will tell you to remove the oven racks and run a self-clean cycle (with a hood vent running) before you do anything else with your new stove. For ovens without pyrolitic self-cleaning, the manual wll tell you to run a "burn-in" on the bake/roast setting at, say, 400F for 45 minutes and then to run the broiler for a similar time. This process gets rid of "bad smells" by burning off the oils from manufacturing and shipping as well as any accumulated dust. Most reports of bad-smells-on-first-use come from folks who did not read their stove's manual and skipped this step. If you do this and still get bad smells, it is time for a warranty call. For info on the specific stoves, the GW search engine can be hit or miss. I suggest you try an external search engine, such as Google, and include "gardenweb" in your search string. For example, google "GE + PHB920 + gardenweb" to get a list of threads discussing that stove. For more info on the GE freestanding, try using "PHB920" in your search string. That may garner more hits than "GE Profile PHAB920SFSS," especially here at GW. Also, you can check out the mechanically similar slide-in version, PHS920 plus the long threads on the predecessor models, and PHS925 & PHB925 which had very similar guts. The main differences between the old 925 and current 920 models are the exterior styling and the 920 series has a different convection oven set-up. The newer 920 models have a full power (2000 watt) third heating element for a "truer" convection set-up. Like most current three-element convection ovens. the ovens in the older GE models and those made by Elux/Frigidaire models all use a much smaller 300 watt third element. I looked at an Electrolux EI30IF40LSfor a friend a couple of months ago and it seemed to be very similar to the CEI30IF4LS that you cited. (I'm guessing that the "CEI" simply means they are selling the stove in Canada and that it is otherwise the same.) We were not able to find one hooked up for testing-out so I can't report on actual use. I do recall from the owner's manual that it has the ability to link the two 7" diameter left-hand burners for use with a griddle (you can do the same with the GE except that the burners are a bit larger -- 8" in diameter -- and have to be controlled individually.) The Elux also has more finely graduated settings at the low end -- I think it was quarter-steps between numbers rather than half steps -- which might be useful with some pressure cookers and/or delicate sauces, if you are into those kinds of cooking. You are right that there is not much here on the Elux freestanding or the knob-controlled Frigidaire. If memory serves, seattlelandlord posted about the Elux last year, and that name may help with searches. The newer knob-equipped Kenmore induction ranges are made for Sears by Frigidaireand are variations on the CGIF3061NF. You could search on them as well as the Frigidiare. They also might be a better buy than the Frigidiare. IIRC, the Kenmore model numbers are 95053, 95073, and 95103. They more or less straddle the Frigidaire features. There was a brief discussion of those models here a couple of months ago. Here's the link if you haven't already seen it: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/appl/msg111159038999.html?10 This post was edited by JWVideo on Wed, Jan 7, 15 at 17:52...See MoreNeed advice on replacement and new home for a glitchy induction range
Comments (26)Yes, this is for you, amck2. Doesn't look like messaging can easily be done here, so I just set up a temporary e-mail address that you can reach me at. I'll give you the real one when I hear from you, I just don't want to put it out here where I might get spammed. Try me at QuUJa2H3p6q8@meltmail.com (don't try to type that mess, just copy and paste it). Thanks!...See MoreRange advice - stick with induction or switch to gas?
Comments (23)hvtech's advice strikes me as spot on. As you say, with a friend who could help open the control panel on your 7 y.o. range, what do you have to lose? All the better if it turns out that the control internals just need a little cleanup and drying. The one caution I offer is this: if you do find a problem with one board, keep checking the other boards and connections, too. Most major brand stoves these days (induction and otherwise) have multiple boards and a failure in one sometimes cascaded to or from others. You want to rule out that possibility before you start spending money on replacement boards. FWIW on buying a replacement stove, the Kenmore induction ranges are rebadged variants of Electrolux/Frigidaire's own branded products. On the question you asked about whether to consider maybe replacing your present stove with a gas range, I'll offer a couple of considerations to ponder. One of them is that you can get 30"-wide gas and dual fuel ranges with all of what you called the "bells and whistles ... I would like to keep, built in temperature probe, convection, warming drawer, sliding racks." The trade-off is that they all run on circuit boards, too. Those electronics are as expensive to replace than and may or may not be significantly more durable than the ones in induction ranges. I discovered this some years ago when a board failure knocked out my ten y.o. GE DF stove and the parts cost of replacement boards was going to be $800 to $1500 depending on how many of the boards needed replacing. We might suspect that gas ranges will be less likely to suffer from early board failures because the major brand gas stoves mostly do not have as much "electronica" as induction ranges. Basically, most gas ranges do not need electronics for the stove-top burners to operate. In theory, there being less to break there should be less likelihood of premature failure. But, the question to ponder is this: how much better are the odds? Is it only a few percentage points or is it a lot? I mean, it would be one thing if we could say that buying a gas range would give you 50% better odds of avoiding an electronics failure in the next ten years. It would be quite another if the improvement only turned out to be 5%. Unfortunately, there just does not seem to be any readily available statistical data that would tell us if the odds are significantly better or not. Seems to me that getting a major brand gas or dual fuel stove still leaves you with the same kind of uncertainty over the longevity of the operating electronics. Another consideration that I think bears some pondering is that there are some very big tradeoffs if you choose to improve the longevity odds by buying a pro-style gas stove with minimal electronics. One trade-off is cost. Last I checked a few weeks ago, the current Elux slide-in induction range could be had for about $3k. The cost of all new boards would be around half of that. The pricing on most pro-style-minimal-electronics gas ranges, such as Blue Star start north of $3500. The exceptions are the Hyxion-made brands, (Thor and NXR), but those brands are best suited to the self-reliant and are still priced around $2k. In any event, the trade-off for minimal electronics on pro-style ranges is that those stoves lack every bell and whistle you want except for having a convection fan. A further cost trade-off with switching to a premium-priced "pro-style" range would be that you may have to upgrade your range venting which, in turn, would require a make-up air system to avoid backdrafting your wood-burning stove/heater. Add that cost on to the $750 or so for the gas line installation and extra electrical circuit in the kitchen, and your cost go significantly higher than replacing your Elux with the current model. Plllog suggested that you consider replacing the range with a separate induction cooktop over a wall oven. There is merit to the suggestion and it was something I seriously considered the last time I went stove shopping. What deterred me was the cost and work of upgrading the my old-house-kitchen's electrical wiring and the electrical panel to accommodate the higher power required for a separate cooktop and oven. My kitchen had a 50amp 240v circuit for a stove. A separate induction cooktop and oven would have required something more like 75 amps. That, in turn, would have required new wiring and, in my case, a bigger electrical panel, as well. Just something else to figure in to your decision....See MoreInduction Range Advice
Comments (1)I have the Electrolux freestanding. I'm happy with it so far but I've only had it a little over a year and I'm not that particular about the oven so I don't know if it would meet your standards or not. It has one gliding rack. The largest hob is in the front, two medium size on the left and small behind the large. It has a warming drawer that I do actually use. I left a house with double ovens so the warming drawer somewhat helps offset the fact I now only have one. One of the reasons I chose this freestanding unit is that it wasn't as expensive as the slide-ins and I was skeptical of reliability and longevity. Hob placement and settings were also to my liking....See MoreChris Taylor
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