ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, September 29, 1996 TAG: 9610010029
SECTION: HOMES PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: hints for the homeowners
SOURCE: STEVE ELDER
There is a dizzying array of electric cooktops and stoves on the market, from elegantly designed smoothtop models to redesigned conventional coil types. Even some high-end European cooking equipment is starting to get a foothold in the market.
Kitchen appliances have become like electronic equipment: new models keep appearing every several months. If you're considering a new electric stove, you may as well go ahead with the purchase because you will never catch up to the manufacturers.
The most innovative designing and engineering is reflected in the new generation of smoothtop stoves. Smoothtops have been around since the '70s. The first generation had white ceramic tops that tended to develop brownish burn rings above the coils. However, the new generation has a reformulated ceramic-glass top that does not discolor because there are no longer conventional coils under the top.
What is under the surface is some interesting new technology. There are actually three kinds of burners to choose from: radiant, halogen and magnetic induction. Unlike a convention cal-rod burner that is in contact with the bottom of the cooking vessel, a radiant coil heats by emitting concentrated infrared light through the glass top. Radiant coils reach top heat in three to 10 seconds, whereas conventional coils can take up to two minutes. (On the other hand, most 8-inch conventional coils have a 2600 watt rating as compared to a radiant coil's peak of 2400 watts. This means that a conventional burner will boil a large pot of water a little faster.)
Halogen burners come on instantly. It's like turning on a light switch, because that is actually what happens. A halogen burner is, simply put, a light bulb that emits an intense infrared light. To my knowledge, no all-halogen burner stoves are made in this country at the present, most probably because of prohibitive prices. Most manufacturers offer a radiant-coil smoothtop with an option of replacing one or two of the smaller front burners with the super-fast halogens.
Also available are magnetic-induction burners. Actually, these are not burners in the true sense of the word because they don't get hot at all. As the name suggests, cooking is accomplished by inducing current in the cookware itself so that the cookware heats by resistance to the current. For this principle to work, the cookware must be made of iron or steel.
The kitchen industry may have gotten ahead of itself in one respect, because ceramic cookware (Corningware), glass cookware (Visions) and aluminum pots and pans will not work on a magnetic-induction surface. This fact, plus the expensive price tag, helps to explain why magnet-induction equipment has not caught on in the U.S. market.
To get an idea of the relative costs of the different types of burners, compare the retail prices of Jenn-air's two-burner modules. The radiant version retails for around $290, the halogen model comes in at $490, and the magnetic-induction module costs around $600 (prices may vary from dealer to dealer). A radiant-coil smoothtop stove will cost about $100 to $200 more than a conventional-coil stove. Add another $100 to $200 for the radiant/halogen option.
The other choices to be made are color (smoothtop surfaces come in white, gray and black) and whether to get dial or electronic controls. The September 1993 issue of Consumer Reports rates the various manufacturers and stove/cooktop models.
Besides their sleek appearance, the big appeal of smoothtops is ease of cleaning. There are no exposed burners and rings to trap spilled food. The surface also stays relatively cool during cooking. In addition, most units have a temperature limiter that prevents pans from burning if they accidentally boil dry. However, smoothtops can be pitted by sugary spills if they're not wiped up immediately.
Steve Elder is a Roanoke home inspector. Questions and comments may be sent to him in care of The Roanoke Times, P.O. Box 2491, Roanoke, Va. 24010-2491.
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