I wonder if the materials cost of induction is actually lower... resistance requires those heavy duty elements.
Hopefully induction will benefit from riding down the cost curve of power electronics. Same as EVs and Solar.
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Induction Stoves
- Thread starter nwdiver
- Start date
I wonder if the materials cost of induction is actually lower... resistance requires those heavy duty elements.
Hopefully induction will benefit from riding down the cost curve of power electronics. Same as EVs and Solar.
And it's instantly controllable as well. No different than gas in this respect. FWIW, mine is a Wolf cooktop. I'm not big on ranges--multitaskers seldom do well at both tasks.
If induction can boil water that fast with modest wattage rating I bet the power savings are meaningful over time.
Being in WI in winter any heat "leaked" to the house is fine now, but come summer reduced AC load when cooking would be welcome.
On the cast iron, I use mine on my kamado style grill, not just in the house. Lump charcoal can be used to pump a massive amount of heat into a pan without smoking up the house. Can be pretty nonstick without teflon and whatever else
Being in WI in winter any heat "leaked" to the house is fine now, but come summer reduced AC load when cooking would be welcome.
On the cast iron, I use mine on my kamado style grill, not just in the house. Lump charcoal can be used to pump a massive amount of heat into a pan without smoking up the house. Can be pretty nonstick without teflon and whatever else
This is a huge downside to gas stoves IMO. I've been using regular electric ranges for ages, but used a gas stove last time I was on vacation. The amount of heat blasting by the pot was very noticeable, along with the smell of gas, compared to a regular electric cooktop, and not appreciated when the kitchen is already plenty warm. I can only imagine how much nicer it'd be with induction.
Having had some issues recently with our gas range... Stupid Hot Surface Igniter resistance was getting higher, so consequently the oven would take 3 or more minutes to ignite and meanwhile smell of gas. How stupid is a design without a timeout on the controls. Having designed 6 million BTU burner control and management systems I was somewhat surprised to say the least! Well I replaced the HSI to fix it. But long story short; friends don't let friends buy Whirlpool. Also, since gas combustion creates byproducts not needed, we have started looking at induction range and I popped a 50Amp circuit in ready for when we find the right range!
Don't get the old Thermador with the burner simmer controller either. Gas burner that turns off and on and attempts to relight. Not good when the logic doesn't work out in its favor.
I bet most of the controls are made by the same set of folks.
Maybe if you cook a lot. I might use 20kWh per month cooking food. Induction saves < 20% so ~4kWh/mo? I think the increased power and control over resistance are the real selling points. And the fact spills don't cook into the surface.... and the fact it's impossible to catch anything on fire. So efficiency is #4 or 5 on the list but still a nice bonus
I received the Tramontina cook top and pots set from Costco today. I love it! Tramontina has been making pots and pans in Brazil since 1911 and they show it. They are excellent quality. Just the pots and pans are worth the entire price. The induction cooktop is well designed, is excellent quality and works like a dream.
I bought this set while I wait for covid to die down so I can have an induction range installed. But, damn, this is maybe all I need!
I paid $139. Costco is all out, Amazon is price gouging, ebay has some at $120, and the Tramontina website has them at $159.
Merrill
Merrill
I’m wondering the same thing, my problem is that I only have a 30amp breaker and most cooktops require a 40 or 50 amp breaker. Not sure what size wire was used on the 30 amp breaker and if it is not at least #8 wire I would need to pull another wire which will be very hard.
I just checked. Have a 40a breaker and a 14-50 plug.
We have an electric oven / gas burner stove with 40a required for the oven. The similar induction setup is a 50a breaker. I doubt the upsized the wire, so I’m probably out.
And we do really want to replace the stove.
36-Inch Pro Grand® Commercial Depth Dual Fuel Range - PRD364WIGU | THERMADOR
We have an electric oven / gas burner stove with 40a required for the oven. The similar induction setup is a 50a breaker. I doubt the upsized the wire, so I’m probably out.
And we do really want to replace the stove.
36-Inch Pro Grand® Commercial Depth Dual Fuel Range - PRD364WIGU | THERMADOR
If 40A is required for the oven they might have run #6 which is also sufficient for a 50A breaker. If your oven requires 40A it should really be on a 50A breaker not a 40A but I've seen a lot of professional electricians make that mistake... not sure why.
It does suck that there isn't like a dial on the stove to adjust to the circuit size like a HPWC has. If you only have a 30A breaker and are limited to 24A 99% of the time you'd never notice and the 1% of the time you did notice it really wouldn't be that big of a deal.... are you really going to care if it takes another 2 minutes to boil a couple cups of water WHILE you're cooking dinner AND roasting a turkey?
we have a wall oven on the other side. The stove just stores pans. So I definitely agree it needs some smarts and max current control.
I’ve got all romex and the jacket is trimmed back to the edge of the box so I’m not sure I’ll be able to tell anything.
I can assure you no professionals were involved when building our house
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Should be visible if you remove the cover on your breaker panel. They would have had to peal back the romex to terminate the Neutral and ground. Or... you're referring to the labeling on the Romex being gone? Might need to find a piece of #6 or #8 and just compare diameters...
hill
high fiber member
the savings are small compared to the cost difference of regular gas or electric - ESPECIALLY if your existing cook-top works just fine. Similarly - we have a 4 decade old dinosaur central air unit ... probably lowest seer made. But it runs fine. The rooftop PV pays for its inefficiency. Getting a new central AC would require us to stay in the house for well past a decade so it - like the induction cook top is a non starter. simple math.
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Yes, referring to the romex labeling being gone. It's pulled all the way back to the edge of the box on all the cables. They typically do not have marking on the individual conductors.
My current oven is rated for 30a per the manufactures instruction. No telling what they used.
in reality, I'll replace my propane water heater first... then consider this. We have community (monopoly) propane at super high prices. The stove isn't going to save me any money (until I get rid of all propane and stop the $25 meter fee) but the hot water heater should save me a bit.
Hmmm... not sure about that. Somewhat depends on how much you're gouged on the install but a newer HVAC unit could use half as much energy annually as your existing unit. So if your AC uses 15MWh/yr, reduce use by 50% and pay $0.15/kWh you're saving $1125/yr.
@hill I tend to look past pure utility bill. Few years ago we put in Fujitsu minisplits to replace high velocity AC system and baseboard electric heat. We have over $20k in that system. Don't really know what it saved us because less than a year later I bought the Tesla. The house is so much more comfortable and even it was worth it.
It is ok to buy things you want so long as you are financially in a good place.
It is ok to buy things you want so long as you are financially in a good place.
This one from Rachiele looks interesting. Doesn't say what amps are required for the 240V models, but you can call and find out. They're pretty friendly to talk to (I have one of their copper sinks--well worth it).
Ostrichsak
Well-Known Member
Not sure how I stumbled upon this thread but I'm glad I did. My wallet on the other hand....
I've been reading the last few pages and, short of throwing out our existing stove (I love the ovens it has... hate the glass stove top) I think this dual burner Tramontina set (formerly) sold at Costco might be our best option. A few places I can still score a set around retail price and it seems like a great and low-cost way to dip a toe in the induction cooking waters. (pun intended)
The two things holding me back are:
1) the obvious dead end of replacing our current cook top with some Frankenstein version that was made for an induction cook top. Even if I could somehow connect the power source to make it work I'm nearly 100% the controls wouldn't work as they use a different technology to "tell" the burner what to do. Maybe I could find a replacement part from the same manufacturer that has all of the controls on the surface but then I'd still be staring at knobs that were worthless and who wants that? In my heart of hearts I know that the correct way to do this would be to just buy a new stove and CL our existing one but that's not going to be a cheap delta given the presumed value of our decade-old stove even though it was an upgraded model at the time. Certainly would probably be worth it though in the long-run.
2) A few negative reviews on this particular double burner induction model. It seems as though some of the things I'm seeing popping up are:
*Adjustments: not granular enough adjustments with each one being roughly 30 degrees Fahrenheit which makes for one setting just below boiling and the next one up well above. Reviews state this makes it difficult to maintain a gentle boil w/o going full-tilt rolling. The option between those two is not boiling and violently boiling which sounds like a bad time considering how often you need the temperature right between those.
* Loud: The cooling fans and induction technology make for a loud addition to the kitchen. I realize that induction tends to make more noise but some seem to think this is quite a bit louder than they expected even for induction.
*Power: being 120-volt single-phase some claim that the time-to-boil really isn't that much different than a standard electric cook top with this particular model. They say that the larger 240v 40/50A versions do much better and bring water to a boil in a minute or two but this lesser powered version brings a performance level (time-to-boil that is) on par with traditional 240v electric glass cooktops.
I realize there's more advantages to this technology than just time-to-boil but it's a large reason why I'm considering it. Can those that have this Tramontina 80101/506DS specifically speak to these potential shortcomings and others I may have overlooked?
I've been reading the last few pages and, short of throwing out our existing stove (I love the ovens it has... hate the glass stove top) I think this dual burner Tramontina set (formerly) sold at Costco might be our best option. A few places I can still score a set around retail price and it seems like a great and low-cost way to dip a toe in the induction cooking waters. (pun intended)
The two things holding me back are:
1) the obvious dead end of replacing our current cook top with some Frankenstein version that was made for an induction cook top. Even if I could somehow connect the power source to make it work I'm nearly 100% the controls wouldn't work as they use a different technology to "tell" the burner what to do. Maybe I could find a replacement part from the same manufacturer that has all of the controls on the surface but then I'd still be staring at knobs that were worthless and who wants that? In my heart of hearts I know that the correct way to do this would be to just buy a new stove and CL our existing one but that's not going to be a cheap delta given the presumed value of our decade-old stove even though it was an upgraded model at the time. Certainly would probably be worth it though in the long-run.
2) A few negative reviews on this particular double burner induction model. It seems as though some of the things I'm seeing popping up are:
*Adjustments: not granular enough adjustments with each one being roughly 30 degrees Fahrenheit which makes for one setting just below boiling and the next one up well above. Reviews state this makes it difficult to maintain a gentle boil w/o going full-tilt rolling. The option between those two is not boiling and violently boiling which sounds like a bad time considering how often you need the temperature right between those.
* Loud: The cooling fans and induction technology make for a loud addition to the kitchen. I realize that induction tends to make more noise but some seem to think this is quite a bit louder than they expected even for induction.
*Power: being 120-volt single-phase some claim that the time-to-boil really isn't that much different than a standard electric cook top with this particular model. They say that the larger 240v 40/50A versions do much better and bring water to a boil in a minute or two but this lesser powered version brings a performance level (time-to-boil that is) on par with traditional 240v electric glass cooktops.
I realize there's more advantages to this technology than just time-to-boil but it's a large reason why I'm considering it. Can those that have this Tramontina 80101/506DS specifically speak to these potential shortcomings and others I may have overlooked?
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