Modern home appliance stores have a huge selection of stoves for every taste. However, buyers often wonder which stove to buy - gas or induction. Many people choose a gas appliance. It is more common to use, and gas is cheaper than electricity. However, if you start to understand this issue more deeply, the situation will no longer be so clear. In terms of convenience and quality of cooking, many people prefer induction devices.
Which stove is better - gas, electric or induction - we'll figure it out in the article.
How much gas does a gas stove consume?
This type of stove has 4 burners + 1 in the oven. Each of them has its own power, which according to GOST is measured in kW. All parameters of the burners are specified in the product passport and differ depending on the model and the country that produced it. The total power of the burners is 10 kW.
Gas is measured in cubic meters. m/hour. Find the sum of the powers of 4 burners + 1 in the oven, divide by the calorific value of the gas, which is 8–11 kW*hour/cubic meter. m.
For example, a device has 2 medium burners, 1 with a low burner and 1 with a high burner for gas consumption. After mathematical operations of gas consumption with a 4-burner stove, we get the result: (0.6 kW+2.6 kW+1.7*2 kW) / 8 kW*hour/cubic meter. m=1.2 cubic meters m/hour. This indicator should be indicated in the instructions for the stove.
If documentation is missing, take an average of 1.2 to 2.5 cubic meters. m/hour. When the stove operates for approximately 1 hour every day per month, the fuel consumption will be: 1.2 cubic meters. m/hour*30 hours=36 cubic meters m.
Reference. When calculating, it does not matter whether liquefied or natural gas is used.
The meter will calculate gas consumption as accurately as possible. The stove, unlike the column and other appliances that consume gas, consumes it to a minimum. To select a meter, contact specialists who will calculate the throughput of all installed gas appliances and select the desired type. If the meter is incorrectly selected, the gas fee will be much higher.
Electric stove
This is a hob with electric burners in the form of heating plates. Typically these are spiral heaters covered with a layer of cast iron of varying diameters, which are controlled by traditional handles. Depending on the power of the heating element, there are standard and fast heating disks. Because they lack a uniform, flat surface, electric ranges are more difficult to clean, and conventional heating coils make them less economical than ceramic ones.
In addition, electric stoves do not have additional features such as timers, residual heat sensors or child protection. Despite this, they still find buyers due to their simplicity, ease of use and, above all, low price. Remember that the hob is equipped with a thermal switch that turns the power off and on once a certain temperature is reached to maintain a constant temperature.
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Another important feature is the lock against accidental activation, which allows you to lock the kitchen control . There are also plates with a sensor that reacts to the presence of a dish. Even if the stove is turned on, it will not start heating until cookware is placed on it. By choosing an electric stove, you get modern equipment that is easy to keep clean thanks to its flat, smooth surface.
How much electricity does an induction cooker consume?
One burner in an induction panel consumes about 1.5 kW/hour. How much electricity will be consumed monthly depends on the number of people in the family, the types of dishes prepared, and the frequency of operation.
There are some average values that are used in calculations. If you cook 3 times a day, two dishes for 15–20 minutes each, 20 min. x 0.025 kW/min. = 0.5 kW. Next, these kW are multiplied by the number of dishes and preparations per day: 0.5 kW x 2 x 3 = 3 kW (per day). For a month it will be: 3 kW x 30 = 90 kW. In money terms this is: 90 kW x 4 rubles. = 360 rub./month. (calculated approximately, since the cost of electricity in each region is different).
Attention! If electric stoves are installed centrally in an apartment building, then users are subject to a reduction factor on electricity bills. This is shown on the payment receipt.
Advantages and disadvantages of an induction cooker
Induction is a type of electric stove with a glass-ceramic hob. However, instead of cast iron heating elements, it has powerful induction coils.
With the inductive heating method, the current is generated from a high-frequency magnetic field (20-100 kHz). The work includes induction coils made of copper, which do not heat the burner: the heat interacts with the discs of the bottom of the cookware. The user sets the desired temperature, to which the dishes are heated, but the burner itself does not become hot.
Advantages of a stove with induction heating method:
- dishes and their contents heat up faster than on gas appliances;
- soot and soot do not form on pots and pans, surrounding furniture, and equipment located nearby;
- the panel is easy to clean - any dirt can be easily removed with a damp cloth;
- since the burner remains cold during operation, it is impossible to get burned on the panel;
- You can precisely set the heating mode;
- The panel turns off simultaneously with the removal of dishes, which saves electricity consumption.
Induction or gas stove, which is more economical? The answer is obvious - induction. And this is its main advantage.
But there are also disadvantages:
- Induction cookers are expensive. Repairing the panel and coils is expensive, and craftsmen who do it are not easy to find.
- You will need special dishes with a thick magnetic bottom.
- The glass ceramics from which the surface of the device is made splits from pinpoint impacts, for example, from a knife falling with the tip down.
- The device produces electromagnetic radiation that affects humans and devices. Therefore, the plates are installed at a distance of 50 cm from other devices. People with pacemakers are not allowed to cook with this appliance. Bank cards are demagnetized near the induction panel and smartphones are damaged.
Coordination and collection of necessary documents
The procedure for replacing a gas stove with an electric one is complicated not by the technical part, but by obtaining all the necessary permits and approvals. Without them, starting work is pointless: then it simply won’t be possible to legitimize it. The presence of a gas stove is indicated in the technical passport of the apartment, so it will not be possible to carry out the redevelopment without the involvement of specialists from various authorities.
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If you still decide to make a reconstruction, the procedure will be as follows:
- An application is written to the management company or housing office. Then this service contacts all the others, but it is quite possible that you will have to run through them yourself. It is better to prepare the reconstruction project in advance.
- You will have to pay a visit to the fire department: the Ministry of Emergency Situations issues permission to dismantle the gas equipment in the room and operate the electric stove.
- With a gas stove, 5 kW of electricity is supplied to the apartment. When installing an electric stove, it must be increased to 10 kW. Accordingly, this is agreed upon both with the manager.
- As a rule, owners of electric stoves pay for electricity at a lower tariff. But there are nuances here: when re-registering, you need to get the support of 2/3 of the residents of the house, and this is often the most difficult thing. People do not always have a positive attitude towards this kind of redevelopment, and collecting the necessary signatures takes weeks. A new meter will also be needed, the installation of which is again agreed upon with the electricity supplier.
And only after going through the long and thorny path of obtaining a package of necessary documents, they begin to replace the stove.
Advantages and disadvantages of a gas stove
A gas stove is a familiar appliance to many. Nowadays, they are used when the house is connected to the gas main. There are many such houses in Russia. In addition, gas stoves are used in private homes, connecting the devices to cylinders.
Advantages of gas devices:
- are an order of magnitude cheaper than induction options;
- gas also costs less and is consumed more slowly than electricity;
- Any utensil can be used for cooking with blue fuel – you won’t have to change it when you buy a new device.
However, the number of minuses outweighs the pluses:
- The gas is explosive, so systems need to be regularly checked for leaks.
- If during repairs the stove is moved to a new location, this is considered an element of redevelopment that needs to be legalized by the gas service.
- To clean the work surface, use special products purchased from household chemicals departments. The panel remains hot for a long time, it is impossible to wash it right away, so food particles and grease dry out quickly. It will take effort to remove such stains.
- If there is no hood above the stove, soot will form on the equipment and objects located nearby.
What are the benefits of gas stoves and hobs?
A traditional gas stove is easy to install: the old appliance is removed from the room and a new one is installed in its place.
Attention! Only specialists from the gas service connect hoses to the stove.
The stove holds heavy pots on the panel, and the built-in oven stores pots/pans/ladles instead of a cupboard.
Each stove has a lid. If it is lowered and covered, for example, with a tablecloth, the stove becomes an additional work surface in the kitchen.
With today's wide selection of cooking appliances, housewives skillfully combine them. For example, they buy an electric oven and install a hob for daily cooking. This gas surface is compact in thickness, so it can be mounted on any countertop. There remains a space underneath where they make a cabinet with shelves and drawers. This is an ideal solution for small kitchens.
Hobs always have an aesthetic appearance. There is an option for any kitchen design - modern, high-tech, classic. Induction panels are easy to clean: they are wiped daily with a soft cloth, as they are most often made of tempered glass or glass ceramics.
The panel is an independent device; it does not have to be located above the oven. If there is no need, do not purchase an oven at all.
