Gas versus electric stove top

[Lilsia]

My mom refuses to cook on my gas stove (I also have a gas oven too but have a spill mat so she's not as worried) due to her thoughts on safety.

I kinda just employ normal safety things such as no having loose items like roomy sleeves (from a robe or something) and things hanging down. I totally get the children aspect. So far I've been cooking with gas for over 6 1/2 years total and though there aren't kids around it would be pretty difficult for a toy at least with ours to somehow make it into the flame itself with pots and pans on them at the time. We don't let an open flame just sit there.

We, and everyone we knew grew up with a gas stove. It was never an issue because our parents made sure that we knew the dangers of it. I guess it is just like any other danger in the house like 2nd story windows, etc. I think back to the stories that my grandma told me of how they had a dirt floor that her mom dug into to store the vegetables and how they had just an open fireplace to cook on. They all seemed to survive.

 

[Minnie1222]

I switched from Gas to Induction over 10 years ago and love it. Things heat up fast and it is super easy to clean. The only bad thing that happened was a houseguest dropping a (thankfully empty) cast iron pot on the surface causing a fracture, not on the cooking surface, but at the junction where the glass rim met the counter. There was no way to mend the glass and the entire cooktop had to be replaced due to cosmetic reason.

 

[Lumpy1106]

Gas all the way - it's not even up for debate. You know how people say, "they don't make things like they used to"? TRUTH! We have one of these - built in 1958, still works flawlessly (except the clock - the clock never worked);

 

[wvjules]

Lumpy, I love that!

 

[fly girl]

That's a specific type of electric range though to get the flat surface.

Majority of the ones I see are these style:
View attachment 446783

I believe you're talking about this style though:
View attachment 446784

I did say "if it is" a flat surface. I am on my 2nd flat surface. When we remodeled our kitchen a few years back I think most of the ones being sold nowadays are the flat surface kind.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I did say "if it is" a flat surface. I am on my 2nd flat surface. When we remodeled our kitchen a few years back I think most of the ones being sold nowadays are the flat surface kind.

Must depend on area. Majority I see are non-flat. Who knows.

 

[smiths02]

I do think my in-laws' stove is so much easier to clean. My mother-in-law much prefers electric.

The other thing that I prefer about gas is that the electricity goes out from time to time (never really a long time, but at least a few times a year we will lose power for several hours) whereas we have never had the gas go out. So we can generally cook.

 

[NotUrsula]

I’ve recently started using gas for the first time after having used electric my whole life. I know gas is supposed to be the superior option but I loathe it and would go running back to electric in a heartbeat if given the chance. It seems to take so much longer to get to temperature, it’s harder to clean, and I just don’t feel safe having open flames around splattering oil and small children. I keep envisioning the whole place burning to the ground thanks to a stray toy landing on the stove while I’m cooking. Every meal is stressful!

I know this is opposite to the experience you’re looking for, but I thought I would just chime in to say that you won’t necessarily adjust (or adjust quickly) if you don’t like the change. I’ve been using the gas for months and I still hate it.

IME, children suffer burns from electric cooking surfaces more often than from open flames, precisely because a gas fire does have a visible open flame. Actual FIRE is always hot, and always recognizable as such, whereas a low-heat burner on an electric stove looks the same whether it is turned on and hot, or turned off and not hot. Also, electric stove elements tend to stay hot longer, whereas gas burners cool very quickly once the fire is turned off. You can pass your hand through a flame quickly with no harm at all, but if you mistakenly touch a hot electric heating element, your skin will always burn.

As to stray toys, if something plastic burns, it really doesn't matter what kind of heat did it; it will still out-gas very nasty fumes. FWIW, we ban most toys from the kitchen precisely because they are a trip hazard while carrying hot things; my kids know that if it is left behind and gets under foot or is found on a counter in the kitchen where I'm working, it's mine to do with as I wish, and is going straight into the trash.

I am always going to prefer gas. It is nearly always cheaper, and I like the ability to fine-tune the heat by sight. More importantly, having grown up in hurricane country, I know it will still be there and usable after any storm.

For the OP, if there are gas lines serving the street, I'd look into having it run to the house. You would probably recoup the cost fairly quickly in terms of lower heating bills.

 

[TipsyTraveler]

IME, children suffer burns from electric cooking surfaces more often than from open flames, precisely because a gas fire does have a visible open flame. Actual FIRE is always hot, and always recognizable as such, whereas a low-heat burner on an electric stove looks the same whether it is turned on and hot, or turned off and not hot. Also, electric stove elements tend to stay hot longer, whereas gas burners cool very quickly once the fire is turned off. You can pass your hand through a flame quickly with no harm at all, but if you mistakenly touch a hot electric heating element, your skin will always burn.

As to stray toys, if something plastic burns, it really doesn't matter what kind of heat did it; it will still out-gas very nasty fumes. FWIW, we ban most toys from the kitchen precisely because they are a trip hazard while carrying hot things; my kids know that if it is left behind and gets under foot or is found on a counter in the kitchen where I'm working, it's mine to do with as I wish, and is going straight into the trash.

I am always going to prefer gas. It is nearly always cheaper, and I like the ability to fine-tune the heat by sight. More importantly, having grown up in hurricane country, I know it will still be there and usable after any storm.

For the OP, if there are gas lines serving the street, I'd look into having it run to the house. You would probably recoup the cost fairly quickly in terms of lower heating bills.

I’m not worried about my kid burning himself as much as I am about an accidental fire started by the open flame. He’s not allowed in the kitchen, period, when I’m cooking, but two year olds don’t always listen and it can be difficult to enforce when I’m by myself trying to juggle him while keeping an eye on three active burners. Even when he’s not in the kitchen, that hasn’t stopped the occasional stuffed animal from coming bouncing across the counter from the living room. Another thing I forgot to mention in my first post was that the flames blow to the side with the air currents in the house, so I have to be extra cautious to keep items well clear of the stove along the sides. These are not issues I had to worry about prior to having gas and as such, electric is my preference. I couldn’t care less about the cost, I’d rather have convenience and, IMO, electric was easier to deal with. Personal preference.

 

[kdonnel]

I forgot to mention in my first post was that the flames blow to the side with the air currents in the house

If you have air currents that strong without an open window or door, you should take a look at why. It must make heating and cooling tremendously expensive!

 

[TipsyTraveler]

If you have air currents that strong without an open window or door, you should take a look at why. It must make heating and cooling tremendously expensive!

I’m just temporarily renting while looking for a house, so as far as I’m concerned the air currents are not my problem to figure out.

 

[wvjules]

The glasstop worries me way more than gas. My worry with my glasstop is that it stays hot for so long. When gas is off, it's off and cools quickly.

 

[tvguy]

I’ve recently started using gas for the first time after having used electric my whole life. I know gas is supposed to be the superior option but I loathe it and would go running back to electric in a heartbeat if given the chance. It seems to take so much longer to get to temperature, it’s harder to clean, and I just don’t feel safe having open flames around splattering oil and small children. I keep envisioning the whole place burning to the ground thanks to a stray toy landing on the stove while I’m cooking. Every meal is stressful!

I know this is opposite to the experience you’re looking for, but I thought I would just chime in to say that you won’t necessarily adjust (or adjust quickly) if you don’t like the change. I’ve been using the gas for months and I still hate it.

You local gas and electric rates would be a huge factor, but where I am my heating bills would be double what they are now if I had gas heat. I live in P.G&E gas service area, a for profit utility. Our electric service is a publicly owned, not for profit utility. So that may be the difference.
I guess it depends on your preference and experience, but I had a gas stove for 3 years in college and no matter how low I set the flame, the food in the middle of the pan burned. I find electric stove far easier to regulate. My wife loves to bake so she prefers electric. When we visit friends, she frequently bakes for them, but if they have a gas stove, it always seems to be too hot or too cool and the baked goods don't come up right.

 

[arminnie]

I grew up cooking on a gas stove - but it was very old and you had to use a match to start a burner. I hated it. I loved just having to turn a knob with electric.

As I primarily lived in apartments or condos that did not have gas I happily existed with electricity for about 20 years. Then I bought a house that had a gas stove that again was probably from the 40s and required a match to light a burner - total bummer.

Back to electricity for many years due to no gas availability. We now have two homes. Our condo in New Orleans is electric only. Our lake house in Arkansas has a gas stovetop and electric oven. We deal with both. I do appreciate not having to use a match to light a burner. That was not okay.

 

[NotUrsula]

I grew up cooking on a gas stove - but it was very old and you had to use a match to start a burner. I hated it. I loved just having to turn a knob with electric.

As I primarily lived in apartments or condos that did not have gas I happily existed with electricity for about 20 years. Then I bought a house that had a gas stove that again was probably from the 40s and required a match to light a burner - total bummer.

Back to electricity for many years due to no gas availability. We now have two homes. Our condo in New Orleans is electric only. Our lake house in Arkansas has a gas stovetop and electric oven. We deal with both. I do appreciate not having to use a match to light a burner. That was not okay.

In this case, your issue with gas cooking wasn't the fuel source, but the appliances you were using with it. Newer American stoves (as in, less than 40 years old) have piezoelectric starters, so you *do* just have to turn a knob -- if the power is working. If it isn't, you still have the backup option of lighting the gas appliance with a match; a workaround that electric appliances don't offer.

 

[bballmom56]

Grew up with gas for 30 years. We moved to an area without natural gas, so we have had electric for 30 years now. Propane is an option for some houses here, but we don't have it. We have oil heat.

When we re-did our kitchen, we went with a new GE induction cooktop. I had to get all new pots and pans as mine were aluminum. It worked very well for 3 years. Then it stopped working. DH researched and it would have cost more to fix it than a new electric one and it seemed to have a history of having problems. So we replaced the 3 year old $1200 induction cooktop with a new regular electric cooktop for $400. Oh and I had to replace it with a GE model because otherwise we would have had to cut a bigger opening in the quartz countertop if I got a different brand. But at least I can use any type of cookware on it now, not just magnetic.

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

I have only used electric because that is what has been available to me.

 

[MrsCobraBubbles]

I moved from cooking with gas for my whole life to a townhouse with electric stove/oven and I HATE IT! I've been here about a year and I still can't cook or bake things correctly--everything is either burned or overcooked, and many things end up being a combo of burned on the outside and raw inside.

 

[mrodgers]

That seems like a recipe for disaster!

I would never store items on my cooktop, electric or gas. You never know when someone or something might accidentally turn on a burner/element.

The controls for electric are up on top on the back panel and not in front like a gas stove. It's not really easy to accidentally turn one on without knowing. They also have LED lights to tell you they are still hot.


If I had to go back to electric, I would immediately replace with induction. I grew up with gas and my ex wife grew up with electric. Started out in a mobile home with gas and she was afraid of it. Was in the house 15 years when we divorced and I hated any kind of cooking on electric. The glasstop was nice for electric, a big improvement in just about every aspect, but I still hated it.

Now I have propane except that I ran out, couldn't get anyone to call back and the furnace went out as well so couldn't get the propane refilled as a furnace is a lot more expensive and not being 4° over my Christmas break was more important than cooking on a stove, LOL. I have one of those single induction burners and though it still isn't as nice as gas, it is very nice to work with with my cast iron pans.

 

[RUDisney]

Oh, the irony of your lifelong stove issues, @arminnie.