Gas vs induction hobs - thoughts?

[SEnewbie]

Thinking of switching from gas to induction as sick of having to take apart the gas hob to clean!! Would love some feedback on induction hobs - - are they really comparable to gas?

Thanks ;)

[Saffron]

I would really highly recommend that you try cooking on induction hobs before committing. I have cooked on gas, conventional electric, and induction. Personally, I don't like induction at all, but a lot of people do really like it.

Some pros are that it's safe, efficient, and easy to clean. Some cons are that you need pans compatible with induction, or a converter plate (which cuts out the efficiency). It heats only marginally faster than modern electric hobs, and I didn't find that it's as easy to adjust as gas.

But maybe you will find that you like it? Best to try first! xx

[Monkey]

We have both and hubby loves induction so much that he says we didn't need the two gas hobs.

[Mrs D]

I really like our induction hob. Much easier to clean and I find it changes heat very quickly when turning it up/down. The only issue I have is that it split when husband dropped a jar of marmite on the edge of it :(. Still works though.

[devsdev]

Which induction hobs do people have? I really want to switch from electrical ceramic hob (nightmare for cooking!) but they're all so expensive!

[remainpower]

Love our induction hob. Once you get one, you'll never want another type of hob again. Clean, safe and tidy

[goldilocks]

We have induction - was reluctant to switch from gas, but its amazing. The heat is really really responsive - but it does depend on the hob. We have a Neff one, they are expensive but I think that the cheaper ones might have the problems Saffron noted. Sure which or somewhere must have a comparison though.

THe only thing I miss gas for is charring peppers and realistically I probably did that about twice in my life!

[Mrs D]

We have this one https://m.johnlewis.com/aeg-hk654200fb-induction-hob-black/p569577. Quite cheap but has been working well.

[SEnewbie]

Thanks so much for all the feedback ;)

[scareyt]

My MIL has an induction job and I hate it. It?s fiddly to change the temp and doesn?t feel ?real? to me. I want to turn a dial and instantly see a flame react rather than pressing buttons and guessing. I would play with one switched on before you choose to make sure it won?t annoy you.

[redjam]

I'm not a fan either - my parents have got one and it seems ridiculously complicated to use. Even the cleaning isn't straightforward as you have to use a special cloth. And you apparently can't use it as a useful space to rest a hot baking tray you take out of the oven as it damages it (don't know if that's my Mum's paranoia but that's what she tells me).

The worst thing is that you can't do what my mum calls the 'Jamie Oliver shake' when cooking, whereby you shake a stir-fry pan on the ring to turn the food - she did it one time and it short-circuited the whole thing and cost over ?200 to fix! So now my poor parents seem to live in terror of it, as do I. I stayed there recently and was very happy to come back to my battered old gas rings afterwards.

[fatcats]

Just don't store any heavy items in crowded cupboards above the induction hob! A spice jar for example falling from a height could smash the glass. It's happened to us twice now, why we didn't change the cupboard contents around, I'll never know.

Also our induction seems to get bits of food wedged between it and the worktop, the gap is so narrow that it's extremely difficult to clean.

Overall prefer induction though, in a small kitchen it can double up as an extra food prep surface and we rest hot trays on it all the time...will have to reread the instructions to make sure this isn't a big mistake! And we don't use any special cleaner just standard antibac cleaning spray.

[BeccaL]

We love ours - were debating getting gas put to kitchen for a gas hob when had kitchen redone but as builder pointed out gas isn't going to get any cheaper. Find it heats up/cools down very quickly - will boil a pan of water for potatoes quicker than daughter and I can peel the potatoes for 3 people. Only downside is need for new pans but Ikea have some very good, reasonably priced ones - you need to have a magnet with you when you go pan shopping to be sure! PM if any more queries.

[alex_b]

We have a Miele induction (6 zone) and it's fantastic. We got the one with a high power zone to allow high temperature cooking (e.g. stir fries). It heats up really quickly, doesn't stay hot (important for us with a young child) and it's much easier to clear up spills than our old gas hob. The one downside with the Miele is I find the touch controls a bit temperamental but my wife seems to have more luck with them.

We went back and forth over a 4 zone with a side gas wok burner or a six zone induction but went with the induction in the end and it has been fine.

Our kitchen person suggested we get a framed version (silver trim round the outside) rather than the flush fit. This makes it much easier get a good finish on the worktop and you don't get bits of food lodged like fatcats mentioned. It also contains spills making cleanups easier.

Our pans were already induction compatible with the exception of our old big soup pan, use a magnet on the bottom to test them.

[louloulabelle]

Apart from easier to clean I hate the induction hob we have now. Much preferred Gas. Its Ikea though I think so may just be a rubbish hob.

[Townleygreen]

Becca said

"were debating getting gas put to kitchen for a gas hob when had kitchen redone but as builder pointed out gas isn't going to get any cheaper."

Neither is electricity! That's a non-argument :-)

[missyelliott]

We debated on this and ended up with gas. I much prefer gas. We did however get our builders to put an electric line in just in case we changed our minds in the future. It didn't cost us anything.

Maybe worth considering for anyone undecided

[HannahSE23]

Gas every time. I really don't like induction hobs... my mother in law has one and I find them fiddly to use and not as responsive as gas. All that button pressing to get the right temperature... grrrr.

[goldilocks]

No button pressing for us - just slide your finger along the line and it increases (and shows numbers so you can gauge by how much). There are many reasons not to like an induction hob, but not all of them have annoying pressy buttons. (My MILs does though so maybe more common on older ones)