Come and tell me about Induction Hobs

[MrsAlwaysRight]

Been to see kitchen planner today, he has suggested getting an induction hob. This is not something I'd considered as I've always used gas. Can anyone let me know about them? Thanks

[Twinsmommy]

OMG - if you have always used gas, DON'T GET AN INDUCTION HOB!!!!

I got talked into one by my DH who spent ages singing its praises - telling me how safe it would be having twin boys in the house, etc, etc, but I grew up with gas and was used to gas.

If you want to fry an egg - you can't tilt the saucepan as the connection is then lost and you lose the heat to the pan IMMEDIATELY.

The pan has to fit the ring size on the hob, otherwise it doesn't come on.

You can't use any old saucepan on them - you have to use induction-only saucepans - which tend to be more expensive than any regular saucepans - especially if you are looking for non-stick saucepans.

They may look nice, and are easy to clean, but, TBH, I absolutely HATE the thing and would change back to gas in an instant if it were an option in our house.

And as for the safety around the children thing, if you instill in your children the dangers of the kitchen, then I don't see what the problem is. My boys are taught to not enter the kitchen when mommy is cooking and to NEVER touch the oven or hob.

Men, I find, are all for encouraging the induction hob. Like, they are all for Dysons too - another pain in my derriere!!!!! But don't get me started on that one!!!!

[penona]

Oooh, I was thinking of getting one of these. My mum has one (after electric for years) and I really love it. Have always had gas myself, so it does take some getting used to. It is super quick, can boil a pan of water much quicker than a kettle, so takes some getting used to. Things can quickly boil over. But they also cook quicker, more efficiently. Is much easier to clean and keeps looking new for longer than gas. Is much safer with kids/cats as the heat disappears v quickly when off, and can't (easily) turn on accidentally.

Am intrigued to see what others say, as I was going to go for one based on using it my mums. Will fry an egg when next there and see!

[MrsAlwaysRight]

Thanks Twinsmommy and penona!

[mermaidspurse]

Hi, I nearly went for one, much less energy used and much cleaner than gas which upsets asmatics interestingly. I looked at Caple and CDA really nice quality but £££££££. I have to admit I stayed with gas for that reason.

[MrsMills]

I love my induction hob, but then again there are no (or vvvvvvv few) gas hobs available here, so choice is limited.

It works ona magnetic basis, so that if the connection between the pan and hob is removed then it automatically turns off after a few seconds, BUT mine turns straight back on when the pan is put down on it.

I suppose it just takes a bit of getting used to but I find it much more sensitive than electric.

[catkinq]

I'd always used gas until we moved somewhere with out gas and much prefer our induction hob. I use all shapes and sized saucepans on it with no problem. they do have to be cast iron or steel but most saucepans are anyway these days. Also it is dead easy to clean, incredibly fast and loads safer (I think) than anything else.
Catkinq

[PacificDogwood]

I love my induction hob and would chose it again in a flash:

• very very fast, boils anything faster than gas
• very easy to regulate temperature v acurately
• very easy to clean
• energy efficient as power cuts off immediately as soon as you remove pan from hob and only size of bottom of pan will get heated, so small pan on large "ring" will not get hot outside the bottom of the pan.

Downsides:
-not cheapest option
-you need pots and pans with "ferrous" bases, ie containing iron to allow the magnetic thingymajingy to work (don't really understand it, it's all White Magic to me ). Mine are a set bought in 1996 from Marks+Spencers, not expensive and work fine.

I think the greater debate is whether you are an electricity or gas girl. I was used to electric hobs and was totally lost when confronted with having to cook on gas.
Get a kitchen centre to demonstrate an induction hob for you; that's what swung it for me.

[MrsAlwaysRight]

Many Thanks for the replies!

[Twinsmommy]

Having read all the replies, MrsAlwaysRight - if I had the choice between an induction or an electric hob - it would be induction all the way!!!! I just FAR prefer gas to induction!