Pros and cons of new vs old ranges..

[norgeway]

I have always had old an old range of some sort or another, but have recently got the itch to have a new one for daily use,a self cleaning oven would be nice and a smooth top sure seems like it would be easier to keep clean, but I also know how sorry things are made now, what does everyone here think???

 

[mixfinder]

Young Whipper Snapper

I think the weakest link in new ranges are the control membranes used for oven and timed settings.  I was surprised to learn they can sent to a shop for repair and for $100.00 bucks you're back in service should the oven controler fail. Materials used for bake elements and oven construction aren't so different than older ones.  If you buy a self cleaning oven with porcelain coated racks they can go though the self cleaning cycle and come out like new.  Convection baking triples the usable oven capacity as well as reducing cooking temperatures and times while producing even baked goods.  Smooth tops are easier to clean and newer technology makes them as fast as coil burners.  If you are an afficiendo of cast iron it is recommended not to use them on smooth top ranges.  They iron can super heat the glass top and cause it to crack or adhere to the pan base.  If you're going to go for broke I'd really encourage an induction top with convection oven.  You can use cast iron and any pan a magnet adheres to but Guardian Service would remain on the shelf.  Why not pick up a new used version of a smooth top and try it out.  I really liked the way my GE bakes and I have used Patrick's Frigidaire and it works flawlessly.

 

[maytagbear]

I really like my new range

 

It was installed (by the selling dealer's crew) in March of this year.  I have cooked and baked a lot with it.  When the outside temperature drops some more, to the 70s F, I am going to poke the buttons for the clean cycle a third time.

 

 

I do worry about the control chip, but will burn that bridge when I cross it.  Again, this gas Whirlpool has everything I wanted, and nothing I did not want.  It's well designed, versatile, and easy to clean.

 

 

It was a momentary challenge to get used to poking a membrane to control the oven, instead of turning dials, but that was easy enough to get used to.

 

 

I agree-- older ranges were built more heavily, but as long as a gas range has the AGA seal, and an electric has the UL seal, I'm not too worried at all.

 

 

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[henry200]

I'm not technophobic

I would be lost without my computer and my Blackberry is wonderful.  But, my analog soul rebels against a lot of the digital wizardry that has turned simple tasks like baking a cake or washing clothes into a NASA space shuttle launch.  I like the tactile sensation of turning a dial, pushing a button or flipping a toggleswitch.   Cooking is for me a kind of "Zen" experience which is not enhanced by beeping, tweeting, flashing lights and text messages.  It's an oven for crying out loud, not my Blackberry!

 

I will say though that there are a number of things I would really appreciate and enjoy taking full advantage of with a modern range.   A friend of mine has a Whirlpool smooth top and it's nothing short of marvelous.  There are two "dual" units which on "high" can bring a large pot of water to a rapid boil incredibly fast.  The heat can be turned from raging inferno down to a seductively slow simmer instantly.  Wiping up drips and spills is a cinch, and even an inch away from a hot burner the surrounding surface remains cool to touch.  I have had a couple self-cleaning ovens over the years and they were great not only for the easy of cleaning but they also seemed to delivery better baking and roasting results, probably due to the increased insulation and effective door gasket.  A good convection oven is a godsend for cranking out multiple pans of uniformly finished cookies or cake layers in one batch. 

 

 

 

 

 

[appnut]

hans, I think GE probably has the nicest of any of the std. name brand induction ranges.  Has the porcelain racks which can go through a self-clean cycle, convection, the oven even has a meat temperature probe (which I like), has a warming drawer.  I think GE still makes one of thebest quality ranges around. Now the induction, you can use the casst iron cookware, just be a bit careful and don't slide it around.  I'm sure a lot of your old cookware is magnetic.  Just test with a magnet. 

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[gmmcnair]

I Can Second the GE Ranges

My mother's new range is a GE standard coil top. It has the even bake system in the oven along with the electronic thermostat, and it works flawlessly It cooks and bakes circles around her old 1970s Kenmore, even when it was in its prime. Next year, at tax time, one of them will replace my Fridgemore range with its manual clean (ugh) oven. I doubt I get a smoothtop or an induction, since I still use cast iron and Guardian Service regularly, along with Visions cookware.

 

[appnut]

Mike, I"m sure I"ll get a GE coil top eventually to replace my 1984 Hotpoint slide-in coil.  GE does make a coil model with the porcelain racks, which would be my option.   I believe Elevtrolux won't let you run a self-clean cycle unless it senses the racks have been removed. 

 

[amyswasher]

I love my GE smooth top range. I boil-over a bunch of times. All I have to do is wipe it off. Oven is great too. The oven even has a Sabbath feature(I'm not even Jewish). It's the best range I've ever used. The top and side stay cool no matter how long I use it. I freak out people when I put my hand on the right element and turn it on and stay the same temp as my hand.

 

[rp2813]

Bob, you are correct about Electrolux requiring the racks to be removed before the self-clean cycle can start.  That is the case on our Electrolux Icon dual fuel 36" range. 

 

We debated on going vintage, but I decided I didn't want to have to clean an oven.  The range we ended up with has an industrial look with big knobs.  I hate touchpads, membranes or otherwise, and agree with the NASA rocket launch remark.  Indeed, our range doesn't even have a timer.  It knows how to time the self-clean cycle, but there is no minute timer, no auto-bake or roast function for the oven, it's just a good solid and wonderfully simple range -- and the racks are on glides!

 

Here's a picture of it, although from across the room.

 

 

[roto204]

Neat range

That is a neat range, Ralph--I was surprised as I thought it was a gas oven, and then when the rack glided right out, I remember looking up and saying, "Oh, look, it has Roll-To-You™ racks!"  

 

[arbilab]

Old electrics had step heat. Between which element was on, 120/240, series and parallel. H was 240 both elements parallel. Med H was only one element 240. Med was both elements parallel 120. Med L was one element 120. Low/Sim was 120 both elements series.

New electrics have one element and a continuously variable heat knob that duty cycles like a microwave does.

Had a ceramic top once, constant chore to keep clean. The slightest spatter turned to burned-on soil that had to be abraded off with a specific and expensive polish.

That I know of, we've lost the temp-sense burners in both electric and gas. Seemed like a good idea.

 

[philr]

"<a name="start_35722.532872">Old electrics had step heat."</a>

 

Did all brands used to have that?


I think that brands like GE and Tappan still had these in the early sixties but my 1960 and 1962 Frigidaire ranges have infinite switches like newer ranges.

 

When were infinite switches introduced?

 

[norgeway]

Infinite heat

My 55 Norge has infinite heat, but as far as I know, universal had it first in the late 40s.

 

[arbilab]

I wasn't paying enough attention to say when the switch to infinite was complete or when it started. I 'learned' on a step so once the infinites came out I used mostly the same settings, but also the settings between the labeled ones. Like, rice cooks at warm and a half once it's boiling. I also used a lot of apartment ranges and while infinite may have been available at the time, the discount lines stuck with step longer.