Roper gas range help ;)

[weed30]

Thanks in advance for helping with my many posts - hoping this is the last one!

A few days ago I posted about a Tappan:  https://www.automaticwasher.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?98078

 

I also have an option to get this Roper - I thought it was another broiler on the floor but it's in the oven, so that's great! The first photo is of a similar Roper to show the black front. I didn't get a shot of that.

 

The bottom of the oven looks odd to me. Instead of the usual openings along the edges of the oven floor where you would normally see flames, there is a raised area. Hard to describe but it's photo #6, right after the name/model plate photo.

 

The broiler is at the top of the oven but there isn't a storage drawer at the base, it has a flip down panel with an empty space on the left and then some kind of power thing on the right. I've included a link to the video they sent me, it's not great but you can see what I'm talking about at the end. I also took pictures of it - photo #8 is the left 'empty' side, and photo #9 is the right side that has some kind of power box with something plugged into it.

 

Lastly, picture #4 is the top edge of the panel. It's chrome but doesn't look great. No rust, but some type of discoloration/marring. Can I hope that those could be polished out pretty easily?

 

Again, thanks for your help and knowledge. I know these aren't exciting ranges but I needed a 30" that has electronic ignition and has at least a little design worthiness. (compared to new models).

 

Link to video that the seller sent me:

 

 

 

[goatfarmer]

Raised area is an access panel, to get to the ignitor, burner valve, etc. Built before the WP buyout.

 

[weed30]

thanks

Do you know anything about the weird setup at the bottom where the storage drawer should be?

 

[weed30]

Comparing...

Looking at the tags, both ranges have four 9000 btu cooktop burners, not great but I can deal with it since I very rarely need a high output burner to boil/fry/sear.

 

The Roper has an 18k btu oven burner and a 16k btu waist high broiler burner. 

 

The Tappan tag says it has a 10k upper oven burner and an 18k lower oven burner.

 

This doesn't make sense to me since the Tappan broiler is in the drawer at the bottom - why would the broiler have 18k and the upper (main) oven only have 10k? Or am I interpreting it wrong and the main oven has 18k and the broiler 10k?

 

 

 

[combo52]

80s roper, self cleaning gas range

The Tappan range is simpler. The roper range is a little more complicated, but a better design both are about equal and overall quality.

The roper range has a slightly smaller oven but because it’s self cleaning it’s far more energy efficient. It’s designed to operate efficiently at 900° so it’s loafing when it’s baking.

The Roper has the gas valve and timer, etc. underneath the range that tilt down panel allows for the storage of the broiler pan, but there wasn’t room to put a full drawer under the range.

The floor in the roper oven is a better design because spills don’t go down to the broiler compartment. It has a lift out lower cover that covers the burner and the igniter.

Of the two I would get the roper, but I’m a repair guy the tapping is simpler and probably easier to keep working, there’s a few unique parts in the roper that would be hard to get if you had a problem, but it’s unlikely.

It’s too bad you don’t have the option for an electric range. Almost any electric range would be better than either one of these there were so many great electric ranges made over the past 70+ years.

If I was looking for a slightly vintage 30 inch gas range, I would look first at a caloric, or a real GE gas range after about 1990. They were the best quality of modern gas ranges with electronic ignition.

John L

 

[weed30]

Great info as usual John.

I would LOVE to get an electric range but the way my 1950 home was built makes it hard to get 220 to the kitchen. I had two reputable guys out and both explained the issues: The panel is in the Southeast corner of the house and the kitchen is in the Northwest corner. In between those two points are some tough challenges to run the power that would necessitate a domino effect of tearing parts of the ceiling out and it's not an easy ceiling to get out or replace. (basement finished in the 50's) Also a bunch of X shaped wood between the basement stringers. (?) It's weird down there!

 

What about the BTUs on the Tappan oven and the floor-drawer broiler? Which is 18k btus and which is 10k?

 

Thank you

 

[combo52]

Tappan gas range broiler, I’m assuming when they say 10,000 BTUs for the broiler and 16,000 BTUs for the bake burner they’re talking about ranges that have a separate broiler in the oven if there’s no broiler in the top of the oven, that does not apply to this stove, kind of sloppy labeling, but we see things like that all the time.

John L

 

[circlew]

Wiring for range

Would it be possible to run the wiring in conduit that is surface mounted?

Why do you feel it would be difficult to tear out your basement ceiling? My house had 12" square acoustical tile on furring strips over 4'x 8' sheets of Upson Board, which was nailed to the joists. I took out the tile in one 10'x 12' section myself in about an hour. One of my buddies came over the next day, and we tore out the rest down to the joists (about 12'x 28') in less than three hours. Drywall would probably take a little longer, and of course plaster would be much more time consuming and messy. Upstairs I tore out over 10,000 lbs. of plaster over rock lath, mostly myself, so it's doable if you're in good physical condition.

 

[weed30]

good physical condition...

ha! I am a woman in my mid 60s who is definitely not up to that task (o_o)