# Should I buy an Induction hob?



## Fab Foodie (15 Nov 2019)

Dears

Currently we have one of those 5 burner gas hobs, you know, the one with the big wok-ring in the middle. To be honest, as hobs go it's not great, control is poor and at very low settings the small burner often gets blown-out. It's also a pain to clean. I've threatened to replace it many times.

When I was up in the Outer Hebs. I used my friends Induction hob and was pretty damned impressed! Apparently it's also the eco-choice as well being low power/high efficiency and of course not burning gas.
In terms of pots and pans, we have a few copper bottom ones and the odd aluminium pan that we won't be able to use, other than that we have some Stainless heavy-bottomed pans and a myriad of cast-iron skillets and casseroles. Also have a large Typhoon steel wok which is an essential that must work!

So, what are people's experience of Induction hobs (in particular vs. gas hobs)?


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## neil_merseyside (15 Nov 2019)

Fab Foodie said:


> Dears
> 
> Currently we have one of those 5 burner gas hobs, you know, the one with the big wok-ring in the middle. To be honest, as hobs go it's not great, control is poor and at very low settings the small burner often gets blown-out. It's also a pain to clean. I've threatened to replace it many times.
> 
> ...


I'm not the cook in this house but I do get to play with the induction hob occasionally - much, much finer control than the previously good gas hob, also you can use a small pan on any bigger ring- no licking flame, no waste. So the fine control is well erm fine... 
Hob stays hot by conduction for a little while (much less than old days, and I doubt skin would actually stick!) but the hob will have warning light that illuminates until well after the surface is touch safe.
Check any pans before scrapping as some pans encapsulate a big lump of iron for cheap thermal mass, we have two virtually identical ally pans that work fine as they have encapsulated iron cores, one is labelled as such, the other not.
You can get an adapter plate for copper pans - an iron ring for the pan to sit on, these might be a bit scratchy on the surface though if not careful, as ever lift not drag.


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## sleuthey (15 Nov 2019)

If your current hob allows you to cook fab food then there is no need to replace it. My experience of them is that I don't need one. If I perfected every appliance and fixture in my house id have nothing left to spend on my bike


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## uphillstruggler (15 Nov 2019)

a mate of mine has one but I cant get on with it

they like it though. horses for courses I suppose

that is actually no help whatsoever


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## Levo-Lon (15 Nov 2019)

no, pita and you need special pans ect.
they dont like big pans that need lots of heat i believe.

the one we used on holiday was ok i guess after we figured out how to make it heat.

but i hated it


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## Oldfentiger (15 Nov 2019)

meta lon said:


> no, pita and you need special pans ect.
> they dont like big pans that need lots of heat i believe.
> 
> the one we used on holiday was ok i guess after we figured out how to make it heat.
> ...


No gas where we live, so always had an electric hob.
We had to replace the cooker a year ago, and chose one with an induction hob.
Brilliant bit of kit. Instant heat, minutely controllable.
Easy to keep clean. Those are the pro’s.......can’t think of any con’s tbh.
Most of the pans we owned were induction compatible, and I wouldn’t describe any of them as special.


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## Fab Foodie (15 Nov 2019)

sleuthey said:


> If your current hob allows you to cook fab food then there is no need to replace it. My experience of them is that I don't need one. If I perfected every appliance and fixture in my house id have nothing left to spend on my bike


As I do all the cooking, it's my most used appliance, so it's a pain if it's not that great to use and hard to clean. Also we don't have much worktop space, so being flat I can also put a chopping board on for extra preparation space etc...when not hot (obvs.).
I'm worth it ;-))


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## Fab Foodie (15 Nov 2019)

neil_merseyside said:


> I'm not the cook in this house but I do get to play with the induction hob occasionally - much, much finer control than the previously good gas hob, also you can use a small pan on any bigger ring- no licking flame, no waste. So the fine control is well erm fine...
> Hob stays hot by conduction for a little while (much less than old days, and I doubt skin would actually stick!) but the hob will have warning light that illuminates until well after the surface is touch safe.
> Check any pans before scrapping as some pans encapsulate a big lump of iron for cheap thermal mass, we have two virtually identical ally pans that work fine as they have encapsulated iron cores, one is labelled as such, the other not.
> You can get an adapter plate for copper pans - an iron ring for the pan to sit on, these might be a bit scratchy on the surface though if not careful, as ever lift not drag.


Thanks, are scratches an issue other than aesthetics/cleaning?


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## Sharky (15 Nov 2019)

We spent the last 3 years mulling over cookers. We had an all electric with a ceramic hob. The main problem we had with the old one was that it was warn out (after about 17 years) and the oven was unreliable. We eventually got a rangemaster with a ceramic hob and really impressed by it.

We almost got an induction hob, but the price difference turned us off it and the probable need to upgrade the electric supply to a 45 amp.

Probably doesn't concern us fit cyclists, but there is a rumour that induction hobs can affect heart pacemakers and at my age …….. you can never tell.


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## Broadside (15 Nov 2019)

I would like an induction hob but our current gas hob is just too handy with a deep well that catches the contents of the pans as they boil over, which is a common occurrence with me 😀

I think some of the smarter induction hobs have some sort of boil over sensing but I could be making that up.


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## AuroraSaab (15 Nov 2019)

I like our induction hob because it's instant heat and so easy to clean. Ikea do cheap induction pans or the Scoville ones at Asda are very good and often half price in the Sale.


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## neil_merseyside (15 Nov 2019)

Fab Foodie said:


> Thanks, are scratches an issue other than aesthetics/cleaning?



Nope, just aesthetics - my warning was a veiled dig at my wife who reads my posts


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## Supersuperleeds (15 Nov 2019)

I love our induction hob, you need induction pans though


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## Gunk (15 Nov 2019)

I’ve got a range cooker where the hob is gas and when we’ve stayed in holiday homes with an induction job I’ve hated them, gas is just so much easier and controllable.


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## dodgy (15 Nov 2019)

We have an induction hob, installed in 2003 and it's still going strong. I'm an enthusiastic cook and it's never given us the slightest spot of trouble.
It's clean, efficient and extremely controllable, on a par with gas for controllabilty. It goes up to '9' in 0.5 units, you can see the subtle difference when simmering something between 4.5 and say 5.0, it's very predictable, enough so that i can set a curry going on the hob, put it on whatever.whatever and know for sure it won't boil over.
The 'special' pans argument is overdone mostly by people who have never owned one. We already had compatible pans before induction hobs were even invented.
I would highly recommend one, we will certainly be buying another when we eventually update our kitchen.
Hope this helps.


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## Bazzer (15 Nov 2019)

We had one in a very remote holiday cottage we rented a couple of weeks or so ago. I have to say, as someone who has used gas for over 35 years, I was impressed. 
The one thing I didn't like was the glass. I didn't look closely for scratches and I don't know whether it was being used to the solidity of a gas hob, but putting pans on the glass was slightly toe curling, just in case I caused damage.


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## lane (15 Nov 2019)

Not if you or someone in the house has a pacemaker or might get one in the future.


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## Bonefish Blues (15 Nov 2019)

Yes you should. Unequivocally.


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## Old jon (15 Nov 2019)

^^^ Wot 'e sez
Just fitted one here, well a month ago. One upthread does 0 to 9 in 0.5 steps, mine does that range in 1.0 steps. I have yet to find this a problem. A great piece of kit. Chopping boards may make it complain, even when cold, think it is part of the spill detection.


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## dodgy (15 Nov 2019)

The glass surface of our induction hob is still scratch free after 16 years.


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## dodgy (15 Nov 2019)

Broadside said:


> I would like an induction hob but our current gas hob is just too handy with a deep well that catches the contents of the pans as they boil over, which is a common occurrence with me 😀
> 
> I think some of the smarter induction hobs have some sort of boil over sensing but I could be making that up.



Induction hobs have spill protection, so if a pan does boil over it will beep and turn the hob off/down. They're so controllable, that in effect they seldom boil over. 
You've just written an argument to upgrade (I can see you already know that)


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## pawl (15 Nov 2019)

Supersuperleeds said:


> I love our induction hob, you need induction pans though



And induction training.


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## cosmicbike (15 Nov 2019)

If you can, you should. At the old house we had a ceramic hob, got red hot and stayed that way ages after use, scary beast and I never liked it. Fitted a Bosch induction after a kitchen refit and never looked back. Super fast at heating things up, no wasted heat like you get with gas and very controllable. Never had an issue with the glass scratching or otherwise.
Moved house 3 years ago and we're on a gas hob all over again, hate it. Takes forever to do anything and a sod to clean. Needless to say in due course it will be replaced with an induction.
Something to be mindful of is the electrical supply requirement. Most of the big names will allow 2 options on the same hob. The first is a single cable connection to a 13A fused spur. The hob recognises this, and if you are running all 4 rings it cycles the power around them. Apparently you'd be hard pushed to notice. The 2nd option is a dedicated 32A or 40A supply which will need either 6mm or 10mm cable run back to your distribution board and it's own circuit. This allows the hob to run full power to all 4 'rings' at once.


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## MichaelW2 (15 Nov 2019)

Gunk said:


> I’ve got a range cooker where the hob is gas and when we’ve stayed in holiday homes with an induction job I’ve hated them, gas is just so much easier and controllable.


Were these induction or ceramic hobs? Induction does not heat up the glass surface.


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## Gunk (15 Nov 2019)

I know the difference, it was an induction hob. We were in France last week and the house we rented had one fitted, not for us I’m afraid.


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## slowmotion (15 Nov 2019)

I've never used one but I have friends who wouldn't use anything else. A recent Which? report gave the Ikea Matmassig a very good review. At £255 it was half the cost of an AEG which only scored a bit higher. Comes with a 5 year guarantee too.


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## mistyoptic (15 Nov 2019)

Yes, love it. We had a gas hob before. Induction is as good/controllable but easy to clean. When I've been cooking that's vital.
Tried a cheap one - not good (Ikea). Got a Stoves one on a range cooker (Belling group) - brilliant


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## mistyoptic (15 Nov 2019)

lane said:


> Not if you or someone in the house has a pacemaker or might get one in the future.



Consultant who fitted FIL's pacemaker said not an issue if you stay 100mm away from it (and you would IMHO). Obviously be guided by your own medical advisors


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## Milkfloat (15 Nov 2019)

I have done the research and just bought a fancy pants Neff induction hob for the new extension. It has large zones, where you can fit multiple pans at the same time. It does lots of other tricks too which I need to read the manual to find out.


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## Venod (15 Nov 2019)

I have asked the wife's opinion, we had had a gas hob before refitting the kitchen, she gives the induction the thumbs up, I have to agree, I never got on with the gas hob but the wife liked it but she likes the induction hob more.


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## Mr Celine (15 Nov 2019)

Fab Foodie said:


> As I do all the cooking, it's my most used appliance, so it's a pain if it's not that great to use and hard to clean.


You do the cooking *and *the cleaning? 

My experience of induction hobs is limited to holiday accommodation in Portugal this summer. Three of the rings had only one setting, a red flashing E. A red flashing F would have been more logical, the portugese for cold being frio.

The other ring was quite impressive, but give me gas anyday.


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## Fab Foodie (15 Nov 2019)

Mr Celine said:


> You do the cooking *and *the cleaning?
> 
> My experience of induction hobs is limited to holiday accommodation in Portugal this summer. Three of the rings had only one setting, a red flashing E. A red flashing F would have been more logical, the portugese for cold being frio.
> 
> The other ring was quite impressive, but give me gas anyday.


Don’t be silly! Of course I don’t do the cleaning!


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## lane (15 Nov 2019)

mistyoptic said:


> Consultant who fitted FIL's pacemaker said not an issue if you stay 100mm away from it (and you would IMHO). Obviously be guided by your own medical advisors



My mum was told not to use hers and had to replace it.


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## annedonnelly (16 Nov 2019)

neil_merseyside said:


> Nope, just aesthetics - my warning was a veiled dig at my wife who reads my posts


Not so veiled now - you might be in trouble


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## Fab Foodie (16 Nov 2019)

annedonnelly said:


> Not so veiled now - you might be in trouble


Anyone heard from him since?


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## Levo-Lon (16 Nov 2019)

Fab Foodie said:


> Anyone heard from him since?



I think the surgeon is seeking a second opinion before he makes a start


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## MichaelW2 (16 Nov 2019)

Looking at kitchen refit for terraced house galley kitchen. The induction hobs are either 35cm or 58-60cm, nothing inbetween except for some v expensive 57cm from Seimans and NEF.
My compact gas cooker is 55cm.


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## neil_merseyside (16 Nov 2019)




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## annedonnelly (17 Nov 2019)

MichaelW2 said:


> Looking at kitchen refit for terraced house galley kitchen. The induction hobs are either 35cm or 58-60cm, nothing inbetween except for some v expensive 57cm from Seimans and NEF.
> My compact gas cooker is 55cm.



I'm looking for a freestanding cooker with a 55cm width. If anyone can find an induction hob in that size I'd be very interested. Must be freestanding, not integrated.


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## Bonefish Blues (17 Nov 2019)

annedonnelly said:


> I'm looking for a freestanding cooker with a 55cm width. If anyone can find an induction hob in that size I'd be very interested. Must be freestanding, not integrated.


Looks like the standards are 50 & 60 with nothing in between to me.


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## derrick (17 Nov 2019)

Fab Foodie said:


> Dears
> 
> Currently we have one of those 5 burner gas hobs, you know, the one with the big wok-ring in the middle. To be honest, as hobs go it's not great, control is poor and at very low settings the small burner often gets blown-out. It's also a pain to clean. I've threatened to replace it many times.
> 
> ...


Induction for us. Our second one. Only because we moved house. Best bit of kit for the kitchen, so easy to clean. instant controls, love it.


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## Pale Rider (17 Nov 2019)

I like the idea of dual fuel, currently a gas cooker and an electric microwave.

The thinking being that if one power source is interrupted I can still do some cooking with the other.

I apply the same logic to heating.

An electricity interruption also knocks out the gas fired boiler, but I can still light a couple of gas rings for heat, or the oven with the door open.

If things get really bad I have two open fireplaces.


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## AuroraSaab (17 Nov 2019)

Just remembered a downside to our 10 year old Neff induction hob. The rings are different sizes and it won't work if you put the wrong size pan on the ring. I find this a bit annoying at times as we don't have much storage so leave all our pans out on the stove 24/7, and it this involves switching them around.


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## derrick (17 Nov 2019)

AuroraSaab said:


> Just remembered a downside to our 10 year old Neff induction hob. The rings are different sizes and it won't work if you put the wrong size pan on the ring. I find this a bit annoying at times as we don't have much storage so leave all our pans out on the stove 24/7, and it this involves switching them around.


Never had that problem with our Neff. but it's only a couple of years old. Our first one was a Bosch did not matter what size pan you put on that either.


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## AuroraSaab (17 Nov 2019)

Thinking about it, it only applies to the Scoville pans, which have some sort of super dooper non stick costing on them. The Ikea pans work ok on any ring.

Our main reason for getting an induction hob was child safety when the children were small. Managed to get an ex display Neff one very cheap but would definitely get another next time.


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## annedonnelly (17 Nov 2019)

Bonefish Blues said:


> Looks like the standards are 50 & 60 with nothing in between to me.


Have you seen a 50cm with induction hob? I haven't found anything smaller than 60cm. To fit in a 60cm I need to have the entire kitchen refitted...


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## Pale Rider (17 Nov 2019)

AuroraSaab said:


> Just remembered a downside to our 10 year old Neff induction hob. The rings are different sizes and it won't work if you put the wrong size pan on the ring. I find this a bit annoying at times as we don't have much storage so leave all our pans out on the stove 24/7, and it this involves switching them around.



I believe some hobs detect the mass of what's inducting.

The idea is they won't turn on if you put your fingers with a few rings on the hob or a metal serving spoon.

Depending on the electronics are set, the hob can be fussy over very small pans.


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## Bonefish Blues (17 Nov 2019)

annedonnelly said:


> Have you seen a 50cm with induction hob? I haven't found anything smaller than 60cm. To fit in a 60cm I need to have the entire kitchen refitted...


No, I was wrong. It's not an option open to you.


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## Bonefish Blues (17 Nov 2019)

Pale Rider said:


> I believe some hobs detect the mass of what's inducting.
> 
> The idea is they won't turn on if you put your fingers with a few rings on the hob or a metal serving spoon.
> 
> Depending on the electronics are set, the hob can be fussy over very small pans.


I've never experienced this or any other of the problems being reported tbh, on either of the two hobs we've put in. Last one's a mahoosive 5 'burner' Siemens on a 1 gigawatt (or summat!) spur


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## slowmotion (17 Nov 2019)

annedonnelly said:


> Have you seen a 50cm with induction hob? I haven't found anything smaller than 60cm. To fit in a 60cm I need to have the entire kitchen refitted...


There are quite a few 300mm wide built in ones if you are prepared to go down to two rings, eg

View: https://www.amazon.co.uk/GASLAND-IH30BF-Induction-Electric-Cooktop/dp/B07F82V5RK/ref=redir_mobile_desktop?_encoding=UTF8&aaxitk=3PRhw8C5hX383NqABFsd4Q&hsa_cr_id=9365801150502


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## cosmicbike (17 Nov 2019)

Pale Rider said:


> I believe some hobs detect the mass of what's inducting.
> 
> The idea is they won't turn on if you put your fingers with a few rings on the hob or a metal serving spoon.
> 
> Depending on the electronics are set, the hob can be fussy over very small pans.



They don't detect mass. It's more related to the size of the coils, and what they will heat. You would need a small coil to heat the ring on your finger or a spoon. Generally speaking if you put a small pan on the big 'ring' of an induction hob it won't heat it.


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## annedonnelly (19 Nov 2019)

slowmotion said:


> There are quite a few 300mm wide built in ones if you are prepared to go down to two rings, eg
> 
> View: https://www.amazon.co.uk/GASLAND-IH30BF-Induction-Electric-Cooktop/dp/B07F82V5RK/ref=redir_mobile_desktop?_encoding=UTF8&aaxitk=3PRhw8C5hX383NqABFsd4Q&hsa_cr_id=9365801150502



Aye, if I go built in I can have whatever, but that means refitting the entire kitchen. I want to slot something freestanding into an existing gap


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## Pale Rider (19 Nov 2019)

annedonnelly said:


> Aye, if I go built in I can have whatever, but that means refitting the entire kitchen. I want to slot something freestanding into an existing gap



Might be worth a google around cookers for caravans/motorhomes.

My static has a standard 60cm cooker, but there are plenty that don't.

I've seen some odd specs such as three burners, and mixed burners - two gas and one electric.

I've not seen any induction hobs, but someone might be making one.

Some of the makes of caravan specfic cookers are not well-known, but I imagine they are not much different in quality to the big names.


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## MichaelW2 (19 Nov 2019)

One strategy I have seen for small kitchens is to replace the 4 burner hob with a 2 pan induction hob and have additional plug in worktop hobs for bigger special occasions.
Still looking for a unicorn 50cm wide unit.


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## MrGrumpy (23 Nov 2019)

Fitted an induction hob in my last house when I built our new kitchen. I was surprised on how quick you could boil water etc. Very good control on heat . It was a 5 burner but you could also stick a big huge paella pan on and use 3 burners  
Now we have moved house its a gas hob which if I’m honest I hated at first , but coming round to it ! It’s too small and my dilemma now is what do I do when we replace the kitchen in here. ( it needs done ! ) Quite fancying a range


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## Fab Foodie (23 Nov 2019)

Thanks all for sharing your experience.
Am feeling convinced, but the next wuestion is whether the kind that simply plug-in would be good enough or go for one needing a heftier power supply?


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## MrGrumpy (23 Nov 2019)

Ohh hmm the big 5 burners are rated at 7Kw or greater. Well my Neff one was, defo needs it’s own circuit and minimum 4mm cable probably greater depending on the run to your consumer box.

the small side ones I see these days might not need anything like that ? Not sure what they are rated at ?


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## Bonefish Blues (23 Nov 2019)

Fab Foodie said:


> Thanks all for sharing your experience.
> Am feeling convinced, but the next wuestion is whether the kind that simply plug-in would be good enough or go for one needing a heftier power supply?


Yep. And a substation in the garden, too, I'll wager 

Go large.


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## Pale Rider (23 Nov 2019)

Fab Foodie said:


> Thanks all for sharing your experience.
> Am feeling convinced, but the next wuestion is whether the kind that simply plug-in would be good enough or go for one needing a heftier power supply?



Buy a fifty quid plug in induction hob from Argos to see how you get on with one.

You could use it in the motorhome after the trial period.


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## lazybloke (23 Nov 2019)

MrGrumpy said:


> Ohh hmm the big 5 burners are rated at 7Kw or greater. Well my Neff one was, defo needs it’s own circuit and minimum 4mm cable probably greater depending on the run to your consumer box.
> 
> the small side ones I see these days might not need anything like that ? Not sure what they are rated at ?


I wanted to "future-proof" when rewiring my house, so ran a hefty 16mm cable to the cooker point. Could easily carry 60 amps.

Ended up buying a range cooker with a 13 amp plug!
Still using it, 20 years on.


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## annedonnelly (5 Dec 2019)

Yay - just had a guy to measure up and he's sure I could get a 60cm cooker in the gap. That means induction is possible. It also means I've got to start again with my research - there are a lot more options now...


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## cosmicbike (5 Dec 2019)

Fab Foodie said:


> Thanks all for sharing your experience.
> Am feeling convinced, but the next wuestion is whether the kind that simply plug-in would be good enough or go for one needing a heftier power supply?



Go for one that gives you both options. I believe NEFF and Bosch still offer these. You can cable to a 13A fused spur, or link out the incoming connections and have a direct 6mm, 40A connection. By some form of magic it understands how it's connected, and operates accordingly.


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## Milkfloat (5 Dec 2019)

A 13A induction hob is selling yourself short. Quite simply they are not up to the job, especially if you are trying to use more than a couple of pots at the same time. Pony up the extra and get one wired correctly, I promise you that you won’t regret it.


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## Bonefish Blues (5 Dec 2019)

Yep, that's the way to do it


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## PaulSB (9 Dec 2019)

I haven't read this thread but thought the following might be worth consideration. I am perfectly serious.

A few years ago with some friends, all of us 60+, rented a large house with an induction hob. None of us was able to fathom out how it worked. Fortunately we had some young people with us.

I have a friend recently diagnosed with Alzheimer's. They had a new kitchen fitted with an induction hob. He can no longer cook because he is unable to learn how to use the hob.

These points may not apply for you or have already been considered. I simply felt it worth mentioning.


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## postman (5 Jan 2020)

No no no.Only last week we were in a conversation with a young lady,whose mum had her kitchen done,the hob marks very easily and is a bugg to keep clean,also pans cost a fortune.


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## derrick (5 Jan 2020)

postman said:


> No no no.Only last week we were in a conversation with a young lady,whose mum had her kitchen done,the hob marks very easily and is a bugg to keep clean,also pans cost a fortune.


Wrong Wrong Wrong.


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## flake99please (5 Jan 2020)

I had a Neff induction hob (T58FT20X0) installed with the new kitchen back in November 2018. Having used it for little over a year now, I’m more than happy with its performance. With the exception of my aluminium omelette pan, all cookware was already compatible with the new hob.

My only criticism would be the ‘beeping’ sound it makes when I temporarily place something on there while unpacking shopping etc.


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## figbat (5 Jan 2020)

New to this thread but not to induction hobs. We bought and completely renovated our house about 6 years ago. It is in a village with no mains gas. We had the choice of electric hob or bottled gas. We were coming from a house with a gas hob that we loved. In the end though we went for a 90cm Rangemaster cooker with induction hob - I’ll never go back.

It is very quick to get up to heat and quickly controllable. It looks good too when matched to our black kitchen worktops. Best of all for me, as a clean freak in the kitchen, it is so easy to keep clean. I try to wipe down any overspill or splatter as it happens, which is easy to do given the design. Even if left until cool, so far I have managed to get everything off of it and it still looks great - not new but still shiny and attractive. It’s easy to get induction pans. Another great feature is the ability to do a really low heat - using this I can melt chocolate directly in the pan with no fear of burning and no faffing with a bain marie.

I have read that they are not recommended for people with Alzheimer’s because it is not obvious when they are hot or left on. For example if a hob is left ‘on’ with no pan on it it won’t actually do anything but if you accidentally placed something ferromagnetic on it it would start heating. Given that they look like somewhere to put something down, this is a risk. It’s never happened to us though (we‘re all compos mentis, as far as I know).


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## gbb (5 Jan 2020)

Having 'moved up the scale' (IMO...and my wifes)..from gas to ceramic and now to Induction, each step has been the right one we both agree.
Super fast, clean , everything you (we) want it to be.
Regarding the glass tops, our ceramic cookers glass top didnt scratch as such but the etched (I assume) rings that indicate where to place the pans did deteriorate a little but it was maybe 10 years old.


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## Profpointy (5 Jan 2020)

To give another view, we were in a rented cottage last week, which came with an induction hob. After a bit of swearing as I failed to get it to fire up initially (needed turning off and on at the wall to get it out of a state) it did heat up quite quickly and quite hot. However if you wanted it on medium or low, it didn't actually go to a lower setting but "hunted" alternating between high and off every few seconds. The other snag was if you moved or lifted the pan the ring would often turn off. It was bearable to be fair, as we did get a pan hot enough to cook steak, so it was miles better than a halogen hob (these also "hunt") but definitely not for me. I'd also have to ditch my lovely copper pans, but that won't affect everyone. Gas is clearly hugely better - less sure if electric hotplates are better or worse


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## Milkfloat (7 Jan 2020)

Profpointy said:


> To give another view, we were in a rented cottage last week, which came with an induction hob. After a bit of swearing as I failed to get it to fire up initially (needed turning off and on at the wall to get it out of a state) it did heat up quite quickly and quite hot. However if you wanted it on medium or low, it didn't actually go to a lower setting but "hunted" alternating between high and off every few seconds. The other snag was if you moved or lifted the pan the ring would often turn off. It was bearable to be fair, as we did get a pan hot enough to cook steak, so it was miles better than a halogen hob (these also "hunt") but definitely not for me. I'd also have to ditch my lovely copper pans, but that won't affect everyone. Gas is clearly hugely better - less sure if electric hotplates are better or worse


It sounds like you were using a poor quality induction hob. My Neff suffers from none of the problems you described.


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## Profpointy (7 Jan 2020)

Milkfloat said:


> It sounds like you were using a poor quality induction hob. My Neff suffers from none of the problems you described.


 
Quite possibly the case, but I only have a sample of one to go by. The "hunting" wasn't a big problem to be fair, but it was odd to see my spuds boil for 2 seconds, then off for 2 seconds, then boil again, rather than steadily simmering.


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## figbat (7 Jan 2020)

At lower power settings that’s how ours works, but at mid-to-high power it’s a continuous power of varying intensity.


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## mistyoptic (18 Jan 2020)

figbat said:


> I have read that they are not recommended for people with Alzheimer’s because it is not obvious when they are hot or left on. For example if a hob is left ‘on’ with no pan on it it won’t actually do anything but if you accidentally placed something ferromagnetic on it it would start heating. Given that they look like somewhere to put something down, this is a risk. It’s never happened to us though (we‘re all compos mentis, as far as I know).



May be the case with some but our Stoves (Belling group) range cooker has hot indicators and switches itself off after a short period with nothing on the "ring". Can confuse it by putting stuff down on the control area but it usually beeps to tell you you've done so. As mentioned above, some of the fancy settings like "chocolate melting" and "bring to boil then turn down to simmer automatically" are useful. Also, on ours, can set a timer for an individual ring to turn off.

The ONLY reservation/downside (for me) is that (compared to gas) it's not good for a wok as the sides don't heat up, except by conduction which is not enough.
Otherwise, easier to clean than gas but as good in terms of response.


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