Propane vs glass cooktop?

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jmg321

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We recently bought a house with a propane cooktop. I was excited b/c I'd only ever had electric and had heard how great it was to cook with gas. Well, ours sucks and has numerous issues.

First, it just doesn't get hot enough. It takes forever and a day to boil a pot of water. It's kind of ridiculous, actually. Also, try as I may, I can't get a good sear on anything in a cast iron skillet. I'll leave the skillet on the highest burner setting for 15+ minutes before using and still can't sear well.

The other issue is that there is poor temperature control. As I turn the knob for the burner, there is no change in the flame from setting 1 through setting 4, then it gets larger up to about 7 and then no change through 10. Also, we simply cannot simmer or keep things warm. Even on the smallest burner on the lowest setting, food still boils.

Others have said we can adjust the flame with a little screw that's in the middle of the knob, but ours doesn't have that.

Are these just issues with a propane cooktop or do we have a crappy one?

It's a GE jgp329det2bb

We don't know if we should look at another propane one or think about going to glass.
 
Ciao e Benvenuto,
I have duel fuel range gas hob an electric oven, no issue. Can you no get main Gas? Sound for me is faulty with cooker.

Sarana x
 
Well - I know nothing at all about propane cookers but it sounds as if maybe the gas pressure is too low. Maybe there is a way to adjust it. I may well be talking rubbish, so I'll be quite happy if someone who has experience corrects me!
 
My experience with gas (at my brother's home) is that it can heat up quickly. There is something maladjusted if it does not. I do agree that low temperatures are hard to modulate properly using gas.

I now have induction, which is powered by electric, and I love it. Heats as fast as gas usually does, and cools down just about as fast, and is easy to clean up after. Also the temperatures modulate as one would hope, even the low settings. More efficient than regular electric, too.
 
I have regular gas oven and stove, no issues. I know nothing about propane other than using it for our outdoor grill. But I may suggest if you can't get water to boil on the stovetop, try putting a lid on the pot to bring the heat up faster. If you can't get a good sear in cast iron, try using your cast iron skillet in the oven. You can put it in the oven on broil and get it super hot. It does sound like you have a faulty oven/stove.
 
One of the things I love most about gas stoves is when you turn it off, the heat goes away immediately, and it's so much easier to adjust the amount of heat you want. Electric stovetops retain heat so you have to pull off your pan or pot immediately.
 
Propane actually has way more BTUs than natural gas, so it is not a fuel problem. I would say it has to be a stove problem. Like any other fuel, to get more power (in this case heat) you have to use more fuel, and have a burner that burns it efficiently. A cheap burner is going to struggle to burn more fuel efficiently.

Now, your stove may improve with some improvements to the fuel to air mixture, if that is adjustable on your stove. Your gas pressure may also be an issue, so make sure nothing is holding back your pressure.

More than likely, you need a new, better quality propane stove.

The only electric alternative I would even consider is induction, which is not cheap and requires the right cookware. You'll need to do some homework before going with induction.

Hope that helps!

CD
 
We use mains (natural) gas at home and propane in the motorhome.....and whilst the propane hob in the motorhome takes a little longer to boil things than the domestic hob does, this is because the burners are less powerful. They are still plenty strong enough to get a pan up to the required temperature to sear things though. So it sounds like there's something wrong with your hob - or possibly your regulator if you're using bottled propane gas.

However, if you have the facility to put an electric induction hob in then I'd go for that - just as controllable as gas, but much easier to keep clean :okay:
 
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