When it comes to cooking ranges, the debate between gas and electric burners has been raging for years. But there’s a third contender that you may be less familiar with–induction burners.
Induction cooktops have electricity that flows through a coil, producing a magnetic field. When a pan is placed on the ceramic surface, the flow of energy heats it up. The first patents for induction burners were created in the early 20th century, and have been popular in other parts of the world but only started catching on in the U.S. within the last decade or so.
Advantages of induction burners:
- They’re more efficient than gas stovetops. While gas has an average efficiency of about 40%, the efficiency of induction burners is between 74% and 77%. Gas and electric are prone to losing their heat to the air and immediate surroundings, but induction burners heat your cookware and not the whole stove surface
- Because induction burners waste less heat, they won’t heat your kitchen as much as an electric or gas stove would.
- With induction, you can heat the cookware immediately. Induction cooktops can heat a pan of water faster than gas. Not only can they heat up food hot and fast, but they’re also great for slow and low cooking.
- Induction burners are great for households with children because they’re safer than gas or electric cooktops. You can touch the surface when the burner is on and you won’t get hurt. This means food won’t get burned onto the stovetop either which means easier cleanup!
Disadvantages of induction burners:
- Induction cooktops have a higher ticket price than electric or gas. However, the price for this new technology has decreased over time, and you will save on your monthly energy bill with induction burners.
- You may need to buy new cookware to use your new induction cooktop. For the most part, cookware must be steel or cast iron. Aluminum, glass, and ceramic will not work on an induction burner. A simple test is to stick a magnet to the base of the cookware. If the magnet sticks, then you can use it on an induction cooktop!
- Special hookups are not required, but you do need a 220-240v outlet to plug the stove top in.
Still not sure if an induction burner is right for you? Give us a call at 989-773-2132 or stop into our showroom to see examples of our available induction burners.