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We’ve just moved house and are now the very sad owners of a ceramic radiant hob. Compared to my lovely big gas hob in the last house this is, being very kind, a bit shit.
It’s going to be a few years until we can afford to properly sort out the kitchen but I figure to save my sanity I may as well fit an induction hob of the same size now as a stop gap measure. I’ve found that I can drop most Bosch (or Bosch family) induction hobs into the space that’s already in the counter top I just can’t decide which one I should buy so need some help.
Sensible hat says get something cheap ish as it’s only “temporary” (which probably means we’ll be living with it for the next 20 years) but I don’t want to replace one crap hob with something else that’s going to annoy me.
One of the main things I can’t work out is how much power do I need? The ceramic hob has a dedicated 32a circuit but it seems only the top end induction hobs can use that much power and all of the cheaper ones use much less (quite a few can just be plugged into a 13a socket).
so first question is will I regret getting a cheaper one that can’t drive full power to all of the hobs at the same time?
next question is about the hob sizes and multi zone bits. Seems the fancier hobs often have some sort of flex thing in place of two of the hobs? is that actually useful for anything or would one with four normal (circular) zones be fine?
last one is will a decent induction hob really be much better than the ceramic one or should I be looking into gas while I still can?
I prefer gas, but induction is the least worst of the electric options.
Just make sure you avoid one with touch controls, if anything boils over and water gets on the it sends everything haywire, usually turns all rings up to maximum! Stick with knobs.
Our fancy pants Nef one will sear steak just as well as the old gas cooker, there's a temperature setting to make the hob keep a constant 220C instead of simmering along.
I think you want the full power. 13A isn’t enough for multiple rings. Ours is on the 32A but still can only boost one ring at a time. Even 9 and a bust can be iffy
But on the plus it is fab. I’d buy a good one and keep it if you change the kitchen.
We got an AEG induction recently when we had the kitchen done as part of an extension.
We went for one of the more powerful ones as it made sense to have the correct spur put in while getting the work done. It's fine, but not as good as everyone banged on about before we made our choice.
We have a flex zone thing. Never used it but I could see why it might be useful for skillets or large pans. Not a deal breaker though for us. It all depends on what sort of cooking you do.
Check your pans are compatible, or you might need to splash out for new cookware.
All of ours was (luckily) but some definitely works better than others.
Regarding controls. Ours has touch controls. They are fine. Better than expected. You get the odd beep from them for this and that but it's no bother. I would advise getting one with individual controls for each "burner" rather than one where you have to select which one you want to change.
Some of them seem to do full power all the time but in pulses of varying length depending on how high/low it’s set on. Others vary the power. Ours is the former and you can hear it doing it. Another thing is that ours uses quite a bit of power in standby so I had a switch fitted on the wall and we turn it off when not in use. When I calculated the power consumption in standby 10 Years ago it was £50 per year, it’ll be quadruple that now… I will replace it with a better one when it dies but it just keeps going.
I'm of the opinion a good induction hob is now better than gas. Mind you ours was quite spendy and is on it's own spur, amps unknown as I type this.
Cheap induction hobs are not as good as spendy ones..... No surprise there
We have a spendy Neff one and the I like being able to combine three small hobs into one big one (great for making gravy in the roast tray).
I love induction after our gas hobs. Gas sucks.... It's not as controllable, the heat goes around the pan (as opposed to the heat being created in the pan), can't simmer low enough, can't be programmed to switch off when you want, make a mess of your pans, are harder to clean and they pump crappy emissions straight into your face while you're cooking.
due to flooding our planned kitchen refurbishment suddenly became “free”. So I ploughed some extra cash into replacing the oven, extractor and hob. I spent a ruddy fortune on the hob and don’t regret a single penny.
It’s a 7kw neff, with 6 cooking areas. You can flex cook them, splitting the surface up left to right. It’s really useful for big pans of pasta, a 32cm frying pan or a griddle. I think there’s 10 inductors under the glass and it just spools them up as required. It will learn the reluctance of the pans I’m using and let me take a pan off, do something to it and then wherever I put it down it automagically applies the same power to it.
I thought it might not work with my ancient wok, but it’ll intimidate it quite happily into smoking and going blue within a minute of being put on the glass.
Touch controls have been great. It recognises spills and wiping so you don’t get spurious power changes.
Only regret is not opening the box before the kitchen was installed - turns out I could have wired it for 3 phase!
Thought the wifi link to the extractor would be stupid. It’s annoyingly good - gives hints to it to increase power as you do more. Tells it to shut down when you’re done.
Following this thread as we're in the running for a new hob. The old halogen one has somehow cracked at the edge (???) so need to get something new in it's place. A replacement glass is more than a whole hob, no surprise there.
It's a 60cm one were changing out, Bosch or Neff seem to be the go to brands with around £350-500 being the ball park figure we're looking at.
It'll be getting connected to the same power supply as the old hob, a 32amp circuit, but that plug 2m away. Any need to worry about that? I'm asking as the fitting service offered by John Lewis won't do it if the supply is more than 1m away. Local sparky will do the fitting for us instead.
I love my induction hob and would never go back to gas!
Not silly expensive but not cheap either. Just for the cleaning alone, they're soooon much better.
Just make sure you avoid one with touch controls
I'd go the other way. Only rarely does liquid confuse the touch controls on ours. Having knobs removes one of the benefits by making it harder to clean. Thought I'd hate induction after having to change for the same reason as you OP. Now love it and would remove gas to fit induction. Ours is a mid range Bosch, around 1k 6 years ago for a wide 5 burner.
Ours is a 60cm Siemens. It's quicker, cleaner and more controllable than gas. I can join two rings together for my massive brewing pan, and to my surprise the touch controls are fine. The slider control is nice so I don't have to cycle through the power levels. It's on a 32a spur.
Keep anyone with a pacemaker or insulin pump away from them as the magnetic force whilst the hob is in use can make those devices play up.
We got an induction when we got the kitchen done a couple of years ago. Wife was vociferously against getting a wider one with more zones, but now we’ve got a standard size she’s regretted that decision since. Just for consideration.
Other thing I’ll chuck in - touch controls have not really caused us any issues, mean it’s easy to clean, and also gives you massively more usable worktop space if you need it when not in use. (E.g. Boxing Day buffet serving space)
On reflection, temp control is absolutely superb, has a huge usable range, and instant. When we put it on ‘P’ (max) tell the kids to go and watch what happens on the smart meter. What’s not to love. We do have a fancy AEG one that talks to the extractor fan above, which is pretty cool.
Sensible hat says get something cheap ish as it’s only “temporary”
I’d get the hob you want for in the new kitchen - why spend twice? and you get the ‘luxury’ of a good hob now while you save for the rest of the kitchen. edit: and given the current kitchen is temporary don’t be constrained by the current hob dimensions, just cut a bigger hole if needed.
and i wouldn’t go anywhere else other than high-power touch control induction - initially wanted gas but no supply so went good induction and would never go back, super easy clean wipe down and the power for searing/instant boiling is incredible.
Had induction at our previous house. Current house has gas, really miss the induction. Would never choose gas as a preference again.
As well as the benefits already mentioned you also don't have combustion byproducts in your kitchen.
Thanks for all the feedback.
Sounds like the extra power spend is going to be worth it for the extra power and fancy pants zoning.
I had been thinking I’d just stick with a standard 60cm width one for now as cutting a bigger hole in the quartz worktop might be a pain in the arse. However if we’re going to be spending a decent chunk on this it may make sense to try and go for something we would be happy with in the final kitchen and put up with needing more installation effort.
Back off to looking again I guess.
Get a good induction hob. I much prefer ours to gas.
They definitely need their own supply. 32A cooker supply is OK. If you are lucky enough to have 3-phase then you can go wild with induction power with the right hob.
I had been thinking I’d just stick with a standard 60cm width one
If you go for a 90 then check the power requirements. A friend who just had one fitted had to jump up to 3phase to get it to work but it was a fancy Miele one. I would love one and already have 3ph but it's star rather than delta so won't work :(. I don't think the 60s use enough power to have that issue
If you go for a 90 then check the power requirements. A friend who just had one fitted had to jump up to 3phase to get it to work but it was a fancy Miele one.
I was nearly caught out in the same way. Our Miele can take 3-phase but with the jumpers fitted it’ll work with single phase. Albeit with only good power output rather than great. I imagine with 3-phase you might be able to run all six pads at ‘double boost’. Maybe I’ll stretch to 3-phase and extra cabling one day in the future.
I am also an induction hob convert and would never now go back to gas. It’s safer and cleaner and most people speak to who know how to cook (not me) say it’s basically as good as gas these days. My small contribution to the thread - if you are as clumsy as me you might want to consider one with a stainless steel bezel round the perimeter. This stops the glass edges getting chipped which while not a major issue is a bit annoying from an aesthetic perspective!
Get the most powerful induction hob you can. Forget gas: it's probably still great in an industrial setting, but at home induction is the future.
Spent way too much time looking into this again last night.
It would seem that the hobs I might go for as an ideal solution in a new kitchen would probably require 3 phase power. They would also need me to get someone in to enlarge the cut out in the 25mm thick (brown 🤢) quartz worktops we have and would cost a fair bit more than I was hoping now when we have other more urgent stuff to do to the house.
So for now will probably go with one of these higher end Bosch/Neff 60 cm units that would hopefully come in around £600 ish.
https://www.neff-home.com/uk/en/mkt-product/hobs/induction-hobs/T66FHE4L0
https://www.neff-home.com/uk/en/mkt-product/hobs/induction-hobs/T66FHX4L0
Ive just heard that you can’t use a Moka pot with an induction hob. Therefore, im ooot.
Ive just heard that you can’t use a Moka pot with an induction hob. Therefore, im ooot.
You can, but not an aluminum one.
Ive just heard that you can’t use a Moka pot with an induction hob. Therefore, im ooot.
You can get a small steel plate that goes between the pot and the hob to transmit the heat.
I have a Hotpoint one with a special coating that means food never sticks to it. Works well, but like all glass hobs it's insanely easy to scratch. I put a deep groove in it the first time I slid a cast iron pan on the surface and it annoys me every time I use it.
If you've got a 32A supply you're good, if you're using all zones at full whack simultaneously then you have a problem with your cooking.
Simple test for pot compatibility is a magnet. It needs to stick.
Ive just heard that you can’t use a Moka pot with an induction hob. Therefore, im ooot.
Of course you can, maybe just not the one you've currently got, which would be the same for any pot or pan.
I'd generally agree with the notion that if you get thing right with induction hobs - a hob with sensible analogue dials rather than daft touch screens, suitable power, pans that work well with induction (not all induction ready pans are equal) then you'd be in no hurry to go back to gas.
I had the gas supply removed in our kitchen when we were re-wiring / replumbing the house as I don't foresee wanting to go back to cooking with gas - principally for the what they're like to cook on, - if find cooking on gas hobs clunky and inaccurate by comparison but also - lets be honest future generations will look back and laugh at the idea standing over an unvented gas flame in an enclosed space.
Get the most powerful induction hob you can. Forget gas: it's probably still great in an industrial setting, but at home induction is the future.
I expect it'll be workplace safety legislation relating to COPD that'll bring about the end of cooking on gas in the end
We have induction with touch controls, it's fine re. actually controlling it or cooking, the main issue is make sure the markings are clear!
Ours rubbed off or faded remarkably quickly and now I have to squint at it to see where to press, or even where to place the pan exactly on the right place. A big black sheet of glass looks nice but isn't exactly convenient.
Yes the touch controls will bleep at you and complain if they get wet, or if you put a pan on them, but this is nothing that's not fixable in half a second with a wipe.
Our Neff is a combo touch/knob control system. On/Off, lock, temperature and extractor by touch. Removable magnetic knob to adjust cooking area heat if not using the constant heat setting.
One thing to remember is that the extractor is a massive heat sink in winter. Stick some insulation around it under the worktop to stop cold feet (ours extracts on a north-facing wall).
Having knobs removes one of the benefits by making it harder to clean.
Indeed. Our hobs are Neff and have a fairly clever magnetic knob that you just lift off for cleaning.
I had a higher end hob with flexi zones in my last house and didn't find them that useful. In new house got this £300 aeg one https://ao.com/product/ikb64401fb-aeg-induction-hob-black-57488-39.aspx and it's perfect for us. Enough power; big zone is as big as biggest pan; and controls allow direct selection of power on each zone rather than having to press up and down.
Another vote for induction over anything else. The best bit for me is when something boils over it doesn't either burn on like with ceramic or disappear down and fill the burner rings like on gas. And the reaction is instant when you turn the power down.
As someone said early on, make sure you get one with independant controls for each ring. We had a holiday rental recently where you had one power scale and had to select which hob you wanted to control each time. It got tedious very quickly.
We had a nice 5 ring gas hob at the old house. New house we decided to go induction. Ours is an Electrolux one but looks exactly the same as the AEG one that SL2000 linked to.
Really like the power boost, in fact we now have a stove top kettle that whistles as the hob is quicker ab boiling water than the old electric kettle.
Also ours automatically turns the extractor hood on and off and changed the fan speed. 95% of the time it gets it bang on.
Individual timers for each ring are surprisingly useful.
What pocpoc says about power controls is a good point. Parents have a Siemens induction hob and it's okay but you have to select the ring to then set the power, very frustrating.
Only thing we can't do as easily is flambe or flame grill peppers over the flame.
Oh and I need to get a good induction wok as the cheap one we have is crap, but used to be great on the big burner on the gas hob .
If you're going to stick with 60cm and replace later look at an ex display unit. They've usually just got a few minor scratches on the surface (which any hob will pick up over time anyway - there are some odd marks on ours after 10 years, no idea how they got there as we're careful).
Touch is fine on the decent hobs. I'd only want manual controls if they were on a separate front mounted panel (which you get on some super expensive stuff). I've never seen anything that actually needed 3 phase,
*personally* I'd look for one with separate controls for each burner. Otherwise theres (nearly) always an extra press to select the one you want to control which is annoying if something is just about to boil over.
Have induction, have mocha pot (steel) and use it every day. Every time I use a radiant ceramic I hate my life because it is so slow and, despite having an epic gas hob at my old house, I don't miss it at all. Apart from when I need to wok something. Hell, you can even use it for brewing beer (or at least keep the mash at about the right temperature).
Induction is just so much easier to use and to clean than the others.