Buying a Hob (Electric or Gas)

Hobs are available in a wide variety of styles and sizes with varying functionality. There are two major fuel types used in hobs; Gas and Electric. Important functions and features are listed below to help you make an educated purchase.
Electric
These units use electrical power to produce heat. There are four major types in domestic use today.
- Radiant Spiral.
Sheathed electrical coils wound into a spiral element are used to provide heat. Very common, but now being replaced by the solid plate hobs.
- Solid Plate.
Solid hotplates are usually made from cast iron and have a sealed electric element inside.

- Halogen Hob.
The heat comes from halogen lamps under the glass which efficiently transmit heat and light upwards.

- Induction Hob.
Induction is a new method, completely different from all other cooking technologies. It does not involve generating heat which is then transferred to the cooking vessel, it makes the cooking vessel itself the original generator of the cooking heat. A high frequency induction coil located under the ceramic cook surface heats the magnetic cookware by producing an alternating magnetic field which flows through the cooking utensil. The molecules in the cookware alternate quickly to heat the utensil and cook the food.

Gas
A gas hob simply burns the gas to provide the heat needed for cooking.

Features To Look For
- Surface Type. Gas and electric hobs will either have enamel, stainless steel or ceramic surfaces. Ceramic surfaces are available for gas hobs but are mainly used for electric hobs. A ceramic or glass surface is easy to clean, and looks professional.

- Heat Indicator. A heat indicator is a means of the hob indicating that the cooking surface is hot. This can be a very basic system as with gas or halogen hobs where it is quite obvious if heat is being generated i.e. a flame for gas hobs and lights for halogen hobs. The more advanced cookers have an additional feature of residual heat indicator lights. These will contain a digital display, which will indicate if the cooking zones are above or below a certain temperature.

- Safety.
-- Some hobs include a mechanism which ensures that the hob cannot be switched on easily by a child.
-- Flame failure is a useful gas hob feature. Its sensors detect when no heat is being generated and will automatically switch off the gas flow.

- Controls. There are two main options; manual and touch controls.
-- Touch controls tend to be used on ceramic surfaces where the controls are placed under the glass. These are activated through the light pressure being applied by placing a finger on them.
-- If you are left handed, go for front rather than right hand side controls as this eliminates the risk of reaching across the heat.

- Efficiency. Looking specifically at heat transfer, from hob to cooking utensils.
-- Gas 55%
-- Spiral Ring 65%
-- Solid Plate 65%
-- Halogen 70%
-- Induction 80 to 90%

- Ignition Type. This applies to Gas Hobs only. There are two basic ignition types which are:
-- Automatic. As soon as gas is switched on the burners light automatically.
-- Integral. One can light the burners by pushing an ignition button or through the use of a control knob.

- Colour. Hobs with enamel surfaces are available in a variety of colours. Ceramic hobs have a black surface but their frames are available in a wide selection of colours. Stainless steel surfaces do not offer variety in terms of colour although the stainless steel may be brushed which offers two alternative effects.

- Number of Plates / Heating Zones. The standard number of plates for both electric and gas hobs is four. There are hobs though, which can have the number of plates ranging from one to six.