Input and/or suggestions please on new stove
 

We are planning on purchasing a new stove with income tax next year. I have always wanted a stove with a convection oven. Every year after the bulk of income tax is set aside for savings, my husband and I talk about what we want to do with what is left over. This coming refund we plan on replacing the stove and giving my old one to our son who just purchased his first home. My old stove is still in excellent condition for its age(11 yrs old).

So here is where I need some input and/or suggestions from the family here. Our budget is $600.-$700.00 give or take a few dollars. And it HAS to be electric!

Which brand do you have?
What do you like or dislike about it?
How well does the oven bake, roast etc.?
Is it easy to clean?: Stove top, do the rings come off, does the top lift up for cleaning under burners?
Oven, do you prefer the self cleaning mode or oven cleaner, Baking Soda/water paste, baking soda/vinegar solution?

Thanks in advance for the help. :)

P.S.
Other things on our list are:
Completely redoing the front flower bed
Replacing that evil printer that hates Windows 10
A new mattress (Temperpedic type)
A new firearm for hubby

I have a Frigidaire election stove, glass top (no rings or visible burners), self-cleaning oven; not a convection. I've had it for years and love it dearly. It's perfect for everything and extremely easy to clean. I would buy the same one again if I had to, but it has had no problems at all. And, it isn't top of line. It was very reasonably priced when I got it ... several years ago.

I have a glass top GE electric stove. The oven can be convection or regular depending on the settings. It also has a second oven at the bottom where there is usually a drawer. I tried the convection function a few times and honestly could not see any benefit to it, so quit bothering with it. Recipes and temperatures are a bit different, so easier for me to revert back to what I was used to. The second small oven is not as useful as I thought it would be, either. Used mainly on holidays as warming space. It has a self cleaning oven which is essential to me! I like the glass top also, so easy to clean. This one is capable of using a canner which I guess some are not. I like the stove a lot but we will be replacing it in the next 6 months or so. I will look for one without convection and second oven, not useful to me. We also have to have electric, no gas here. So will see what we can find. Do want glass top and self cleaning for sure.

Mine has convection and I use it less than I thought I would. Probably my favorite feature is the flat top ceramic stove. Super easy to keep clean!

I would only have a gas stove. Mine is self cleaning but, with a bird I can't use it or oven cleaners. I just wash with blue Dawn and paper towels. Doesn't need cleaning often. Not a convection, doubt I would use it.

Do you do a lot of cooking with "big" kettles or canning with a large canner/pressure cooker?

That might be a factor in your decision.

I use cast iron cookware: dutch oven, saucier, covered casserole pan and a flat griddle. I do prefer the coiled burners.

My pressure cooker is electric, and my large pasta pot, stock pot both fit the stove. I do cook a lot when the kids all show up. Usually I start the day before with some of the dishes on the menu. Like Spaghetti sauce (it always tastes better the next day), potato salad, or chopping lots of veggies for a relish platter.

Thank you all for your responses. Your input is most appreciated.

We bought a Jenn Air convection oven with smoothtop electric range in 2003, and it’s been very good. I was looking for Kenmore (our budget was $600) . This Jenn Air one was regularly $1200 at the time but as a floor model , half off! Deal!

What I like: 1) smooth top looks as good now as then. 2) knobs are easy to control —no annoying beeping you have with electronic buttons. 3) big interior with a solid surface that hasnt chipped 4) bottom drawer can be used as a warming drawer but I only use it for storage of huge pans. 5) self-cleaning 6) ENd Cook Time button. I can set it to shut off so I don’t have to babysit it.

What I don’t like: 1) one of the back burners has only worked on the HIGH setting since about 2010. We use it just to boil stuff. 2). I wish I’d measured my widest baking sheets to see if I could put two side-by-side. I can’t. 3) The convection unit stopped working at some point but I didn’t notice. I wasn’t an avid baker and didn’t use the convection feature often anyway. Never missed it.

Definitely figure out your must-haves, then your like-to-haves, and your hate-to haves. You are in a good position to make an informed decision since you are under no pressure. Win!

I cook alot. I would only use a gas stove, which I put in a propane tank to feed it because there is no gas lines in our area. So much easier to clean, cook, and bake with. and I have used them all.

Have natural gas by GE, self-cleaning with convection oven. Apparently convection oven cannot be used successfully with anything that rises (cakes, breads, muffins etc) and have seldom used it. I like gas for its efficiency and lower operating cost. In Ontario electricity rates are governed by the time of day while gas is consistently one rate. It took a bit of time getting used to gas after having electric stoves for a very, very long time.

Just purchased a Samsung for our daughter's birthday. It is convection/electric. She loves it. She didn't have a choice, otherwise she would have gas. Check Lowes, the internet for best price on a model you like. Lowes will match the lowest price. Daughter really likes the easy clean and the convection.

Had an old stove in this house that had been used as a rental for years. I had stood on top of the stove and the entire burner part collapsed. It was all rusted and had seen it's last day.

Went to an auction that had a gas Magic Chef stove listed with one broken burner. For $100.00 I got an older top of the line with all the bells and whistles. I had a repair man come to fix the burner and he marveled at the great features of unit. I think that was 20 to 25 years ago. I liked it so much that I bought a Magic Chef refrigerator to match and painted the kitchen to coordinate. I've had it repaired once when the oven temp was off, but to replace it would cost $$. It's not convection, but it serves my needs.

I am on my third Jennaire but it is gas. I love it and love the convection oven. I would expect an electric to be as good. Reason for it being the third is:
1) it was in the home we bought in 1995. Loved it!
2) updated the kitchen in 2006.
3) moved to Illinois in 2009. Bought a bank owned property and had to buy all new appliances. Stove is still wonderful!

I have a convection oven in current stove and my previous two stoves. Used it once years ago and never again. Didn't see the need for it.

Be aware that if you do a lot of baking you should not use the convection feature. It dries out the baked goods. Also, cast iron cannot be used on some flat tops.

We have a GE Profile Convection oven. It is actually our microwave which also has the convection feature. We like it for both. Our stove is gas, self cleaning oven. Like it, too.

My daughter-in-law and I both have glass top electric stoves and we hate them. I'm glad I don't do a lot of cooking any more or I'd have a bigger mess than I do. One thing to consider with glass tops is that your cookware needs to have absolutely flat bottoms so they make good contact with the surface. I love my stainless, waterless pans but they are not flat bottom so are slow to heat. Also you may not be able to use cast iron since it can scratch the glass. I don't have a convection oven so no comments on that.

I had the convection option in my last stove--a dual fuel Jenn Air. Loved loved loved the gas burners because of the instant on/off heat. I also used the convection once and could not figure out why people raved about it.

And then we moved. I now have an electric glass top GE and hate the thing with a passion. I could not figure out why my canning was so hit and miss last summer--until I realized that the burners kept cycling on and off as they reached the temperature required. You could actually see the 'red' of the burner coming on and then fading out and then coming back on. So there is never a constant heat for cooking. My neighbour who has the same stove, did not believe me until I showed her using a pot with a couple of inches of water in it. The water came to a boil and, with a gas stove or even a coil electric stove, would remain at that boil or even boil more vigourously until the heat setting is changed. With mine, the boil lessened and then became more vigourous as the burner cycled. I guess it has some sort of thermostat that turns the heat on and off like a furnace.

I have been searching for a gas or dual fuel to replace it and am very frustrated but for a different reason. The current trend to have an extra middle burner, has moved the placement of the other burners closer to the sides of the stove. But if you are using a canner or large stock pot, the edge of your pot is now very close to your counter top and could easily cause heat damage. Grrrrrrr!!!

Okay rant over. Chasing Hawk I wish you the best of luck in your search. And let us know if you get a stove with the convection oven option and how often you use it.

I don’t think I can add much to this discussion except to say I have always preferred Hotpoint stoves. The one I am currently using is just over thirty years old, and still works and looks like brand new. I can remove the burners, and the front pops up for cleaning, I can pull the knobs for cleaning too. The oven is plenty large (twenty two pound turkey last year....) and not bad to clean (even if I usually pay someone to do it). I really like that it has a timer on it, to help me remember when it is turned on. (Forgetful, crazy old bat, you know, lol) If it ever needs repair, I can have it done for not much, unless it is beyond help, then I will find another Hotpoint without going broke. Why change brands when it works so well for so long. I can even buy new drip pans at Walmart, so it is very convenient.

I have a Whirlpool electric glass top stove. It has 4 burners and a keep warm burner, 2 of the burners give me the option of either a small or large burner. The oven has option of either regular or convection use and I use both. The oven is self clean but it is an Aqualift clean, I wipe oven out and pour 2 cups of water in bottom of oven and hit clean. The oven heats to only 200 degrees and runs for about 40 minutes, then I just open the door and wipe out the oven. I love this feature and find that I clean my oven more often especially in the summer when I don't want to heat up the house.

You will probably get as many different opinions as there are responses. My favorite was a Whirlpool smooth top. We have a Frigidaire now and I hate the thing. The oven takes to long to heat and then stays hot forever after you turn it off.

Tho I have a gas stove and will never have otherwise, one feature that I've seen and really want in my next stove is racks that are on slides on the side of the oven, like kitchen drawers on slides...the rack can slide out and stay there with no chance of it tipping. That leaves my hands free to work with what I'm cooking. Just a thought.

Boy, do I hate my (stainless steel) black glass top. The top always looks icky in spite of being careful to keep it wiped up. I found “e- cloths” sold at hardware store and a spray bottle of plain water to be the best help. All my stainless is high maintenance.

We left my old (white) speckled gray glass top stove in the house when we moved 5.5 years ago. It was a dream to keep clean and I’d love to have it again. When I tried to buy another one, I couldn’t get refrig, dishwasher and stove all in same brand if I wanted white so I opted for stainless. Big mistake as far as I’m concerned. Appliances aren’t made to last anymore either.

Convection is good for baking......cookies. But most other baking not so much. Just keep that in mind if you bake a lot. I have a convection oven, but really only use it for making cookies, and that really isn't that much anymore. I'm too busy quilting LOL!

I'm glad you are not buying a gas stove! We just bought a Frigidaire gas stove and I had to remove all the knobs . If you just brush against them they turn on and the gas comes on . I didn't realize it a few times and the house filled with gas. A disaster waiting to happen!!!!

OMGosh! That is so scary. I hope you notified the manufacturer. I haven't had gas cooking in many years, but it seems to me that we used to have to push down and turn the knobs so that they couldn't easily be turned by a child or in the way you've experienced. I hate it when things get worse after they already knew how to make it safer. If I get the chance to buy another gas one, I will remember to ask about this. I'm glad you mentioned it.

We had electric convection ovens from 2000 to 2014, and I loved them. I can't justify changing the good basic oven in our current house yet, but convection was definitely better for everything. It distributes the heat more evenly and is more efficient. We bought a Jenn-aire in one house and it was great. Got another one when we moved in 2005, and that one had some problems at first, but they were covered by the warranty. I would buy that brand again.

One word of caution about the newer ovens with circuit boards. Our repairman mentioned this: Don't let anyone slam the door. Those fancy electronics do not like to get jarred around.

My stove is a 1936 Estate gas. See no reason to replace it as it still works fine, but will have to change it to propane.

I would also love a new electric stove and appliances.. I came into a marriage where the appliances were already here picked out by my husband and his then girlfriend. Our kitchen is small, with no windows in the immediate room...but sunlight does stream in from other rooms. Why they bought black appliances is beyond me, as they do nothing for the room. I'd much rather have white or stainless steel for a second choice. Oh...and I hate the ceramic cook tops. At some point they all get "buggered" up.

I bought a new stove and microwave about a year ago. They are both Maytag. I got talked into a convection option too and have never, never used it. I am so sorry that I got talked into having this option. What I do like is that I have two ovens which is a wonderful feature. One is small in height and the bottom one is regular size. It is a glass flat top electric oven. Can't remember the full cost but I always get the 12 or 24 month payment plan with no interest. This is the only way I buy anything. I feel the money is better in my pocket than theirs.

I have the least expensive Kenmore and it is not making me happy. It replaced a top of the line GE (from 1993). Burners are too hot, oven isn't well insulated, burner rings deteriorate quickly. I do have the oven clean cycle. I wouldn't be w/o it. No convection. My convection microwave wasn't impressive, though I did use it for overflow on Thanksgiving and Christmas. My sour cream cookies would not bake properly in the convection oven at church.

I have the Maytag Gemini which is smooth top electric and dual oven. Top oven is small the size of the drawer and gets the most use, excellent for pizza and other stuff. Doesn't take long to heat up so it is more efficient. Lower oven is regular size BUT it is very low so I find myself kneeling in the floor when using it. I have had it 20+ years and have never had a problem with it. I would love to have wall ovens but this going just won't die.

Tranum, I have a question for you, if you don't mind. Have you ever tried Weiman Glass Cook Top Cleaner on your black cook top? That is what I use on my white glass cook top and I think it works really well, cleaning it and polishing. I use the razor and a firm plastic "scrubby" thing that came with the stove for stubborn, burned on things. The razor only when it is wet or with the glass top cleaner or it can scratch. But, we are planning to replace this stove with a stainless version and so far, I've only seen them with black tops. Must admit I'm a little worried about keeping that looking nice, kind of like you said. Yikes!