Which is better ceramic top or exposed metal element ring oven?

[mrsaneperson]

Just wondered everyone's thoughts on this. Over the years some of my tenants have been pretty careless not wiping spills up from the element ring area and this has caused large scale rusting to the point the top has corroded around where the elements sit. Looks quite ugly and this is only after 4 years. Also some of the elements are pull out types and over the years the connections corrode.So i need to replace it.
I know the ceramic tops are quite a bit more expensive and they have glass which can easily scratch but at least no corrosion of the metal surface will happen like the element type ,so how is everyone else s experience along this?

[artemis]

Partly depends on what sort of tenants. If tenants do a lot of cooking, esp in large pots, they can damage a ceramic top quite quickly by dragging rather than lifting. Also ceramic tops need spills to be cleaned up right away as they burn on easily and then are hard to remove even with ceramic cleaner and a sharp blade.

I have a ceramic top at home and do seem to spend more time cleaning it that I'd like. Have a 2 burner ceramic hob in a studio apartment with generally excellent tenants. Still gets burned on areas though.

Some tenants prefer coil elements - that might not be a good thing.

[Keithw]

Ceramic tops will tend to get a buildup of burnt on gunk around the most used element. This can be scraped off with a paint scraper, but I have had cases where the top surface seems to have been broken through, so on scraping, even more gets scratched off along with the gunk.
The flat surface is much better at containing spills, but depending on how the control shafts come through the glass (on the one piece units where rotary controls under in the same piece of glass than the elements, not on the ones with electronic controls, or where the controls are located separate to the glass top.) hot liquids can run down the shafts & cause the control to short out.

the loose element stove tops need the support brackets and spill catchers beneath them, & for some reason tenants just dont understand how to remove, clean and replace them so that the element doesnt fall below the surface.
Plug in ones are surely more convenient to replace, but as you say tend to work loose and become unreliable before they burn out.

my preference is for the ceramic tops, on either the stove or as a standalone, but if you are looking to replace / install a new standalone then be careful with the cutout size, there is no standard, so you want to choose a size that have several types available for when it comes to replacement in the future.
I try to standardise on the F&P size where I can, as several others have a similar dimension, making them a drop in replacement.
I have never bothered to try to get an element replaced, just bought a second hand unit.
I have replaced numerous controls, again they are not standard but many use the same control (blue MP 101-C). Stay away from proprietary ones like Smeg, they are completely different.

Where the tenants do a lot of slow cooking (eg indian) the flat top makes a better surface to mount the 2 burner gas top that they inevitably buy, but watch out that they dont burn the knobs / facia on the stove with their gas burner.

[BigDreamer]

Where the tenants do a lot of slow cooking (eg indian) the flat top makes a better surface to mount the 2 burner gas top that they inevitably buy, but watch out that they dont burn the knobs / facia on the stove with their gas burner.

We actually tell tenants *not* to mount anything other than pots/pans on the cook top. If they need gas top then recommendation is for them to install outside of the house. We believe it is a lot safer than setting up inside the house.

[Keithw]

We actually tell tenants *not* to mount anything other than pots/pans on the cook top. If they need gas top then recommendation is for them to install outside of the house. We believe it is a lot safer than setting up inside the house.

Good idea but have you managed to enforce it ?

[Wayne]

I believe the open element is better for spotting so some tenants would prefer that.

[mrsaneperson]

I believe the open element is better for spotting so some tenants would prefer that.

Oh yeah we'll go with that one then..lol

Currently looking at some 2nd hand ovens on trademe they're all around $400. I guess if i can find a relatively unused one or youngish model it will be a better economical buy than a new one.

[BigDreamer]

Whatever you do, do *not* buy the ovens from TradeDepot. We made the mistake of purchasing two new Vogue stove ovens from TradeDepot about 3 years ago and both have had issues within the first 18 months. All the elements on one of the stoves now do not heat up at all

[propertybuyingNZ]

Whatever you do, do *not* buy the ovens from TradeDepot. We made the mistake of purchasing two new Vogue stove ovens from TradeDepot about 3 years ago and both have had issues within the first 18 months. All the elements on one of the stoves now do not heat up at all

hehe, yep, happened to us as well.

[BigDreamer]

hehe, yep, happened to us as well.

I guess we learn from our mistakes! The other warning with TradeDepot is their damn heatpumps. We installed in one rental and it broke within 6 months, still under warranty and took another 3 months just to fix. Really disappointing.

On a positive note, we still purchase from TradeDepot but we avoid their appliances.

[FJW]

Hi Mrsaneperson

How long are you going to hold this property for?

If you are going to hold long term then yes I would advocate for a ceramic built in bench top one.

I don't advocate for free standing ovens as cooking oils / food splatters down the side which seldom gets cleaned by certain people as well as behind it. Having a built in oven solves that problem.

Its about doing improvements to the property that mitigate carelessness damage from occurring.....

[mrsaneperson]

This property has a very tiny kitchen even though its a 3 bedroom. Built in ceramic bench top ,wouldn't be enough room so the freestanding oven option is the only viable solution.

Thanks for the TradeDepot warning. I have seen a few ovens on trademe being sold by refurbished outlets they are often quite old, 7 - 8 years already and they are wanting $400 for them however im guessing elements giving up or simmer-stats on their way out may be something that will come up shortly after purchase.

[Rentex]

You're onto it mrsaneperson.
We can't recommend refurbished free standing stoves.
Even if they are cheap now, we (almost) always see simmerstat or element failures within a year or two. Sending out an electrician to replace these ad hoc gets very expensive.
I've tried to avoid future visits by replacing any original simmerstats whilst on site, but it always ends up a false economy.

Same with no-brand stoves. Are parts going to be available in a few years?

Some Fisher and Paykel elements swivel up, whereas Westinghouse/etc have splayed terminals which may short in the long term. Probably had a good run of several years with it by this point though.
In both cases tinfoil under the elements can help to reduce rusting from spills. Tenant education.

[mrsaneperson]

So it seems from comments, even though the ceramic top ovens are more expensive they may be a better long-run option with less parts to replace than the ongoing maintenance situations with metal element ovens which often need new simmer-stats and elements along with connectors that end up flimsy for the plugin elements.
The problems i strike is that after a while the outside rim around the metal element corrodes making the whole thing decidedly ugly & not fixable.

At least you wont get that with ceramic top though it can get heavily scratched. Can you polish them back?

[Wayne]

At least you wont get that with ceramic top though it can get heavily scratched. Can you polish them back?

And if they use a wok ring they get heavily marked.