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Electric Stove vs. Gas Stove: Which is Better?
When shopping for an apartment, the stove may be the last thing you consider when making your decision. But the difference between having a gas stove or electric stove could mean the difference in utility bills, your cooking and even the environment. So which is better for you?
Gas stoves
Professional chefs swear by gas stoves, because they provide a more accurate temperature, offer more control over how hot the oven gets and heat up quicker. But while they have other advantages, gas stoves also come with disadvantages.
The pros of gas cooking:
- Gas cooktops actually can mean a cooler kitchen, because they don’t create as much heat as electric stoves.
- Power outages won’t affect whether you can use them, so in times of emergency you can still have hot food.
- The flame used to cook food on the gas stove heats more evenly than on an electric cooktop.
But the cons of gas cooking include:
- Gas-powered stoves can ultimately be pricier than electric cooktops, and could be the only gas-powered utility in your entire apartment.
- Having a gas stove also adds the danger of it leaking carbon monoxide into your home if something goes wrong with the appliance.
- Another safety concern is a gas leak. It can ignite and cause an apartment fire.
- Cooking on the gas cooktop typically isn’t a problem. However, gas ovens tend to be temperamental and you’ll need to watch and rotate food often to make sure it cooks evenly.
Electric stoves
Electric stoves arguably are better for oven cooking, and tend to be a safer choice. But they too have their pros and cons:
The advantages to cooking with an electric stove include:
- Retailers now offer smooth top electric cooktops, making clean up incredibly easy.
- You don’t have the ventilation concerns as with a gas stove.
However, electric cooktops also have their pitfalls:
- The electric stove’s heating coils on the cooktop take longer than a gas appliance to heat up, lengthening your cook time.
- The temperature can be uneven, particularly if the coils are not flat. Gas stoves have more even distribution of heat, but this can be a problem with electric cooktops.
- If your power goes out, so does your ability to cook.
Energy wise, which is best?
The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that the average apartment uses 20 percent of its energy powering appliances and home electronics so having Energy Star appliances — whether gas or electric — is key to keeping your utility bills down. Obviously, if you have an electric stove, your electric bill will be higher than if you have a gas-powered cooktop. But that difference will be made up by the gas bill headed your way.
One way to determine which type of stove is best for you is to check out the natural gas and electricity prices in your state, as some states are higher than others. Electricity and gas providers typically post their current pricing information on their Web sites, so that’s a good place to start.
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Readers Poll
Do you plan to move yourself or hire a moving company to assist you?
- Move myself by renting a truck (63%, 15 Votes)
- Move myself without renting a truck (21%, 5 Votes)
- Hire a moving company to help (16%, 4 Votes)
Total Voters: 24
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Started buying this house in 2005. It came with a gas stove, hot water heater and furnace and love it!! Really enjoyed being able to cook during a few power outages. Being able to still take a warm shower during an outage is very cool. Unfortunately the furnace doesn’t work during power outage but that’s where the woodstove comes in
!! I grew up with a woodstove for heat and it’s my preferance, if time allows, when the weather gets really cold.