Rural Living: LP gas for cooking (as opposed to natural gas or induction?)

[Halftime Hope]

I have to make a decision on a cooktop and oven; they could be attached to one another, I'm not convinced one way or another.

 

Does anyone have any input on LP vs natural gas, and then on induction cooktops?  (Of concern: we are planning to build a very "tight" house to help with allergies.)  Edit:  natural gas isn't an option in our rural area.

 

I'm used to a NG cooktop that isn't perfect--a bit uneven heating--but it heats quickly an gets hot.  I don't think I could be talked into an electric coil again, but if people really like flat surface induction cook top, I might consider one.  (Most of my pots and pans would work.)

 

TIA!

Edited June 1, 2016 by Halftime Hope

[prairiewindmomma]

Is LP propane?  We grew up with propane. Propane is highly variable in cost, and getting deliveries for your tank can be a challenge to schedule during times of shortage (often coinciding with bad winter weather).  In terms of cooking, I think my personal preference is natural gas>propane>flat surface electric>induction>coil.  Evenness of heat distribution, control over heat, and ease in cleaning are all important to me.  In our latest move, I went from flat top electric to heavy duty exposed cast iron natural gas.  I much prefer the natural gas.

[City Mouse]

I had propane for a while and then switched to natural gas about 2 years ago. I haven't noticed any difference in cooking, but it sure is nice not to have to worry about the propane running out at a bad time.

[MEmama]

I've used propane, electric (both coils and induction) and natural gas. I honestly don't prefer any one over the other and have never had issues switching from one to another. Propane should work exactly like natural gas, other than you'll have a tank for it. For ease of use there shouldn't be any difference.

 

Cost and delivery in your specific area would be the bigger factors.

Edited June 1, 2016 by MEmama

[Liz CA]

When we lived on acreage we had LP gas. I never noticed any difference with cooking and I do cook and bake quite a bit. I had a gas cooktop as well as gas oven. The only pain was trying to get gas delivered to our tank when there was a little snow on the road. :)

 

Since we have moved, I now have an electric flat top (or whatever it's called). It's not the same as gas but it cleans easier. I have heard good things about induction but have never had one yet.

[Guest]

Up here, at least, propane tends to be really cheap until the day it's not. It fluctuates pretty wildly depending on the demand and season, distance of transport, etc.

[Lanny]

We live in a huge rural subdivision. Our stove uses Propane Gas (we have a 40 LB tank). Recently, they installed Natural Gas Lines where we live. I'm not sure if the service is available now, but if and when it is, we are going to stay with our 40 LB tank.  We live in Earthquake Country (Colombia) and I was born and raised in Earthquake Country (California) and we have seen a number of incidents, especially after major earthquakes in California and Mexico, where having Natural Gas was not convenient, after the earthquake.  If there would be a problem here, we can go outside, turn the valve on the tank to off, and we are good to go.  If and when we cannot get Propane Gas tanks, then, we will have our stove converted and hook up to Natural Gas.  Natural Gas is more convenient and less expensive, so those are the pros for it. We also have a tiny (2 plate) electric stove, in case there is no gas, and also I think there are some things my wife uses that for, that cook better on an electric stove.  I can't imagine using an electric stove. The cost would be prohibitive.  There have been  2 or 3 times in the city of Cali (approximately 4 million population?) when during extremely bad "Winter" weather (torrential rains) the Natural Gas coming in from where it is produced (near the city of Manizales) has been cut off and the Natural Gas customers in the city of Cali did not receive Natural Gas until those issues were resolved. 

[BlsdMama]

Up here, at least, propane tends to be really cheap until the day it's not. It fluctuates pretty wildly depending on the demand and season, distance of transport, etc.

This is true here as well. You might want to check LP companies in your area. We own our tank but you might see the cost of tank ownership, tank rent, and conversion I'd is not something you have already.

 

Also, in our area, we can sign a contract each spring for a certain amount at a fixed price, estimated upon our previous years usage.

 

We like our gas for heat. Currently we have an electric stove but I really wonder why in the world one would go electric over gas? I like the responsiveness of gas over electric and definitely prefer gas. We will be switching this when it's time to renovate the kitchen. I have no experience to offer about the other energy methods you mentioned.

[Kalmia]

You can get a dual fuel range. Propane or natural gas top and electric oven. Many people prefer cooking on a flame, but baking in an electric oven. Kenmore has several dual fuel models.

 

My electric induction flat top range never got hot enough to use with our water bath canner, plus it was not as easy to clean as advertised.

Edited June 1, 2016 by Kalmia

[madteaparty]

I've had natural gas all our lives and then moved to the country and have the propane tank at the back of the house. Propane is cheap and can't tell a difference with the cooking (and I cook a lot!)

A comment on tight houses -- are you sure you can have either? We are in the market and recently spoke to a very right house builder--he is extremely firm in no combustibles--electric stove. Part if the reason why we are not looking at such home's is that Iam attached to my wood stove...

[Tammi K]

I had an induction cooktop when I lived in Australia.  At first I was skeptical, but after I started using it, I LOVED it!   It was quick, quick, quick to boil water. It is also very responsive to change, much like gas.  The one downside I see with induction is that some of my kids were annoyed by the high pitched sound. 

[cjzimmer1]

I can't speak to any of the gas situations as I have never cooked on them but I LOVE LOVE LOVE my induction stove. 

 

Speed, everything is so much quicker.  I hate going other places to cook because I feel like I'm standing around waiting forever for things to cook.  My old coil stove took an hour to boil water for canning.  My induction stove boils the same amount of water in 18 minutes. 

 

Cleanup, I'm a messy cook.  I frequently boil things over.  I love being able to lift up the pan,  wipe up my mess burner and all and put the pan back down without burning myself.  Things never burn on to the stove top.  My mom has to use a razor blade to scrape of her radiant burner top because stuff is always burned on.  Never happens on induction. 

 

Burns, the glass never gets hot enough to burn.  If you or a kid walks up and forgets that a burner is hot you won't have a searing burn as a result of the forgetfulness. 

 

Anyways, I'm a die hard induction fan. 

[Guest]

I can't speak to any of the gas situations as I have never cooked on them but I LOVE LOVE LOVE my induction stove.

 

Speed, everything is so much quicker. I hate going other places to cook because I feel like I'm standing around waiting forever for things to cook. My old coil stove took an hour to boil water for canning. My induction stove boils the same amount of water in 18 minutes.

 

Cleanup, I'm a messy cook. I frequently boil things over. I love being able to lift up the pan, wipe up my mess burner and all and put the pan back down without burning myself. Things never burn on to the stove top. My mom has to use a razor blade to scrape of her radiant burner top because stuff is always burned on. Never happens on induction.

 

Burns, the glass never gets hot enough to burn. If you or a kid walks up and forgets that a burner is hot you won't have a searing burn as a result of the forgetfulness.

 

Anyways, I'm a die hard induction fan.

We have gas and I'm still considering going to an induction range.

[gypsymama]

I never noticed a difference between natural gas or LP. I hate, hate, hate electric stoves. I haven't tried induction although I've heard good things about them. I have considered trying it but I hate coil electric so much I'm worried about the induction grating on my nerves. We have almost always had LP propane and I love it. I love the adjust ability of the heat and the fact that I can visibly *see* how high the heat is. I also like that I have cooking ability even if power goes out in storms. I don't have to worry if a thunderstorm hits and it's dinner time ;) . Costs do vary wildly but a LP stove won't take that much propane if it's all you're running. Our stove is the only thing on propane here so our LP costs are low.

 

* 1 gal of propane = 91,000 BTU. Most stoves are estimated at around 60,000 btu or an estimated 5-10 gal. of propane per month. Here's one site showing some estimates: http://lingas.com/hot-topics/how-much-propane-do-my-appliances-use/  

[Catalytic]

We own a home on 6 acres in a rural area, and use LP stovetop with an electric convection wall oven.  I despise any type of flat cooktop, haven't tried induction, but since I adore my pots and pans, I'll stick with gas.  Having recently rented a house with a glass cooktop, I can say I will never, ever, ever!!! consider one for my house.  I can a lot when we're living in our home, and I LOVE cooking with cast iron, neither of which is advised on a glass cooktop.  Our stovetop was meant for natural gas and converted for LP (before we bought the house)

[Carol in Cal.]

I like natural gas a lot better than electricity, and can't distinguish it from LP.  Both go really high and really low, and both turn off instantaneously.  Re. LP, you might ask your propane company about a larger than normal tank if you are concerned about availability during a long stormy period.  I did that, and ended up with a 500 gallon tank instead of a 250 gallon one.  Honestly, it's not really all that much bigger looking, and the peace of mind is totally worth it.  Rental is $90/year rather than $75/year.  

[Anne in CA]

Honestly, propane keeps us going. We lose power A LOT. Being able to cook and take hot showers and heat our house with propane makes that bearable.

[lllll]

When we lived in the woods, we had a 1,000-gallon propane tank.  It's a pretty big bill when they fill it every 6 months (?) or so.  It was only connected to our hot water and a few ancient wall heaters in the house.  I would have loved to have had it for the stove.  I don't like electric stoves.  It was nice when the power went out because we could heat some of the house with it.

 

It's wise to shop around for propane companies.  Prices and service vary.  

 

We had a long, steep gravel driveway.  The truck could tear up parts of it if they came when it was muddy.  They came up once after dh told them not to (due to rain) and tore it up.  My dh complained and they paid for repairs.  After that, dh told them not to come up if it was raining or snowy due to the mud.  So they would schedule deliveries and call me to make sure the gate was open.  If the company will work with you like that, it's much better all the way around. 

[barnwife]

All the stoves I've used have burners designed for natural gas, when they're converted to LP they don't respond to the controls as evenly as with natural gas.  With natural gas the flame goes evenly from low to medium to high, with LP they go very quickly from low to high with a short turn of the control dial.  Much easier to control on natural gas.

 

If you buy new cast iron, sand the nibs off the bottom or they'll scratch a glass top stove.  Otherwise cast iron and canners are fine on glass top stoves.  

[Catalytic]

All the stoves I've used have burners designed for natural gas, when they're converted to LP they don't respond to the controls as evenly as with natural gas.  With natural gas the flame goes evenly from low to medium to high, with LP they go very quickly from low to high with a short turn of the control dial.  Much easier to control on natural gas.

 

If you buy new cast iron, sand the nibs off the bottom or they'll scratch a glass top stove.  Otherwise cast iron and canners are fine on glass top stoves.  

 

I remember the gas company saying something to me about the conversion on my stove not being done correctly.  We figure we'll get it done properly when we replace the stovetop (sooner or later, because the cast iron things over the burners have cracks in them and Kitchenaid no longer makes replacements)

 

Sears told me cast iron and canners could crack a glass top stove, since we were renting, we opted not to take that chance.  I did my canning on a propane burner outside while we lived there, and we just stored the cast iron.

[Beebug123]

We moved rural about a year ago. My whole life I'd only ever cooked on natural gas stoves (in my home at least) and our new home is LP. I do notice a difference. While on my stove I have a good range of control on the flame it cooks much hotter. For example if I heat something to boil and the reduce it to low to simmer it will still keep boiling. If I am trying to cook something like bacon in the entire pan the parts around the outside will hardly cook and where the burner is will burn. It's taken me a long time to figure out how to cook scrambled eggs without them burning to the bottom. Although now I find it much easier to make eggs over medium.

[MEmama]

All the stoves I've used have burners designed for natural gas, when they're converted to LP they don't respond to the controls as evenly as with natural gas. With natural gas the flame goes evenly from low to medium to high, with LP they go very quickly from low to high with a short turn of the control dial. Much easier to control on natural gas.

 

If you buy new cast iron, sand the nibs off the bottom or they'll scratch a glass top stove. Otherwise cast iron and canners are fine on glass top stoves.

Our current stove was converted to propane and then back again. We didn't have any issues either way. It sounds like perhaps your conversions weren't done correctly because what you are describing really doesn't sound safe or right.

[BlsdMama]

 

If you buy new cast iron, sand the nibs off the bottom or they'll scratch a glass top stove.  Otherwise cast iron and canners are fine on glass top stoves.  

 

 

The one caveat to this is if you have  younger girls that like to cook and you like cast iron.  I figure that's a fairly small group but worth mentioning.  We've broken two glass tops.  One was with canning in an extremely large water bath and the other was with a younger daughter (little muscles) setting a cast iron pan down too hard.

 

We don't currently have a glass top and I will *never* purposefully purchase one.  That said, I do currently have electric but there are plans to switch to LP since we heat with gas, already have a tank, etc.

 

Yes, the bill is pretty hefty when you fill a 1,000 gallon tank.  They do have other size tanks, but they also do a budget pay just like electric companies.  For example, our last contract was for 1700 gallons.  Let's say the price is $1.00/gallon.  (Currently it's lower than that.) Your contract purchase amount due is $1700.  Divide that over 12 months - $141.67.  So we have that amount auto deducted each month.  If we go over the contracted amount, we pay the excess out of pocket.  If we go under, we just fill the tank in the spring with the rest of the contracted amount and contract for less the next year. :)

[LisaKinVA]

There is no difference to me between NG or LP for the stove top.  You won't be able to pay me to stay with gas for an oven, though.  I loathe my NG oven...I bake a lot, and it may simply be that we have a really carpy oven, but it never heats up properly, maintains heat, switches itself off randomly, and when it does bake, does not bake evenly or brown nicely.  I have to turn off the oven and turn on the broiler to get anything brown without seriously over cooking it.

 

We had LP in our house in VA.  Our WH was also LP.  We had an annual contract, and were able to spread out the payments over the year (costs always went up in the winter).  This helped us tremendously.  Payments were based our average use for a year.  So, if we spent $1000 on propane a year, we paid that over 12 months, with the first month of the next year being a "catch up" or "credit." 

[TammyS]

We have LP now.  It came with our house.  I was really excited to get back to gas, but LP is just nothing like natural gas.  It's not as hot and it's temp range is small (very hard to keep a pot simmering, it either wants to boil if I put the lid on, or not simmer if I take the lid off).  I'm ripping it out and getting electric again.  Some kind of ceramic flat top. 

[TammyS]

We own a home on 6 acres in a rural area, and use LP stovetop with an electric convection wall oven.  I despise any type of flat cooktop, haven't tried induction, but since I adore my pots and pans, I'll stick with gas.  Having recently rented a house with a glass cooktop, I can say I will never, ever, ever!!! consider one for my house.  I can a lot when we're living in our home, and I LOVE cooking with cast iron, neither of which is advised on a glass cooktop.  Our stovetop was meant for natural gas and converted for LP (before we bought the house)

 

Just FYI, at my old house I had a glass cooktop and I use cast iron primarily.  It was always fine, I was just careful not to slide them around on the surface. Never had a problem.

[MEmama]

We have LP now. It came with our house. I was really excited to get back to gas, but LP is just nothing like natural gas. It's not as hot and it's temp range is small (very hard to keep a pot simmering, it either wants to boil if I put the lid on, or not simmer if I take the lid off). I'm ripping it out and getting electric again. Some kind of ceramic flat top.

Is it possible your stove isn't meant for propane? What you describe isn't "normal" for a properly working stove.

[Laura Corin]

We have LP now.  It came with our house.  I was really excited to get back to gas, but LP is just nothing like natural gas.  It's not as hot and it's temp range is small (very hard to keep a pot simmering, it either wants to boil if I put the lid on, or not simmer if I take the lid off).  I'm ripping it out and getting electric again.  Some kind of ceramic flat top. 

 

I think that is to do with the range and how it is adjusted.  We have a specially designed LP cooker.  It goes to the tiniest simmer and it also has a full wok ring that really cranks out the heat.  When we first got the range, it was set too high, but husbad researched it and learned how to adjust the flow (with the proper adjuster, nothing dangerous) and it now works very well.