# Glass stove top questions... **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 28, 2008, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908 "2008-12-28T02:39:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2017, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/21 "2017-11-07T16:03:30Z")
But can it cook _Brainzzz_? ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2017, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/22 "2017-11-07T18:22:58Z")
When I was a kid, my parents used to make calf brains for breakfast. Looked funny but ate OK. 😉 I have never fixed them myself. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2017, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/23 "2017-11-07T19:37:31Z")
Tried them once. Not with eggs; just a slice panfried and put on a sandwich w mayo & cheese. Once was plenty, thank you. ---
**Author:** ![dougrb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/76d3ee/32.png) [@dougrb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougrb)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2017, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/24 "2017-11-07T21:06:13Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I have no idea how your stove works, if this is actually true. Inductive heating works significantly better with aluminum than with steel, and best of all with copper. The magnetism of the pot shouldn’t matter at all, but only its conductivity. That makes sense, but it’s not true. I have an induction “hot plate” and it only works with magnetic pans. After doing some searching, it appears the problem with aluminum/copper is it conducts TOO good and the induced eddy currents don’t encounter enough resistance to create heat. That being said, I measured the resistance across two pans (one that works and one that doesn’t) and they’re about the same (couple ohms). ---
**Author:** ![GMANCANADA](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gmancanada/32/2837_2.png) [@GMANCANADA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GMANCANADA)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/25 "2017-11-08T02:41:58Z")
@Fluffy Bob - Interesting that yours is not as sensitive to moisture. We had friends visiting from England and they have an Electrolux cook-top (or “Hob”, as they call it) and they had the same complaint as we do. I assumed (based on a sample size of exactly 2 :smack:) that all were this sensitive. I do love ours for all the same reasons as you do. I’m still in disbelief at how fast it is. Unfortunately, the moisture shut offs are a deal breaker for me. One drop of water the size of a dime shuts it down. We don’t have any issues about a whistling sound. I get a humming noise when the burners are on higher power. It sounds to me like the humming of electricity, so I guess it’s part of the mechanism. Our’s is subtle, so not an irritant. I guess the moral of the story is ask about the moisture and whistling before buying. @Chronos - good point, I don’t know how they work either, and I’m too lazy to Google, but as dougrb says, maybe some are too magnetically sensitive? They do tell you the _best_ cookware for induction is cast iron so we’ve been checking out flea markets lately. I don’t know if all units are the same, but with our Miele, it’s not like you try and it works poorly or you just sit there waiting. As soon as you turn the element on, you get an “incompatible cookware” error message on the display and it won’t turn on. ---
**Author:** ![icbm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/2acd7d/32.png) [@icbm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/icbm)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/26 "2017-11-08T03:48:17Z")
> [@Abraca\_Deborah](#): > > Also, on ‘high’, the element under the glass glows, turns off, then glows again, until it finally boils water. Is this normal for this type of stove, or is it not working properly? Mine does this. I think it’s just how it is. The extra prep space is nice but don’t drop anything heavy onto it or scratch the glass. Also, I’ve accidentally melted and nearly burned some semi-disposable resealable containers that I left on the cooktop then chose the wrong element dial to turn on. I really don’t recommend doing that either. > [@Abraca\_Deborah](#): > > Not sure how to adjust calibration if it is off a bit. There is a pat-your-head rub-your-tummy calibration method on mine involving all the buttons on the digital control panel. It allows you to add or subtract displayed degrees to match actual degrees. It’s in the owner’s manual. I didn’t get a paper copy of my manual when I bought the house, I found an electronic one from the manufacturer. Post the model number and I can try to find a PDF version on the Kenmore site. Or google for number plus the words owners manual. On the off chance that yours is the same, here’s what my manual has to say: > [@](#): > > Recalibrating Your Oven Performance > The temperature in the oven has been set at the factory. When first using the oven, be sure to follow recipe times and > temperatures. If you think the oven is too hot or too cool, the temperature in the oven can be adjusted. Before adjusting, > test a recipe by using a temperature setting that is higher or lower than recommended temperature. The baking results > should help you to decide how much of an adjustment is needed. > To Adjust Oven Temperature: > > 1. Push the BAKE pad. > 2. Set the temperature to 550°F (287°C) by pushing and holding the UP ARROW pad. > 3. Within 2 seconds, push and hold the BAKE pad until the special 2 digit display appears. Release the BAKE pad. The > display now indicates the amount of degrees offset between the original factory temperature setting and the current > temperature setting. If the oven control has the original factory calibration, the display will read “00.” > 4. The temperature can now be adjusted up or down 35°F (17°C), in 5°F (1°C) steps by pushing and holding the UP or > DOWN ARROW pad. Adjust until the desired amount of degrees offset appears in the display. When lowering the oven > temperature, a minus sign (-) will appear before the number to indicate that the oven will be cooler by the displayed > amount of degrees. > 5. When you have made the desired adjustment, push the CLEAR OFF pad to go back to the time of day display. > Note: The adjustment made will not change the self-cleaning temperature. ---
**Author:** ![Remember\_me](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/82dd89/32.png) [@Remember\_me](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Remember_me)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/27 "2017-11-08T11:32:37Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Inductive heating works significantly better with aluminum than with steel, and best of all with copper. The magnetism of the pot shouldn’t matter at all, but only its conductivity. I believe that is not true. Induction heating works by inducing Eddy currents in a conductor by applying alternating magnetic fields from the outside. The amount of Eddy current is heavily dependent on the magnetic field inside of the conductor (in this case the bottom of the pot). The strength of the magnetic field inside of the conductor is governed by the field strength of the induction coil \*\*times \*\*the relative permeability. The relative permeability of non-ferromagnetic materials like aluminium or copper is in the range of 1. Ferromagnetic materials typically have a relative permeability of more than 1000. This dominates all other material properties for cases of inductive heating. E.g. differences in conductivity is also important, but the differences are only marginal compared to the magnetic properties. If you want to use non-ferromagnetic pot on your induction cooker, you can buy ferromagnetic plates to put on your stove and then put your copper pot on top. The induction stove heats the plate and the plate heats the pot. That is only a workaround and certainly not an ideal solution. But if you have a special, non-ferromagnetic pot you want to use for a certain cooking task it is possibility. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mighty\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Girl)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/28 "2017-11-08T13:17:49Z")
> [@Q.E.D](#): > > I don’t think this is the type the OP refers to, since she(?) mentions a glowing element. Induction stovetops are nice and they’re more efficient than almost any other type, but the problem I have with them is that they have very different heating curves depending on whether your cookware is aluminum, stainless or cast iron. And they don’t work at all with glass. > > For me, personally, a gas stove is the shit. I’ve had high-wnd gas stoves for decades, but I leave in the tropics, gas spills too much heat into the room. We’re building a new home, so I have been testing 3 brands of induction cooktops, I am switching to induction in our new home, I will still have a gas burner for our wok in the outdoor kitchen. Induction has come a long way lately. I have not experienced any problems with water spills, and it heats and responds every bit as fast as gas. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/29 "2017-11-08T14:41:33Z")
> [@Abraca\_Deborah](#): > > (snip)Last weekend I tried to heat up a cast iron griddle and it took forever, so I set the damn dial to “high” and eventually, the oil on the griddle heated up, got smokey, and was no fun. It stayed hot for ages afterwards. it was not a very good breakfast, I am araid.(snip) I have a glass top electric stove and frequently use a cast iron griddle to sear meat after sous vide cooking. I’ve learned that the best way is to figure out the setting you need and just set it at that and wait. If you get impatient and set it higher and then try to lower for cooking you get into a hysteresis loop and you’ll never achieve a stable temperature. I usually put the griddle on the stove at least 10 or 15 minutes before I need it. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/30 "2017-11-08T14:57:44Z")
My glass top heats up pretty fast. It also stays hot a lot longer than old-fashioned electric elements and gas burners. Probably because of less surface area to radiate heat. The result is even less short-term heat control than old electric, but the heat is very consistent once the right temperature is found. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/31 "2017-11-08T15:12:19Z")
I cannot remember the model, but I have seen a combo stove top with something like one electric, one induction, and two gas burners, so you have the best of all worlds. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mighty\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Girl)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/32 "2017-11-08T15:48:10Z")
Search for Smeg Domino for stovetops you can combine. > [@Mighty\_Girl](#): > > I’ve had high-wnd gas stoves for decades, but I leave in the tropics, gas spills too much heat into the room.We’re building a new home, so I have been testing 3 brands of induction cooktops, I… So many typos. I think I was having a stroke. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908/33 "2017-11-08T15:58:15Z")
More likely heat stroke from running your gas stove w/o your air conditioner. Be careful out there. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glass-stove-top-questions/478908.md?page=1)