fridge and stove questions

The first thing I would do is to remove power from the frig and thoroughly defrost the unit. If ice is built up, the defrost cycle for the unit will probably not work properly because of ice build up. This might be all that is necessary for it to work properly. Make sure ALL the ice has melted before turning it back on.

Dunno. But 120V on a 230v burner will take a long time to boil water.

Take your Valium before dealing with a home warranty company.

Lots of luck trying to pry any money out of your warranty company. =46rom posts in this NG and other published articles over the years, warranty companies are just a whisker away from outright fraud. My personal experience with such operations in the automotive field has been totally negative. They are regarded in most industries as a major 'profit center' for a reason. Odds are you haven't read your policy from the company. Do it carefully and note the many exclusions that affect any pay out, and prepare to be bitterly disillusioned.

Joe

Odds are that unless someone has attempted to rewire the innards of the stove the problem is a bad burner--the solid burners generally have two elements internally and if one goes out then the burner doesn't make much heat (BTDT). The burner itself can probably be obtained for under 50 bucks and it's not all that hard for anyone with a modicum of mechanical aptitude to replace. Alternatively one can buy the whole change-out assembly from Jenn-Air for a somewhat higher price.

It turns out the fridge had a clogged drain hole and now it works fine.

The stove is a different story though. The man shined a temperature gun on the burners and proclaimed them fine. With no pot on them they were around 700 degrees and with a pot of water around 530 degrees. A small pot of water took 10 minutes to boil. Popcorn in a pan took even longer. This is completely unacceptable to the wife and she cannot cook on this stove.

I am guessing solid burners take longer to reach temperature than coils do and want to replace the burners. The cheapest unit I found online was $206. I am wondering if I can just replace the solid burners on this unit with coil type. I took the unit apart and see wires connected to the element contacts. The burners are secured with brackets. I am having trouble determining whether coil burners can be interchanged easily and how to secure them into the burner assembly. Thanks for any pointers.

You sadi this was the small burner. When I find that the small burner isn't big enough. I use one of the two large burners. I've found that the msall burner is almost never large enough.

Tell her to use the large burners. Did you used to have a gas stove? They're hotter. If you get another electric stove, I doubt it will be any hotter than this one***. (Have you tried the other small burner, to compare it to this one.)

Maybe. Don't know. I have coils. I sort of think not. I'd want someone to say yes before spending 200 dollars.

My large coil burner had two tabs that plugged into the fixture clipped to the top of the stove, at the side of the burner. It got so loose after 20 years that that one burner sometimes didn't turn on. I replaced it and everything is fine. The connector screws to the wires that come from the knob.

We only know the appliances are old, but not how old. If they are 15 or 20 years old, I wouldn't be spending $200+ on any of them. I just replaced a 24 year old fridge with a new, slightly larger one. By my measurements before and after, it uses $100 a year less in electricity. That alone probably doesn't justify a new one, but considering you get a brand new one, better features, looks great, counter depth so it no longer sticks out, etc, chucking it was a smart move.

On Jenn-Air ranges, the burners come as part of a "cartridge" assembly. In other words, the entire rentagular top plate comprising two burners is replaced as a plug-in unit.

Check online sources for Jenn-air parts. They are not cheap but then neither is a Jenn-Air range. They start at about $2000 and a new one isn't much different than yours.

I'd fix it. All Jenn-Air ranges are high end units.

Keep in mind that the "ceramic" top cartridges really require pans that have an absolutely flat bottom in order to heat rapidly. The coil cartridges work with any pan.

There is another remote possibility. For a time Jenn-Air sold cartridges each with two "induction" heater/burners. They required special pans and literally induced a magnetic field in the pan that aided in the temperature rise.They were not popular and have been discontinued.

Doug

Ah, that explains it. The temperature of a natural gas flame is 2.5 to five times hotter, depending on what your "700 degrees" is measured in. A natural gas flame is about 3500 °F (1960 °C). Here's one reference: