Considering a radiant cooktop for a rental property. Is there anyone who owns one who can answer these questions?
We are considering one from Sears - around 500 dollars.
TIA.
If the cooktop is on and you remove a pot from one of the burner areas, and touch it, yes you will burn your hand. It is just like touching a regular burner. The areas between the burners are cooler (like a regular stove) but caution must be used when touching those as well. Our stove has a light that lets you know the cooktop is too hot to touch.
Not hard but perhaps more than some people want to do. We clean ours after every use with a ceramic cooktop cleaner. Any crusted on food gets scraped off with a scraper blade first, then the cleaner. This keeps it looking brand new. I'd hate to see what it looked like after weeks of leaving crusted food on, or how scratched the surface might be if someone used a dull scraper blade, butter knife or other such items to scrape off the food.
You don't need special pots/pans, there are just some types/sizes you shouldn't use. Aluminum will leave white scratches on the surface, which aren't noticeable right away if you have a black surface with white flecks, but will look messy after there are many of them. These white marks can be cleaned if they are taken care of quickly, but if not taken care of, will remain.
Also, pots and pans need to be a certain size. I think it is no more than 1" in diameter bigger than the size of the burner (but check the manual as I am sure this could be different for different models).
Can you get a cooktop with solid elements for the same price or cheaper? If so, I would consider that instead for a rental property.
You also need to keep in mind that extremely hot liquids (such as the juice from berries when making jam), if spilled onto the cooktop can pit the glass.
If maintained properly and regularly these surfaces look great, and are really easy to take care of. Let the maintenance slide or don't do it properly, they will look terrible and could be damaged.
We are working with a very small kitchen. We were leaning towards a 2 burner cooktop so the burners would be further away. Then we started discussing this an hour ago and were wondering if the radiant would be safer. So it looks like it isn't safer.
In the original blueprint we had an stand alone oven but decided to go with a cooktop and will do microwave above that is convection or something else. Also the sink is off in the drawing and slides down a bit so one can stand there. And that wall where sink is actually is a 45 degree roof line. The window by sink is a velux skywindow. We have a smaller sink sitting sideways so the levers will be on the right or left.
Oreo.
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Is it possible the two burner stove was required to avoid having burners too close to slanted roof? Is this up to code?
Just curious where you intend to put a kitchen table and chairs in that layout?
The last thing you want in a rental unit is a radiant cooktop..... Sorry but renters as a hole don't normally have the pride of ownership pride IMO that is required for the proper care and feeding of a radiant cooktop. Maybe too much slanted TV nuzz but I would not sleep well with the knowledge my cooktop was in constant jeopardy.
I don't know how much stress a cooktop can take....ie, the unit in use tends to stay much hotter for a longer period than a common element stove. Conversely I would be leary of some airhead powering ahead to clean the unit in this extended heat span for fear of it cracking. Neither do I know how sturdy the cooktop is when a utensil is dropped on it like the lid of a pressure cooker or some such thing.....
I'd find a scratch and dent offer from one of the boxes and go with that.
Dennis
"oreo123" wrote
A cooktop isn't "safer", but it will offer additional counter space (when cool), which should be a huge check in the "plus" column in your case.
They are easier to get totally clean, than a regular electric burner stove, where crud inevitably builds up below the burners.
Are you omitting a regular oven? Where is the fridge? A guy posted his kitchen's design to craiglist a month or so ago, wanting to remodel to add a "regular" slide-in range, because his kitchen didn't have an oven (!). That would be a huge "minus" for me, either as a renter or buyer.
It looks like you might squeeze things in a bit better, if you line them up on the bathtub side of the kitchen, and maybe put the dishwasher in the upper right corner.
JSH
I see you have a dishwasher, is it full size? If so, consider going to one of the 18" models. We have one in our home for 2 adults and a child and it is plenty big enough and gave us more space for storage.
Also, are you thinking of eliminating the oven completely? I know I wouldn't rent a place with only a microwave, I can't stand the things. And I can't imagine cooking nice large, crisp crust pizza in the microwave. :-) If you are eliminating the oven all together, perhaps consider eliminating the dishwasher instead? They are nice to have, but it is possible to live without them!
My ex wife bought one. My 15 year old son says it's a pain in the neck to clean. Now, admittedly, a 15 year old kid has his mind on skateboards and girls, so he may be exaggerating a bit, but on the other hand, I know my son, so I think he's pretty accurate.
This may not mean much if the stove is yours because you can stand over the kid and nag him until he learns to clean it correctly (after blowing up whatever food he was trying to cook). But, it means PLENTY if you end up renting to people who don't give a damn. Or even worse: college kids. I have a friend who had two rental properties near R.I.T. The stories he told were worse than anything Stephen King could write.
I'd do this: Get a traditional electric range, but make sure it's got a top that lifts up easily for cleaning. I don't mean "able to be disassembled". I'm referring to a top which opens like the hood of a car so you can do a thorough job of cleaning underneath. The shields under the burners are less than three bucks each, so if the tenants hose those (and even careful cooks hose them), you're only out 12 bucks for all four.
Here is the blueprint.
Now I am thinking of an electric cooktop with controls on right side. AND hopefully 3 burners on the left side. Anyone ever seen one? Another option is to get a 4 burner electric cooktop and remove forward right side burner - but what would I fill that hole with?
Originally we were going to do stand alone range and decided against it due to possible burn from leaning to left and backwards while working in the sink.
TIA all!
Is this your first rental property?
No. Its is a super location though & will get a high rent. It was an off and on hobby in this particular apt as I wouldn't do this again for a rental. Right now its around 95 percent done.
Oreo
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