# Halogen cooking hobs



## plongeur (Aug 1, 2005)

So after 20+ years cooking with gas, I've moved to an apartment where its use is forbidden and I've bought a four-ring halogen hob. Anyone have any advice/experience to offer? Differences to gas? Any Gotchas? Cleaning problems?
Tia!


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## mikelm (Dec 23, 2000)

I had to Google "hob" - it is evidently the European term for cooktop.

Assuming it's a ceramic/glass surface with heaters under, it does indeed require special attention to cleaning. Anything you spill of the surface needs to be thoroughly cleaned/scraped off before heating the unit again. If you don't you may well vulcanize the spill into the surface of the cooktop.

We put in a GE "Profile" cooktop (just electric, not halogen, heaters), and it came with a jug of mild abrasive and a plastic wiping pad for this purpose, as well as a single-edge razor scraper to tackle tougher spills.

It needs to be cleaned thoroughly after each use and before heating it up again. The instructions are especially alarming about spilled sugar; if you don't get it immediately, it will bond to the top.

You should also be careful about sliding pans across the top, especially cast-iron ones. A rough bottom can scratch the surface of the cooktop. We learned this the hard way.

It's hard to judge the temperature you're getting, and the response time is slow, both for increasing and decreasing heat. After seeing Harold McGee's discussion of non-contact thermometers, I got one as my big Christmas present; I hope to be able to measure what I'm getting at various numeric settings on the cooktop and get a better feel for the controls. 

Otherwise, we're pretty satisfied with the unit.

Mike


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## plongeur (Aug 1, 2005)

Thanks! I appreciate it.


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## bobski (Mar 22, 2006)

Halogen is supposed to be faster then radiant coil but if it is it's very close. I only use my halogen Jennair carteidge when I want to amaze and confound my friends. It produces a nice light show. I don't see any difference as far as cleaning etc.
Bob


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