Our guide to choosing the best gas hob

Gas hob buyers guide

Despite the rising popularity of other types of hobs, the gas hob has remained a popular choice. Here at Knees Home & Electrical, we offer a selection of gas hobs from highly-regarded manufacturers such as Bosch, Neff, and Smeg. Given their popularity, it should come as little surprise that there are many options available to choose from. So, what factors should you consider when choosing the best hob for you?

Gas hob sizes

We have a number of sizes available, from 29cm to 100cm in width and many sizes in-between. However, the size that you choose will depend on factors such as the available space, your cooking requirements and household size. A popular choice is both the 60cm and 90cm width hobs, many having at least four burners of different types, often with one small, two medium, and one large-sized burner.

For those with smaller households, the smaller size gas hob of 29cm or 30cm may be more appropriate. These have only two rings and are more compact: they’re ideal if you’ve not got much space to work with and fewer mouths to feed.

What pans can I use on a gas hob?

You’re free to use whichever pans you like on a gas hob, whether you’re boiling rice, frying bacon or sizzling a delicious stir-fry. One thing to bear in mind is to select the correct ring for the size pan. The flames should heat the underside of your pan and not reach up the sides. Otherwise, you risk damage to your pans and your ingredients.

Some gas hobs will have a special wok burner that puts out the intense heat needed for stir-frying, but you can still use a wok on any burner on a gas hob.

Pros

• With a gas hob, you have the benefit of instant heat as soon as you turn on the jets. No more waiting around for the heat to come on.
• This heat is also highly controllable, enabling you to more precisely adjust the heat required when cooking, delivering better results when cooking certain foods.
• The distribution of heat emitted from jets on a gas hob is uniform, providing a nice evenly heated cooking area.
• You can easily see when the gas hob is turned as it is highly visual. Many people prefer this as it feels safer and allows you to judge how high the heat is at a glance.
• Gas hobs offer an attractive, traditional appearance which many people find very appealing and works well with a range of kitchen styles and designs.

Cons

• You may find that gas hobs can be trickier and more time consuming to clean due to their removable parts such as griddles and grates, pan stands, and burners.
• As these hobs are gas appliances, they’re going to require professional installation by a qualified Gas Safe engineer.
• Because gas hobs operate using a naked flame, there is a safety aspect to consider. This means that proper maintenance and repair are absolutely essential.

Budget

The gas hobs that we sell here at Knees come in a range of options to suit various budgets and needs. They are available in a price range from £100 to £2100, so there’s sure to be something suitable for your requirements.

We understand that purchasing the best gas hob is a financial commitment. When assessing what budget you should set for your new gas hob, you need to think about which features you most need or want. What size is most appropriate for your needs? Do you have a large household, a large kitchen and a love for cooking? If so, then you’re likely to want a larger hob which will be more costly. The opposite is also true, so you won’t want to buy a larger than you need.

It is worth spending some time considering whether you need some of the features available in some of the more expensive models, such as a wok burner or built-in extraction. Some of these decisions are not the easiest to make, as circumstances change because it can sometimes be hard to predict your requirements. If you are at all unsure, please feel free to ask one of our friendly staff who can discuss the options relating to gas hobs and will happily assist you in choosing the best hob for your requirements.

Installation

Any appliance that uses gas will need to be installed by a certified Gas Safe engineer. If you live within 25 miles of our store, you are welcome to use our additional installation service which will be carried out by our Gas Safe certified engineers.

You’ll need to ensure that the gas hob you buy is going to have space to fit and operate safely before it can be installed. When measuring for your new gas hob, don’t only measure the width: make sure you measure the depth of the work surface where it will be installed to ensure it will not protrude.

If you don’t currently have a gas supply in your kitchen, you will need to make sure that this is in place first. If you live within 25 miles of our store, our engineers can offer a free quote for changing your fuel type. Finally, you’ll need to have a power outlet within 1.5m of the hob: either a cooker point or a 3-pin socket will be fine provided that it matches the specification of your chosen gas hob.

Our friendly team here at Knees are ready and waiting to help with advice and further information on buying a gas hob. Please don’t hesitate to contact us.