Non-motoring > Which oven?	Miscellaneous
Thread Author: smokie	Replies: 44

Sun 12 May 24 17:55   Which oven? - smokie

We're now looking at doing the kitchen. SWMBO wants a larger oven, I want one that's easier to clean :-) So there are pyrolytic, catalytic and steam clean, over and above ordinary. Does anyone have any experience of any of these they could share a few words on please? Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 12 May 24 19:23   Which oven? - sherlock47

Having been converted to Air fryers our main cooker with 2 ovens is now very rarely used. last time in anger was at Xmas when we found the turkey for the family would not fit in the air fryer :) Do you need to re-evaluate your actual needs, rather than satisfying the aspirations of swmbo? Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 12 May 24 19:29   Which oven? - James Loveless

"... re-evaluate your actual needs, rather than satisfying the aspirations of swmbo..." Ooh... steady on. Dangerous stuff. Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 12 May 24 21:26   Which oven? - bathtub tom

When we moved to this place, SWMBO was adamant she wanted an eye-level double oven and nothing more to do with 'slide-and-hide'. Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 12 May 24 23:07   Which oven? - smokie

"Do you need to re-evaluate your actual needs, rather than satisfying the aspirations of swmbo?" Well maybe but I doubt it would fly, and even if it did, to have a new built-in kitchen without an oven would seem a bit odd (yes, maybe I'm old fashioned!) I'd say our oven is used two to four times a week on average. Both the kids have air fryers and it's not convinced her that we need one, my eldest entertained us last week and really quite struggled to do a reasonably modest meal for three. OTOH I know they do cook some things particularly well. We've had a not dissimilar halogen over for years. She wants a larger oven than we have but I see that a double oven isn't the way to go for that. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 13 May 24 07:42   Which oven? - sherlock47

My thinking is that if you cut down on the use of the oven it will not need cleaning (by you) so often. You can then go for the cheaper options without sophisticated self clean facilities. Air fryer bits fit in the dishwasher. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 13 May 24 15:35   Which oven? - Zero

>> She wants a larger oven than we have Why? get her to justify it by telling you the last time the existing one wasn't big enough. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 13 May 24 19:36   Which oven? - smokie

That's a good point! Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 13 May 24 06:55   Which oven? - Dave

How about a George Foreman grill? Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 13 May 24 09:10   Which oven? - CGNorwich

Get a decent double oven and grill with pyrolytic self cleaning. Ours is a Bosch but all the major brands do something similar. You don’t want to be on your knees checking how stuff is cooking. Cleaning works like magic. Can’t imagine trying to cook everything in an air fryer and who would buy a house without an oven? Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 13 May 24 10:00   Which oven? - Terry

Unless space is a major constraint, fit a double oven if the kitchen is being refitted - if for no other reason that if you find you have made a mistake with the air fryer option, rectification will be a major costly hassle. As far as catalytic and pyrolytic etc is concerned - make sure the coating covers as much of the interior as possible - some manufacturers seem to fit liners to the sides only leaving the top and bottom of the cavity as enamel. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 13 May 24 10:00   Which oven? - smokie

Ah OK, I get your thinking Sherlock :-) A double oven is one above the other isn't it? My quick researching led me to understand that these are internally smaller than a single oven. I'll look again. The pyrolytic cleaning certainly looks good. Of course, if it were a smart oven that'd be up my alley too :-) EDIT: to Terry's same-time post - also the catalytic cleaners (filters?) seem to need replacement. I'd think I'd sooner avoid ongoing cost/hassle really. I'm not sure how frequently it needs it but I hope I could absorb much of the extra cost of the pyrolytic clean in my current leccy tariff. Last edited by: smokie on Mon 13 May 24 at 10:03 Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 13 May 24 10:12   Which oven? - Crankcase

Is it bad that in all my life neither Mrs C or I have cleaned an oven, or even thought about it. They don't get dirty, as far as I can see. We had use of a dual drawer air fryer in a holiday cottage last week. Tried it to see what was what. Kievs came out exactly as they would in an oven. Chips in the other drawer weren't cooked. I thought I'd followed the simple instructions, but I guess not. Took perhaps five minutes less than just the oven. Deeply unconvinced. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 13 May 24 10:33   Which oven? - Bromptonaut

We had the kitchen done about 7 years ago disposing of a not that old lower oven that had replaced the 'OEM' AEG model the builders fitted. Replacement was a Bosch integral double where the upper combines fan thermal function with a microwave. The lower oven has what I think is a pyrolitic cleaning function - an ultra hot cycle that needs the door locked and takes 90mins or so. Just leaves a bit of ash in the bottom. Use it maybe once a year. Trays and shelves though need conventional cleaning. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 13 May 24 19:57   Which oven? - zippy

Can't advise on the oven side of things but delivery might be an issue if it is big. We had a huge French range in our kitchen. It died on us (everything in this darn house is a pain). I understand it was made in the 1980s and was a big solid iron thing. We had to get a scrap merchant round to move it. We replaced it with a Rangemaster range. Several major companies refused to deliver once they realised that they needed to get up a flight of curved steps to the house then a small flight of steps to the kitchen. In the end a Euronics firm from a couple of towns away sold us the cooker we wanted at a price that beat all of the major brands. Also we had to get the gas connector and pipework done ourselves (to speed things up) and they refunded the charge they made for that without question. Just trying to say consider local suppliers. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 13 May 24 23:57   Which oven? - smokie

Thanks, I often do - there is a discounter store in Crowthorne we've used before - though delivery to our kitchen is a short straight line from the front door, all on one level. Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 16 May 24 13:13   Which oven? - Slightlyfatdirector

We had a new kitchen designed from scratch a year or so ago. Cleaning ovens was a pet hate of mine (although easier with a cleaner they sell at Lakeland plus a brillo pad on the wire racks), so I treated us to a Miele pyrolytic oven via h****** who the kitchen came via. It's great, but at the time I had not twigged that the wire racks in the one I bought were not suitable for the Pyro process and needed to be cleaned separately, which I was not overly pleased about. After some gnashing of teeth I found that I could buy the racks that would survive this from the manufacturer separately - but they were pricey, so I waited for a % off promotion and bit the bullet and bought them and have tried to forget what they cost..... It does a great job, with just a damp cloth needed to be whizzed round after the cycle to mop up the small amount of ash. Quite smelly in operation though, and you need to do it on a dry / warm day when you can get doors / windows open. The glass door doesn't get very clean which was a disappointment. I found that a glass scraper blade used with a bit of water solved that. I hope to never clean an oven again. Ever. Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 16 May 24 13:22   Which oven? - Manatee

I would have bought a pyrolytic one, failing that catalytic, in the end it was neither because availability in Covid was bad. However we were limited to Neff, which AFAIK is the only brand that does a slideaway door. Very useful. We have cleaned it once. Not fun but easy. Worst bit being the door removal and dismantling to clean both sides of two sheets of glass, which would not have been helped by having pyrolytic liners. Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 16 May 24 15:46   Which oven? - bathtub tom

>> However we were limited to Neff, which AFAIK is the only brand that does a >> slideaway door. Very useful. We had one of them, very useful in a small kitchen, however. The oven bulb failed after a short time and Neff provided me (free) with the necessary dome removal tool and spare bulb. It soon failed again and because it's in the top of the oven, took much scrabbling about on my back to replace it. It soon failed again and I just couldn't remove the bulb. I had to remove the oven and take it into the workshop and remove panels to access the rear of the bulb assembly. I was not impressed with the standard of manufacture and SWMBO was starting to think the thermostat wasn't very accurate. Fortunately we moved house and left the 'slide and hide' oven behind. Some viewers were impressed, but the damned bulb had blown again! Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 16 May 24 16:19   Which oven? - Robin O'Reliant

We've been without a bulb in our Hotpoint for at least five years. When the original one blew I replaced it with one that lasted about a week before not only blowing again but taking the main fuse with it. Another replacement did exactly the same, so I just left it. We hardly use it since we got an air fryer, there are only the two of us and it is more than big enough, I even managed to fit a small turkey crown into one of the drawers at Christmas. In fact if we were planning a kitchen we'd not bother with an oven, a two drawer air fryer and one with a large single drawer would cover every base. Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 16 May 24 17:00   Which oven? - Dog

>>we got an air fryer, there are only the two of us and it is more than big enough, I even managed to fit a small turkey crown into one of the drawers at Christmas Bah! ... I've cooked a whole chicken in an air fryer. :) Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 16 May 24 17:31   Which oven? - smokie

.... in bits? Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 16 May 24 20:00   Which oven? - Dog

dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/whole Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 16 May 24 23:46   Which oven? - smokie

An I thort I was gud at Inglish :-) Reply to this message | Report message

Fri 17 May 24 07:23   Which oven? - Dog

T'was just small chickens bout 2.2kg. The first time I tried it caused an awful smell in the kitchen b'cos the chicken touched the the heating element!! Trick is too press down on the chicken to compress it before sticking it in the air fryer. The air fryer was a Cosori on which there was a recall in the states, so I gave it a go with Amazon and changed it for a Instant Vortex Plus which is a mucho better product. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 20 May 24 17:54   Which oven? - Manatee

The first time a got a turkey crown I was a bit drunk, and I thought they had palmed me off with a dodgy one with no legs. I'd never heard of them. Good idea though, I never know what to do with the legs anyway. Although I don't think we've had a turkey since. Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 6 Jun 24 19:52   Which hood? - smokie

We're moving along the new kitchen path fairly briskly and are committed to having the new one from Wrens, with them installing it. However we have some choices to make on appliances. Today's question - does anyone have a hob2hood arrangement whereby the extractor speed is controlled by the hob settings? I am particularly interested to know whether hob2hood is a standard or not - I've found nothing that conclusive on the internet really and I don't think our salesman will know. We are veering towards Zanussi hob & oven but their hood is somewhat pricier than others, for something we barely use. They have priced us a Viceroy one at £260ish whereas the Zanussi's are a couple of hundred more. Last edited by: smokie on Thu 6 Jun 24 at 19:53 Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 6 Jun 24 20:02   Which hood? - Bobby

Surely you would want a Smart Hood linked up to all your other devices and voice activated or linked to 4 humidity sensors across your kitchen??? :) Reply to this message | Report message       1

Thu 6 Jun 24 20:23   Which hood? - smokie

Aha that's where you're wrong!! I've even surprised myself and made a conscious and unaided decision to not introduce any smartness to the kitchen, at least not integrated into appliances. We have a smart dishwasher but it really isn't that smart - it'll tell you when it's finished, and you can program it through your phone, but as with many things it's easier using the knobs and buttons. I do time-shift its start time using a WiFi plug to catch the cheapest overnight time slots. But it's going, along with a load of Bosch appliances which to me don't feel very old. I'll be trying to recoup some money on it and maybe even the old kitchen on eBay. Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 6 Jun 24 20:32   Which hood? - Manatee

I'd avoid it if I were you. Our hood starts up when the hood is on but it tends to run at high speed which is very noisy. It's been turned off for a year because it's annoying. I have an expensive hood there that I don't use. Steam etc isn't really a problem, the ventilation system shifts it anyway. Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 6 Jun 24 21:31   Which hood? - legacylad

>> Steam etc isn't really a problem, the ventilation system shifts it anyway. >> Likewise. I have a super reliable ventilation system that seems to be very efficient and offers low energy consumption. It’s my back door. Reply to this message | Report message

Fri 7 Jun 24 09:36   Which hood? - Bromptonaut

>> I'd avoid it if I were you. Our hood starts up when the hood is >> on but it tends to run at high speed which is very noisy. Ours is noisy, even on its lowest setting and we rarely use it except when maybe boiling stuff on the hob, like pressure cooking Xmas puds. This one is fixed whereas the old one had a cover which had to be pulled out for it to operate. It's the one bit of the 'new' set up I regret not giving more attention to at the time. I might yet replace it. The one in the cottage here has a blocked charcoal filter, it was quieter with it removed but given it's one that recirculates into the kitchen it's not much use anyway. Much prefer one that discharges outside. Reply to this message | Report message

Fri 7 Jun 24 09:41   Which hood? - Zero

Have one over the hob, with an external discharge. Charcoal filters go in the dishwasher, amazing amount of fat in them and the inside of the extractor that needs to be cleaned out, which otherwise would be attached to your walls and ceiling. They are essential in my book. Reply to this message | Report message

Fri 7 Jun 24 15:14   Which hood? - bathtub tom

>> Have one over the hob, with an external discharge. Charcoal filters go in the dishwasher, >> amazing amount of fat in them and the inside of the extractor that needs to >> be cleaned out, which otherwise would be attached to your walls and ceiling. They are >> essential in my book. Took the filters out of ours as they restricted the flow too much. It vents outside. One tip we learned, was to put cardboard on top of the top units. The amount of grease that collects there is then absorbed and the cardboard can be thrown away. Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 6 Jun 24 22:27   Which hood? - bathtub tom

>>committed to having the new one from Wren Have you looked at their reviews? If you're committed, it may be too late! Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 6 Jun 24 23:29   Which hood? - smokie

I haven't, but I when spoke with two neighbours (who are close and trusted friends too) who I think have much superior taste and standards to me it surprised and pleased me that both of their fairly recent (and successful) kitchen replacements had been Wrens. Not really sure who else I would have tried. We aren't totally committed except the amount of time we've already invested - 3 showroom visits - 3.5 hr, 2 hr and 1.5hr - plus their measuring guy was here for 90 mins - and the suspicion that they are probably all much of a muchness. Point taken Manatee re the hood. We have an extractor already, and it has hardly ever been turned on as the room is well ventilated anyway. Though I suppose I'm still curious as to whether it is a standard or the companies are just using the same odd way of naming their differing product. EDIT: There are 85,000 Trustpilot reviews on Wrens. 87% 4 or 5 star seems pretty good to me!! uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.wrenkitchens.com Last edited by: smokie on Thu 6 Jun 24 at 23:36 Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 6 Jun 24 23:46   Which hood? - Fullchat

Most kitchens are much of a muchness. Its the quality, care and craftsmanship of the fitters that make all the difference. Last edited by: Fullchat on Thu 6 Jun 24 at 23:46 Reply to this message | Report message       1

Fri 7 Jun 24 09:15   Which hood? - bathtub tom

Our last two have been supplied by h*******. The fitters prefer them as the units come ready assembled. In both cases everything arrived correctly in one delivery. The extractor doesn't have a hood, it fits into a top cupboard. I chose it as I was hitting my head on the last hood and worried about putting an eye out on it. Saw a hob that extracted downwards. Thought that may cause more problems than it solved. *What's wrong with H-O-W-D-E-N-S? Last edited by: bathtub tom on Fri 7 Jun 24 at 09:17 Reply to this message | Report message

Fri 7 Jun 24 14:02   Which hood? - VxFan

>> *What's wrong with H-O-W-D-E-N-S? A while ago, we had a spate of spammers using that word to promote kitchens. We had to enter all kinds of different spellings of it into the swear filter to prevent their spam messages and links appearing. Reply to this message | Report message

Fri 7 Jun 24 17:08   Which hood? - smokie

Wrens are ready assembled except they cut the worktops on site (but not the expensive quartz ones, which he roughly priced up yesterday for us at an additional £3.5k over the already quite pricey ones we've chosen). Must admit I'm losing interest in the whole effort as we seem to be having to compromise a bit and have a lesser kitchen that the 23 yo one we are replacing - they don't have quite the cupboard size range and there seem to be some legal requirements - particularly around the hood & hob relative size and measurements preventing us replicating what we have - and I discovered this am that they mis measured a ceiling height so although that doesn't look like it affects anything it means I'm having to go through the rest with a fine toothcomb. We already know that there is likely a ton of additional cost which the installer can quote for us for work which they don't cover, which I'm fine with, and I'd be surprised if it blows the (rather generous) budget but the job feels like it's getting a bit messy for not a lot of return. For me, swapping round some of the unit fronts and maybe new worktops and flooring would be acceptable but I think SWMBO hasn't reached that stage yet. Reply to this message | Report message

Fri 7 Jun 24 17:19   Which hood? - Zero

Essentially, given a kitchen location (shape, size, doors, utilities, etc) there is one optimal working design. Its pointless dicking around with it, its simply a matter of an update/modernisation/style choice. Reply to this message | Report message       1

Fri 7 Jun 24 20:05   Which hood? - smokie

Yes, exactly. Ours was designed - albeit in MFI - using similar 3d software 23 years ago and it is pretty much optimal and has served us well. I told the bloke at Wrens when we started not to put too much effort into "improving" it. As I think I already mentioned the inhibitor is the more limited availability of right size cabinets and new legislation. Last edited by: smokie on Fri 7 Jun 24 at 20:05 Reply to this message | Report message

Fri 7 Jun 24 09:28   Which hood? - Bromptonaut

I guess either they know their stuff and point you towards the best compromise between cash and function or they're going for what makes them most. Our installer, a local outfit, tried to steer us to CDA appliances but we preferred Bosch. I suspect the issue with Wren is down to installers who are, even if they have Wren branded van, independent contractors. Reply to this message | Report message

Fri 7 Jun 24 11:39   Which hood? - Bobby

When we got the house extension done back in 2010, we wrapped an L shape round our semi detached which means that the kitchen is internal and has no external windows or doors. It does have an extract fan in the wall and one of those hoods above the hob that recirculates through the filters and back into the room. If we are ever cooking anything in the slightest bit greasy like burgers sausages etc the kitchen absolutely stinks. There is no scope for running any ducting from the hood outside so I have vowed that if we ever redo the kitchen then the job is getting moved over to the other wall so that the hood can extract where the extractor fan is just now. Reply to this message | Report message

Sat 8 Jun 24 12:02   Which hood? - RichardW

I fitted the kitchen here in 2004 but didn't duct the hood to the outside. When it failed after a few years, I finally got around to doing the job properly and putting in an external vent - what a difference! We use it all the time, gets rid of all the steam and smoke. We've got a Stoves one, which was not cheap (twice the price of the oven I replaced at the same time!) - however, there is a massive variety of flow rates and noise levels, and the one we went for came out pretty much the best combo of high flow rate and low noise levels. The run to outside is about 2.5m, so I did it in 6" solid duct rather than the 4" flexi hose that will have much higher pressure drop - and we had a 6" fan in the wall that I was able to connect into. I even used duct tape for it's actual purpose to seal 2 sections of the duct!! The hood does have a link function to an induction hob, but as we have a gas hob, not been able to try it out... Reply to this message | Report message