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We currently have an induction cooktop circa 1985 and we love it. One advantage is that it heats up immediately like gas but it is electic. The only trick is that only magnetic pots work on the surface (ie not Aluminum). I like the solid glass surface because we can use it for additional worksurface, which is needed in our current kitchen.

We are in the middle of kitchen planning and will be putting in another induction model, the only challenge is that there are few to choose from, based on cost we will be going with Kenmore.

Posted by Robin – December 6, 2006 11:50 AM

we had a smooth-top in a previous home, but after 2 years of use, it showed several scratches (seems only I was bothered by them) and was nicked by a knife being dropped on it. It was an easy-to-clean surface, but I don't think I would want one again. We are going with a gas cooktop and electric ovens.

Posted by Pam – December 6, 2006 6:14 PM

Hi Jim,

Yes the smoothtops look great, but be very careful when working around them. My Mom dropped a small empty pot on hers from a very short distance and the surface completely shattered. This was about two years ago, presumably GE has made some improvements since then. The good news is that my parent's stove was still under warranty so the top was replaced free of charge. The bad news is that the repairman said that he saw the broken tops all the time, that he in fact was replacing at least two a week.

Posted by camille – December 8, 2006 1:36 PM

I bought a Kenmore smooth top a few years ago, and it gets ordinary usage from two clumsy people, and has held up wonderfully, and still looks great. Not having to clean dirty burners and replace burner pans is also great. I love the smooth top and don't ever want anything else.

Posted by Sara – December 12, 2006 8:43 PM

Hi:
I'm currently living with my daughter while my new home is under construction. I fell in love with the smoothtop range at first and found I loved working with it and the easy cleanup! However, boil-overs bake onto the surface are are difficult to remove and I also find that the surface is quite scatched. I'm planning to have gas in my new home as we often have power outages. I made this decision many years ago when I had very young children and had to heat food and bottles. It seems the most practical solution for me as I now have my Grandkids staying with me often.

Posted by Josie – December 13, 2006 9:45 AM

I like smooth cooktops, but I do a lot of canning and for some reason you can not do canning on smooth cooktops. So I have a gas top with an electric/convection oven, which I love.

Posted by pat kerr – December 13, 2006 10:07 AM

I had a gas stove (burners) the old fashion and electronic ignition and then the old fashion electric, but I like the smooth cook top the best. my mother in law had a nice one -she took good care of it and it stayed nice for years and she did a lot of cooking as she was one of the best italian cooks ever. the only thing I was warned not to use my old cast iron pots and pans so I gave them away. cast iron was great on the gas but not on the smooth top. my next stove will be the smooth top with convection oven.

Posted by Sherry – December 13, 2006 11:26 AM

I like the smooth look, but I will try to find one with electronic touch controls. I thing the raised knobs will catch dirt...
Whatcha think???

Posted by Alexander F – December 13, 2006 11:38 PM

Our Whirlpool glass cooktop is slow to heat up, otherwise satisfactory. Had it about a 18 months.

Friend who sells these things says they are GLASS. You can clean them with straight edge razor blade -- in holder for safety.

Posted by Mary – December 14, 2006 8:18 AM

My ceramic top electric stove is my favorite of all the stoves I've ever used. We love the convection oven, so I would advise getting one with convection. Bake time is faster, saving energy, plus the texture (outside) of most foods is enhanced. The stove is easy to clean. It's true you can't use your old cast iron. No matter how well you clean them, the bottoms of the pans will retain grease, which will then drip off onto the stovetop. Learned the hard way.

Posted by Debbie – December 14, 2006 8:32 AM

I, too, have an induction cooktop from about 1985. Because I love it so much, couldn't find another in 2000 and thought the new buyers of our home wouldn't know its value, it's followed us to three houses. It's about 20 years old now, and I have no idea how long it will last, so I've been pleased to see that a few companies are starting to promote them again. So far, though, the only wear mine has is a little loss of color around the control panel. I love the facts that the burners are so responsive and sensitive, that nothing burns onto the glass, and that it doesn't heat up my kitchen (because the only thing that heats is the pan itself), and that I can be careless about having paper or anything else close to the pan I'm cooking in without worrying about burning it up. The main inconvenience I can think of is that I have to carry a magnet when I shop for a new pot or skillet. I hope to always have an induction cooktop instead of any other type.

Posted by Sue Scholz – December 14, 2006 9:35 AM

I have a GE smooth top stove and love it. I also had one in a previous home. The clean-up is great. I did melt a place on one burner when the water boiled out of a teapot. While my late husband was ill, I was sleep deprived and fell asleep while the burner was on. Other than that, after eleven years, the cook top still looks like new. I am building a house next year and will definitely get another one.

Posted by Laura – December 14, 2006 10:50 PM

Hi all,
I have just moved into a home with a smooth cooktop. It has had rough use over the years and it shows. I have had a variety of electric stoves over my forth plus years of marriage and I cannot wait until I remodel this kitchen and put in a gas cooktop. The only problem I am having is that I want gas wall ovens and I can.t find double gas ovens that I can afford. I would love the pro ovens but they are out of my range!!!
Any Ideas?? I would love to hear them
Jane

Posted by Jane – December 15, 2006 3:56 PM

I have an electric Dacor smooth glass cooktop which is great. Touch controls, no knobs. Safety on off touch controls. Turns off automatically if not in use. Good investment. Cleans up well also.

Posted by Marsha – December 24, 2006 1:03 PM

we are planning a kitchen remodel..... have a smooth, glass top cook surface now... love the way it heats quickly ... but my son-in-law is a chef and my owner's manual advised against moving the pans across the burners... which will cramp his style.... I have no scratches on the cook top now... but can one cook professionally on a smooth top??
thus I am considering gas for the remodel... any comments??
I have always had electric - since the mid 60s... so gas would be a major step...

Posted by leonora – January 4, 2007 1:00 AM

Glass tops are a beautiful thing! I have the maytag double over, I love how quickly it heats up and the surface is easy to clean.

Posted by KMT – January 12, 2007 9:16 AM

I hate my glass top stove (GE)
hard to clean... no matter what pan.. like waxing a coffee table after every meal.. have to live with it though....would love to have old stove back again.. go for gas if available..
turns on and off like an elec skillet . not for a serious cook

Posted by pat maison – January 13, 2007 8:41 AM

I have a Frigidaire smooth top. I like the
bridge burner, and the warming burner.
However the four main burners are not dependable.
It seems the low to high settings do not mean anything. I need to babysit the stove whenever I cook a meal. I spent 30 year without trouble
cooking on a coil burner and even though it was a
hard job to clean them I never ruined a dinner
because of them.

Posted by Mary – January 15, 2007 1:09 PM

I too have the bridge element which combines 3 into 1. However, I cannot find a grill pan that size that is acceptable to the smoothe surface. I emailed the company and was told never to use any pan that is a smoothe surface bottom. All the Circulon etal grill pans are rippled underneath to match grill ripples inside. Does anyone know where I can find a flat bottom grill pan. I know they have them for griddles but not the grill type. Help would be much appreciated.

Posted by Carmela Recktenwald – January 16, 2007 12:16 PM

This is the second smooth top stove that I have had and I love them. The first was a Sears with a Corning cook top and I had it for 15 years. When we remodeled I purchased a Whirlpool. The back burners are tricky to use with large pots but I manage. It is so easy to clean and I use cast iron frying pans on it. I do not seem to have any problems. On occassion I do use the retractable scraper to clean around the edges. Would definetly purchase another. I have had this one for 13 years.

Posted by barbara testut – February 18, 2007 1:26 PM

My son has just purchased his first home. The stove could be lovely - it's a Whirlpool stainless steel oven front and drawer which look like they were never used, however the main top has been used for a lot of wok cooking and is so black and greasy, I don't know how we'll ever get it useable. Does anyone have any ideas how to bring it back to life? We think worst case is to remove it, have it sand blasted and powder coated.

Posted by Gail – March 1, 2007 8:56 AM

Where is your exhaust located for you stovetop?

Posted by Dinah DeSoto – March 13, 2007 5:23 PM

how do you clean a glass solid top stovetop that has the stain or burn inbred into the glass top?

Posted by Rhoda Rothstein – March 18, 2007 12:50 AM

I will be purchasing a ceramic glass cooktop for our new home and have heard that canning is not recommended on smooth tops. Is that true and where can I go to research the reasons?

Posted by Marsha Daemron – May 5, 2007 11:44 AM

My grandfather had this induction cooktop in his house : GE Profile Induction Cooktop Model JP383 OR1WG

We haven't found the instruction manual to the cooktop and are having some issues using it as GE has apparently stopped producing them.

We can't seem to get it to work. Just a constant red bleeping signal goes when we press medium or high on the burner itself, even using the All-Clad special induction pans with the induction cooktop. We have pressed the "unlock" button on the cooktop so we're not clear what's going on!

Help! Any tips on how to work the cooktop would be appreciated! Thanks!

Posted by Jocelyn – May 9, 2007 1:05 AM

I own a Maytag electric glasstop slide in convection range and it is difficult to even boil water. The burners keep shutting on and off. Maytag says it is my electric service (I have a deciated line to the range) and my electrician says it is the range. Has anyone else had a similar problem? I want to buy a new range but the dual fuel ones look so hard to keep clean and many of them have porcelain or SS on the edges that scratches so easily.

Posted by Denise – May 19, 2007 10:24 PM

I recently bought a Maytag glasstop and it is so difficult to clean. Seems like something sticks to the top although nothing is actually on it. I spend more time cleaning than cooking. Much harder to clean than the Jennaire I had before. Any suggestions? Also, do not can, etc on a glass top. I experienced scorching from sugar which left black residue permanently - never was able to clean it off.

Posted by Andrea – May 25, 2007 7:58 PM