Best Gas Stove??

Lucas61

Well-known member
Jun 13, 2014
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retired English teacher (30 years)
In purchasing a gas stove, we are between a rock and a hard place. The choice is between unknown Latin American entities and U.S.A. aka "Made in China." I am referring here to a stand alone gas stove with oven as opposed to a portable burner. The latter can be dangerous if it is not set on a very solid foundation. The former accomplishes this purpose.

I bought a CETRON. After one month, one burner stopped functioning. No biggie. Three burners work fine. Three years later another burner has failed. Two burners left. When the next burner goes, time for shopping. A family friend also had problems with this brand.

Can anyone recommend, based on EXPERIENCE, a gas stove that has longevity and does not break??
 
Last edited:

monfongo

Bronze
Feb 10, 2005
1,202
145
63
buy a US stove they have thermostats, and what make you think they are all made in China?
 

vida

New member
Mar 18, 2010
122
4
0
I bought a cetro with six burners about six months ago. So far there have been no problems. However, the burners are taken apart every week and cleaned.
 
Jan 9, 2004
10,898
2,226
113
In purchasing a gas stove, we are between a rock and a hard place. The choice is between unknown Latin American entities and U.S.A. aka "Made in China." I am referring here to a stand alone gas stove with oven as opposed to a portable burner. The latter can be dangerous if it is not set on a very solid foundation. The former accomplishes this purpose.

I bought a CETRON. After one month, one burner stopped functioning. No biggie. Three burners work fine. Three years later another burner has failed. Two burners left. When the next burner goes, time for shopping. A family friend also had problems with this brand.

Can anyone recommend, based on EXPERIENCE, a gas stove that has longevity and does not break??

Here is what I have done in the past.

Buy it at Sears in Miami.

Have a mundanza pick it up for you still in the box and have it shipped to your door.

Here is a good deal currently running at Sears;

http://www.sears.com/kenmore-4.2-cu...ID=11042411&utm_medium=551655_552179_11042411

Use a coupon code of SEARS35OFF300 and the price drops to $363.99


Good luck.


Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
 

windeguy

Platinum
Jul 10, 2004
42,211
5,966
113
As PC said ,buy it in the US, have it shipped here and make sure it is set up for propane!
 

malko

Campesino !! :)
Jan 12, 2013
5,545
1,327
113
I disagree, ok stuff can be found here in the dr, even in the campos :) ;) and its a stove....... not exactly high-end technology.

I have a nedoka (?) , brand i had never heard of.
6 burner top.   Its on the large size stove. ( large oven and bottom seperate grill/ pizza place ).
6 or 7 years old and going strong.
But i grease the " moving " parts or they go squeaky.
Also the burners are taken off and cleaned twice week ( well that should be done on any brand anyway, no1 wants grease around there, i would think ).
And it was cheap(ish), around 25k pesos i think.
Oh and its in the outside kitchen, so its dominican proof :) :)
Used every day, multiple times a day.

In the inside kitchen i have a teka oven. This one is incastrated and comes in 2 pieces ( ie, the oven and the burners ).
Its a "show-off" kind of thingy. Made to look nice. Hardly ever use it.
But its been there ten years and is still working.
 

dv8

Gold
Sep 27, 2006
31,266
363
0
we have a frigidaire purchased in pricesmart for 27k or 28k pesos. piece of crap. the oven door hinges got damaged (i bake several times a week) and had to be changed and the temperature does not go over 200 C. in theory it should go to 250 but in reality it never does, no matter how long i run it (i have separate oven thermometer).

so this year we decided to go all out and got a viking. it's coming later this week. i hope this one will last and perform well.

i wonder if the temperature issue could be down to gas (type and quality)? i'd like 250 C to properly bake my sourdoughs (they come out tasty and great inside but the crust is too pale.
 

AlterEgo

Administrator
Staff member
Jan 9, 2009
23,097
6,247
113
South Coast
When we went shopping for a new stove 5 years ago, I found an American brand that I liked. Got to talking to the salesman and he recommended a brand I'd never heard of, Acros, made somewhere in Central America if I recall correctly. I asked him why, and he showed me the burners, how that brand was heavier and larger metal, came off easily for cleaning, etc. Four regular burners and a large, oval, fifth burner in the middle with a griddle. It was less expensive too, so it wasn't he wanted a higher commission.

It's been over 5 years, most of the cooking done on it by Dominicans, and I have no regrets. Well, two small points....Only one rack in the oven, and the temperature gauge is off. When I bake or roast, I have to set it 25-50 degrees higher.

http://www.acros.com.mx/
 
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malko

Campesino !! :)
Jan 12, 2013
5,545
1,327
113
I find that baking with gas stoves ( as opposed to electric ) is a tad more complicated.
The heat diffuses much less....... so more heat coming from the bottom.
A dish full of water placed in the stove makes it easier for pastries and stuff.
 
Jan 9, 2004
10,898
2,226
113
we have a frigidaire purchased in pricesmart for 27k or 28k pesos. piece of crap. the oven door hinges got damaged (i bake several times a week) and had to be changed and the temperature does not go over 200 C. in theory it should go to 250 but in reality it never does, no matter how long i run it (i have separate oven thermometer).

so this year we decided to go all out and got a viking. it's coming later this week. i hope this one will last and perform well.

i wonder if the temperature issue could be down to gas (type and quality)? i'd like 250 C to properly bake my sourdoughs (they come out tasty and great inside but the crust is too pale.

All out is right.

Viking makes some seriously nice stuff.......but it is very very expensive. I would even call it commercial grade equipment.


Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
 

Mauricio

Gold
Nov 18, 2002
5,607
7
38
I disagree, ok stuff can be found here in the dr, even in the campos :) ;) and its a stove....... not exactly high-end technology.

I have a nedoka (?) , brand i had never heard of.
6 burner top.   Its on the large size stove. ( large oven and bottom seperate grill/ pizza place ).
6 or 7 years old and going strong.
But i grease the " moving " parts or they go squeaky.
Also the burners are taken off and cleaned twice week ( well that should be done on any brand anyway, no1 wants grease around there, i would think ).
And it was cheap(ish), around 25k pesos i think.
Oh and its in the outside kitchen, so its dominican proof :) :)
Used every day, multiple times a day.

In the inside kitchen i have a teka oven. This one is incastrated and comes in 2 pieces ( ie, the oven and the burners ).
Its a "show-off" kind of thingy. Made to look nice. Hardly ever use it.
But its been there ten years and is still working.



Nedoca is a Dominican brand (i think it stands for Neveras Dominicanas CxA), later bought by Corripio. Since then they aren't build in DR anymore but often in Mexico and sometimes in China. Not a bad choice for something like a stove (hard to keep a stove in perfect state in DR, unless you have no maid and like cleaning it thoroughly every day).
 

dv8

Gold
Sep 27, 2006
31,266
363
0
A dish full of water placed in the stove makes it easier for pastries and stuff.

works great for cheesecakes which need to be baked in low temperatures. but when i put it in my oven the temperature drops significantly, this does not work for heavy breads.
 

malko

Campesino !! :)
Jan 12, 2013
5,545
1,327
113
works great for cheesecakes which need to be baked in low temperatures. but when i put it in my oven the temperature drops significantly, this does not work for heavy breads.

I seem to have the opposite problem, the temperature always seems to high.  I dont use a thermostat, i am a more of a try and test baker :)
As an example cakes and crumbles will be burnt on the bottom when the cake is throughly cooked. The dish of water makes the cooking time longer, much longer, but no more burnt cake bottoms :)
 

Abuela

Bronze
May 13, 2006
1,952
288
83
I have a GE gas stove made in Mexico. Works fine for 11 years. As a baker my ideal would be a gas cooktop and electric oven but for now the GE has been dependable. When shopping look at the model# and search online and even if its a known brand it will reveal whether or not its for this market or first world. The least bells and whistles, the easier to service is my motto on appliances in general.
 

DR Solar

Bronze
Nov 21, 2016
1,626
365
83
We have two stoves/ovens. One is the local white, 4 burner that you light with a match. No oven temp. control. Very cheap but it's doing fine for 20 years now in our apt. and has had a good amount of use. We had a G.E. with the electronic controls that was very good for baking and had different burner configurations. Made in Mexico. The electronics failed and could not get replacements. Now a Frigidaire for the last couple of years very similar and made in Mexico too. No problems and baked goods are great out of the oven. I put an extra surge protector on this one.

We had brought down our Wolf S.S. commercial equipment that took over 15 feet of wall space with two cook tops/grills/ovens; double deep fat fryer and something else. Huge and heavy. It was in storage while we built and realized that the venting systems would be a problem and the amount of LPG needed was huge along with the heat that they gave off. We sold it all.

We also have a Miele built in convection oven that my wife really wanted for baking. Double rotisserie that can take 6 large chickens too, so I went along with it. Never have used it in 20 years. 220 was part of it but baking in the LPG temp. control oven has been just fine.

As others have talked about; It's the LPG that needs to be looked at. Stoves/oven and cloths dryers may not have the proper gas orifice and can be very dangerous. No matter WHAT the sales person tells you, check for yourself. PLEASE! Then you have to adjust the LPG regulator at the tank AND on the appliance to get the right flow for the correct temp. Manuals should be read or find them online.

Our BEST cooking appliance? Our Vermont Castings BBQ, roast, rotisserie, bake and with a side burner that we bought 30 years ago and having to replace the burners and heat plates once, still looks almost new. Best ever.
 

beeza

Silver
Nov 2, 2006
3,480
732
113
Have a look at the rear of the stove.  If there are places that rats can get into, they will.  They love the fiberglass insulation and make cozy nests out of the stuff and they chew the wires.

My last two stoves went that way. The fix is to buy some wire mesh and seal it off where rats can get in.

Average life span where I live near the coast seems to be 4 to 5 years for the standard 20k pesos stove.  First thing to go were the electric ignitors.
 

beeza

Silver
Nov 2, 2006
3,480
732
113
We have two stoves/ovens. One is the local white, 4 burner that you light with a match. No oven temp. control. Very cheap but it's doing fine for 20 years now in our apt. and has had a good amount of use. We had a G.E. with the electronic controls that was very good for baking and had different burner configurations. Made in Mexico. The electronics failed and could not get replacements. Now a Frigidaire for the last couple of years very similar and made in Mexico too. No problems and baked goods are great out of the oven. I put an extra surge protector on this one.

We had brought down our Wolf S.S. commercial equipment that took over 15 feet of wall space with two cook tops/grills/ovens; double deep fat fryer and something else. Huge and heavy. It was in storage while we built and realized that the venting systems would be a problem and the amount of LPG needed was huge along with the heat that they gave off. We sold it all.

We also have a Miele built in convection oven that my wife really wanted for baking. Double rotisserie that can take 6 large chickens too, so I went along with it. Never have used it in 20 years. 220 was part of it but baking in the LPG temp. control oven has been just fine.

As others have talked about; It's the LPG that needs to be looked at. Stoves/oven and cloths dryers may not have the proper gas orifice and can be very dangerous. No matter WHAT the sales person tells you, check for yourself. PLEASE! Then you have to adjust the LPG regulator at the tank AND on the appliance to get the right flow for the correct temp. Manuals should be read or find them online.

Our BEST cooking appliance? Our Vermont Castings BBQ, roast, rotisserie, bake and with a side burner that we bought 30 years ago and having to replace the burners and heat plates once, still looks almost new. Best ever.



Where can one find adjustable bottle regulators?  This was the issue with our latest stove.  The oven wouldn't get up to temperature.  I replaced the regulator and it's better.  But these regulators are cheap and nasty quality.  I wasn't aware that there are adjustable ones out there.
 

DR Solar

Bronze
Nov 21, 2016
1,626
365
83
Where can one find adjustable bottle regulators?  This was the issue with our latest stove.  The oven wouldn't get up to temperature.  I replaced the regulator and it's better.  But these regulators are cheap and nasty quality.  I wasn't aware that there are adjustable ones out there.

Most regulators have a plastic cap, or just a turn knob. Some have no adjustment. Remove the cap and adjust. Be warned, some turn up/down clockwise and others counter. It's a puzzle. The trick is that now you have the regulator adjustment BUT you need the appliance regulator adjusted too. Too much pressure going out of the tank regulator can damage the appliance regulator. Little by little.

Some really nasty cheap stuff for sale so, look at the regulator and ASK questions. Good luck.
 

beeza

Silver
Nov 2, 2006
3,480
732
113
Most regulators have a plastic cap, or just a turn knob. Some have no adjustment. Remove the cap and adjust. Be warned, some turn up/down clockwise and others counter. It's a puzzle. The trick is that now you have the regulator adjustment BUT you need the appliance regulator adjusted too. Too much pressure going out of the tank regulator can damage the appliance regulator. Little by little.

Some really nasty cheap stuff for sale so, look at the regulator and ASK questions. Good luck.



What pressure should these bottle regulators control at?  I have a car diagnostic pressure gauge that goes to 30psi which I could tee into the line to adjust it.