Induction burner questions
May 2, 2023 5:42 PM Subscribe
We're looking to replace a renter-grade electric oven with (possibly) an induction top oven; are there any buy-guides that index against how loud they are?
I use a portable standalone induction burner for a bunch of stuff (heating up water fast, cooking outdoors when it's balls hot, the holidays, etc), I like the mechanism of induction. We don't have any pots that aren't compatible. I like the energy profile of them. I feel like I have a pretty solid grasp on the pros and cons of induction, and the cons aren't much, except...
My only hesitation is the piercing whine at certain settings is too much to deal with for everyday cooking (I cook nearly everyday), but I only have experience with my countertop portable buddy (it's a mid range Duxtop if it matters; they're to be of quality?). I don't know if this translates to larger appliances.
Are they quieter when they're built into a stove? Is the whine exacerbated by them being standalone countertop appliances?
I don't have any direct experience with a residential induction burner other than a portable, but can't seem to find any information on how loud or whiney they get. Who's holding? How whiney is your stove?
I use a portable standalone induction burner for a bunch of stuff (heating up water fast, cooking outdoors when it's balls hot, the holidays, etc), I like the mechanism of induction. We don't have any pots that aren't compatible. I like the energy profile of them. I feel like I have a pretty solid grasp on the pros and cons of induction, and the cons aren't much, except...
My only hesitation is the piercing whine at certain settings is too much to deal with for everyday cooking (I cook nearly everyday), but I only have experience with my countertop portable buddy (it's a mid range Duxtop if it matters; they're to be of quality?). I don't know if this translates to larger appliances.
Are they quieter when they're built into a stove? Is the whine exacerbated by them being standalone countertop appliances?
I don't have any direct experience with a residential induction burner other than a portable, but can't seem to find any information on how loud or whiney they get. Who's holding? How whiney is your stove?
First, consider spending some time listening to the whine and trying to determine if it comes from the cookware or inside the cooking device.
My (large Kitchenaid built-in) induction range does not cause any whines, although I can hear a buzz (particularly when a pot is brought into coupling range of the active coil; it's sort of a "zzzZZZ-snap!" type of sound that ceases once the pot is level on the surface). I can also hear a buzz when I put it into "omg dump power into this unit" mode (which boils a pot of water in like two minutes), but it's a buzz not a whine.
I concur with the blame being placed on the cookware, and possibly the combination of cookware plus specific induction device.
So: IMO, get the new unit, then assess whether your existing cookware is acceptable and if not, replace the most irritating piece with a new one from a different manufacturer to re-assess. If successful, buy more from that manufacturer.
I have ZERO EVIDENCE but I still personally suspect that the main problem is non-level bottoms; a more perfectly flat bottom may not whine. IMO. No evidence! None! Just a lot of induction cooking! Another possible culprit, encapsulated ferrous disks (used in some cookware since some types of stainless are nonmagnetic, so they put a ferrous disk in the bottom of the pot).
Note: I have not used a portable unit, only built-ins. I could see their noise being more problematic given smaller fans etc; see above regarding trying to determine the actual source of the whine.
posted by aramaic at 6:35 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
My (large Kitchenaid built-in) induction range does not cause any whines, although I can hear a buzz (particularly when a pot is brought into coupling range of the active coil; it's sort of a "zzzZZZ-snap!" type of sound that ceases once the pot is level on the surface). I can also hear a buzz when I put it into "omg dump power into this unit" mode (which boils a pot of water in like two minutes), but it's a buzz not a whine.
I concur with the blame being placed on the cookware, and possibly the combination of cookware plus specific induction device.
So: IMO, get the new unit, then assess whether your existing cookware is acceptable and if not, replace the most irritating piece with a new one from a different manufacturer to re-assess. If successful, buy more from that manufacturer.
I have ZERO EVIDENCE but I still personally suspect that the main problem is non-level bottoms; a more perfectly flat bottom may not whine. IMO. No evidence! None! Just a lot of induction cooking! Another possible culprit, encapsulated ferrous disks (used in some cookware since some types of stainless are nonmagnetic, so they put a ferrous disk in the bottom of the pot).
Note: I have not used a portable unit, only built-ins. I could see their noise being more problematic given smaller fans etc; see above regarding trying to determine the actual source of the whine.
posted by aramaic at 6:35 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
I am very happy with the Frigidaire induction stove I recently bought! They have several models at the top of the consumer reports list and I would recommend them.
I have had nothing that I would call a 'piercing whine' that is bothersome. I do have some mild noises, but nothing at all dog-whistley or cringe-inducing. I use mostly cast iron and some medium-nice stainless steel. Steel that is cheap with poor bonding (or maybe paradoxically high end with lots of different materials sandwiched inside) may make more noise. I don't use Teflon/ish stuff, that may be worse too due to multiple layers.
It does make various noises, especially at the highest settings. One source of noise is that of internal fans that switch on to keep electronics cooler and safe from the heat made in the cookware. That is more of a hum and not that loud, you won't hear it over the sound of moderate sizzling.
When I put on a kettle or pot of water to boil on extra high, the vessels do vibrate a bit due to internal mechanics induced by the current, but it's usually buzzy or crackly and lower pitched than I would call a piercing whine. And that can often be mitigated by moving the or around a bit and also isn't that loud compared to eg vigorous boil.
I stress that the noise is almost entirely on the high end, mine is very quiet on setting level 6 (of 10) and lower.
TLDR: I was concerned about this exact issue and am relieved to have found it mostly a non-issue. It does make some noise. So did my gas stove. It's different, but not really bad, and I think after a year or so I'll hardly notice. It has so many other benefits that it's totally worth it! I think it's improving the seasoning on my cast iron too, due to more even heating. I cook twice a day most days and I vote you go for it!
posted by SaltySalticid at 6:42 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
I have had nothing that I would call a 'piercing whine' that is bothersome. I do have some mild noises, but nothing at all dog-whistley or cringe-inducing. I use mostly cast iron and some medium-nice stainless steel. Steel that is cheap with poor bonding (or maybe paradoxically high end with lots of different materials sandwiched inside) may make more noise. I don't use Teflon/ish stuff, that may be worse too due to multiple layers.
It does make various noises, especially at the highest settings. One source of noise is that of internal fans that switch on to keep electronics cooler and safe from the heat made in the cookware. That is more of a hum and not that loud, you won't hear it over the sound of moderate sizzling.
When I put on a kettle or pot of water to boil on extra high, the vessels do vibrate a bit due to internal mechanics induced by the current, but it's usually buzzy or crackly and lower pitched than I would call a piercing whine. And that can often be mitigated by moving the or around a bit and also isn't that loud compared to eg vigorous boil.
I stress that the noise is almost entirely on the high end, mine is very quiet on setting level 6 (of 10) and lower.
TLDR: I was concerned about this exact issue and am relieved to have found it mostly a non-issue. It does make some noise. So did my gas stove. It's different, but not really bad, and I think after a year or so I'll hardly notice. It has so many other benefits that it's totally worth it! I think it's improving the seasoning on my cast iron too, due to more even heating. I cook twice a day most days and I vote you go for it!
posted by SaltySalticid at 6:42 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
It's definitely the cookware, and on ours (GE PHS930YP5FS) the only pot it's loud enough to be at all annoying on is our hugest spaghetti boiler, and even there, if you go just one step down from maximum, it nearly disappears.
It's really not a problem.
posted by dmd at 7:10 PM on May 2, 2023
It's really not a problem.
posted by dmd at 7:10 PM on May 2, 2023
We have an induction cooktop and have never had any noise beyond a very quiet buzzing as the power cycles on and off. We use mostly stainless cookware plus a couple of non-stick aluminium pans. It's a Smeg, I think this model or the equivalent.
posted by dg at 7:30 PM on May 2, 2023
posted by dg at 7:30 PM on May 2, 2023
Nthing that it’s likely the cookware matters; cast-iron and carbon steel make more of a throbbing buzz on ours, whereas the steel stockpots with a copper layer make more of a whine. It’s not noticeable unless you’re in the room cooking, in which case the hood is louder anyway.
posted by aspersioncast at 8:13 PM on May 2, 2023
posted by aspersioncast at 8:13 PM on May 2, 2023
I had a portable burner that made a racket so I know what you mean, but my range never makes that noise unless I have water trapped under the pot. I think it will only do it with my stainless pots too, and not with my cast iron or enameled cast iron.
posted by HotToddy at 8:18 PM on May 2, 2023
posted by HotToddy at 8:18 PM on May 2, 2023
While I’m in here though I will mention that if I were shopping for a new induction range I would try to see if I could find one that doesn’t blow cold air at my stomach while I’m cooking. Maybe they all do, I don’t know.
posted by HotToddy at 8:22 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by HotToddy at 8:22 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
If I had cookware I liked except for the way it whines on my induction cooktop, then before replacing either I'd try slipping a thin silicone mat between the cookware and cooktop in an attempt to damp the resonance that's amplifying the whine.
posted by flabdablet at 9:21 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by flabdablet at 9:21 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
All I can say is echo that a whine on ranges is not universal— I had a Duxtop that annoyed me with a whine. Now I have a full-size induction range (Fisher Paykel) that has no whine at all.
posted by supercres at 9:56 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by supercres at 9:56 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
Yes, the portable induction burners are louder than full size cooktops, from the couple of examples I've heard. And definitely more high-pitched and annoying, in the one I got as an "induction trial". Almost didn't explore induction stoves further, until going to hear some in person and they were fine. Lucky to have a physical appliance store here.
Mine (obsolete Frigidaire) has a definite hum at max power, and audible cycling at low if if you listen for it, it doesn't bother me or my sensory-sensitive family members (to me it's far less than the refrigerator), but if you can get to try a stove that's how you'll really know.
There's a clear hum if you lift a flat pot slightly off the burner, so I would bet that rounded bottoms, non-inductive bottom layers, etc. would get louder.
posted by away for regrooving at 10:56 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
Mine (obsolete Frigidaire) has a definite hum at max power, and audible cycling at low if if you listen for it, it doesn't bother me or my sensory-sensitive family members (to me it's far less than the refrigerator), but if you can get to try a stove that's how you'll really know.
There's a clear hum if you lift a flat pot slightly off the burner, so I would bet that rounded bottoms, non-inductive bottom layers, etc. would get louder.
posted by away for regrooving at 10:56 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]
We've been using this Fridgidaire built-in cooktop 1-2 times a day for about 7 months. The whine is so infrequent I could count on two hands the number of times I've heard it. We mostly use enameled cast iron pans, plus one nonstick. I never bothered to check whether it was the pans themselves.
Another factor to consider: The correct placement of the magnets. During my research before we bought ours, I read a handful of reviews saying the magnet for one or more burners was off-center from the indicators on the glass. We ended up with one of those. Two of our burners work only if you move the pot more than halfway off of center. Not a big deal now that we've gotten used to it, but I wish it wasn't this way. I read where one guy dissembled his cooktop and adjusted the magnet, but we're just living with it. If we ever sell this house, an inspector expecting the burner to heat up with a pot centered on it might say the burner doesn't work, because they won't know to move it over by 5-6 inches.
posted by ImproviseOrDie at 4:32 AM on May 3, 2023
Another factor to consider: The correct placement of the magnets. During my research before we bought ours, I read a handful of reviews saying the magnet for one or more burners was off-center from the indicators on the glass. We ended up with one of those. Two of our burners work only if you move the pot more than halfway off of center. Not a big deal now that we've gotten used to it, but I wish it wasn't this way. I read where one guy dissembled his cooktop and adjusted the magnet, but we're just living with it. If we ever sell this house, an inspector expecting the burner to heat up with a pot centered on it might say the burner doesn't work, because they won't know to move it over by 5-6 inches.
posted by ImproviseOrDie at 4:32 AM on May 3, 2023
The way the electronics generate the heat can mitigate the whine in pots with a technique called dithering. That's probably why supercres's expensive unit is quieter. It might also happen to just be a different frequency that's not resonant with their cookware. So... I don't think you can be sure without trying it yourself and reading a first-hand account of the exact model you're thinking of buying.
posted by flimflam at 8:32 AM on May 3, 2023
posted by flimflam at 8:32 AM on May 3, 2023
We have a Frigidaire built in cooktop that rarely, if ever?, makes a noticeable noise. We use cast iron or Duxtop pans on it.
We also have a standalone Duxtop induction burner and the loudest thing about it is the fan.
posted by oneirodynia at 3:15 PM on May 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
We also have a standalone Duxtop induction burner and the loudest thing about it is the fan.
posted by oneirodynia at 3:15 PM on May 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
Much like the whine of CRT this sensitivity goes away with age. At 30 this shit annoyed TF out of me but 40 not so much and 50 not at all.
posted by nenequesadilla at 11:54 PM on May 7, 2023
posted by nenequesadilla at 11:54 PM on May 7, 2023
As power electronics have got better, the frequency at which it's feasible to run the induction coils in a cooktop has got higher.
Higher frequencies accentuate the skin effect, meaning that the eddy currents that the coils induce in the cookware circulate within a thinner layer of that cookware, which in turn increases the electrical resistance seen by those currents, which makes for acceptable heating performance in a wider range of metals.
Higher frequencies also couple less efficiently to mechanical resonances in the cookware, making them less likely to ring at audible subharmonics of the induction coil frequency. If an induction coil is running at say 45kHz, then a third of that is 15kHz and you might get a CRT-like whine out of cookware that happens to have a physical resonance near there. If it's running at 100kHz instead, it would need to rattle the cookware at its seventh or lower subharmonic to make a human-audible noise and that's harder to do.
So to minimize the chance that any given bit of cookware is going to squeal on your new induction cooktop, look for one that specifically markets itself as compatible with a wide range of cookware metals. Most manufacturers won't actually tell you what frequency they run their coils at, but they're happy to make claims about working better than others.
posted by flabdablet at 1:28 AM on May 8, 2023 [1 favorite]
Higher frequencies accentuate the skin effect, meaning that the eddy currents that the coils induce in the cookware circulate within a thinner layer of that cookware, which in turn increases the electrical resistance seen by those currents, which makes for acceptable heating performance in a wider range of metals.
Higher frequencies also couple less efficiently to mechanical resonances in the cookware, making them less likely to ring at audible subharmonics of the induction coil frequency. If an induction coil is running at say 45kHz, then a third of that is 15kHz and you might get a CRT-like whine out of cookware that happens to have a physical resonance near there. If it's running at 100kHz instead, it would need to rattle the cookware at its seventh or lower subharmonic to make a human-audible noise and that's harder to do.
So to minimize the chance that any given bit of cookware is going to squeal on your new induction cooktop, look for one that specifically markets itself as compatible with a wide range of cookware metals. Most manufacturers won't actually tell you what frequency they run their coils at, but they're happy to make claims about working better than others.
posted by flabdablet at 1:28 AM on May 8, 2023 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: We ended up purchasing this model of stove, and happy to report that the wine is nothing compared to a standalone induction burner.
This little puppy is faster than a gas burner for the same volume of water (at least compared to our neighbor's newer gas stove), and quieter. Cooking in the future is pretty alright.
posted by furnace.heart at 5:52 PM on August 17, 2023 [1 favorite]
This little puppy is faster than a gas burner for the same volume of water (at least compared to our neighbor's newer gas stove), and quieter. Cooking in the future is pretty alright.
posted by furnace.heart at 5:52 PM on August 17, 2023 [1 favorite]
« Older Should I cancel my trip to Lassen Volcanic... | Because "My Most Excellent Dude/Dudette" May Be... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by aubilenon at 5:56 PM on May 2, 2023 [1 favorite]