Off-grid Cooking

You might not think there's much to think about when getting a stove or oven for an off-grid home.  You might think all you need to do is just buy a nice, reliable gas stove and be done with it. Well, not quite.  Did you know that most gas ovens these days come with an electric heating element that draws over 350 watts the entire time the oven is on? That can draw your batteries down faster than you expect.  If you do a lot of baking or broiling, this electric load should be seriously considered when sizing your alternative energy system, including the battery bank. Gas ovens that use a pilot light are still being manufactured, but with a pilot light gas is continuously being consumed (however minuscule amount that may be), and these stoves tend to be short on features. You could also use a wood cook stove, but do you really want to heat your whole house in the summer time?

Fortunately, there are a few ranges out there that have electronically lit pilots in the oven. The pilot light is lit only while the oven is working so no gas is consumed when the oven is turned off, and since the pilot is lit with a spark (similar to modern gas burners on the cook top), only minimal electricity is required to light the pilot.  Two makes of ranges that I discovered are Unique Gas Products and Premier Range.  The Unique stove runs off a 9-volt battery for ignition--very nice if you have a minimal electrical system. The premier models come in a variety of shapes, sizes, colors, and option levels.  I like the window option for the oven, as well as the 5th burner option. Both makes of stoves also allow the burners and ovens to be lit manually, using a match or other lighter, if the need arises. We chose a Premier model because of its more modern appearance and the options available.

We were able to special order a Premier stove through our local Lowe's store.  It happened to be on sale and by buying installation we got out of paying sales tax and a delivery fee (our Lowe's store wasn't all that local).  The first stove arrived at the store all banged up so the store ordered another one that looked much better. Unfortunately, after the stove was installed, we discovered some problems.  The burners were nowhere near centered, and this stove also had some dents and scratches on it in visible places near the floor.


The burners were nowhere near center and couldn't be adjusted.



Maybe Premier stoves need a bit more protection during shipping.

I got nowhere trying to have the defects remedied using the manufacturer's warranty (at Lowes' suggestion). Repair centers said I shouldn't have to deal with such issues with a new stove and recommended I have the reseller replace it.  So I went back to Lowes and they agreed to replace the stove.  The third time seemed to be the charm.  This one looked and worked fine. The installer even completely assembled and adjusted the stove before bringing it out to make sure it didn't have the same problems as the previous one. While something as simple as a stove installation didn't go as smoothly as it should have, I'm glad everything worked out in the end and that Lowes came through and made everything right.

Update 14 March 2013
After using this range for about a year and a half, we have noticed a few things that we wish were better, but given our choices we'll just have to accept. We run off of propane which seems to produce a little less heat than natural gas. Sometimes when baking, times have to be adjusted a little to make sure it's done. Also, if I had to buy again, I think I'd get the sealed burners for easier cleaning.

Resources
Premier Range: http://www.premierrange.com
Unique Gas Products: http://www.uniquegas.com