freestanding gas stoves - what do I need?

[chet everett]

You can probably get a decent Maytag for under $1k with price match and/or rebates. Whirlpool owns the brand and mostly has solid features -- five burners, cast iron grates, speedy preheat, metal dials / control, self cleaning with "steam", dedicated broiler: Maytag MGR8850DS 30" Freestanding Gas Range with 5 Sealed Burners, 5.8 cu. ft. EvenAir True Convection Oven, 18,000 BTU Power Burner, Precision Cooking System, Warming Drawer and AquaLift Self Clean

[sunsprit]

Originally Posted by eddiehaskell

Yes I'm asking about features and no it's not a high end neighborhood. Working class SFH neighborhood built in 50s-60s. My guess is that even the cheapest stoves would "fit" the area.

I guess I'm pretty much wanting to stay under $1k and wondering if there are any features or brands that I should look for.

GE's entry level gas range/oven is their Hotpoint brand line.

Years ago, CR's tested the basic Hotpoint gas range/oven against the higher priced/feature laden GE models.
They found that the Hotpoint had as good or better temperature control, oven heat uniformity, and range burner control. The Hotpoint still had a self-cleaning oven, digital clock, cooking timer, electronic spark ignition, on/off programming for the oven, decent sealed burners of similar BTU size to the GE's, and burner surrounds that were completely functional. Priced at just about half of the GE entry level unit that was essentially only cosmetic features different. For me, the nicer knobs and possibly heavier cooktop grid was not needed ... and we cook a lot and do a lot of preserving/canning each year.

I've cooked at friends' houses on much fancier stoves, up through "commercial" ranges (Wolf, etc) without any real differences for our cooking needs even when cooking for 20 people. Yes ... some of the upline stoves have more powerful BTU burners ... but for 99% of home cooks, there isn't a real functional difference in performance. And some of the "upline" stoves I've cooked on (some in the $2,000 and up range) didn't perform as well as the Hotpoints ... although they "looked" much nicer with all the stainless steel and fancy knobs and heavy grids.

As a result, I bought several of the Hotpoint stoves for rental properties and my own house use. With up to 16 years of use on the stoves, we've been very satisfied with them. Have only had 1 problem with one stove; the igniter for the oven failed. That required a trip to the local appliance parts store for a $28 part which took me less than a 1/2 hour to install. The Hotpoint stove in our house has peformed flawlessly for 15 years. We do make a point of keeping the stovetop clean, wiping up spills immediately. The stove looks almost showroom new today; a bit of EasyOff oven cleaner now and then on the drip trays and a run through the dishwasher keeps them looking new.

I was at Lowe's last week and they still have this entry level stove line, priced at only a few dollars more than when I bought the one for my house 15 years ago ... just under $500. Had to look around for it, they had only one Hotpoint gas range among many LG's and GE's and other high end fancy stoves.

[Ohiogirl81]

Originally Posted by eddiehaskell

I guess I'm pretty much wanting to stay under $1k and wondering if there are any features or brands that I should look for.

You can get a nice range for much less than that. Self-cleaning and sealed burners are a no-brainer. Start there.

You say you don't cook a lot -- do you bake or make big Thanksgiving dinners? If so, look for a bigger-capacity oven. I'm not sold on convection ovens.

I'd love a five-burner stove, but unless you're into home canning or make those big Thanksgiving dinners, there's really no need.

All the major brands (Whirlpool, GE, Frigidaire, Kenmore. Maytag etc.) are interchangeable, in my opinion. Look for features based on how you'll use the stove.

[emm74]

I would not bother with convection - IMO, it doesn't work that great in a gas oven anyway. And skip the warming drawer. Spring for a burner with higher BTU, it is nice to have.

You can definitely find something for under 1000 - look for something in that price range for Mgf price but then buy it on sale. See if you have a Sears outlet near you - you might find a scratch and dent model, and sometimes, it's just cosmetic damage someplace where it can't even be seen.