Blaze King Cooktop?

[Newburnerwisconsin]

Does anyone know if you can cook on the top of a Blaze King wood stove? THanks

 

[Poindexter]

You want to stay in bypass a few minutes after this stunt I think. Not sure it is required to protect the cat, but better safe than sorry. I should ad this to that thread with the list of things to do while waiting for the coals to burn down in a BK stove.

 

[begreen]

Yes you can cook on top. On the Ashford the convective top needs to be removed if you want higher temps. Be careful for spillovers.

 

[Ashful]

Yes you can cook on top. On the Ashford the convective top needs to be removed if you want higher temps. Be careful for spillovers.

That convective top just a lifts off, btw. No bolts or other hardware.

 

[Blazing]

I'm positive I could cook on my BK. That said they make grills that are far better and cheaper at accomplishing the same goal. I just don't see the need in putting that on a list of necessities in a stove. As with everything to each their own.

 

[BKVP]

The convection deck on the King Ultra model might limit cooking space..otherwise cook away.

 

[kennyp2339]

Hahahaha - silly top cookers, the real deal is when you cook inside the stove

 

[Highbeam]

I cook on the oven, in the microwave, or on a BBQ outside. Heck, even over an open fire pit. I know I could but I do not use a woodstove as a kitchen appliance.

 

[jetsam]

If the power was out and aliens kidnapped my generator and bbq grill and torches and all my propane tanks, I think I would build a little cookfire outside before I would cook in, my wood stove.

I guess that a couple nights of standing around juggling cast iron skillets in subzero temperatures might change my mind about that, though, so who knows. I have been known to cook out in the back over a fire just for fun when the weather is nice. (My wife: "You're doing this why?" Me: "It's nice, and we can sit around the fire later." My wife: "Mmm." Me: "I had to burn off some brush anyway, so why not turn it into a little cookfire when it burns down?" My wife: "Mmm." She is a wise woman.)

 

[kennyp2339]

BK princess in action, making dinner, and yes they came out great!!

 

[SCOTT S.]

We have our Blaze King for 2 years and never had the urge to cook on it. I suppose if we had a extended power outage that may change my thinking.

 

[tarzan]

I cook on top of the stove. The majority of our power outages in winter happen when the weather is just to bad for me to want to stand beside the Weber or even dig my way to it for that matter. Our generator is not big enough to run the electric stove nor do I want to spend the extra money in purchase price or extra gas used for one that will when the wood stove will be setting there hot enough to cook on.

One winter when I was younger we cooked on a kerosene heater for nearly a month while waiting on the power to come back on. I can still taste them fried Spam sandwiches

 

[jetsam]

One winter when I was younger we cooked on a kerosene heater for nearly a month while waiting on the power to come back on. I can still taste them fried Spam sandwiches

You can convert pretty much any gas generator to propane if you have a drill, about $200 in parts, and a strong willingness to void the warranty. I have a 250lb tank that usually just runs my kitchen stove, but has a quickconnect line for the generator.

We had kerosene heaters when I was a kid. I don't remember cooking on them but I do remember huddling around them until we were dizzy with warmth, glee, kerosene fumes, and carbon monoxide poisoning. The smell of kerosene still makes me think of that.

 

[begreen]

We get several outages a year. The summer after we moved into this place I pulled the electric range and replaced it with a propane cooktop and electric oven. That cook top has seen us through many outages, some for up to a week. A couple years ago I also got a Yamaha generator factory converted to run propane. It too is serving us well. That said, the stove with it's swing away trivets has raised bread dough and keeps the kettle hot for tea and coffee every day in winter. It's nice to have backup plans.

 

[tarzan]

We just purchased a new electric stove and range so it should be here a few years. We don't have anything inside the home that runs off propane so no tanks over #20.

I would be open to a gas/propane range if the wife wasn't so enamored by the smooth top and push buttons associated with the electric version

At the risk of echoing similarities to another thread, there's something about a gas range and cast iron cookware that just makes a magical combination IMO.

What are the advantages of propane over gasoline for a generator? Assuming someone with a large propane tank would benefit from the convenience but otherwise?

 

[Ashful]

The trouble with gasoline generators is reliability. Gasoline is not the best fuel for an appliance that may sit unused for years, and then require 100% reliability when you need it. Also, after a major storm, it can be hard to find gasoline in sufficient quantities to keep a generator running, if your local gas stations are without power.

As to electric range, I've never seen a professional use one.

 

[jetsam]

We just purchased a new electric stove and range so it should be here a few years. We don't have anything inside the home that runs off propane so no tanks over #20.

I would be open to a gas/propane range if the wife wasn't so enamored by the smooth top and push buttons associated with the electric version

At the risk of echoing similarities to another thread, there's something about a gas range and cast iron cookware that just makes a magical combination IMO.

What are the advantages of propane over gasoline for a generator? Assuming someone with a large propane tank would benefit from the convenience but otherwise?

Tell her that propane is freaking awesome to cook on and has zero warm-up time.

I converted my generator because I was tired of the cycle of filling the bike and cars from the gas cans, go fill the gas cans, repeat... this is a drag to do, but if you want fresh gas onhand, you have to so it regularly. My generator runs poorly on stale gas.

Also, last time power went out here, there were basically no gas stations for a week. (Long Island occasionally gets interesting weather- generators are common here, even if people who should be allowed, for their own safety, to have one are exceptionally rare )

With propane, you fill the tank and it can sit for years and still be good, even if you are just using BBQ tanks. At the time I made the switch, it was also cheaper, though I think gas is probably cheaper now.

My generator can burn gasoline or propane now, but it really seems unlikely that I will ever put gas in the tank again.

 

[begreen]

The main reason I switched to propane is storage. It doesn't go bad and is convenient to store. Also, it doesn't gunk up carburetors and burns cleaner which means cleaner oil and should mean less wear. As for cooking, instant on, instant off is a big benefit as is cooking during a long outage.

 

[tarzan]

I guess I never thought about gasoline going bad. I have three generators of various sizes and always shut the gas off and let them drain the carburetor spittin n sputtering to a stop. Living where I do, or the way I do, I'm constantly pouring gasoline into something but some good points.

 

[Newburnerwisconsin]

Thanks to everyone for responding. I am thinking about adding a second stove on my main floor in the living room near the kitchen. Something small that will help my other stove heat the house when the temps go below zero and cook on when the power goes out.

 

[begreen]

Looks like the BK Sirocco without the convection deck could work.

 

[drz1050]

As to electric range, I've never seen a professional use one.

"Only bad cooks blame the equipment"

Julia Child cooked on an electric stove..

Now, I much prefer natural gas/ propane, but unless the propane stove is jetted correctly it won't put out much heat at all compared to nat gas.. I'd rather have an electric stove that could get HOT over a propane with a weak flame.
The main benefit of flame stoves is the heat control.. instant on or off, no waiting for the element to heat up/ cool down, and better mini-adjustments as well. My current stove is an old electric GE unit from the late 50s.. yes I miss the natural gas one at my old house, but this certainly works.

 

[jetsam]

Now, I much prefer natural gas/ propane, but unless the propane stove is jetted correctly it won't put out much heat at all compared to nat gas.. I'd rather have an electric stove that could get HOT over a propane with a weak flame.

Err, if you know anyone running propane on stock orifices, tell them to stop using it today.

If you see a propane stove with an orange flame, that's probably what is going on.

The new orifices either came with the stove or they're less than $20 of they didn't. Takes about 10 minutes to change the top ones out, maybe a little longer on the oven.

Cheaper than repainting the kitchen every year to cover the soot, and all the hospital stays for CO poisoning.

 

[drz1050]

I've seen plenty of blue flame propane stoves that had a hard time boiling a pot of water.. granted, they're not high end stoves by any means, but natural gas on the same one would definitely burn hotter.

 

[jetsam]

Propane burns a tiny bit hotter than natural gas. Not enough to notice in the context of a cookstove.

One reason for what you have seen may be that people tend to run 1/2" ID rigid pipe to their natural gas appliances, and whatever they have in the garage to their propane appliances. My house had 3/8" OD tubing run to the stove when we moved in. Installed by the previous owner's propane company, no less.

Not sure why propane and casual installation practices seem to go together- it's explosive at lower concentrations than natural gas, burns hotter, and has over double the BTUs per cubic foot.