4 ms·
FWIW: induction ranges have sealed tops. There are no paths to get a high voltage from the AC input to the range top, no matter what boils over, and if you bre
by ajross 10mo ago
FWIW: induction ranges have sealed tops. There are no paths to get a high voltage from the AC input to the range top, no matter what boils over, and if you break things such that there is a short the relevant GFCI failsafes will shut it off long before you work up the courage to try to touch the controls.
Safety is in fact the big selling point of the device. The surface doesn't get above food temperature. If you boil a pot over, move the pot and just wipe it up with a rag, just like you would spilled tea or whatever.
That's not to say there aren't human interface issues with relying on capacitive sensors[1], but safety surely isn't one of them.
[1] Actually "boiling over" is in fact the shortcoming: what happens is that your sauce spills over the controls and causes the sensors to glitch, which the device detects as a failure and shuts down before you can wipe it. Then you have to reset all the temperatures.
- mothballed 10mo agoGFCI for a 220V / 50 amp stove didn't enter the code until like 2020. My county hasn't even adopted that. It's unlikely any random person you encounter lives in a place with a GFCI controlled stove. Also the breaker itself is like $130+, plus slightly higher chance to nuisance trip, so fat chance any builder is putting that in voluntarily.
- nostrademons 10mo agoMost people install induction stoves as part of a larger kitchen or home reno. If you're switching over from gas you probably didn't have a 50amp 220V circuit anywhere near the stove. But kitchen renos have to bring the kitchen up to code, so if you're bringing in an electrician anyway to redo all the wiring, might as well put in a circuit for the induction stove, and code requires that it be on a GFCI. The folks who just want a drop-in replacement are probably not getting induction - they're the ones who complain about the necessary electrical upgrades being too expensive.
- deleted 10mo ago[deleted]
- ghaff 10mo agoYeah, my new induction range after a kitchen microwave fire is on, I think, a 40 amp circuit. But the whole kitchen electrical (and, indeed, much of the house) was being redone anyway.
- eichin 10mo agoThat seems to be what Impulse is targeting - standard size drop in inductive with a lot of high tech features (for the price) and a ludicrous battery, so you don't need to upgrade the wiring (since you don't cook 24x7 after all.) No ideas if the numbers work out, but they're definitely aiming at a perceived gap...
- barrkel 10mo agoSome induction ranges use magnetic dials for control to solve this problem.
- dzhiurgis 10mo agoI like these. Also some way to rotate the pot while holding modifier key would be pretty cool.
- mrguyorama 10mo agoSo you would replace an obvious and one handed control with an arcane two handed gesture? Why? Cool is generally bad in UX design.
- dzhiurgis 10mo agoIf that removes the knobs that are can be lost and cost significantly to implement - yes. Maybe it can be implemented in a single hand gesture. But the point is pot or pan can be control interface itself.
- bregma 10mo agoI have an induction range with touch controls, and I'll tell you they are the most frustrating thing about it (other than half my old pots not working, but that was a one-time hit). Why are they frustrating? Because every time I have to clean the stove top (which is after most uses) wiping the controls results in activating them. Sometimes things boil over or spit out hot fat while cooking and you need to clean it up right away (or it will get cooked on like welded steel) and you end up switching the simmer on the back element to high and drop the oven temperature by 100 degrees. A zillion beeps and cute jingle tones don't help, they just contribute to sensory overload. It's a great cooktop but I would prefer physical controls that are not on the cook surface.