Stove replacement

[Bolo]

This weekend, while on board our E32-3, my wife and I were discussing some of the "winter" projects I might be taking on for our boat. One of them is to replace the old two-burner/oven propane stove. This is the second year for our "new" old boat (1987) and the oven never worked along with the Piezo igniter. I know we could probably fix it but we're thinking of replacing it with a two-burner drop-in (which will require a little modification to the space) without an oven or broiler section. The extra space below will be used either for storage or a small microwave oven. The drop-in is not gimbaled but we don't see that as much of a problem, if any. We never use our gimbal on the old stove we have now, even at anchor, and the drop in cook area is recessed to keep pots from sliding off. I also doubt if we'll be cooking up a stew in 3 foot plus seas. We just sail the Chesapeake Bay. Not once has not having an oven been an issue for us but having a microwave has been. I've spoken to other sailor/cooks and they, almost to a person, rarely use their ovens.

Wondering if anyone has done anything like this in the past. I'll try to remember to take shots of the project so they can be posted on this site if anyone is interested in seeing them.

 

[Loren Beach]

home on the Range...

We just spent a weekend on our boat, at a club cruise to a nearby island dock on the river. The subject of stoves and fuel was discussed as we sat around on several boats having happy hour(s)... and dessert hours later...
One of the boats is an E-32/3.
[Sad to report: the last of the Apple Pie was served, in very small drams!]

Everyone seeems to like their ovens, especially as the weather cools down. On our boat we baked a batch of cinnamon rolls followed by a batch of chocolate chip cookies yesterday morning. With the oven at 350, the boat interior is nice and warm on a 50 degree morning! The smell of baking is wonderful, too. Amazing how many friends drop in when that bakery smell wafts down the dock.

The couple with a propane oven with built-in broiler said that they really like that feature for making toast, although they do not broil meat inside -- too much mess to clean up. All of us have bbq's on the stern rail and use them a lot... a much better place for the grease and carbon to wind up, IMHO.


Anyhow, I would say to think hard before getting rid of your gimbeling and the oven. We have used all sorts of stoves over the years on overnight deliveries off the coast, and often that level stove top is the *only* place on the rolling boat that a pan or cup will stay put. Even if you do not value this now, the next (potential) buyer someday may want that option...


No formal poll was taken, but I recall that two boats had diesel galley ranges, we have an Origo 6000, and the others had various LPG stove/ovens.

Heat: Two of the boats, an E-32/3 and a Saber 32, had the Dickinson bulkhead propane heaters and like them a lot. A Tartan 41 had a forced air furnace.

Warm Regards,
Loren
Olson 34 Fresh Air

 

[chaco]

Winter Projects

One of my Winter Projects is to also install a new Galley Stove :nerd:
The first thing as a New Owner was to REMOVE the CNG Tanks and Rusted
Out Range. Am looking at the Force 10 DropIn - (2) Burner. The Stovetop
can be used as a Sandwich Board when not in use and I don't plan on
anything but simple meals. The Space below will be used for Storage.
Really don't see the need for an oven...even on extended cruising.
Sounds like a regional thing for Cold Climates.
Haven't really figured out the gimbled thing yet.
(2) 10LB propane tanks/locker will be installed in the Starboard Cockpit Locker

Happy Winter Projects

 

[Bolo]

Thanks for the stove opinions!

Loren and Dan,

Thanks for your thoughts and ideas about cook stoves. I'd like to also add that we attended the annual sailboat show in Annapolis this weekend and had the opportunity to talk with one of the owners of a new Gozzard 40 something boat. (A real beauty!) She had a gimbaled Force 10 with the broiler under the two burners and she loved it. She told me that she had a cook top/oven combo on her previous boat and hardly used the oven. In fact, she said that she only used it once to heat come cold pizza! It took forever and used a lot of propane. She uses her broiler all the time, even to make toast. Her recommendation, even as a live aboard, was to forget the oven as long as I installed a microwave.

As for the gimbaled vs. non-gimbaled option, I noticed that two burner gimbaled stoves are made so I might just go for it. But we had a simple drop-in (sterno type) stove, which was not gimbaled, on our last boat. It was a Hunter 285, and we found it to be just fine except for the liquid fueling part. I try to keep the meals aboard simple but tasty. As for baked goods, I usually just go to the local bakery to "get me buns" and save the rest of the time for sailing.

 

[Guy Stevens]

You either cook or you don't

We live aboard, and have cruised for a lot of miles from 50+ degrees North to about the same south. A lot of it in the tropics, and a lot not in the tropics.

I would not own a boat without an oven. Really, Pizza, Bread, Brownies, Cookies, Cinnamon Roles, Scones, Cakes, you name it. We use the oven a lot, even when we were in 126 degree weather in the Sea of Cortez, (We made pita bread then.)

The Microwave is useless at anchor, and nothing that you ever actually cook is done in the microwave, you can use it to heat up leftovers, or packaged (for the store or that you packaged yourself), but lets face it that is not cooking. Also the microwave is useless on the hook. Figure it out a 900-1000 watt microwave is about the minimum to make anything actually work. Most of them HATE square wave inverters, or even modified sine wave inverters. So you are going to pull 83 amps out of your batteries when using the microwave? A short 5 minute run (about the minimum to actually heat something up in a microwave is going to run you about 7 amp hours.

I have cooked on both the Force 10 and the Seward Princess Stoves with ovens. I greatly prefer the Seward Princess Stoves. The broilers are nice though, and do allow for the removal of the on the burner toaster.

Guy

 

[Emerald]

like my oven

Never thought I'd care about an oven, but Emerald came with a nice little Origo stove/oven unit. Love the oven. It's been very handy for reheating leftovers - throw that pot of chille, stew, whatever in, and a few minutes later ready to eat. And then I've got a friend who's wife is a chef. The few overnights we've done together have been great for food, and that little oven usually comes into play.