Recommendation for Replacement Electric Oven-Stove

I have a 1984 Grand Banks trawler with a vintage Seaward Products - 33 electric 3-burner stove and oven that still works but not so great. My wife loves to cook and she hates it. It runs on 110 v and the cut-out size is about 20 3/8" by 21 3/4" high and 21 " deep. I'd like to replace it without having to redo the cabinetry if possible. Looking thru Defender I'm not seeing a sure good replacement so this is a request for suggestions from anyone who has been thru this already. Thank you in advance.

Are you staying with electric or switching to gas?

If your staying with electric have look at the Force10 65335 3 Burner Electric Galley Range, 120 Volt dimensions are very close.

Re: staying with electric or switching to gas. Actually my wife prefers gas. From a safety standpoint, is there evidence to support gas being as safe as electrical on a boat?


For the electric model call out that fits the cut out size, thanks!

I have a Force 10 electric 3 burner and oven. Fits in the same space as the Princess.
Oven still runs hot.
Someone here recommended the “AirBake” cookie sheets. That cured the bottom burned biscuits and cookies.
Can’t help you with the gas. I don’t want gas stove on the boat. Just my opinion/selection.
I do have a gas grill hanging off the back of the boat.

Have a force 10 3 burner gas range with oven. No issues and works well.

Now that propane may be on the table I'll give my opinion. I think either electrical or propane systems can be dangerous if not done correctly. Sure, a propane explosion is obvious, but what about electrical connections heating up due to resistance, etc.?

Of course since you already have an electrical system on your boat, you could say that propane is adding a risk. And it is, but even though I'm a bit of a worrywart, I don't worry unduly about a properly installed propane system (ABYC followed to the letter, basically). A big plus is if your boat has a place for a proper locker. I think GB's usually have the tank, etc. in a flybridge seat base (not sure how they vent that?).

I vastly prefer to cook with gas, and that doesn't even count the fact that one may have to run a generator to cook with electric.

I guess to me it comes down to, if you are going to worry about it despite a proper installation then don't do it. Recreational boating is supposed to be fun. But also know that a correctly installed system has checks and balances designed to keep it from going boom.

I've mostly used Force 10 propane ranges so I know what I like about them but can't compare to others. I would say the oven is a tad weak on btu's, but I still manage to make pizza. Pretty much everything else about them I really like. Design, look, function (door tucks under, etc.). They also come in like six sizes in each burner number, IIRC. e.g. North American Standard, North American Compact, European Standard, European Compact, European Sub-Compact, etc.

A few of the sizes have pre-made trim kits for non-gimballed mounting (I know North American standard does, but not all I don't think?).

Sure Marine in Seattle shows them on their website if you want to have a gander. (Last I checked it was easier to look there than on Force 10's own website.)

We're full time livaboards and stay on the hook slot. Gas for is us was the best option. If you're gonna be at a marina most of the time I'd go with electric.

JESSEDIVER49 said:

Re: staying with electric or switching to gas. Actually my wife prefers gas. From a safety standpoint, is there evidence to support gas being as safe as electrical on a boat?


For the electric model call out that fits the cut out size, thanks!

Click to expand...

We just finished a month long cruise, spending most nights at anchor, with a GB42 as our companion. It is a 1975 classic, equipped with electric galley. Its owner complained daily about having to run the genset to make coffee, and used the BBQ for most cooking, so as to not have the gen on at dinner time.
We use propane for most summer cooking, diesel stove for cooler weather. We made coffee for our friend frequently.
In the course of the trip, we explored the possibility of converting the GB to propane. If yours is anything like the 1975 classic, it shouldn't be difficult. Either the front under the dash, or if you used lower profile (more expensive) 10 to 20 lb tanks, you could give up a seat locker to the tank storage. Putting in an overboard vent is relatively easy in either location. Running the hose without seeing it is not so easy, unless you are good with DIY woodwork and can fit some wood covers to hide the hose, it may create a focal point that you won't like. The stoves are the same dimensions as most existing electric, so no issues there. For safety, all you need is a solenoid at the tank and a sniffer at or below floor level.
Propane is perfectly quiet, hot for cooking, safe if your installation is properly done. The only downside is that when closed up for cruddy weather, propane cooking creates a lot of moisture in the air, so where it can condense, on windows mostly, you get lots of dripping. If you can keep good ventilation open it is never a concern.

Not sure about your vintage , but our 1998 36 classic was 110v cooking also but careful inspections showed the Pt Flybridge seat locker was Factory built as a propane locker including overboard vent. There was a blank in the galley for the overhead propane solenoid. So could have been an easy conversion.

That said, we usually needed to run the generator each evening to cool the boat with AC for an hour or two so cooking dinner was not an issue. A medium house bank ‘& inverter/inverter/charger Gets you silent morning coffee.

If you're having to rebuild the cabinet, etc. and are staying electric, DO consider an induction stovetop. We changed our "conventional" glass stovetop for a Dometic induction stovetop about 6 years ago. Induction is safer, more efficient and seems a bit closer to cooking with gas in terms of responsiveness.

koliver said:

We just finished a month long cruise, spending most nights at anchor, with a GB42 as our companion. It is a 1975 classic, equipped with electric galley. Its owner complained daily about having to run the genset to make coffee, and used the BBQ for most cooking, so as to not have the gen on at dinner time.

Click to expand...

An inverter -- assuming sufficient battery capacity -- could have been an easy solution for that. Solves heating hors d' oeuvres at Happy Hour, too.

We found it useful to often run the genset for dinner anyway, not just to cook but also to heat water, charge batteries, etc.

-Chris

ScottC said:

If you're having to rebuild the cabinet, etc. and are staying electric, DO consider an induction stovetop. We changed our "conventional" glass stovetop for a Dometic induction stovetop about 6 years ago. Induction is safer, more efficient and seems a bit closer to cooking with gas in terms of responsiveness.

Click to expand...

I am interested in your induction stove top. What brand and model do you have?
What is the amperage draw? What voltage?
What do you do for an oven? Brand and model and amperage draw. What voltage?
I looked at their site and no mention of an induction cook top for RV/Marine usage which leads me to believe, all the cook tops are 240vt. That pretty much lets me out. I think with my 8kw generator, for me it is back to 120vt stove/oven. Ah, forgot. The AT34 are 30 amp boats.
Thanks!!

I'm also in the all electric cooking camp. And I also find it useful to run the generator for breakfast / coffee and then again for dinner (usually plan to not need it for lunch). That reheats the hot water, throws a few amps into the batteries, etc.

OldDan1943 said:

I am interested in your induction stove top. What brand and model do you have?
What is the amperage draw? What voltage?
What do you do for an oven? Brand and model and amperage draw. What voltage?
I looked at their site and no mention of an induction cook top for RV/Marine usage which leads me to believe, all the cook tops are 240vt. That pretty much lets me out. I think with my 8kw generator, for me it is back to 120vt stove/oven. Ah, forgot. The AT34 are 30 amp boats.
Thanks!!

Click to expand...

Hi OldDan1943,

Looking around a bit online, it seems that Dometic induction stoves are not available globally(??).

Though, I did find this info relevant to North America

https://www.campingworld.com/dometic-ci21-induction-cooktop-107853.html (120V)

https://www.dometic.com/en-us/us/news/us/induction-cooktop

For what it's worth my Dometic stove is a 2-burner, model PI7602. 230v, with one 1400w burner and one 2300w burner. I have uploaded a photo of the 2012 Swedish Dometic catalogue page. At least the technical specifications will be readable for you. Maybe you can ask a local Dometic rep, with the help of this page/model number and let them do the legwork internally to see if this is (or the equivalent) is available anywhere in North America. I find Dometic's product offering and marketing strategy inconsistent and incomprehensible, in many respects. Probably because they are such a large company composed of many acquired (but not fully integrated) small companies.

As for my "oven"... It's a Sharp 230v microwave/convection/oven combination with broiler grill. I can only run the broiler grill when on shore power, however, as my inverter can't handle it...and even then, I sometimes have to use my inverter in "power assist" mode to help the shore power. This is the oven that came with the boat from the manufacturer.

ScottC said:

Hi OldDan1943,

Looking around a bit online, it seems that Dometic induction stoves are not available globally(??).

Though, I did find this info relevant to North America

https://www.campingworld.com/dometic-ci21-induction-cooktop-107853.html (120V)

https://www.dometic.com/en-us/us/news/us/induction-cooktop

For what it's worth my Dometic stove is a 2-burner, model PI7602. 230v, with one 1400w burner and one 2300w burner. I have uploaded a photo of the 2012 Swedish Dometic catalogue page. At least the technical specifications will be readable for you. Maybe you can ask a local Dometic rep, with the help of this page/model number and let them do the legwork internally to see if this is (or the equivalent) is available anywhere in North America. I find Dometic's product offering and marketing strategy inconsistent and incomprehensible, in many respects. Probably because they are such a large company composed of many acquired (but not fully integrated) small companies.

As for my "oven"... It's a Sharp 230v microwave/convection/oven combination with broiler grill. I can only run the broiler grill when on shore power, however, as my inverter can't handle it...and even then, I sometimes have to use my inverter in "power assist" mode to help the shore power. This is the oven that came with the boat from the manufacturer.

Click to expand...

Scott, there lies the problem..... 230vt and the amperage.

OldDan1943 said:

Scott, there lies the problem..... 230vt and the amperage.

Click to expand...

This one was 120v, though...
https://www.campingworld.com/dometic...op-107853.html (120V)

Is propane dangerous? It's probably as dangerous as anything else. Until very recently, all RV's had propane stove/oven, we are talking millions of units. Now throw in the numbers for all boats using propane and you have a very high number. And again until recently, RV fridges could be run off of propane, three way fridges. I ran a number of RV fridges off of propane. Now we are adding more millions of units to the above when you include the propane fridges. So yes propane is safe. The great majority of boat fires are electrical.

Heck in our first RV trailer we had a propane light inside the unit.

Propane in an RV is a bit different. Propane is heavier than air, so it's easier to have it accumulate in a boat than an RV. Heck, even on a gas powered boat, propane sketches me out a little. Liquid flammable stuff is bad enough. Pressurized flammable stuff is worse.

Agree with rslifkin. I have had propane on boats (and plan to again), and also in RV's. RV's are child's play in comparison. There is no bilge. Most joints are outdoors. Smell a leak? Step outside and run away. It's "permissible" (and normal) to leave the propane on 24/7, which allows things like propane refrigerators* and water heaters (also, their "burners" are essentially outdoors in compartments sealed from the indoors and with outside grilles).

Granted, in a proper boat installation you don't have pipe joints "indoors" (except at appliance obviously). And if you stick to ABYC it's designed to be safe as fuel can be. But still it's different. You have a bilge; you turn propane off when not in use (or at least I do), so no appliances that come on and off by themselves at odd times (refrigerators, water heaters). Most boats aren't large enough to have "grilles" on the side of the hull for burnered appliances. There's just more to be careful of, and the consequences can be higher (hard to run away if there is a problem).

I have heard of boats with propane refrigerators, and I see that Sure Marine sells Propex propane furnaces; but for me I'm content with using it for cooking, which is a job it does well and for which you only need to turn on the system when using it.

It also lasts a very long time when only using it for cooking, which is good because it's a minor pain to re-fill. As an example, I had two 11# tanks on a boat on passage (mentioning that because cooking was basically the entertainment of the day when at sea).

We made endless cups of tea, cooked breakfast and dinner every day (including long-cook stews and such), and baked nearly every day (bread/cookies/cookies, bread, etc.) At the end of two months we had just finished off one of the tanks. So even on that intensive program, a typical 20# tank would have lasted nearly four months (I would not normally cook and bake that much when aboard, either).

Frosty

*Although I'm not a fan of RV absorption refrigerators due to what I consider a poor design, but it's not really propane's fault.

ranger42c said:

An inverter -- assuming sufficient battery capacity -- could have been an easy solution for that. Solves heating hors d' oeuvres at Happy Hour, too.

We found it useful to often run the genset for dinner anyway, not just to cook but also to heat water, charge batteries, etc.

-Chris

Click to expand...

Some boats, especially newer ones, have gensets that are way less annoying than those on older boats.

"Some boats, especially newer ones, have gensets that are way less annoying than those on older boats."
I find my genset annoying can't imagine any boat near me finds it any better.
We have four 11lbs tanks. Two on port side and two on starboard side. Both lockers are up top and outside the superstructure. See pic.
Port side supplies top side grill and starboard side the stove/range in the galley.

Forgot to mention. We tossed the electric coffee maker and the microwave. In place of the microwave we put in an ice maker and we make coffee with a French press method.
Don't even miss microwave and now our inverter has nothing to do but charge our phones.

Pmcsurf1 said:

Forgot to mention. We tossed the electric coffee maker and the microwave. In place of the microwave we put in an ice maker and we make coffee with a French press method.
Don't even miss microwave and now our inverter has nothing to do but charge our phones.View attachment 105940

Click to expand...

We have that exact gas stove - came with the boat. I had to re-do the gas system to bring it up to par. They did have a ‘home run’ copper line running from stove to the tank location, so I was able to run that line into my new locker. Installed remote cut-off and propane sniffer[emoji106]. We love cooking with gas.

There are !any choices in 110VAC induction cooktops, Kenyon, Summit, True Induction, Empava. A simple Google query will get you started. The old style coil burners are far, far inferior to induction. Induction heats far more quickly than coil electric or propane. However, if I had a propane boat I woul not replace with induction. I would be happy with either.

OldDan1943 said:

I am interested in your induction stove top. What brand and model do you have?
What is the amperage draw? What voltage?
What do you do for an oven? Brand and model and amperage draw. What voltage?
I looked at their site and no mention of an induction cook top for RV/Marine usage which leads me to believe, all the cook tops are 240vt. That pretty much lets me out. I think with my 8kw generator, for me it is back to 120vt stove/oven. Ah, forgot. The AT34 are 30 amp boats.
Thanks!!

Click to expand...

On the genset thing, mine is a bit loud in the boat due to not having much sound insulation. Nothing terrible for the typical 45 - 60 minute run for cooking and such. But from outside, it's very quiet. If you're within 20 feet of the boat you can hear a little noise through the hull sides and a slight hint of exhaust noise. Further than that, all you can hear is water pouring out of the exhaust (it's not overly splashy, almost a steady stream). If I'm sitting on the aft deck, I have to really pay attention to notice it running.

On the stove thing, as much as gas stoves are nice and induction is far better than a coil electric setup, the coil electric stove on my boat is probably the best non-induction electric stove I've used. It's a bit underpowered for boiling water and such, but that's likely why the burners cycling doesn't cause excessive temperature change like some stoves. The temperature control for simmering and such is at least as good as the mediocre gas stove I have at home.

110 V electric is usually limited to 1500 Watts. Similar to any electric frying pan. Your wife probably hates the slow heat up and low heat of the present stove. Check the wattage of the burners on a new stove unfortunately they are still limited to 1500 watts so there wont be a difference with new. You may need to rewire to 220V.

bayview said:

110 V electric is usually limited to 1500 Watts. Similar to any electric frying pan. Your wife probably hates the slow heat up and low heat of the present stove. Check the wattage of the burners on a new stove unfortunately they are still limited to 1500 watts so there wont be a difference with new. You may need to rewire to 220V.

Click to expand...

Agreed on the low power with 120v stuff. Some 120v induction stoves will go a bit higher (up to 1800 watts or so per burner), but coil electric is typically less. My 3 burner coil electric is only 1100w per burner (stove can run all 3 burners on a 30A breaker).

Over the years I have had alcohol gas and electric stoves on boats. gas is far the best but it needs venting and can cause combustion produces in the cabin air. I settled on electric as I never run out of fuel in remote places

When converting our Navy launch we selected a sailboat gimboled range .Hiller

As we much prefer the hook to the dock zoo, the chance of a big upsetting wake always exists.

With fiddles the cook has the best chance of not being scalded , when a big one goes by.

We hooked the gas valve to a 2 hour mechanical timer and a red light as well as a sniffer.

We also ran the single propane hose from tanks to range inside a discarded hyd hose to give it more protection inside a locker.

If you enjoy the silence of coffee in the am with out a noisemaker , contemplate a propane reefer , ice cream all month long for a bottle of propane .

No dead batts , no oil changes , nothing to service , and SILENCE 24/7!