Advances in cooker technology

Take a look at our quick guide to what's new on the gas cooker market. Familiarise yourself with these features and you'll be in a better position to decide which cooker is right for you:

Get your measuring tape out

Most cookers are the standard 30 inch design, but if you're looking for something different you'll find a whole host of different sizes available to choose from. Really any purchase made that is over and above the 30 inch model could be costly and wasteful unless you plan to cook for larger numbers of people using it.

Heavy duty ovens

Nowadays you can choose to go for a double or split oven if you feel you're going to need the extra cooking space.This may sound a little decadent, but one of the ovens tends to be made a lot smaller, so that this can be used on its own during most cooking activities. The larger oven can then be brought into action when large family gathering like Christmas take place, and you need as much oven space as you can get!

Stand alone units and built-in models

Here you should take a look at the current layout of your kitchen and see what would fit best. If you're getting a whole new kitchen fitted, then a built-in model can offer a sleeker look, otherwise you may want to look for a free-standing unit, or one that can simply slide in to an existing gap between cabinets.

British Thermal Units British Thermal Units are, ironically, a measurement used mainly in the USA, and they measure the power of a cooker's burners' heat output. BTUs have actually become a bit of a status symbol, with people willing to spend extra in obtaining the highest BTU possible. This idea is silly and wasteful. Unless you are planning to use your cooker for commercial purposes, there is no need to go for a commercial BTU level.

Sealed burners Sealed burners mean just that - the output is sealed. The main benefit of this type of system is that they're easier to clean than open burners. However critics say that the lack of oxygen around in a sealed burner means that the burning temperature will be lower, but the difference will be only slight.

The wonder of self-clean

Ideal for Christmas time, or any time there's a big lunch to be cooked, some modern cookers now come equipped with a self-cleaning cycle. So no more sore backs from scrubbing the oven clean!.

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