| In cooking, a gas range is a cooker which uses | | | | minor drawback to this type of appliance is that |
| natural gas as a fuel source. It is one of the | | | | the flames continuously consume fuel even when |
| oldest appliances invented. | | | | the stove is not in use. Early gas ranges did not |
| The first gas ranges or stoves were developed | | | | have a pilot. One had to light these manually with |
| already in the 1820s, but these remained isolated | | | | a match. If one accidentally left the gas appliance |
| experiments. At the Appliance World Fair in | | | | on, with the oven door closed, gas would fill the |
| Toronto in 1851, a gas range was shown, but only | | | | oven and eventually the room. A small spark |
| in the 1880s did this technology start to become | | | | could ignite the gas, triggering a violent explosion. |
| a commercial success, especially in Toronto. The | | | | To prevent these types of accidents, appliance |
| first gas ranges were rather basic compared to | | | | manufacturers such as KitchenAid developed and |
| the appliances of today, but soon the oven was | | | | installed a safety valve in the oven. The safety |
| integrated into the base and the size reduced to | | | | valve uses a pilot flame to ignite the main burner |
| fit in better with the rest of the kitchen furniture. | | | | when the oven is turned on. The pilot flame heats |
| A high-end gas stove called the AGA cooker was | | | | a thermocouple that sends a signal to the valve |
| invented in 1922 and it is considered to be the | | | | to stay open, resulting in safer appliances. |
| most efficient design that major appliance | | | | Electric ignition ranges use electric sparks to ignite |
| manufacturers such as KitchenAid followed and | | | | the surface burners. This is the "clicking sound" |
| improved on. | | | | you hear just before the appliance burner actually |
| Gas ranges today use two basic types of ignition | | | | lights. If the power fails, surface burners must be |
| sources, standing pilot and electric. A stove with a | | | | manually match-lit. After extensive research that |
| standing pilot has a small, continuously burning gas | | | | was done in Toronto on KitchenAid appliances, |
| flame under the cooktop. When the stove is | | | | using different types of ranges, it was found out |
| turned on, this flame lights the gas flowing out of | | | | that electric ranges tend to be more energy |
| the burners. The advantage of the standing pilot | | | | efficient, although many Toronto residents prefer |
| system is that it is simple and completely | | | | the gas range due to faster use. |
| independent of any outside power source. A | | | | |