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Our new Whirlpool Electric Range WFC315S0 burners turn off and back on in the middle of boiling product for any length of time. For instance while you are canning which requires consistent heat, the burner shuts off and then turns back on repeatedly. Is there a disconnect for this feature?

JPhi1618
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Pat Kehoe
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1 Answers1

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TL;DR That's the way it is supposed to work.

There are some other options now, such as induction cooktops, but for a long time the only two options available for cooktops (whether standalone or, as in your range, together with an oven) were:

  • Natural Gas (many can be converted to propane, but that is a minor difference)
  • Electric Coils

Gas cooktops have a flame that varies in size. Want to boil a big pot? Turn it to high. Want to simmer a small pot of sauce? Turn it to low. Or anywhere in between. Infinite adjustment and immediate response.

Electric coils may have a handful of settings or may have an infinite adjustment. But the adjustments are really thermostat settings. The coil itself is binary - it is either on or off at any point in time. The top high setting is not "100% on all the time", it is "on until a high pre-set temperature is reached", then "off until a lower set point", then on again. The bottom low setting is not "10% on" it is "on until a low pre-set temperature is reached", etc.

Here is a reference from GE. And here is a similar Q&A.

Most recipes can be adapted to either style of cooktop. But personally I prefer gas, and I switched when I renovated my kitchen. I had it easy because I already had a separate cooktop and oven. Just as a gas cooktop tends to be preferred by many people, an electric oven is preferred by many people. But when it comes to a range that includes both cooktop and oven, like yours, most manufacturers make the whole thing either all gas (plus electric controls) or all electric (like yours) except at the high end of the market.

So your cooktop is actually working as designed, and as all electric coil cooktops work.

manassehkatz-Moving 2 Codidact
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