Many different ranges can be fit into small apartment. However, it takes a well designed, well-put-together and overall well-functioning range to comfortably suit the needs of a family. My intention by writing this essay is to evaluate the Premier 24 inch gas range that was included with my apartment. I hope to accomplish this by objectively assessing my experience throughout my use of the range. I will be pointing out both the pros and cons I have experienced. I will evaluate this range using the criteria of aesthetics, functionality and practicality.
I will list the pros and cons associated with each criterion and then I will express my personal opinion based on my experience with the range. The range itself is not unaesthetic. Its color is white. Being only twenty four inches wide and twenty four inches deep, it is smaller than the more widely used 30″ range. It has an oven that is also smaller than in a more common unit, and it has a slide-out drawer presumably for storing pans and bake ware. At its unusual length it leaves a space between its edge and my countertop allowing space for bits of food and other undesirables to fall in between.
This spacing problem however, is not uncommon no matter the range in question so I will not count that as one of the things I consider to be a con in regards to the Premier. The Premier is three feet, six inches high and there is a space of about eight inches between the two steel racks in the oven. There is no window or light inside the oven. There are four gas burners on the top. The stove burners are controlled by four dials positioned in a straight line across the face of the range. The dial for the oven sits directly in between the first two and last two stove dials.
There are no markings of any kind, anywhere that indicate the temperature of neither the oven nor the stove burners. I found this quite odd. There are four iron guards over each stove-top burner allowing you to sit pans and pots directly over the gas flame. Each guard consists of an iron circle with three pieces of flat iron folded into “V” shapes with the angle of the “V” facing the center. The unit is described as a stand-alone unit, meaning it’s not connected to any ventilation or smoke fan. In regards to looks, there is not much particularly displeasing about this range.
The fact that there is no temperature gages printed on the dials is certainly a huge drawback overall and is specifically a con associated with the appearance of a range. When looking at your stove, it’s important to be able to see that it’s possible to assess the temperature. Although unusual, the stove’s size is advantageous when placed in a small kitchen. It is likely that a full size stove would look bulky and overbearing in a kitchen as small as mine; so in this case, the size of the stove works in its favor. My overall opinion is that the range is OK aesthetically.
The function of a range is simple; to provide adequate heat for the purpose of cooking. The Premier 24 inch gas range does release heat. However I do not believe it does so accurately. Because there are no temperature gauges, finding the right temperature is very difficult to do. When using the oven, it’s impossible to know whether or not the oven is the right temperature for a recipe that calls for 375 degrees. The user of the range is forced to estimate, which in most cases results in either too much or too little heat.
Again, I conclude that this is because of the unit’s lack of temperature gauges. This lack of a fundamental part of the makeup of a range is a problem associated with all three of the areas of aesthetics, functionality and practicality. I also rate the functionality of this unit low because large amount of natural gas that is fed through the appliance. The somewhat large gust of gas released before the spark igniter ignites the flame and the amount of my natural gas bill during the summer month both allude to this.
The former statements were the cons associated with the functionality of the range. In regards to the pros, the range does function as a range. However, it does not function as accurately and effortlessly as you would expect with a range. My overall evaluation of the functionality of the range is that it functions under-par when compared to other ranges of the same class. When evaluating the practicality of this range, the range’s performance in any given setting must be assessed. In this case, we look at the range’s performance in a small apartment, used by a family of four.
The Premier’s excess gas usage mentioned in the evaluation of it’s functionality also translates to excess heat produced by the range. This makes it less practical for use in a small space. Also, the fact that the Premier 24 inch range is a stand-alone-unit and is therefore not connected to any ventilation allowing the expulsion of hot air and smoke, adds to its impracticality. The range’s size however, makes it practical for a small apartment and is most likely along with the price of the range – the reason that the Premier selected as the range of choice.
In conclusion, when making an overall evaluation of the Premier 24 inch gas range, in the opinion of the writer, it’s possible to find a better functioning range that is more practical for a home this size and is just as aesthetically pleasing at, or around the same cost. When compared to other ranges of this class the Premier is rated low. However the evaluation if this range would have been considerably more favorable had there been one change; and that is the lack of temperature gauges, which in the opinion of most, is an essential part of any device or appliance used for cooking.
