Induction and Appliance Conversion

Moving a Bellevue Kitchen From a Gas Range to Induction

Swapping a gas range for an induction range looks like an appliance delivery. In most houses it is actually three trades working in sequence: an electrician getting a large new circuit to the range location, a gas fitter safely retiring the old supply, and a carpenter adjusting the cabinets if the new appliance is a different size or style. We run those as one job so the kitchen is out of service for days rather than weeks.

Step One: Find Out What the Panel Can Take

Every conversion starts with a load calculation. The electrical code gives a method for adding up the demand a house places on its service, counting the heating system, water heater, dryer, cooking equipment and general lighting and receptacle load, and comparing that total with the size of the service coming in from the utility.

The result falls into one of three outcomes:

• It fits. There is enough capacity and space for a new double pole breaker. This is common in larger homes from the 1980s and 1990s with 200 amp service.
• It fits with management. The service is close, but a load management device can pause one large load, such as an EV charger or dryer, while the range is drawing heavily. This avoids a service upgrade in a lot of mid-century houses.
• It needs more service. The panel is too small or too full, or it is a type that should be replaced anyway. We coordinate the upgrade with the utility and the City of Bellevue.

We do this before you order a range, not after. The breaker count on the panel door tells you very little. A panel packed with breakers can have capacity to spare, and a half-empty one can be near its limit.

Step Two: The Range Circuit

Induction ranges draw a lot of current at full power. Most full size models specify a dedicated 240 volt circuit of 40 or 50 amps, and some cooktops call for 30 or 40. The correct size is whatever the installation instructions for your exact model say, which is why we ask for the model number early.

The circuit itself is copper wire sized to the breaker, run from the panel to a range receptacle or a hardwired junction box behind the appliance. In a single story rambler with an accessible crawlspace, that run is often straightforward. In a split-level, or a kitchen with a finished basement below, it can mean opening drywall and patching it afterward, and we tell you which before we start.

Some mid-century homes in Lake Hills, Crossroads and Eastgate were built or added onto during the years when aluminum branch wiring was used. We look for it. It does not stop a conversion, but it changes how connections elsewhere in the kitchen should be handled, and it is worth knowing about.

Step Three: Retiring the Gas Supply

The gas line behind the range does not simply get disconnected and left. A licensed gas fitter shuts it off, removes the flexible connector, caps the line at the appropriate fitting, and pressure tests the piping so the rest of the system is confirmed tight. That work is permitted and inspected.

If the range was the only gas appliance in the house, you may be able to have the gas meter removed and stop paying a monthly service charge. If a furnace, fireplace or water heater still runs on gas, the line stays in service to those.

Types of Induction Setups

Choosing the appliance changes the cabinet work:

• Freestanding range. Drops into the same 30 inch opening most gas ranges used. The least carpentry.
• Slide-in range. Sits flush with the counter and has controls on the front. It often needs the counter edges trimmed or a filler strip at the back.
• Cooktop with a wall oven. A cutout in the counter and a tall oven cabinet elsewhere. This is the most involved, and it usually splits the power into two circuits.
• 120 volt induction with a battery. A small number of ranges now plug into an ordinary outlet and use a built-in battery to reach full power. They cost more up front, but can make sense in a condo where a new 240 volt circuit is impractical.

Cookware and Small Surprises

Induction only heats cookware that a magnet will stick to. Cast iron and most stainless pans work. Aluminum, copper and glass do not, unless they have a magnetic base. Hold a fridge magnet to the bottom of your pans before you buy a new set you may not need.

A few people with implanted medical devices are advised by their doctors to keep a distance from an active induction zone. If that applies in your household, ask the question before choosing.

What It Costs

A conversion on a panel with room to spare, including the permit, a new range circuit and gas capping, generally runs $1,400 to $3,500 in Bellevue. When the service has to be upgraded, the total typically lands between $5,000 and $12,000, depending on the distance to the meter, the panel location and the utility’s requirements. Cabinet modification is quoted separately once we know the appliance.

Call (425) 663-9860 with your range model and a photo of your panel, and we will tell you which of those three outcomes you are most likely looking at.