Ditching the Propane

* This is part of our 2017 Renovation Series

Stovetop but no oven.

Update: We used a small Lasco ceramic heater during a chilly (42 degree) Southern morning to warm our trailer. It worked perfectly! No propane needed. But, and this is a big but, we will need Propane for a future Ranch boondocking experience we are planning.

During our recent renovations, we had to replace the countertop due to damage from a previous owner’s leak. Since we were replacing the countertop with a new one, we needed to make a decision about the double sinks (go or stay – they went!) and if we wanted to keep the propane stovetop.

There are two big reasons that we want to ditch the propane: constant refilling the tanks and safety. A regular camping trip we take has us go no through several tunnels. There has been a lot of discussion on whether you should turn off your Propane while driving through a tunnel. We use Propane to keep the fridge running while we are driving.

Continue reading for the full details and reveal!

Magic Chef Stovetop

We rarely use the stovetop. We use the grill for almost everything and the microwave to re-heat. The crockpot is used whenever we don’t feel like grilling. I just bought a cheap Belgian waffle maker to use for quick fresh breakfast & even to bake fresh brownies. Clearly, I am bringing too many small appliances on our camping trips!

Read about all of our 2017 Renovation updates!

New IKEA countertop without stovetop

If you notice in the above picture, I had zero working Countertop space. It wasn’t an easy decision but we did decide to not re-install the stovetop. That means that only the hot water heater and dual fridge use Propane. We have plans to replace the 40 year old hot water heater with an on-demand one. The fridge works on electric or Propane so it’s really easy for us to ditch Propane altogether. We will use a microwave, convection oven and an induction burner.

Our Induction Burner – Don’t buy this one. It’s not reliable.

An induction burner needs special cookware. Our induction burner came with a matching frying pan. I knew I would need a pot (boil pasta, make chili). During my research for an induction burner pot, I was told that the pot needed iron and almost every cast iron or enamel cast iron pot would work. To double check, take a magnet and place it in the bottom of your pot/pan. If the magnet sticks, it will work on an induction burner! Luckily, I had a very small enamel cast iron pot that the magnet stuck to. I’m in love with enamel cast iron!