Induction vs gas cooking: why Perth chefs are making the switch

Gas has been the default cooktop for decades. That's changing. Induction has caught up on the things gas was loved for, and on most measures it now does them better.

How induction cooking works

Gas and electric coil cooktops heat the air and the metal around your pan. Induction skips that step. A copper coil under the glass creates a magnetic field, and that field heats the pan itself directly.

The result?

• Instant heat: water boils in about half the time
• Precise control: a temperature change happens the moment you make it
• Cooler surface: the cooktop itself stays relatively cool
• Less wasted energy: the heat goes into the pan, not the kitchen

The health argument

This is where gas has the most to answer for. The research on burning gas indoors has firmed up a lot in recent years.

What gas cooking releases into your home

Every time you cook with gas, your kitchen fills with a mix of combustion products:

The asthma connection

A 2018 study in the Medical Journal of Australia (Knibbs et al.) estimated that 12.3% of childhood asthma in Australia is attributable to gas stoves used for cooking. A 2013 meta-analysis of 41 studies (Lin, Brunekreef et al., International Journal of Epidemiology) found children in homes with gas stoves had a 42% higher risk of current asthma than children in homes with electric cooktops.

For a household with kids, moving to induction takes those pollutants out of the kitchen.

The cooking performance comparison

Speed test: boiling 2 litres of water

• Gas: 8–10 minutes
• Electric coil: 10–12 minutes
• Induction: 4–5 minutes

For this everyday job, induction is close to twice as fast as gas.

Temperature control

Plenty of professional kitchens now run induction for exactly this reason. Melting chocolate, holding a sauce at a simmer, and controlling caramelisation all get easier when the heat does precisely what you tell it.

Safety features

Induction brings safety advantages gas can't match:

• No open flame: lower fire risk
• Cooler surface: the heat is in the pan, so a stray hand isn't burnt
• Auto shut-off: turns off when no pan is detected
• Pan detection: only heats when compatible cookware is on it
• Timer integration: switches off after a set time

The cost comparison

Upfront costs

Running costs (annual)

For a household cooking one to two hours a day. These are illustrative estimates: your figure depends on your tariff and how much you cook.

Gas cooking:

• Gas usage: $150–250/year
• Gas supply charge: ~$120-200/year (varies by retailer; compare WA gas suppliers to see what yours should be)
• Total: $270–450/year

Induction cooking:

• Electricity: $50–100/year
• No supply charge: $0
• Total: $50–100/year

Most of that gap is the gas supply charge you pay just to stay connected. Pair induction with solar and the daytime running cost drops close to nothing.

Common concerns about induction

"I'll need all new cookware"

Not necessarily. Induction works with any cookware a magnet sticks to. That includes:

• Cast iron: works perfectly
• Stainless steel: most of it works (check with a magnet)
• Enamelled cast iron: works well
• Carbon steel: works well

You'll only need to replace:

• Aluminium pans
• Copper pans (unless they have a magnetic base)
• Non-magnetic grades of stainless steel

Most households keep 60–80% of the cookware they already own.

"I won't be able to char capsicums or use a wok"

There are good workarounds:

• Charring: use a kitchen torch or the oven grill
• Wok cooking: induction-compatible woks and wok adaptors are easy to find
• Flat-bottom woks: work well on induction and are now standard in many commercial kitchens

"What about during blackouts?"

A fair point. A few options cover it:

• Keep a small camping stove for emergencies
• Add a battery backup system
• Store a portable gas burner for the rare outage

Most Perth households see only a few hours of blackouts a year, so this is a minor trade-off against the daily upside.

"I love cooking with flame"

This one is usually about habit more than need. Most people who switch find they prefer induction within a few weeks. The instant response and exact control become second nature fast.

Making the switch in WA

If you already have an electric cooktop

• You can usually swap straight to an induction unit
• An electrician may need to check the circuit can handle it
• Often a half-day job

If you're currently on gas

You'll need:

1. An electrical circuit: an electrician to run a new one ($300–600)
2. Gas disconnection: optional, but worth doing ($0–200)
3. The cooktop: the induction unit itself

That puts the install at roughly $400–1,000 on top of the cooktop price.

Rebates and incentives

There's no direct rebate for induction cooktops in WA right now. The savings come from elsewhere:

• Dropping the gas supply charge
• Lower energy costs, especially with solar
• The option to disconnect gas entirely and save ~$120-200/year

Portable induction: try before you buy

Not ready to commit? Start with a portable induction hob:

• Costs $100–300
• Plugs into a standard outlet
• A cheap way to find out whether you like cooking on induction
• Handy as an extra burner later on

You get a feel for it without changing a thing in your kitchen.

The verdict

For most WA households, moving from gas to induction adds up on both the bill and the health front:

Most people settle in within a couple of weeks. Pair it with surplus solar and induction cooking runs on low-cost daytime power (a few cents per kWh, not the grid rate).

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