Do you turn off your range cooker for the summer?

The sun is out, the garden smells of cut grass and you're eyeing up the BBQ - so does the range cooker get a summer holiday too? It's the question that divides kitchens up and down the country! Some owners wouldn't dream of switching off (the kitchen just isn't the same without that gentle warmth), while others flick the switch the moment the first heatwave arrives and pocket the fuel savings. There's no wrong answer, but whichever camp you're in there are a few things worth knowing.

First things first - switching off does no harm

Let's clear this one up straight away: it does a heat storage range cooker no harm at all to be turned off for a spell. These are wonderfully sturdy things! The only real reasons to leave one running are that you love the warmth, or that yours is a bit of a bother to relight (all too possible with some older oil and gas models!).

If you have a modern electric range cooker the decision is even easier - most let you run things zonally or switch off altogether at the flick of a switch, and they're back up to useful heat impressively quickly. No fumbling with matches required!

Or don't turn it off - turn it down!

There's a middle way that often gets forgotten. Many gas models can be turned right down to a low or pilot setting rather than off altogether, so the kitchen stays bearable, but you're only a short wait from full working order rather than a full relight and warm-up.

Modern controllable electric cookers make this easier still, letting you run just the parts you need. On a cool, drizzly August bank holiday (we've all had them!) you'll be very glad of the quick way back.

If you do switch off... mind the condensation!

A cold, closed-up cooker can gather a little condensation inside, and over a long summer that can put surface rust on your hotplates and the iron rings around them. Don't panic - the fix is easy and costs pennies!

Once the cooker has cooled completely, wipe a thin coat of light oil over the hotplates and expansion rings with a bit of kitchen roll. Then find an old pencil, snap it in half, and pop a piece under the front of each lid to raise it ever so slightly. Air circulates, condensation can't settle, and nobody visiting your kitchen will ever spot it.

Leave the oven doors slightly ajar too if you can - same principle, same result.

A cold cooker is a chance too good to miss

There's a silver lining to a summer switch-off: a cold cooker is far, far easier to clean than a hot one! All that baked-on carbon that laughs at you in November comes away much more agreeably when the cooker is stone cold, so roll your sleeves up and give it the deep clean it deserves. Your future autumn self will thank you.

Summer is also the perfect time to book your service. Gas cookers should be serviced every year (no exceptions!) and oil models often a little more frequently. If any little problems crop up, far better to have the cooker out of action for a few days in July than in the week before Christmas.

One friendly word of warning: a cold cooker top has a mysterious magnetism for post, keys, shopping bags and small children's artwork. Protect that lovely enamel with a folded tea towel or a chef's pad and it'll come through the summer unscratched.

And if you leave it on? Good for you!

Plenty of owners run theirs all year round and love it. A range cooker keeps a kitchen dry, airs the washing whatever the weather does, and means you're never more than a minute from a proper cup of tea. If that's you, carry on - just maybe open a window in August!

Still on the fence?

If you're weighing up whether your next cooker should be one you can switch on and off as easily as the kettle, come and have a chat! Our range cooker showroom in Forest Row has electric heat storage cookers such as Everhot, Lacanche and Bertazzoni alongside traditional models, all plumbed in and working, so you can see the difference for yourself. Pop in, or drop us a line - we'd love to see you!