Customer Reviews

Proctor-Silex 34101 Fifth Burner

5 star:		(68)
4 star:		(35)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(14)
1 star:		(27)

 

 

We got this to replace a burner bought off the shelf. It died within the first week. I have been much happier with the results for this burner as a replacement for our dead stove. In fact, it heats up faster that our stove used to. Produces good heat quickly and has worked well in almost all situations.

The only issue I have is with what seems to be an overtemp safety because it will cycle itself on and off. A pot will get hot quickly but it also seems to senses that the pot is still there and hot, and decides to take a rest or turner off the burner for 15-30 sec while things in your pot stop boiling. It seems to come back quickly to reheat again, but cooking with an even hear is lost as the burner cycles on/off.

I saw this on HGTV in some trendy house renovation shows. And, I did not know what it was but it looked really cool. And, when I saw it on [...] later, I realized that this is an ancient kind of product we all are familiar with.

My excuse to buy this was that my house is under the hammer and we decided to chuck away the old gas stove. And, that means we can only eat frozen meals heated up in the microwave or this coil burner.*w*

Unlike some other reviewers expressed, I have only used this for boiling pastas, or stir-fried dishes. And, it was just amazing that how this $15 burner can cook as well and fast as my GE electric stove in my other condo. I have cooked some Chicken Soup for 4 hours one day, which turned out great as well, so I don't agree with other people's discontent myself.

I just wish I could put 4 of these coil burners when the house is complete instead of purchasing a couple of thousand halogen cook top. At least, a young couple on HGTV did it in their compact loft condo this way. with the coil covers, very clever! I think it looks good enough to keep it on the counter top.

The only flaw is that the spill plate under the heat coil leaves the burn marks from cooking if you don't wipe them immediately. But, then again, I could buy another without thinking! A very good value.

Cons:
-As was mentioned from the other reviews, this burner annoyingly cycles off and on. I have to unplug and re-plug to turn it on again. You cannot disable it. For me, this is the biggest deal breaker for this product.
-There is nothing in the manual to show the features and specs except safety precautions.
-You cannot use a large pan on it.
-Nothing to stabilize the pan but the actual heating coil.
-You have to use heavy pans with good heat conductor at the bottom (like the copper bottoms pans). If you use the aluminum teflon type, it will not sufficiently heat to fry anything.

Pros:
-Like the portability, size and weight.
-Very affordable.

This is an excellent piece of cooking equipment! I love it!!

I purchased this for my travel to India... I rented a room at a place in India and wanted to be able to prepare quick meals in the comfort of my room, including tea... well this electric burner heats up quickly and safely ... just like my stove at home. It is small enough to easily store away.

Now that I am back in the US form India travel I sometimes use it when other stove elements at home are in use.. so the burner helps things move along faster and the best part is that it works so wonderfully and just like a stove element... Its a must have tool... especially for single folks :-) .. or if you move around a lot on travels away from home..

I shopped at SEVEN stores for a 5th burner type appliance. All I could find were warmers or products that looked as if they would not even boil water. All were priced much higher than this Proctor-Silex Fifth Burner.
This heats fast and the coils actually turn red like a regular electric stove. We got this for use while remodeling our kitchen and so I have used it daily for almost 2 months. I am very pleased with its performance and would recommend it as an efficent, no nonsense little appliance.

We are in the process of moving so temporarily need a hotplate while we shop for a new range. The Fifth Burner does some things exceptionally well; others not as well. I think for most purposes it is a "5"--boils water, fries eggs, cooks spaghetti, but the potatoes in the beef stew I attempted came out watery. I suspect the type of thermostat it has causes the burner to go on and off to maintain a median temperature. It does not simmer well, as necessary in stews; I had trouble keeping it at a low boil. It's great for most purposes for most people, but it's not for gourmet cooking. Great value for the money.

I have tried several single burners for my canner. This is the only one hot enough to produce a consistent boil.

I purchased this unit based on the high review rating, but must report that it was a piece of junk - defective right out of the box on the first use. It turned on fine, and I set it to "low". It zoomed instantly to red hot, and when I turned the knob to "off".. *nothing happened*. The power light stayed lit and the burner glowed ominously. Wholesale meltdown was narrowly averted by a quick pulling of the plug. We gave it a second chance after an overnight rest (perhaps it was just suffering from "opening night" jitters), but, when plugged in, it repeated its zoom to surface-of-the-sun temperature, and would not go off no matter how we turned, jiggled, etc the knob. Perhaps we just got the bad apple in the lot, but be warned: this unit is a gamble.

Used this burner during a kitchen renovation. Doesn't heat very evenly for use with a skillet, but product is sufficient for boiling water for pasta and vegetables. Wish the base was heavier for stability.

This device has an annoying thermostat that keeps turning on and off - not mentioned in the product description. It has a light on in the front that is permanently on as long as the power cord is connected - it does not tell you if the coil has switched off. The only way to tell is to keep checking below your pan if the coil is red hot or not. It then waits till the coil completely cools down before it decides to come on again. I find this completely unusable if you're doing anything that requires constant heat. If you're toasting burgers or buns or cooking vegetables, you will find that it takes a phenomenally long time because of this constant switching on and off. Food also cooks unevenly because of this. The only good thing about this is that it is light and compact. If you're heating only water or boiling soup, maybe it might be ok, but otherwise I can't recommend this product to anyone.