How do I stop metal-bottomed pots squeaking on my gas hob?

Question

I have a gas hob and metal-bottomed pots. The support for the hob is made of metal and is coated in black plastic, like the image below. The previous owner has worn away at the layer of plastic that allows pots to move freely and quietly, so the metal is exposed.

The problem I'm trying to solve is that skillets and pots squeak horribly when they are moved due to the metal-on-metal scraping.

One option is to replace the support, but this seems wasteful and it will crop up again;
Another option would be to heat the metal and use a plastic dip; in school we used a heat-and-dip treatment to treat metal products to give them this nice finish, but I don't have the equipment.

How can I mitigate this noise? Is there a nice way to completely stop it?

The similar hobs I've had are coated in enamel rather than plastic. They do get quite hot. — David Marshall, Jul 22 '18 at 18:31
@bruglesco depends how big and full the pots are. I want a generic solution. — John Thow, Jul 23 '18 at 07:47

Duarte Farrajota Ramos · Answer 1 · 2019-01-07T14:50:28.883

1

Perhaps use a gas ring reducer to lift the skillets or pots away from the original hobs.

There seem to be various shapes and sizes, both bare metal or enamel coated options in various outlets.

As long they don't squeak themselves against either the pots or hob sounds a relatively cheap and easy to replace solution, and don't require changing the whole hob.

They also don't seem to affect stove efficiency or heat distribution negatively in any significant way.

Alternatively you may use some sort of gas ring heat diffuser, though I suspect these will have a larger effect on performance and efficiency.

edited Jan 07 '19 at 14:50

answered Jul 23 '18 at 23:54

Duarte Farrajota Ramos

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I'd be worried about the effect on stability, especially of the shiny ones – Chris H Dec 21 '18 at 09:28

score 1 · Answer 2 · answered Dec 21 '18 at 09:54

A careful choice of pan makes a big difference. My current gas hob has cast iron, rather than enamelled steel, but in general I've found my anodised pans to be pretty good from this respect even when full. My sandwich-base stainless steel pans are bad (though less so when full), and enamelled cast iron somewhere in between. Light bare-metal pans seem not to squeak.

You can't replace the coating with plastic. Plastic will burn, possibly wih toxic fumes. It looks like plastic but it's not. It's stove enamel. You may be able to repaint the top surface: although many stove paints say they're not suitable for direct contact with flames the top shouldn't be. These paints are rated to 650°C and the first use after applying/drying could be expected to smell - keave to dry ofor longer than it says, then bake it off by running the hob with good ventilation and no food exposed. It looks like a tin of brush-on paint enough to last a lifetime would cost around £10. You may be able to find a smaller touch-up tin. It may not solve the problem completely though - I recall some squeaking on my previous enamelled pot support.

I haven't tried this (but I might). A light rub over the entire contact area with a graphite stick or pencil might do the trick. Pencil leads contain no lead, and the clay and graphite they're made of don't burn (easily).) Graphite is commonly used in powder form as a lubricant.

How do I stop metal-bottomed pots squeaking on my gas hob?

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