JENN-AIR
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Use and Care Manual
Solid Element Cartridge
Models A106 & AS131 Series
Printed in U.S.A. Cat. No. CRC131UA
@1992 Jenn-Air Company Part No. 205981A 5/92
SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
Read before operating your cooktop
All appliances - regardless of the manufacturer - have the potential
through improper or careless use to create safety problems. Therefore
the following safety precautions should be observed:
1. Never use your appliance for warming or heating the room.
2. Children should not be left alone or unattended in area where
appliance is in use. They should never be allowed to sit or stand
on any part of the appliance.
3. Wear proper apparel. Loose-fitting or hanging garments should
never be worn while using the appliance.
4. Do not repair or replace any part of the appliance unless
specifically recommended in this manual. All other servicing
should be referred to an authorized Jenn-Air Service Contractor.
5. Flammable materials should not be stored near surface units.
6. Do not use water on grease fires. Smother fire or flame or use
dry chemical or foam-type extinguisher.
7. Use only dry potholders. Moist or damp potholders on hot
surfaces may result in burns from steam. Do not let potholder
touch hot heating elements. Do not use a towel or other bulky
cloth.
8. Use proper pan size. Many appliances are equipped with one or
more surface units of different size. Select cookware having flat
bottoms large enough to cover the surface unit heating element.
The use of undersized cookware will expose a portion of the
heating element to direct contact and may result in ignition of
clothing. Proper relationship of cookware to heating element will
also improve efficiency and performance.
9. Never leave surface units unattended at high heat settings. Boil
over causes smoking and greasy spillovers that may ignite.
10. Glazed cookware - only certain types of glass, glass-ceramic,
ceramic, earthenware, or other glazed cookware are suitable for
cooktop surface without breaking due to the sudden change in
temperature. Use only such cookware as you know has been
approved for this purpose.
11. Cookware handles should be turned inward and not extend over
adjacent surface heating elements to avoid burns, ignition of
flammable materials and spillage due to unintentional contact
with the cookware.
12. CAUTION - Do not store items of interest to children in cabinets
above cooktop - children climbing on the cooktop to reach items
could be seriously injured.
13. Do not touch surface units or areas near units. Surface units or
heating elements may be hot even though they are dark in color.
Areas near surface units may become hot enough to cause
burns. During and after use, do not touch or let clothing or other
flammable materials contact these areas until they have had
sufficient time to cool. Other surfaces may become hot enough
to cause burns - among these surfaces is the cooktop.
14. Do not use cooktop if broken. Contact an authorized Jenn-Air
Service Contractor.
15. Clean glass cooktops with caution. Ifwet sponge or cloth is used
to wipe spills on a hot cooking area, be careful to avoid steam
burns. Some cleansers can produce noxious fumes ifapplied to
a hot surface.
16. Do not operate with damaged cooking element after any product
malfunction until proper repair has been made.
17. Keep all switches "OFF" when unit is not in use.
About Your Solid Element
Congratulations on your choiceof a Jenn-Air solid element cooktopcartridge.
TheSolidelements aremadefroma castiron plateintowhich electrical heating
coils have been embedded. The coils are arranged to provide a uniform heat
distribution. The elements are equipped with a thermal protector or limiter to
prevent the cooking surfacefrom becoming excessively hot (the element will
not glow red). The limiter reduces wattage to the element when overheating
could occur, suchas turning the element onwithout a pan inplace or using an
impropercookpot.
The cooktop is equipped with two different types of solid elements.
• The largeelement isa 2600w. UltraPowerTM*SolidElement, designated
by a saturn ring aroung the bullseye. (*UltraPower is a trademark of
E.G.O. Products, Inc.)
• Thesmall element isa 1500w. Standard Solid Element,designated bya
bullseye.
Cooking Procedures
• BEFOREFIRST USE, heatelements without apan for 3 to 5minutes on
the Hi setting.
• For best results, always use recommendedcookware.
• Different cookpots and different amounts of food being prepared will
influence the control settings needed for best results. (See cooktop or
rangeuse&care manualfortypical controlsettings.) Forfastest cooking,
startwith the surface control on Hifor one minute; thenturn the controlto
the lower desired setting. Covering pans, whenever possible, speeds
cooking andis more energy efficient.
• The solidelements retainheatfor aperiod oftimeafter the elements have
beenturned off. Putthis residualheatto good use. Turnthe elements off
afew minutesbeforefood iscompletelycooked andusethe retainedheat
to complete the cooking operation. Because of this heat retention
characteristic, the elements will not respondto changes in heat settings
as quicklyas coilelements. Inthe eventofa potential boilover, movethe
cookpot to a cool element or remove from the cooking surface.
• Whenpreparingfoodswhichcanbeeasilyscorchedorover-cooked, start
cooking at a lowertemperature setting and gradually increase tempera-
ture as needed.
• A higher setting than normal may be necessary when using cookpots
made with material that is slowto conduct heat, such as cast iron.
• A lower setting can be used when cooking small quantities of foods or
when usinga cookpotthat conducts heat quickly.
• Onceliquid comesto a boilon Hi, reducethe controlsetting to amedium
or medium lowto maintain steam or to simmer foods.
• Makesure bottom of cookware is dry before placing on element.
• Do not use wire trivets, fire rings, pads or any such item between the
cookware and the element.
• Do not lay lids, spatulas, or other food laden utensils on solid element.
4
Selecting Proper Cookware
• Select heavy gauge cookpots. Usually heavygauge cookpots will not
changeshapewhenheated,
• Use cookpots with flat, smooth bottoms. The twowaysto determine
if cookpotshavea flat, smoothbottomarethe rulertestand thecooking
test.
Ruler Test:
1. Placethe edge of ruler across the bottom of the pot.
2. Hold upto the light.
3. No light should be visible under
the ruler.
Cooking Test: ]'J'/' J' _'j '
1. Put 1 inch of water into the
cookpot.
2. Place cookpot on the solid ele-
ment. Turn control to the HI
setting.
3. Observethe bubble formation todetermine theheat distribution. If
the bubbles are uniform across the cookpot, the cookpot will
perform satisfactorily. Ifthe bubbles are not uniform, the bubbles
will indicatethe hotspots.
• Match the size ofthe cookpot to the size of the element. Ideally, the
cookpot will bethe same size or slightly larger.
Improper Cookware
• Donot usecookwarethat extendsmorethan 1inchbeyondtheedge ofthe
solid element.
• Do not usea small cookpot on a large element. Not onlycan this cause
the element to require more energy and time, but it can also result in
spillovers burning onto the element which cause extra effort in cleaning.
• Donot use nonflatspecialty itemsthat are oversized, uneven or do not
meet proper cookware specifications such as round bottom woks with
rings, griddles, rippled bottom canners, lobster pots, large pressure
canners, etc.
Cleaning
Be sure all control knobs are inthe OFF position before cleaning.
Cast Iron Solid Elements
Thebody ofthe solidelement ismadeofhighstrengthcastiron. The redlacquer
dot and saturn ring ontheelements will eventuallydisappear afterthe element
hasbeen used or after itis scoured. The cast iron will also lose itsdark luster
over a period of time. (See instructions belowfor restoring cast iron. ) These
changes will not affect the solid element's performance or durability.
IMPORTANT
BEFORE USING THE COOKTOP FOR THE FIRST TIME, HEAT THE
ELEMENTS WITHOUT A PAN FOR 3 TO 5 MINUTES ON THE HI
SETTING. The elements are shipped with a coating (lacquer) which
protectsthem againstcorrosion. Heatingthe elementsallowsthecoating
tobe hardenedandburnedintothe elements. Duringthe curingprocess,
a non-toxicsmokewillbecreated. Turnonthe ventilationfan ifthesmoke
isobjectionable.Iftheelementsarenotcured,thecoatingcansticktoapan
whenfirst usedonthe solidelement.
• Fornormalcleaning,wipethe elementwitha dampcloth. Heatelement
ona mediumsettingfora few minutesuntilcompletelydry.
• For lightsoil, use powderedcleansers such as Bon-Ami,Bar Keepers
Friend,or softscrubbingcleansers. Rinsethoroughly. Heat elementon
a mediumsetting untilcompletelydry.
• For heavy soil, use soapy scouringpads such as S.O.S. or Brillo, a
scouringpadsuchas Scotch-Brite,or a brushwith scouring powders. To
facilitate the cleaning process, first warm the element on a low setting.
Rinsethoroughly aftercleaning. Heatelement on amedium setting until
completely dry.
• For routine maintenance and to restorethe cast iron, use Collo Electrol
(Jenn-AirModelA911or PartNo.712190)orsalt-freevegetableoil. Apply
theCollo Electrolbyfollowing package instructions. Whenthe element is
cool, usea cleancloth to remove excess polish. A very thin coatof salt-
free vegetable oilwill also restoretheappearance ofthe cast iron. Apply
with paper towel to a lukewarm element, wipe offexcess, and heat ona
medium setting to cure. If too muchoil is used,the surface can become
tacky. Ifthis happens,useprocedures recommendedfor cleaning heavy
soil.
• Removeanyfoods spillsand spattersfromelements as soonas possible
with a damp cloth. Drythoroughly.
Seal Ring
The ring around the cast iron element prevents food spills from running under
theelement. Theseal ringshould becleanedperthedirections for the cast iron
solid elements.
Glass Cooktop
Thetempered glasscooktopwill withstandtemperature changeswhile cooking.
Although impactresistant,treatthisglasscooktopwiththesamecareyouwould
anyglass material.
• Cleanglass cooktop after surface has cooled.
• Fornormal daily cleaning, wipe with a damp sponge or cloth. Use glass
cleaners suchasWindextoremovesmudgesandstains. Buffwithaclean
drycloth or paper towel.
• Formoredifficult to removefood stains,use non-abrasive softcleansers
suchas ShinySinks,Soft Scrub,Bon-Ami,or dishwashing liquidssuchas
Ivory or Joy or a paste of water and baking soda. Rinse and dry
thoroughly; buff with clean dry cloth or paper towel.
• Do not useany cleaners not recommended for use on glass.
IMPORTANT
• NEVER IMMERSETHE COOKTOP CARTRIDGE INWATER.
Thiscould damage the internal wiring.
• Do not use decorative covers over the solid element. These trap
moisture which can corrode the cast iron element. If the element is
accidentallyturned on,the covers couldpermanentlydamagethe solid
element orthe cooktop cartridge.
• Do not usewet pans or leave pan bottoms wet. Moisturecould cause
corrosion and will not allow your pans to heat properly.
