A glass stove heat diffuser is a piece of glass that sits between the flame and the cooking surface on your stove. They work by allowing the hot air from the oven or cooktop to rise and escape, rather than building up and making it difficult for you to see what is cooking on top of your stove. The result: less turbulence and more even cooking!
A heat diffuser for glass top stove helps to distribute the heat evenly across your cooking surface, reducing hot spots and making it easier for you to regulate how much heat you need on one side or another.
Some people find that they need less gas because they don’t have as many hot spots. Others use them for baking delicate foods like cakes where they want an even distribution without having too high of temperatures near the edges of their cake pans.
Glass stove heat diffusers are made out of durable tempered glass so it won’t break or crack when bumped into by pots, pans, or other kitchen objects. There are plenty of styles to choose from too – plain black for those who don’t want any fuss; colorful geometric patterns for those who like being different; even some designs that let you personalize with photos.
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How to Install a Glass Stove Heat Diffuser
Installing a glass stove heat diffuser can be an intimidating task. Thankfully, with the right tools and knowledge you can install one in just a few hours. This post walks you through the steps to installing your own glass stove top diffuser!
Prepare for Installation
Before installing anything you will need to gather up all the tools and materials.
The glass stove top diffuser we are going to install is designed for the average kitchen range so it should be easy to find most of these items around your house or local hardware store.
Some of these might already be in your garage depending on how much do-it-yourself experience you have:
• Flat head screwdriver (standard screwdrivers won’t work)
• Small Teflon hammer (comes with a small piece of sandpaper on one side, can also use a rubber mallet)
• Hammer (A standard weight hammer that does not have a magnetic tip on the striking face.)
• Drill (Find one with a speed setting so you can control how fast your screws are drilling in.)
• Screwdriver attachment bit (This will be used for your drill)
• Rounded head rivet tool, 3/32″ rivet set, and rivets. (Typically comes with a Teflon washer included.)
• Safety glasses
Some of these might need to be bought new from the hardware store:
• 1-1/4″ wood screws – #14 x 3/4″ long steel flat phillips head (Make sure they have a Phillips head on them before buying.)
• Heat diffuser – 8 ½ inch x 11 inch (Make sure to buy one that matches your range size.)
• Heat diffuser leveling feet – package of 4
• Silicone sealant – clear/transparent
• Black stove pipe paint (optional, but recommended)
Gather Supplies You Will Need for Installation
You are going to need some space to work with. Clear off some counter space on your kitchen or garage workbench. A great place would be your kitchen island where there is already a lot of open counter space. Be sure you have enough room around the area you will be working on so you don’t knock anything down!
It’s also good to have some good lighting since everything will be upside down and it can be hard to see what you are doing. This is not necessary but something to keep in mind.
Step 1 – Heat Diffuser Removal
The first step is to remove your old glass stove top diffuser. You can use a flat head screwdriver for this part, but it’s easier with the Teflon hammer. Take your time with this step! You do not want to crack or break any of the glass pieces on your glass stove top by applying too much force! The best way to guarantee you won’t break anything is by using the flat side of the Teflon hammer and prying up once you find a good spot (see images below).
Once you find a good spot, take your time and work around the edges. The best way to pry up is by applying pressure on the edge until it starts to give, then you can pull it out with your fingers. Keep in mind that the glass will break if you use too much force so go slow and be careful! Once you have removed the old heat diffuser carefully place all pieces on a clean rag or paper towel so they do not scratch or chip against anything.
Step 2 – Drill Holes for Stove Pipe
Find where you want to install your stove pipe (see image below). It’s usually better to put it somewhere it will be hidden behind something like an island cabinet top or wall paneling around your kitchen. Make sure there are no items blocking this area that could get in the way of your stove pipe installation.
Use a permanent marker to mark where you want to drill your holes. Have someone hold up the heat diffuser against the wall behind it so you can get an accurate measurement of where to drill. Once you find a good spot, use a 1/16″ or smaller drill bit and drill about 2-3 inches deep into the wall – this is just for marking. Do not worry if you accidentally go too deep because there are no real consequences for doing so (the only thing that would happen is the threads part of your wood screws would be touching the inside of your wall). You will be using larger drill bits later on to actually install these holes! After drilling use some sandpaper (or a dremel) and clean up the holes so that your screws will sit flush with this wall.
Step 3 – Drill Holes in Heat Diffuser
Now we need to drill some holes in the heat diffuser! Take your 1-1/4″ wood screws and place them through your stove pipe hole marking where you drilled earlier (see image below). Be sure to place these wood screws at least 2 inches apart so the heat diffuser does not crack or break when you screw it on later. If there is not enough room for this, do not worry since we will be fixing this problem next!
After placing the five wood screws into the heat diffuser mark where they touch on your heat diffuser (see image below). Use a permanent marker or some kind of sharpie!
Now, drill holes into the heat diffuser where you marked the wood screws (see image below). Be sure to not drill these holes too close to the edge. If they are too close to the edge there is a chance that you could crack your glass if you use too much pressure when screwing on this part later on. Keep each hole 2 inches apart like we did for the wood screws earlier.
Step 4 – Attaching Heat Diffuser
Take your heat diffuser and make sure it’s clean by wiping it with some soap and water or windex. You want everything to be very clean before attaching it to your stove top since any debris in between the two surfaces could damage your glass stove top.
Use your 1/2″ drill bit (you could also use a power drill if you’d like) and make sure you’re on a low speed setting before inserting it into the heat diffuser (see image below). Slowly start screwing in each wood screw to attach the heat diffuser. You might need to use some kind of wrench or pliers to really tighten down each one so you don’t risk cracking any of the glass pieces. Once again, take your time with this step! Go slow, be careful, and work your way around each piece until it is tight enough so nothing moves around when touched.
Once all five wood screws are attached to the wall, go back and tighten them down again. If the heat diffuser is too difficult to turn, you might have to drill out your holes just a little bit more so that each wood screw sits flush with the outside of this part. Now it’s time to decide where you want your stove pipe to go! There are two places where I usually put my stove top piping – either behind your kitchen wall paneling or under your cabinets. For this tutorial, I went with placing it behind our island cabinet.
Step 5 – Attaching Stove Pipe
To do this you’ll need to drill a 1″ hole and screw in your stove pipe. I did go ahead and cut mine to the perfect length so it fit perfectly. Safely attach the piping by placing it into one of the four holes we drilled earlier (see image below).
After it is attached, tighten down each wood screw again just to be safe – remember to use a power drill for this part if possible (it’s much faster and easier than using a regular hand ratchet).
Now that your stove top piping is attached, take your stove top and carefully place each corner into place. I would recommend having someone hold up one end while you slowly lower your glass on top and get all four corners screwed in. These screws will only
Place the stove pipe over the heat diffuser making sure all wood screws sit evenly in their spots (see image below). Once they are even, tighten down each one with either a wrench or pliers. Again, take your time with this step. Nobody likes a broken glass stove top!
Step 6 – Finishing up your Heat Diffuser
Take the excess pieces of heat diffuser outside and cut them to size with some pliers or wire cutters (see image below). Once they are all cut down to size, you’ll need to screw them back into place on the underside of the heat diffuser using your 1-1/4″ wood screws. You can fill these in later with some caulk if desired since you won’t see this part once everything is put together anyways.
Once these are all screwed in, take a piece of aluminum foil and fold it length wise so that it will fit inside the heat diff flush against each wall. Take this piece of foil and carefully hold on to it with your hand while gently placing the diffuser on the stove top. This part can be a little tricky so if you have help, I would recommend asking for some extra hands at this point. Once you get it in place, use your fingernail or some kind of tool that is thin enough to press/hold against these walls while getting each screw started into the wood screws you just attached.
Step 7 – Finishing up Attaching It All Together
After everything is securely attached, take some sand paper and sand down any sharp or jagged edges of either the stove top piping or heat diffuser. This will make sure nothing cuts your fingers during cooking! Make sure all parts are smooth and to your liking. Once you are satisfied, you’re all done! Now it’s time to test it out and try it out for yourself. *If you have any problems, don’t hesitate to contact me or leave a comment below!
