Ilsa Heat Diffuser, Made in Italy from Cast Iron, Flame Guard for Simmering, 7-inches

The Ilsa 7-Inch Cast Iron Heat Diffuser appears to work very well. I ordered two, based on other reviews, and they arrived today in time to use in cooking two meals. I love the convenience of not needing to worry about food burning and sticking and not having to "fine tune" the flame height. Also, the burner most convenient to use, based on its location on the cooktop, is the second most powerful burner, but now we can use it without worries of over heating the pan.When searching for this item on Amazon I couldn't remember exactly what it was called. Since we had a Dacor "dual fuel" stove in our previous house (electric oven, gas cooktop) and had the Dacor plate that came with the oven, I went to the Dacor web site where I was reminded it is called a simmer plate. I was amazed that Dacor wants about $85 for a simmer plate when the Ilsa is $15. Although the Dacor simmer plate was probably 8 inches and the Ilsa is 7 inches, the main difference is in heft. The Dacor plate is much heavier. But not $70 heavier!The 7 inch Ilsa simmer plate is much better for us than a larger size, due to the configuration of our gas range. It is a 5-burner with two medium sized burners on the left side, a large burner in the center, a medium large burner at the lower right and a small burner at the upper left. If we had gotten a larger diameter it would not have allowed us to use two adjacent burners simultaneously, so the 7 inch model is the perfect size for our range.Even though I've only used the simmer plates twice, I am already very pleased with it. Since they are new, for me durability is still an open question, but I would guess that they will last plenty long enough. (I eventually had to wire brush the $85 Dacor simmer plate and repaint it, so that sort of thing is probably inevitable with any similarly constructed simmer plate.) Out of the box, the Ilsa simmer plate is great.I think if you put the correct side up (the side with the little "feet") the chance of it blistering as shown in another review would be near zero. Also, I would never put the burner on the highest setting when using a simmer plate. If you need that much heat to start with then start without using the simmer plate and when you are ready to turn the heat down then slip the simmer plate under the pot.So, yes, I highly recommend this simmer plate. The risk/reward ratio is very favorable -- big reward (utility, better cooked food, etc.) for very little risk (the $15).

Works great on my gas stove, both in distributing the heat and limiting it when I want a lower simmer than was possible without this device.It's good the handles are detachable. You'll want to remove them during use and put them in only when moving a hot device.

For those of us that have gas stoves, some of the grates can be a challenge for certain items. For me, the challenge was using my stove top Italian espresso maker. If I didn’t place it just right, it would tip over. Annoying to say the least.Stumbled across this listing and ordered it. Placed it on my stove and voilà, no more tipped coffee maker. Fit was perfect and I hardly notice it. Almost looks like it belongs too. I imagine it might not fit everyone’s stove but it was worth the chance and fit my Frigidaire perfectly.Side note. I did purchase one for my friend as surprise and it didn’t work out. It did fit but it wasn’t enough size to cover her needed pan. Imagine everyone’s needs can vary.

I really love that these are made of cast iron, so, they are a good investment, will last forever, and this size fits the small burners on an electric stove perfectly.I would REALLY like to give this lovely Italian company 5 stars, but I had to take one star off because the black coating that is on one side slowly chips off on higher heat.This is only an aesthetic issue, since it has no effect on the function. It heats up perfectly and evenly and I'm using these diffusers to protect my vintage Pyrex Flameware, which is glass and needs very even heating. It's serving its purpose very well.So, my only wish is that this cast iron burner had NO coating at all.They did this to give it a black glossy finish on one side, which is very pretty, but it wasn't necessary, especially since it will not last using higher heat.Nonetheless, I do not believe you will regret your purchase...they do exactly what they are supposed to do and will last forever.Also, if you have chemical sensitivity, this is a VERY good purchase, as I did not smell any off-gassing of chemicals when I first began using these, and I am VERY sensitive to these things.