Can You Put Chemex on Gas Stove? (Complete Guide)

There are several ways to keep your Chemex warm. Putting it on a gas stove might be one consideration. But can you actually do this? As a proud Chemex owner, I’ve tested my Chemex on a gas stove, and here’s what I’ve found out.

In general, you can put a Chemex on a gas stove. It should be on low heat, and you shouldn’t leave it there for more than 10 minutes. Otherwise, it will start altering the coffee. 

In my experience, keeping my Chemex on low heat on a gas stove has worked fine. The only issue I’ve run into is when my Chemex is left longer on a gas stove, and the coffee starts evaporating. If you can keep Chemex on the stove for less than 10 minutes on low heat, it should be fine.

Keeping Chemex on Gas Stove

Many homes come with a gas stove. A gas stove is easy to adjust and control temperature. It provides a good amount of heat. You can see how it can be a good source for a Chemex.

A gas stove is perfectly fine for a Chemex. It won’t harm the Chemex or cause your coffee to taste different. There are some issues if you leave it on for too long, but we’ll talk about that in the next section.

When I experimented with using a gas stove to keep my Chemex warm, I found that low heat was the best setting. Low heat will keep the Chemex warm without becoming too warm, where it will start to evaporate the coffee.

Now stoves can vary from home to home. Some gas stoves are stronger than others. I’ve had my gas stove since I moved into the house. The low setting is good for me. You will need to experiment with your gas stove to see how hot it gets. But in general, you shouldn’t go past medium-level heat.

How Long to Heat Chemex on Gas Stove

The time you leave your Chemex on a gas stove is important. In my experience, anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes is the limit. Again this will vary on how hot your gas stove is.

The danger with leaving your Chemex on a gas stove for too long is that the coffee will start to evaporate. Coffee is, of course, made up of water, and water will boil at 210 degrees Fahrenheit.

You could use a thermometer to keep a check on the temperature of the water, but I think it’s a little overboard. Instead, use your best judgment and don’t leave it on the gas stove for too long.

Downsides of keep Chemex on gas stove

There are some downsides to keeping the Chemex on a gas stove.

One downside is you only get 5 to 10 minutes of heating time. Going above that, as mentioned before, will result in coffee evaporating. You will need to keep taking it off the heat and putting it back on, which isn’t ideal.

There’s also the danger of using a gas stove. It involves a hot flame which can be dangerous if one isn’t careful, but I think this isn’t an issue for most people.

Other ways of keeping Chemex warm

There are other ways to keep a Chemex warm other than keeping it on a gas stove.

One way is to keep the coffee inside of a thermal. Thermals are relatively inexpensive. After brewing your coffee, you can simply pour the coffee inside of the thermal. The reason I like thermals is because they will keep the coffee warm for a long time whereas a gas stove won’t.

Another trick I’ve found is to keep the Chemex in a microwave or oven. You don’t have to turn the microwave or oven. But just leaving them inside there does a better job of keeping the Chemex warm instead of leaving it outside. However, this doesn’t do nearly as good of a job as keeping it on a gas stove.

You can also use some type of hot plate or mug warmer. These basically work like the hot plate found on a coffee maker or a water kettle. These plates will stay hot as long as the plate is plugged into power.