Its a Good Thing I Cleaned The Oven

[ea56]

Last Friday I got all wild and crazy and cleaned the oven, after 16 months of neglect. It really wasn’t that dirty and it only took me 45 mins from start to finish, even with a 20 wait time for the Easy Off to do its thing,

However, when I was wiping out the oven I noticed that on the right side of the bake element there was a lumpy section about 1.25”. I knew from experience that this was very probably a sign that the element was going to fail and burn out in this area.

I got right on Ebay and ordered a replacement element. I arrived at noon today and I immediately took out the old element and replaced it with the new one. When I got the old element out and turned it over I then realized that I replaced it in the nick of time. On the underside of that lumpy section there was a crack. I’m pretty sure that within the next two uses this element would have blown out.

Eddie

 

[luxflairguy]

Can you come and clean mine? It's a mess and the door doesn't come off! LOL! Greg

 

[rp2813]

Good catch Eddie!  Maybe the replacement will hold up longer than the original.

 

[ea56]

Greg

the door does come off my oven, but its such a PITA to get it back on I don’t even bother to take it off anymore. For the time it takes me to get it back on any time savings are eaten up with the time spent getting the door back on. And the aggravation is worse than the lost time.

I did learn that applying the Easy Off to a warm oven makes a BIG difference! The burned on grease dissolved much better. I didn’t even need to use any SOS pad or Barkeepers Friend on tough spots.

Eddie

 

[luxflairguy]

All in good fun! If you didn't know already I clean homes for a living! No SC oven, I'm gone! And OMG there are too many people who haven't a clue how to even to TURN ON their SC! But that still doesn't make getting My oven clean! LOL! Greg

 

[combo52]

Bake Element Failure

Good catch Eddie, at the very least you saved a ruining one of your wonderful cakes or pies by catching this before it failed completely.

 

Bake elements end to fail on ranges that are used a lot where the voltage is a strong 240 volts or more.

 

They are also at least twice as likely to fail on non SCing ovens because they have to run so much to keep a non SCing oven up temperature. On our SCing ovens the bake element is only on around 1 or 2 minutes out of 15 minutes to keep the oven at 350F after around a 5 minute pre-heat time because of the superior insulation in a SCing oven, I often suggest customers always buy a SCing oven even if they want to clean the oven by hand because it will save a lot of energy over its life.

 

Of the 9 or 10 SCing ovens I have had I have never placed a bake element [ we still have 6 of these SCing ovens between both houses ] And 3 of them get a lot of use, I bet I use one of these ovens at least every day.

 

John L.

 

[mark_wpduet]

I was reading through these posts and I'm trying to figure out what you meant by SCing......I thought at first it was a brand that you recommended and I'm thinking I've never heard of this.......then I realized you meant Self-cleaning. Sorry... I'm slow.

I remember reading on this forum that using the Scing feature (the oven gets so hot) that it actually shortens the life of the control board. Not sure how true that is.

 

[combo52]

Self Cleaning Oven Durability

Hi Mark, I have not seen many problems with failures of ERCs [ electronic oven controls ] or any other parts of the oven caused by using the ovens SCing feature.

 

I do believe that the feature can be over used, I only use it once or twice a year and I have seen a few cases of customers using it every week causing the interior finish to show age much faster but this is very unusual to use it that often.

 

John L.

 

[rinso]

Glad you caught the element before it gave up the ghost. I just wish Easy Off oven cleaner still came in a jar with a brush attached. The past/gel didn't spray into places where it wasn't needed, nor did one inhale the fumes by accident.

 

[henene4]

Self clean and oven life

I think that involves a lot of factors.
Having the controlls in a back splash versus right over the oven.
Good cooling and ventilation, good quality components etc.

I think I read somewhere that some manufacturer tested their ovens to survive 100 self clean cycles.
At 4 times a year, that would be 25 years.

I don't know how often people run their ovens through SC, but I personally could probably get away with once a year.
I know many people who only cook "dirty" dishes like roast or such once a year for Christmas and use that as an excuse to run the SC cycle.
If you roast once a week you might want to run it even more often than 4 times a year.

Also depends on how much smoke you are willing to tolerate.
If you have a well ventilated kitchen and can turn off the smoke alarms in the vicinity, once a year could still work out for you.

 

[ea56]

The Saga Goes On…

Well I received the new oven bake element on Thursday, and replaced it. It was very easy. After I replaced the element I checked the temperature with an oven thermometer. With the control set at 350 F the oven thermometer only reached about 275 F. So I tweaked the adjustment on the back of the oven control knob and rechecked the temp. several times and each time it was a different temp and never reached the set temp of 350 F.

On Friday I baked a pie shell and some rolls, both needed a temp of 450 F. With the control set at 500 F it reached 425 F. The element was cycling off and on just like it normally does, but never reached the set temp. So I was ready to order a new thermostat, but before doing so I thought perhaps my old oven thermometer may not be accurate so I ordered a new oven thermometer with a glass liquid filled tube.

While cleaning the oven I was very careful to keep the Easy Off away from the temperature sensing tube so as not to damage it. I also noticed that the oven vent cover in the back of the oven on the right needed replacement too, that part arrived yesterday afternoon. It was way more difficult to replace than the element! I wear bifocals and I’m 70 years old and not as flexible as I use to be. In order to reach the old vent cover to replace it and to be able to see it I laid with my back on the oven door. BIG mistake!!! I managed to get the old vent cover off and the new cover on, but in the process I also managed to warp the hinges on the oven door and now it won’t close properly, theres a 3/4” gap at the top. It appears that the only way to fix this is the replace the oven door hinges, and its just not worth the effort.

So, long story short, as much as I’ve liked this stove I’m done trying to get the oven to function properly again. I went to Lowe’s a mile away from home and ordered a new GE JB256DMWW that will be delivered a week from today. It has a self cleaning oven, which I’ll use, I’m done with the Easy Off routine.

Also, since John suggested that self cleaning ovens have better insulation that keeps the element from cycling on and off so often I’m hoping the element on the new stove will last longer. It also has the new Sensi-Temp elements on the stove top. I’ve read mixed reviews on these burners so I’m gonna harvest the elements from my old stove before its recycled and since the bake element is the same on the new stove I’ll keep that too.

I don’t like the idea of recycling this old range at all, but enough is enough and I need an oven that I can depend upon, I use it or the broiler almost everyday. And at my age I feel like I deserve to treat myself.

Eddie

https://www.geappliances.com/appliance/GE-30-Free-Standing-Electric-Range-JB256DMWW

 

[gizmo]

Hi Eddie, I wish you well with the new stove.

 

I had an Australian Modern Maid gas stove from 1987. (They were a local company, no connection to Modern Maid in USA.) It was my third of these stoves, we bought a new one at half price when Modern Maid went bust in 1987. It was fabulous to cook on with many clever touches, such as a small mirror on the griller (broiler) door so you can see that the flame has lit. Each time we moved house I chased up a good second hand one, the last one for our current house was TOL with digital display of actual oven temperature and other trinkets. But at the time we finally got floor vinyl for the kitchen (we lived with bare concrete for some years) I pulled the stove out for the flooring installation, decided to give the stove a thorough once-over before reinstalling, and found serious rust in the back of the oven and in the griller burner, I I decided to scrap the old stove. We bought a new Westinghouse, the only all-gas stove of that width on the market here.  One product, one specification, only choice was white or stainless. What a disappointment! It isn't half the stove the old one was. I miss features off the old one, and the new one is full of silly design flaws.

 

I get tired of people complaining that everything new is crap and everything old was better, but in this case I join the chorus. I want my old stove back.

I hope you have a better experience. Good luck with it.

 

[circlew]

Eddie, I hope you'll enjoy your new range; it looks to be a nice one. That's a shame you damaged the hinges on your old one, but I'm glad it didn't tip over and fall on you. Newer ranges tend to be lightweight, and tip easier than old ones did when weight is placed on the door.

 

[retro-man]

Newer ranges are lighter and tip over easier.

The new ranges come with a mounting bracket that goes either on the floor or on the back of the stove that mounts to the floor or back wall and stove attaches to that. No tipping over at all. They have been this way a number of years now.

Jon

 

[circlew]

The Tappan (Frigidaire) electric range my former landlady bought when I was living at the hovel (rental house) came with such a bracket, but it was never installed.

 

[ea56]

Hooray!!!

I don’t need a new stove after all!!! I received the new oven thermometer today and the oven reaches and holds temps accurately. The old thermometer clearly was no longer accurate. Thanks Rich (sudsmaster) for the suggestion of a glass tube, liquid filled oven thermometer. It saved the day! Much easier to read too.

I fiddled around with the door and watched a couple of You Tubes, which weren’t helpful. But while fiddling with the door latches the right side of the door came off, and I thought this ain’t good. But I pulled out the manual and found that the right hinge lock was in the open position (the letters are so small its hard to tell). Well I successfully reattached and locked the oven door hinges in the correct position for both sides and success, the oven is now closing like it always has.

I’ve tried calling Lowe’s but they ain’t answer’n, so tomorrow first thing I’m gonna go into Lowe’s in person and cancel the order for the new stove. I REALLY like this stove that I already have and a fresh can of Easy Off came today in a Target order I placed before I thought the stove was toast. It makes me happy to not be contributing to the land fill.

After reading more mixed reviews about the Sensi-Temps elements, I have my doubts that I’d be satisfied with them.

All’s well that ends well.

Eddie
[this post was last edited: 10/5/2021-21:54]

 

[rp2813]

Well Eddie, Rich is turning out to be quite the Oven Whisperer!  He shared the process that helped me make a permanent repair on the broken nichrome heating element in my 1946 GE roaster oven.  It has since roasted a Thanksgiving turkey beautifully, and I've used it to bake pies and banana bread outdoors on hot summer days when I didn't want to heat up the kitchen.

 

It's great that you can keep the stove you love and don't have to spend money on one that may not have measured up.  Congratulations on saving it from the scrap heap!  Best wishes for many more years of roasting and baking with your new element!

 

 

 

[ea56]

I called Lowe’s first thing this morning at 7 am and they answered right away. The nice young lady who answered cancelled the order over the phone and credited my acct. immediately. I checked my Lowe’s acct. online and the credit is already showing Mission accomplished!

Sometimes things work out better than expected. Maybe I should buy a Lotto ticket today?

Eddie

 

[circlew]

Eddie, I'm glad things worked out well for you, since you really like your present one.