Moffat electric range oven element question

[turquoisedude]

Yes, this is a long shot BUT an awful lot of Moffat (a Canadian appliance manufacturer) appliances had US roots (their refrigerators and their washer-dryer combo were made by Norge) so maybe someone here might be able to help...

A friend of mine has a late 1940s Moffat Model 1144531 range with a bad 'Bake' element. She purchased a universal element to replace it. Trouble is there are three terminals for the bake element, not two (see the photo - there are three wires on it).

The point of reference I have to a 'three-wire' element is actually is a diagram for a really old Frigidaire range that had a "Preheat" setting; that diagram shows the three-wire unit on the 'Broil' element however...

Any ideas??

 

[cuffs054]

TD
Not sure I understand your ? If your asking about the third wire shown it looks like its just a splice. Note how the coil has been stearched right befor the splice.

 

[turquoisedude]

I didn't think to take a picture of the terminals in the oven - but there are definitely three of them to match the wires on the element. I have never run into anything quite like this one...

 

[brisnat81]

One thing that comes to mind, is that its a 240/120v element

Wire 1 connected to L1
Wire 2 connected to L2
Wire 3 connected to Neutral

That'd give you a 240v preheat and a 120v bake. But as the preheat switch would need to swap the circuit out between the Neutral and L2, I don't see why it'd need three wires on the element.

The only other thing I can think of, is that originally there was a smaller set of coils in the middle and when the element broke the first time, they just cut out the excess and spliced it back in. That'd also explain why two of the connections don't have the crimped on connectors.

 

[tomturbomatic]

So the universal element she bought, is it a restring kit for this evenizer or a sealed rod? Did she cross reference the bake element part number to get an idea of what universal element would fit, contact-wise? My big wide Westinghouse oven has a bake element with three terminals on the end, but it's a sealed rod COROX element and I thought the third pin was a ground for the element.

Even the 1954 Frigidaire with the Preheat feature in the Wilcolator thermostat just has two terminal bake elments. The broiler elements, however have three terminals since they have an outer element that runs on BAKE to give top heat, but that is not what a bake element would do.

The element looks complete, I doubt there were wires in the center; that would be too much heat in that place under the food. It sure throws a lot of heat at the front of the heater.

Has your friend looked at the wriing diagram? That might answer the question. She could see what the leads are feeding.

Sorry.

 

[cuffs054]

Could term 2 and 3 (l to r) have been used for a warm setting or bread rising temp? I don't see how if 2 and 3 are energized it would do much else?

 

[tomturbomatic]

An electric oven is so well insulated that just having the light on produces enough heat for proofing dough and, in the 1940s, unlike today, there were no oven settings for proofing dough. But it is as inventive a use for that little coil of wire as anything else.

 

[turquoisedude]

Tom, there is no wiring diagram with the range (is there ever one when I need it... LOL) but I found out something from another collector pal of mine in Sherbrooke - that small 'element' acts as a transformer to power the oven pilot light!

I never would have thought that possible until I owned the 55 and 56 GE dishwashers - the dial light for that machine seems to be powered through the Calrod to reduce the voltage. How that works is beyond me 'cause I don't have any service info or the wiring diagram for that machine either!

 

[tomturbomatic]

Paul, Since that is the case, the best bet would be to restring the current frame in the evenizer. It might take a very bright light to find it, but stamped somewhere on the evenizer, there should be a wattage and voltage rating. Older electrical ovens used slightly lower wattage bake elements than newer ranges so it is probably between 2500 and 3000 watts. The old element should be removed carefully from the frame to give you an idea of the length to which the new element should be stretched. Even if there is a break, the pieces can be lined up to give you a good idea of the length. Once you determine the length, John or Jeff can advise you on the best way of stretching the coiled wire to make sure it is evenly stretched which will cause it to give even heat. You are fortunate that all of the porcelain insulators look to be in good shape.