Why do these things always happen just before Christmas. The element blew on the oven on Sunday night (clear visible evidence of burst element). No problem, new one ordered, arrived yesterday. Fitted last night (five minute job, if that).
Oven turned on. "Darling, just look how clever I am."
The light and fan came on for just a smidgen of a second. And then extinguished.
And now there is no life from anything. I am at a loss. (And short of time to fix it, being as I am now in the office.)
There's no fuse in the oven. Not even a thermal fuse. I've checked the diagram, and I've rung s*** who confirmed it.
There are two ovens, the top one still works.
The bottom oven has two elements, the main one (which died) and a top element for a grill. Before 'mending' the oven the top element still worked (and the light came on, and the fan, and the red light attached to the thermostat which indicates that the oven is heating). Now, nothing. There is power to the control knob for turning the oven on.
Putting the old element back in still means there's no life. There was before replacing the element.
I put the wires back on the new element in the right order - though it must surely be symmetrical anyway.
The new element reads 20 ohms, which is about right. The dead one has infinite resistance.
What now?
|
Order a new cooker quickly from ao.com for next day delivery.
Pat
|
Pork & black pudding sausages in the frying pan. In white bread & HP fruity sauce.
Option B. Curry in mcrowave, and boil up some spinach.
Wash down with two bottles of Sav Blanc, or Chablis if you're feeling extravagant.
The element on my oven went 5 months ago. I fitted a replacement and the same thing as you happened! I flew to the States a few days later and haven't bothered doing anything about it since.
|
|
Nice man who sold me the element - ebay - just called. He reckons a problem in the switch caused by failure of the element which didn't cause a problem until the new element was fitted. So off to Maplins for a fix I think. Some mix of components will surely do it...
|
|
edit: missed the bit about power to the switch
Last edited by: No FM2R on Wed 23 Dec 15 at 13:00
|
>>What now?
Avez vous ever considered going on a juice fast Mm :)
But seriously ... what make & model is the offending article.
|
|
I'd guess an Italian brand of which Great Aunt Mildred doesn't approve.
|
A few hours in the Weber kettle barbeque, while you stand around and drink beer with your mates.
Easy.
Oh, wait...
|
I suppose you think that's funny, Ian.
;)
Last edited by: Mapmaker on Wed 23 Dec 15 at 13:09
|
I'll raise a glass to you, Mapmaker.
Tradition dictates that a turkey be cooked, though I'd rather have some cold gammon.
|
Not such a daft idea, Ian, especially as it's probably not much cooler here than where you are.
MM, one thing you might consider as a Plan B: if you have a microwave in your kitchen, could you buy a combination microwave-convection one to take its place? Our Panasonic one is surprisingly capable, and while it won't take a whole turkey, it would cope with the bird jointed into crown and legs. You could then pre-cook these in the little oven and finish them outside on the barbecue while you roast the potatoes in the kitchen.
|
WdB, thanks. I think microwaved Turkey would be the end of me... fortunately there's the top oven, so it could be jointed and cooked properly.
There's always the neighbour's oven. But Maplin will supply switches and connectors, I'm pretty confident.
|
Sorry to alarm you - I wouldn't eat microwaved turkey either! I was suggesting cooking the jointed turkey with the combination oven in Convection mode. But if you already have a small oven, you have that option covered.
People (not you, I'm sure) do seem to overestimate the time and effort required to cook a turkey. Our 5.5kg one will cook in about 2.5h. I do wonder where these 'up at five to light the oven' legends came from.
|
"I do wonder where these 'up at five to light the oven' legends came from."
If you want turkey that is the consistency of cardboard, do this!
Probably back in the days when the power grid was so weak and EVERYONE had the oven on, it was necessary to cook it for ever?
|
|
When out east many years ago, the grid was so weak we had to cook by paraffin stove. Made worse when Xmas dinner was a goose from the local market, that had been fed on fish. Not that we knew until carving. All that time roasting, for nothing. He retreated to the mess whilst we made do with vegetables.
Last edited by: NortonES2 on Wed 23 Dec 15 at 15:04
|
>> But Maplin will supply switches and connectors, I'm pretty confident.
The oven switch is not just a switch.
www.espares.co.uk/product/es548684/main-oven-thermostat
|
|
either way, its not just a switch and you wont find it in Maplin.
|
>>either way, its not just a switch and you wont find it in Maplin.
Yah, boo, sucks. Of course it's just a switch. A few connectors and a 13A switch later and there can be cooked Turkey. Fortunately the switch is supplied with spare terminals which obviates the need for dramatic external wiring and switches. No thanks to Zero's idea of 'help' - not least as the thermostat is quite a separate piece of kit. It is just a switch, albeit a cleverly engineered one.
RTJ, the reason your element tripped the house electrics was because the live wire was touching the element case. Elements fail either because the element itself breaks and you no longer have continuity, or because the insulation fails and so electricity leaks to earth. Either way, you just need a new element. Can't comment on the contortions required tho...
Brownie points earned. You should try it Humph. Much easier than fixing a mirror...
Last edited by: Mapmaker on Thu 24 Dec 15 at 10:02
|
The element failed soon after we bought the house (and replaced). And I managed to damage it earlier this year when some goose fat got on the element and started to burn. This time, with the big bang, flash of orange light and tripping on the MCB I wasn't going to pay for someone to replace the element again to find the oven was kaput.
Last time it went I tried to replace myself but could I get the old, broken element out from behind the fan.... no and I tried for ages. So no way could I get a new one back on without damaging it.
Glad the oven is working again for tomorrow for you Mapmaker.
|
>>A few connectors and a 13A switch later and there can be cooked Turkey.
An alternative could have been to patiently wait until Putin cooks Turkey.
|
....but I think this might be after Christmas......
|
|
.....because he's got to go to Maplin to get a button.........
|
|
Good work, MM, and bon appétit.
|
>> Good work, MM, and bon appétit.
>>
Thank you. Ironically I shall not be eating the products of said oven as I shall be at my mother's. My OH, though, is entertaining her family and using said oven.
If I'd been in charge I'd probably not have got round to fixing it...
|
|
It's not a daft idea at all. I often cook chickens that way though you would need a big weber to cook a turkey. In my view chickens cook better in a weber than an oven. A 3 and half pound bird takes 1hour 25 minutes.
|
statistically speaking, more people suffer food poisoning from meat cooked in a weber than they do from meat cooked in an oven. therefore they should be banned
Wouldn't want to be interesting or individual about it now would we.
|
'Maybe if you left the F******* lid on, and stopped poking it, it would cook a bit quicker'.
|
Do you mean in percentage terms or in absolute numbers?
If the former and it was significantly higher then there would indeed be cause for concern.
If you mean in absolute terms then as we Weber users number considerably less than mainstream oven users then the comparison is maningless.
|
|
Everyone is going on about the mild weather on that side. Make the most of it while you can!
|
>> Do you mean in percentage terms or in absolute numbers?
As I was speaking statically, it would be a percentage.
>> If you mean in absolute terms then as we Weber users number considerably less
Not surprising really, all those poisoning incidents.
|
Salmonella and Listeria... Oh what fun!
I have a recipe for Weber turkey somewhere - with a tin of ginger ale shoved up the jacksie to keep in moist. Lovely.
|
"Salmonella and Listeria... Oh what fun!"
A couple of years ago, my BiL, a lifelong BBQ enthusiast did his Christmas turkey in the Weber (or may have been another 'lidded' make?). He declared the result delicious and, more importantly, lived to tell the tale.
|
|
Indeed we Weber users are a dwindling band, cut down the perils of Campylobacter, Salmonella and over indulgence in cheap red wine.
|
Cook it half way - according to the minutes/lb, then wrap it in foil.
cook the second half, add half an hour.
Guaranteed to be well cooked, but not cardboard dry.
(That extra 1/2 hour equates to more wine drinking.)
|
|
Never heard of a weber before, i take its some sort of bbq/oven affair? Can you use them inside, can you cook anything on/in them ?
|
It is a sputnik-shaped bbq. Most cooking is done with the lid on, as opposed to over open coals. This gives an over effect.
Outdoor use only.
And yes, you can cook most things in them.
|
>> It is a sputnik-shaped bbq.
>>
It sounds like a Ball-B-Q, a classic Canadian spherical BBQ from the 1970s, quire collectable I discoverd after salvaging one from a skip.
They are bright red/orange with a black lower half, and a very cunning way of adjusting the shelf level.
|
|
It's a kettle barbequeue. You cannot use then indoors. You can cook pretty much anything on one. Having a cover they are ideal for cooking large items of meat, chicken etc evenly.
|
|
Cheers, so how do they differ from normal bbqs with a lid?
|
>> Cheers, so how do they differ from normal bbqs with a lid?
they dont. A BBQ with a lid is a BBQ with a lid.
|
|
Right, not worth a grand then? There were some cheaper on amazon but they were all pretty much north of £500. I liked the marketing name 'mountain cooker'
|
>> Right, not worth a grand then? There were some cheaper on amazon but they were
>> all pretty much north of £500. I liked the marketing name 'mountain cooker'
Well not quite that simple, a good BBQ is a good BBQ and you get what you pay for. An expensive one with a cast iron body and lid will provide much more even heat than a cheap tin one.
|
>>Well not quite that simple
As his Lordship says, not quite that simple.
If you barbecue a lot, and you barbecue large lumps of meat, and if you like to cook as much outside as possible, then the expensive ones are worth it because they are much better quality and much easier to use.
However, if I was living in the UK with its variable weather and different lifestyle, I would be surprised if I got enough use out of it to pay that kind of money.
|
> However, if I was living in the UK with its variable weather and different lifestyle,
>> I would be surprised if I got enough use out of it to pay that
>> kind of money.
>>
>>
That's true, totally different market overseas in warmer climates.
|
|
You can buy a modest Weber charcoal fired barbequeue for less than £100
|
>> You can buy a modest Weber charcoal fired barbequeue for less than £100
>>
That's not too bad, got a link ?
|
|
Weber is a bit like Hoover. Sometimes used as a generic term for kettle barbequeue. The Weber brand ones are of good quality and have the advantage that you can get spares. Had mine 15 years and it's still going strong.
|
|
Mine's been outside for 15 years and still OK. And nowhere near £500 either. About £90 now I think.
|
|
Does it differ from the traditional oil drum chopped in half, two hinges and a handle?
|
|
That reminds me, went to a bbq the other week. Had two huge oil drums they were both mounted on trailers. The cooking grid was probably 6 foot by 4 foot handy if cooking for a few hundred people.
|
|
Or you are having an ostrich for Christmas and your oven has packed up.
|
|
FFS, there's no Q in BARBECUE!!
|
|
Depends how big it is and how many guests you have.
|
>> FFS, there's no Q in BARBECUE!!
True, not if I cooked it.
Edit. Zero beat me to the punch. But I'll be at the cake first.
Last edited by: Crankcase on Wed 23 Dec 15 at 21:17
|
Mapmaker, I hope you get this sorted tomorrow!
We were 'lucky' and our oven blew last Thursday. I say lucky because it could have gone on Christmas Day. The element blew with a big bang and flash and tripped the circuit breaker for the oven. The element has gone before but it never tripped the electric breaker before. Element cannot easily be replaced because it's behind the fan which is next to impossible to remove. Repair man had a method to get out the screw behind the fan and manoeuvre new one into place without removing fan. I suspect the fan touched the element causing a failure.
With the oven estimated to be 14 years old I decided a new one would be ordered with a week to get one.
Replacement oven arrived Tuesday morning. But there are no detailed markings for the temperature around the knob. Just 75, 100, 150, 200 and Max. Shop agrees this can't be right (image on the web shows it with dots). So whatever you get, make sure it's right.
|
|
My wife suggested we buy a Weber last summer. I'm not a BBQ enthusiast but have to admit it does a good job. It's a 57cm jobbie. Much nicer than others I've tried. We also bought a "Smoky Joe" mini Weber for the 'van. Not tried it.
|
|
In reality how accurate do you need the oven temp? Most of the common settings are on your list, anything else can be guessed once you get to know your oven - they are all different.
|
>> In reality how accurate do you need the oven temp? Most of the common settings
>> are on your list,
the difference between 200 and 220 is cooked or burned.
|
Consistency matters more than absolute accuracy. As Alastair says, you get to know your oven, but you need to trust it to produce the same temperature every time you set it to 180, even if that's actually 170 or 190.
The temperature I really do want to know is inside the turkey. That's where a Thermapen or similar is invaluable.
|
>> In reality how accurate do you need the oven temp? Most of the common settings
>> are on your list
How about knowing where 160, 170, 180 and 190 are? And you can't know for certain where it means 100, 150 and 200 are either. Which digit are you aiming for?
You can't learn where to set it either. Because if you got 180 right one time you might not the next time.
I've since found many new ovens with the same issue. As a design requirement for ovens (apart from Agas) surely the ability to set a temperature is a must.
I hope Mapmaker is sorted or soon will be.
|
Eek no Q? Better tell these specialists then...
www.thebbqshop.co.uk/hire.html
Oh, and this restaurant www.themongolianbarbeque.co.uk/
While you're at it, this snack food maker
tinyurl.com/q5nhgpl
Or maybe barbeque is just progress...
grammarist.com/spelling/barbecue-barbeque/
|
>> FFS, there's no Q in BARBECUE!!
There is if spelt incorrectly.
|
>> There is if spelt incorrectly.
No there isn't although the use of Q has become more common.
www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/barbecue
|
>> No there isn't.
The evidence above suggests otherwise, else it wouldn't have been commented on.
|
My comment was 'no there isn't a Q' but some now use a Q. Who cares?
Mapmaker will be more concerned he can cook the Christmas meal.
|
>> Who cares?
You, else you wouldn't keep arguing about it ;)
|
>>Or you are having an ostrich for Christmas and your oven has packed up.>>
Ostrich is actually very tasty and, like chicken or turkey, is fat free...:-)
|
Here's a question... still related to me cooker.
If I boil some water and transfer it to a pre-heated tin in the oven set to '100' deg C.... and leave it. What temperature would you expect the water to be in the oven. Curious. Because it isn't 100 deg C in this oven.
Was thinking of calibrating it (I know water won't get above 100 deg C if it's relatively pure).
|
I feel I have to mention to Mapmaker that if he had a caravan stood on his driveway he'd have a pristine, new and upmarket oven just begging to be used for cooking a turkey:)
Maybe W de B would like to note that too.
.....off to the wobbly box for a stress free Christmas!
Pat
|
Have a good time in the 'van Pat and Ian! :-)
All the best to everyone for tomorrow.
|
I'm going to need that rtj!!
Hope the wifi is working on site;)
Pat
|
|
All appropriate greetings, wishes and so on to everyone here.
|
...if he had a caravan stood on his driveway he'd have a pristine, new and upmarket oven just begging to be used for cooking a turkey.
That's good lateral thinking, Pat. But you'd have to move it a safe distance from the house before setting fire to it, and make sure all that burning polyester and formica don't taint the bird.
};---)
Merry Christmas.
|
>> Here's a question... still related to me cooker.
>>
>> If I boil some water and transfer it to a pre-heated tin in the oven
>> set to '100' deg C.... and leave it. What temperature would you expect the water
>> to be in the oven. Curious. Because it isn't 100 deg C in this oven.
Well that is by far and away the no 1 way I wouldn't be testing my new oven.
>> Was thinking of calibrating it (I know water won't get above 100 deg C if
>> it's relatively pure).
Every supermarket has an oven thermometer. Get one.
|
|
Or dig out your multimeter and see if it has a thermocouple in the box. I used mine to calibrate the pointer on the Rayburn.
|
Barbecue, gazebo, beer, coat, stout boots, Santa hat and turkey.
Combine above, sorted.
Merry Christmas !
;-)
|
|
There's always the Ray Mears oven! - hole in front lawn, lined with stones, log fire on top to get stones hot, drop in foil-wrapped turkey, cover with stones and hot embers, cover all with fairly damp sacking or grass cuttings and leave three-hours!
|
|
But would that be feasible in Cumbria, with all the Cornish rain yoos been on the receiving end of lately :(
|
Hungi (sp?) cooking. All very nice.
Expect a thread in about May - 'Why have I got this big dead patch on my lawn where nothing will grow?'
|
Once upon a time, long, long ago, I had a very expensive Hymer motorhome (Merc engine) which had an external gas take off for the on board BBQ.
I never ever used the thing as I couldn't see the point of getting it out and connecting it, when I had a purrfectly good gas oven in the kitchen (area) anyway.
|
Our caravan has a gas point under an 'ickle flap for a BBC. Never used it....no F in Barbecue in this house ! Can't be doing with the whole rigmarole.
Also has an outlet for the blown air heater to heat the awning........trouble is, it doesn't emerge in our smaller awning. If used, it would be heating the field !
|
|
It would probably end up as steamed Turkey Doggo!! - but our oven works and we're having Leg of Lamb!
|
>>It would probably end up as steamed Turkey Doggo!!
Reminds me of when my friend Lauri up on Bodmin Moor boiled some pork chops!!
Eugh! - makes me feel ill just thinking about it ... he meant well though :)
|
Bit late onto this one; but you could always ask Pat to borrow her oven; I'm given to understand that it may benefit from a knowledgeable user. ;-)
Happy Xmas to all!
|
>> you could always ask Pat to borrow her oven;
>> I'm given to understand that it may benefit from a knowledgeable user. ;-)
But do remember to remove all packaging before use...
|
>> >> you could always ask Pat to borrow her oven;
>> >> I'm given to understand that it may benefit from a knowledgeable user. ;-)
>>
>> But do remember to remove all packaging before use...
I sent her a cookbook from Amazon for christmas. It was sent back "cook? not known at this address"
Last edited by: Zero on Fri 25 Dec 15 at 11:23
|
Cook? Cook?? I'm first class Chef, I've just put the turkey in the caravan oven.........and opened a bottle of Prosecco, will report back later!
Pat
|
........and
>> opened a bottle of Prosecco, will report back later!
>>
>> Pat
>>
...... after the fire brigade have finished damping down.
|
Raw Turkey... dead oven - Pat
