Kitchen Hazards Unveiled

Your Guide to Oven Safety

Welcome to the heart of the home—the kitchen. Amid the aroma of culinary wonders lies a landscape fraught with potential hazards. From toppling ranges to shattering cookware, the dangers are subtle yet prevalent.

In our exploration, we’re taking a look at the three primary adversaries: range tipovers, cookware mishaps, and the looming threat of cooking fires. These dangers aren't just about burns; they encompass a complex web of risks that demand attention.

Avoiding Common Oven Related Accidents

We’re going to take a look at the three most common types of oven-related accidents. While you think immediately of getting burned, you also have to think of rage tipovers and shattering cookware. 

Range Tipovers

Almost 40,000 people were injured during a 20-year NIH study, just from a range tipping over. Unsurprisingly, children are the ones most at risk. When left unsupervised, kids love to climb, And if an oven door is left open? You can bet they will climb on that, unfortunately, causing the range to tip. 

A few ways you can prevent your range from tipping over- 

If your range doesn’t have one, install an anti-tip bracket to keep it securely in place. 

Never place a heavy tray on an oven door that’s been left open. (This is the most common reason adults get injured in a range tipover.) 

Drape a towel on the oven handle if a pan is cooling to remind you that it’s still there. 

Cookware Injuries

In the same NIH study, more than 37,000 people were injured while using cookware. Hot glassware can shatter (yes, even ‘heat-proof’ dishes), and handles can absolutely burn. 

To avoid both of these instances, remember these tips- 

Don’t take a dish directly from the freezer to the oven or the other way around. 

Don’t add liquid after a dish is hot, or put a hot dish onto a cold or wet surface as it can cause shock to the dish. 

If a dish has become cracked or chipped, stop using it. Those chips will eventually become cracks, spreading over time until the piece shatters. 

Make sure to turn handles out to the sides rather than being over a working burner. 

Cooking Fires

Cooking fires account for 2 of every 5 reported home fires. Of those, unattended equipment accounts for 1 in 3, and half are set off by fat, grease, or oil, according to the National Fire Protection Association. 

In the NIH study, approximately 16,262 people were treated for injuries caused by contact with the stove, most commonly for burns. 

If you spend a lot of time in your kitchen, take a minute to learn these safety tips to protect yourself and your home. 

Stay in the kitchen if you are frying, grilling, or broiling something. 

If you’re simmering, baking, or roasting, stay at home and check on your food often. A timer on your phone can help. 

Make sure to keep anything that can catch fire away from the stovetop. This can be things like food packaging, pot holders, kitchen towels, and cookbooks. 

If a fire starts in your oven, turn it off and leave the door closed. This will suffocate the fire. 

Always keep a lid near to hand to smother small grease fires. You can slide the lid over the pan and turn off the burn. 

Keep a fire extinguisher with a minimum rating of 5-B:C on hand in your kitchen or as close as possible. 

If a fire gets out of hand, leave the house and call 911. 

Gas Ranges vs. Electric Ovens and Safety Concerns For Each 

Gas 

Gas stoves burn natural gas, which does generate a number of invisible by-products. The biggest concern to our health is the production of nitrogen dioxide or NO2. According to Josiah Kephart, an assistant professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at Drexel University, this is produced when natural gas is burned at high temperatures when there is also nitrogen in the atmosphere. “We’ve known for a long time that [nitrogen dioxide] has many harmful effects on health,” says Kephart. 

While the Environmental Protection Agency regulates outdoor NO2 emissions, there are no standards for indoor exposure. Nevertheless studies dating back decades have shown the harmful effects from the no2 in gas cooking stoves. 

Studies have also found that unburned natural gas leaks from stoves, and contains the known carcinogen, benzene. Additionally, cooking, in general, creates fine particulates, which can cause or exacerbate respiratory problems. 

However, studies in this area have also long been linked to political lobbying groups, so data might be skewed one way or the other. As usual, politics is beyond our purview here, so we suggest doing your own digging. 

Electric 

Recent attention to the gas stove’s environmental impact has turned some away from the once-preferred chef’s stove. However, while electric stoves are the current darling of the industry, they also have their own issues. 

Courtesy of Mike Jones

According to a report by the National Fire Protection Association, they do tend to have far greater fire risks. A 2020 report by the NFPA showed that households with electric stoves reported fires at a rate 2.6 times higher than those with gas stoves. Equally staggering, the death rate of electric-run households was 3.4 times higher than those that had gas appliances. And the injury rate? That was nearly 5 times greater. 

General Safety Tips In the Kitchen 

We’ve taken both general tips and those from the community to bring to your attention. *

You need to be sure you are watching your food and your hands so you do not get burned; both are hot. Pay attention to smooth-top ranges, as the ceramic glass can be very hot for a while, even with the burner off. The same goes for gas stove grates above the burner.

Roll up your sleeves before cooking. Loose-fitting clothing can catch on fire.

Both electric and non-electric ovens have a thermostat to control how high the heat goes, and then they cycle the heat on and off to maintain the correct temperature. Can thermostats go bad? Yes, equally in both electric and non-electric ovens. ((ARS Note: This is one of the key reasons we suggest having your oven maintained regularly!))

Clean the stove, oven, and burners regularly to prevent grease buildup.

Use the right cookware both for your type of range and for the size of the burner. 

Only use cookware in the oven that is meant to go in the oven. Plastics will melt and either damage your oven (ask us how we know.) Metals, on the other hand, can damage the oven by heating it improperly and will almost certainly cause your food to cook improperly. 

Keep items that can catch fire, such as dish towels and pot holders, away [from heat sources].

Overheated foods can cause a fire. With that in mind, cook your food for the recommended cooking time, and use oven mitts to protect yourself when taking it out. 

Plug cooking appliances directly into an outlet. Never use an extension cord for a cooking appliance.

Tuck appliance cords out of reach of children.

If your oven has malfunctioned, it’s not safe to use it. Whether it is gas or electric, it needs to be seen by a professional. You can have gas leaks, your oven overheating, or the heat cutting out randomly and without notice. 

Finally, read the manual for your range. The manufacturer included it so you could get the best experience from your oven, and reading it will only help you. 

And there you have it—a peek behind the oven door, revealing the quirks and perils lurking in our culinary havens. Remember, while your kitchen might be a stage for gourmet wonders, it's also a hotspot for potential misadventures. Stay vigilant, cook safely, and should your appliances ever decide to throw a cooking tantrum, don't hesitate to summon the professionals at Appliance Rescue Service. Until then, may your kitchen adventures be filled with delicious triumphs and minimal mishaps. 

Website 

Office Number:  (214) 599-0055

Additional Reading:

Places to Avoid: The Paw Version! 

Why The Media Wants You To Be Scared Of Your Gas Stove

Help I Melted Plastic In My Oven

*Some commentary may have been adjusted for clarity or length. 

Why Is My Oven Making Weird Noises

6 Weird Noises Your Oven Can Make and What They Mean

Rattle rattle click, rattle click, rattle rattle click, boom! No, it's not the latest song; that's your oven. The question is, why is your oven making strange noises? 

Some noises your oven might make: 

• Clicking

• Popping

• Wompf 

• Beeping

• Rattling 

• Squeaking

Clicking 

 This is the most normal sound you can hear coming from your oven and also the least dangerous. Your oven might click when it is heating up, cooling down, or right when you turn it on. If that's the case, it's because the heating element is warming or cooling, and the metal is shifting. This is very common and older ovens. If the sound has recently become very loud, though, it can mean that your heating element is approaching the end of its lifespan and needs replacing soon. This can take several years of regular use. Most people will replace their oven long before the heating element goes out.

A modern oven has very precise coils that do make some noise as they work. So if the sound is while your oven is being used, this is a good thing. It means that the control coils in your oven are working as they should be.

Courtesy of Mike Gattorna

If you have an older gas oven, cooking is also normal; it means that the igniter is doing its job correctly. If your gas oven isn't clicking at all it might be a cause for concern as it can indicate that the igniter isn't working for one reason or another. if this is your situation please get your oven serviced immediately as it might be a buildup in the gas lines of the oven.

Why is my oven popping?

Well, there are many different sounds that your oven can make one that you never want to hear is popping. If you hear a popping or crackling sound that cannot reasonably be explained by your food immediately turn off your oven. This is either the wiring or other electrical components in your oven or the electrical outlet that it's connected to malfunctioning. The sound might also be accompanied by the smell of burning plastic. If that's the case, your oven is not only malfunctioning, it has begun to scorch and you need to immediately turn it off and disconnect it you can have a professional see it. 

My oven just made a strange WOMPF  sound! 

Courtesy of Max Rahubovskiy

Think of the most terrifying sound that could come from your gas oven. Are you thinking of it? Is it an explosion? To us there is nothing more terrifying than the boom or WOMPF that a gas oven can make when igniting improperly. What's happening here is that the gas is igniting after having built up. While this is a common occurrence for people with gas ovens it is not normal. If the gas is building up like this it means that one or more of your igniters is dirty. Having the gas flow or ignition system being restricted can lead to danger. A dirty igniter by itself is not a terrible danger. If you have your oven maintained regularly, getting the igniters cleaned and replaced as needed, you'll be in good shape. However, if you try to clean them yourself, it is very easy to scrub too hard and unintentionally cause a gas leak. While the small boom you might hear from your oven is not usually dangerous, a gas leak always is. 

Why won't my oven stop beeping?

Assuming that your oven is not beeping while preheating, coming to temperature, or because of a timer, there are two reasons your oven will beep. The first reason is that your oven is overheating. Many ovens have overheating issues, especially if you live somewhere, that's rather toasty during summer, like Texas, for example. Occasionally components within the oven can break, causing uncontrolled heating in the oven's primary heating element, which can cause it to sound a beeping alarm to alert you before it damages the oven or starts a fire. 

The second reason your oven might begin beeping at random is that there is damage or a short in your control panel. This can happen if your oven is close to a source of water or if your house has recently had any flooding or leaking issues. A shorted panel can beep at random or, even more annoying, keep beeping consistently. Make sure to call up a technician before you go delving into the depths of your oven to figure out the reason since some of these have high-voltage components. 

My oven is rattling; why?

Courtesy of dmitry-zvolskiy

Another common occurrence with your oven is having it rattle while it is running. If you recently had to move your oven or do a minor repair, that could be the reason. You can take a look at the back panel and the bottom cover to see if there are any loose screws. If that's not the case, it might be your oven fan. At that point, we again recommend calling in a professional to ensure that everything is secured properly.

Why has my oven started squeaking recently?

If your oven has recently begun squeaking after you turn it off, this is an easy problem to diagnose. It's your cooling fan that is sounding like a rogue rodent. This isn't the same as the convection fan located at the back of your oven. Instead, it's located on top. Given its positioning, this fan Austin falls victim to rising food particles and, over time, gravity. That will weigh it down, unbalance it and cause it to make creaking grinding or squeaking sounds. Fortunately, it just needs a good cleaning. Unfortunately, its location makes it a bit difficult to get to. Take a look at your owner's manual to see if it has any suggestions for how to go about cleaning it more easily.

Did we manage to answer your worries about your oven? If not, let us know over on our Facebook page. As always, we love to hear from you, and nobody wants to deal with an oven making noises at all times of the day and night.

 If you diagnose the problem, but you still aren't comfortable with the sounds that your oven is making, or you want it to be fixed by a team of professionals, feel free to reach out to us via our contact page or by giving us a call at ((214) 599-0055). We'll work with you and your schedule to find a time and date for our technicians to come out and find out what's going on. At Appliance Rescue Service, our top priority is getting your home running smoothly again.

Why Does My Oven Keep Flipping the Circuit Breaker?

What Is Going On And What’s Wrong With My Oven?

Picture this: You're making dinner for your family, and you realize that after half an hour, the oven hasn't beeped to say it's been preheated. You go to check on it and realize that the oven is off. You push a few buttons, thinking, ‘that's odd I know I turned it on’, and instead, you have an oven that won't turn on. Your breaker flipped somehow. You go to fix it and start the process all over. Weird, but not the end of the world. What if it keeps happening, though? That's when you have to question, “why does my oven keep flipping my breaker?”

There are three main causes that will make it happen. It could be that you have a faulty heating element. It could be that there is an electrical short in your home. Or it could be that there is a circuit overload in the system. We'll go over these one-by-one and help you tell how to identify between each of them.

It Could Be a Broken Heating Element 

Let's start at the most common cause of this issue. If your breaker for your oven is flipping it might be because a heating element is broken. This can either be the heating element itself or the power source to the heating element. If this happens your circuit breaker will perceive it as a dangerous shift in the amount of amperage in the circuit and trip in order to keep you safe. This is built into the system in order to prevent electrical fires.

If you do determine that one or more of the heating elements in your oven is broken you will need to do a few steps. One unplug the oven completely from the wall and if possible, pull it out a little bit as well. This is to ensure your safety. What you're doing is giving the oven the chance to discharge any and all electricity. 

Next call a technician. Going in and attempting to repair or change out a heating element on your own is it dangerous and is not something we recommend.

It Might Be A Short In the Electrical System 

Your next most common cause of a consistently tripping circuit breaker is that there is a short in the electrical system. This can occur anywhere from the circuit panel itself all the way to the heating outlet of your oven. Look out for the smell of burning rubber or plastic, whether the oven is on or not. Also, keep an eye out for smoke. (Good news! The oven smoking because you burnt the turkey is not an electrical short.) 

Fortunately, if this is the issue, not only is it less expensive, it is also easier to fix. We still recommend unplugging the oven and calling a technician in order to ensure both of your safety and that of the tech coming to your aid. 

Or You Might Be Dealing With A Circuit Overload

Your final possibility, although admittedly the least likely, is that you are having a circuit overloaded. This would mean that the circuit that your oven is on is drawing so much power that the circuit breaker believes there is an issue. This means that there are too many items consuming electricity on the same circuit. Now the trick here is to figure out whether you actually have too many items or whether your oven is not on a circuit that is strong enough for it. For this, you'll need to start by figuring out which circuit your oven is on. 

Normally this is pretty easy. All you have to do is go to your breaker box and find out which one is labeled kitchen. However, occasionally you'll be in an older home where the breaker wasn't labeled when it was installed. And so you're going to have to check one by one, switching breakers off. Once you have the correct breaker isolated, start unplugging items that are on that breaker. You want to see at what point you can have your oven on and other items plugged in. If you get to the point that you have everything unplugged and when you turn the oven on it still gets flipped off by the circuit breaker, there is another potential answer. 

That is that your oven is on an outlet that is too small or it is not high enough power. While this is uncommon, it does happen occasionally, especially if construction was rushed in your neighborhood or if the oven you brought with you from your old home is sized to a different power outlet. Fortunately, both of these are extremely uncommon, and it is far more likely that your issue will be related to one of the earlier two points that we made. 

If you have isolated everything else and guaranteed that your issue is indeed tied to your circuit breaker, then you will not necessarily need a technician so much as an electrician they will actually be the first call that you make. However, we do still suggest unplugging the oven for safety sake.

Are there any reasons for an oven to cause your circuit breaker to flip that we missed? Let us know over on our Facebook page as we would love to hear from you!

If you followed our tips and found out that yes it is one of the first two causes, feel free to reach out. We would be more than happy to help you in repairing your oven and get your home running smoothly again. You can reach out to us with a phone call or by going over to our contact page. At Appliance Rescue Service, our goal is to get your home running smoothly again.

Why Is My Oven Smelling So Strange?

4 Common Smells You Need To Know

What do you do when you start encountering weird smells in your kitchen? You would start by taking out the trash; after all, that's one of the most common sources. Maybe it has been a few days since you took it out last... But it keeps smelling. So then you start to look around and go section by section. 

Is it coming from the refrigerator? 

Did a potato roll to the back of a cabinet? 

Did the beer you were experimenting with brewing go off? 

No …it's coming from your oven. So what are you supposed to do? The first step is figuring out what sort of smell it is. Then you figure out whether it's something you can solve on your own or call in a professional of one stripe or another. 

Common Smells To Come From Your Oven

- gas

- urine

- dead things

- smells like burning plastic

Why Does My Oven Smell Like Gas? 

Before you start worrying, having your oven smell like gas when you first turn it on, provided it is a gas oven, is normal. So long as it goes away within the first few minutes, you're fine. This just means that the gas is igniting, and it's during that turning-on phase. If, however, the smell continues after 10 minutes or so or continues for the entire time the oven is on, it can mean that not all of the burners in the oven or igniting. If that's the case, then you'll need to get hold of a technician. This isn't something you can fix on your own. Trying to fix a gas oven solo is extraordinarily dangerous. The flammable gases that run through your oven can very easily asphyxiate you if you're not careful when dealing with them.

Why Does My Oven Smell Like Urine? 

If your oven smells like urine, the most common reason is that you have rodents living near or inside your oven.

Courtesy of DSD

For this situation, we suggest calling an exterminator first to get rid of the rodents, then carefully go in and clean all of the inside of the oven. If you can, your next step is to carefully pull your oven away from the wall to see if you can't find where the rodents came in from and if they got inside the oven itself. Be careful with this step, as you don't want to damage your oven or leave a gas line open accidentally. Finally, we suggest calling in a technician if only for your peace of mind. You can tell them that you had rodents and want to ensure that none of the wires or components were chewed on and that the oven will still function as needed.

Why Does My Oven Smell Like Death?

Courtesy of Juan Vargas

Right off the back of the last one, if your oven smells like death, it is most probable but unfortunate that something died in your oven. The same steps still apply, except you really want to call a technician this time. The difference here is that your oven needs to be gone over to ensure that nothing is left inside of the oven. If something dies inside your oven, you have to worry about other creatures attempting to get inside your oven to devour them. Not only is this damaging your oven, but more importantly, if any of that catches on fire, it will be very dangerous for your food and health. 

Why Does My Oven Smell Like Melted or Burning Plastic? 

If your oven smells like melted plastic, you can have several different issues going on. 

The easiest to fix is that there was some residue left over from the last time you cleaned your oven. With that, all you have to do is wait until your oven cools off and then go back in and wipe everything down with a damp rag. 

Courtesy of Ksenia Chernaya

A second possibility could be that you did melt plastic. Perhaps you left a bit of film on a freezer meal, or there was a piece of plastic residue that you missed when you cleaned again, perfectly normal and easy enough to fix.

The last case, however, is the one you hope, and we hope, is not the case. Sometimes if you're smelling burning plastic, it can be because of damage to electrical components or an electrical short. Milton cables and damaged cables smell terrible. 

In the event that you do smell melting plastic, the first thing you should do is turn off the oven. From there, allow it to cool off, then carefully unplug it and assess the situation. For the first two, you can easily handle those. If you ruled them out, however,, you'll need to call a technician to assess the oven and determine if it is due to electrical components.

Hopefully, we have put many of your fears at ease. If you have found your oven smelling strangely and it's not something we addressed here, please reach out to us over on our Facebook page.

If you found your oven smelling strangely and it is for one of the reasons we listed where a technician is required, we would be more than happy to help. You can reach out to us via our contact page or by giving us a call ((214) 599-0055). If you choose to work with Appliance Rescue Service, know that our goal is to get your home running smoothly again. Will work with you to find a time and date that fits your schedule before sending out one of our experienced technicians to find and address the problem.  

Places to Avoid: The Paw Version!

Or, Appliances That Your Pets Need to Stay Away From

Appliance Rescue Service has been taken over by the pets! This week we (Murder Mittens the cat and Odie the dog) are talking about our favorite places in the house, the appliances! They offer warm, and cold and food, we can't forget the food! 

Courtesy of Gomez Daniel

Washer

MM: I don't understand why the humans use this one it removes their scent, and then they have ti put it all over things again.  They put their clothes in, the clothes get wet, and then they move them over to another rumbly. 

O: And! They yell at you when you get them wet any other time, even though they also have the rain room that they go into.

MM: That is the bathroom. They put my litterbox in there as well. The wet machine is nice to lay on when it rumbles, but you're right on them griping about getting wet. 

O: I don't like the way everything smells,  but I love watching the clothes tumble round and round.

MM: Of course you do.

Dryer 

O: I hate this one more than the wet machine. It smells and it's hot. 

MM: As usual you have no taste. This one is perfect to curl up inside of when the humans have removed their clothes. You just have to make sure you don't stay in there when they put the clothes back. 

Courtesy of RaGeBe

O: Wait is it that where you go when I want to play?

Oven

O: It's the hot food box!  Humans like to put their food in and then they take it out later and it's a warm and I don't get why they put it in there to make it warm because it's just as good cold but sometimes if you're fast enough you can steal food from it! 

MM: Or if you wait for the right moment you can steal food from it and take a nap inside the warm. It's too hot sometimes, but that is why you are supposed to wait. 

O: And we're not going to talk about how you got your tail singed the one time.

MM: Not if you don't want me telling Ralph where you hid your bone.

Dishwasher 

O: This is my favorite! This one has all of the smells and food, almost every day! 

MM: Yes but the humans always yell at you for standing on it. Whereas I can stand on it and not get caught.

O: And that is just one more reason that I steal your kibble when you're not looking. Anyway, the humans put in the food dishes, and they still have food on them. They don't even lick their dishes clean! And then the machine makes lots of noise and spits steam everywhere - 

MM: Which is the best time to lay on the counter above it.

O: And then when they open it there's no more food! Why do they feed the food to the machine and not to me!

Stove

O: This one is tough Murder Mittens. On one hand, the humans make food up there, lots of food.

MM: On the other hand, even if you can get up to the food, you never know if it's safe.

O: Exactly! It looks like it's the rest of the kitchen but sometimes it's hot and sometimes it's not and sometimes there's fire according to Ralph down the street.

Courtesy of elina-volkova

MM: You trust the Chihuahua? He barks at his own shadow.

O: You have a point. Maybe his has fire but ours doesn't?

Refrigerator

O: The cold box! There is so much food in here and the humans just leave it in there and stare in front of the food as if they expect it to do something. I know the food is dead when they put it in there so why do they stare at it? 

MM: You expect me to be able to explain the humans?

O: No it just doesn't make sense. Anyway this one is also great during the hot months if you're sneaky you can get in there and eat the food and be cold all of the best things in one spot.

Courtesy of luca andrade

MM: As much as I hate it, I have to agree. There's food, there's tight spaces to curl up in, and it is cool when it is unbearably hot outside.

Freezer

O: This one is frustrating. On one hand it's nice and cold when it's hot outside. I love this box. On the other hand it smells like food but everything's frozen and hard definitely not food it's so cruel for the humans to do this. And then they yell at you when you want to stay in there and they put wet things on you. 

MM: The wet things. Perhaps the humans think you don't bathe yourself I certainly don't. As to the cold box, I believe the humans put things here so that they are food for longer like hiding one of your treats so that you can eat it later. 

O: But who would they hide it from? It's not like with my treats and you're going to eat them later. 

A final note from the People of Appliance Rescue Service: Although this has been phrased in a rather light-hearted way these are all places that you want to keep your pets out of for their safety and for the longevity of your appliances. In the event of your pets getting into one of your appliances and you being unable to get them out please make sure to call your vet first and a second. While we love our pets as much as the next person, we are much better at fixing appliances than we are animals. If you want to reach out to us about your appliances, you can reach out to us at ((214) 599-0055) or by heading to our contact page.