Cooker Problems FAQ page. How to fix common COOKER/OVEN problems.
NOTE: some of the element pictures here show a dramatic breakage or melting of the element, but in many cases a failed element that goes open-circuit does NOT show any outward signs, and will have to be measured with a test-meter. If you check carefully, you MIGHT see a small area of roughness or corrosion or a small pin-hole where the element wire has vapourised, and a small amount of white deposit.
Q: Cooker trips the Circuit Breaker
A: This usually happens when one of the cooking functions like the grill or fan oven are used, and one of the elements for that function has a short to the oven body, that will be earthed. ALL CHECKS BELOW MUST BE DONE WITH POWER OFF. ENSURE THAT THE CIRCUIT-BREAKER IS IN THE DOWN (OFF) POSITION, AND FOR FLOOR STANDING OVENS, THE COOKER ISOLATOR SWITCH IS OFF TOO
The FIRST thing to check is the OVEN LAMP! Strange as it may sound, I have known these go short circuit inside the metal base. A sure sign this hashappened is that you cannot remove the lamp by hand. The momentary high current when it first went short usually “welds” the base to the holder. It is usually not possible to get tools in the holder to remove it, so you may have to open up the casework to remove the holder, and try to loosen the lamp. Take care not to damage the glass-fibre protection sleeve that is usually covering the wires to the holder. The lamps are usually 15 to 25 Watts, E14 size, but will have high temperature QUARTZ glass especially made for ovens and grills.
The grill element is usually the easiest to remove, as they are often held in by a simple sprung bar or clip arrangement, that allows it to drop down slightly, then pull forwards out of its socket. It can then be checked with a test meter, to see if there is a reading between the middle pin (usually earthed, or connected to the metal outer body of the element), and either of the other two pins. It is best to try on the higher resistance ranges, as a small leak at meter voltages could rise substantially at mains voltage. If there is a reading on either outer pin to the element body or the centre pin, then the element is suspect, and should be replaced.
The above also applies to the fan element. This is more difficult to get to, as the rear cover plate will need to be removed. You may find that it will be easier to work on the oven with the drop-down door removed, if it is the built-in type. Check your instructions on how to do this, as some hinge mechanisms have a slot in the sprung hinge, that just takes a 1p coin to jam it in the “release” position, so when you close the door, it pulls away. Obviously this does not apply to the conventional floor-standing ovens. Once the rear cover is removed, remove any retaining clips, and unplug the element from its socket. As above check the pins with a test meter for shorts. The normal cold resistance reading for a 2500 Watt element should be around 20 to 25 OHMS. See the COOKER HINTS page (Resistance Measurements) for other wattages and values: click THIS LINK
Some built-in ovens have side and bottom elements too, that my need checking, but these will have to be checked with the oven removed from its housing, and the outer casework removed.
It is possible that a wire could be shorting to the casework for the circuit used for a particular element or function, and that too will require removal and careful inspection.
Q: The grill will not heat up
A: REMOVE AND CHECK THE GRILL ELEMENT. This is usually held by a spring clip, and can usually be unhooked or unclipped, or in some cases a screwed clip.They usually then pull forward out of the ceramic socket. Check for corrosion or arcing on the 3 pins. If there has been bad contact between any pin and the socket, it will make the element fail prematurely due to excessive local heat build-up and oxidation. If the pins will clean up with emery cloth, try testing the resistance with a meter. A 2500 WATT element should read about 20 to 25 OHMS across the outer two pins. If it reads open circuit (no reading), or higher than 100 OHMS then it should be replaced. If there is evidence of arcing, check the socket contacts with a good inspection lamp, and replace it if the contacts are very dark and burnt, otherwise a replacement element will fail again quite quickly.To check other wattage resistance values, see the COOKER HINTS page: click THIS LINK
Q: The Fan Oven will not heat up
A: REMOVE AND CHECK THE FAN OVEN ELEMENT. The element for the fan-oven function will be located behind the fan cover-plate at the rear of the oven compartment, mounted so that it surrounds the fan blade tips. Remove the cover plate to check the element. The element is usually held in place with 2 screws in the top bracket, and one or more small clips with screws. The push-on wires may not always be free enough to pull forwards for removal and reattachment, so the oven may have to be removed from its housing to manipulate these. There could be 2, 3 or 4 wires, depending on wiring loop requirements. See a close-up of a failed element below, where one half loop had melted away. All broken element parts supplied courtesy of a work colleague. Click HERE for an excellent in-depth article on REPLACING A FAN OVEN ELEMENT. ALSO a very useful VIDEO CLIP:
made by the APART4U site. Link provided by kind permission of the site owners.
Q: The oven door glass needs refixing - where can I obtain suitable high temperature adhesive:
A: The first link below is for a KIT especially for re-fixing oven door glass. The second one is just for the adhesive itself (check about half way down page):
Q: The oven door seal is sagging, and lets out a lot of wasted heat, are they easy to replace?
A: The first thing to check is if it is a 3 or 4 sided silicone seal. If so, these are quite easy to replace. It is also a good idea to check that the door latch is in good condition, otherwise if it has gone weak with age (as a lot do), then changing the seal will only fix PART of the problem, if the door does not close snugly against the seal. The UNIVERSAL seal kits can be obtained from between £7 and £15 depending on the site, but specific model spares will be about £20. There is a UNIVERSAL DOOR LATCH available too, for about £5. You may be lucky as a lot of manufacturers use slotted holes for these to take different stock spares. Once the inner and outer door is unscrewed, and taken apart, it is obvious how to change this part. Click HERE to see a HINT article on seals, and sites that stock the kits.
