If your oven isn’t cooking your food correctly, there may be an issue with the heating. It could just be that it’s not set at the right temperature or that there’s an issue with the thermometer. Years of use can put a lot of stress on your oven’s inner components, and sometimes they need to be repaired or replaced. Read on to learn more about how to tell if your oven is heating properly.
How does an oven work?
Sometimes ovens can be tricky since they aren’t exactly precision-based appliances. They work on approximations and averages, so sometimes they miss the mark for temperature settings. Your oven has a tolerance zone for the temperature you set it to. When the internal temp hits the lower threshold, the heating element will kick on until the temp hits the upper threshold. After it hits the upper threshold, it will switch off. So, the temperatures are constantly oscillating back and forth. Your oven’s goal is to hit an average temp of what you initially set. As you can see, this could create problems if there’s something wrong with the temperature gauge.
How do you know if your oven is hitting the right average temp?
If you suspect your oven isn’t heating properly, you could easily test it before calling a repair company. To do this, you need an oven thermometer. These are generally inexpensive and cost around $5- $10. Hang your thermometer in the center of the middle rack and preheat your oven to 350 degrees. After 20 minutes, take a temperature reading. If it’s approximately 350 degrees, leave the oven on and check every 20 minutes for about two hours. If it hits the mark every time, your oven is heating properly.
If your oven isn’t hitting the desired temperature when testing, it’s time to call a repair company. Express Appliance Repair can repair almost all oven models, and usually on the same day! Give us a call today.