Kitchen Large Electric Appliances - frigidaire 32" electric coil cooktop sparked
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hobbs_m
05-20-06, 06:05 PM
my cooktop (electric coil) sparked tonight while we were cooking supper...we heard a loud pop, then i moved a pot around on the burner, then another pop with nice sparks shooting out...it tripped the breaker...
i took the eye off, removed the drip pan, removed the wiring harness that the burner plugs into and found a nice little arc spot on the clip that holds the plastic wiring harness...there is no evidence of any problems with the wiring or the wiring insulation...i don't see any visible burn marks on the insulation...
about 2 weeks, we were making tea and it boiled over pretty badly...we didn't think anything about it since it has happended before...we didn't clean out the drip pan like we usually do...is there any possibility that this may have been caused by the boiled over tea and since i cleaned it tonight, i should be safe...
is that a correct assumption...???
is there any other thing i need to check???
i took the eye off, removed the drip pan, removed the wiring harness that the burner plugs into and found a nice little arc spot on the clip that holds the plastic wiring harness...there is no evidence of any problems with the wiring or the wiring insulation...i don't see any visible burn marks on the insulation...
about 2 weeks, we were making tea and it boiled over pretty badly...we didn't think anything about it since it has happended before...we didn't clean out the drip pan like we usually do...is there any possibility that this may have been caused by the boiled over tea and since i cleaned it tonight, i should be safe...
is that a correct assumption...???
is there any other thing i need to check???
DaVeBoy
05-20-06, 07:41 PM
Does that coil element still work to the point it can get cherry red color if you want it to? If not, it's toast.
These are Calrod units. Most people do not know how these things work. Have you ever wondered why you don't get electrocuted, not even a tingle, if you touched a burner that is on, or the metal pot that might be on one? One good reason is that the metal outside the coil element is not where the power travels through.
It is actually buried inside the coil, separated by this...stuff. So, the power really goes through a wire inside those flattened out coils. If ever you take one out, look at the prongs at the back of one and you will see how the prongs are connected to wires that are inside this white insulation like stuff. If that wire were to get bent and contact the outer metal of the coil? Then the sparks would fly. And the sparks do fly when the coil has somehow been compromised where somehow or another the current through the wire bridges it's way throught the white stuff and connects up with the outer coil metal.
This can happen if the outer coil metal gets a tiny crack in it, and then liquid from boil over gets into it (and not necesarily when that occurs...but can happen anytime thereafter.out of the blue). I had this happen once while I was holding onto a kettle and it arc welded a hole right through the bottom of the kettle...clean clear through it, with molten metal beads on the element. And not to say the least...it scared the living cra* out of me, as this was quite unexpected. The noise alone sounded like an arc welder going off. GSZHHHHHHH sound, quite sustained, too, before it tripped the breaker.
These are Calrod units. Most people do not know how these things work. Have you ever wondered why you don't get electrocuted, not even a tingle, if you touched a burner that is on, or the metal pot that might be on one? One good reason is that the metal outside the coil element is not where the power travels through.
It is actually buried inside the coil, separated by this...stuff. So, the power really goes through a wire inside those flattened out coils. If ever you take one out, look at the prongs at the back of one and you will see how the prongs are connected to wires that are inside this white insulation like stuff. If that wire were to get bent and contact the outer metal of the coil? Then the sparks would fly. And the sparks do fly when the coil has somehow been compromised where somehow or another the current through the wire bridges it's way throught the white stuff and connects up with the outer coil metal.
This can happen if the outer coil metal gets a tiny crack in it, and then liquid from boil over gets into it (and not necesarily when that occurs...but can happen anytime thereafter.out of the blue). I had this happen once while I was holding onto a kettle and it arc welded a hole right through the bottom of the kettle...clean clear through it, with molten metal beads on the element. And not to say the least...it scared the living cra* out of me, as this was quite unexpected. The noise alone sounded like an arc welder going off. GSZHHHHHHH sound, quite sustained, too, before it tripped the breaker.
hobbs_m
05-21-06, 08:39 AM
actually, the element itself is uncompromised...it still works, actually gets glowing red hot...
i took the screw out that holds the plug for the element...it has a metal clip that holds the plastic plug...the top of the metal clip is melted and obviously looks like electricity did some work on it...i have no idea what happened, because it is underneath the top...i can't see very far, but all the wires look fine...so i don't know what happened...
i took the screw out that holds the plug for the element...it has a metal clip that holds the plastic plug...the top of the metal clip is melted and obviously looks like electricity did some work on it...i have no idea what happened, because it is underneath the top...i can't see very far, but all the wires look fine...so i don't know what happened...
hobbs_m
05-21-06, 08:39 AM
actually, the element itself is uncompromised...it still works, actually gets glowing red hot...
i took the screw out that holds the plug for the element...it has a metal clip that holds the plastic plug...the top of the metal clip is melted and obviously looks like electricity did some work on it...i have no idea what happened, because it is underneath the top...i can't see very far, but all the wires look fine...so i don't know what happened...
i took the screw out that holds the plug for the element...it has a metal clip that holds the plastic plug...the top of the metal clip is melted and obviously looks like electricity did some work on it...i have no idea what happened, because it is underneath the top...i can't see very far, but all the wires look fine...so i don't know what happened...