Had the pleasure of a warming sight today, a replacement oven element on fire. Even had fancy pshhhh sound effects as something or other repeatedly exploded at low pressure.
When buying an element, is there any way to increase the odds of getting one that will last a decent length of time?
NT
I saw an over-top ring do that once as a kid, fascinating to watch.
Not sure, but probably not. Ours are over 30 years old and have never been replaced. It's probably a bit of a lottery, unless of course everyone's cut corners and they're all crap these days :-)
That's what I suspect - hopefully wrongly. Just how hard is it to fill a tube with mag oxide after inserting a spring of resistance wire?
NT
I've never looked into what's actually inside them; I suppose it's possible that they can scrimp on material used in the outer layer and thus make manufacturing cheaper, but maybe It Doesn't Work Like That*.
Mineral insulated cable is made in a larger size than is used, and then pressure rolled to shrink it down to the sizes required. (That's why it still works if you hammer it quite flat -- the conductors and mineral insulation all compress in the same proportion, and you have to go a long way before it shorts out.)
I'm not so sure how heating elements are made. If it really is a spiral conductor, I imagine it's going to be harder to make than mineral insulated cable. They're also only relatively short lengths with ends made off, and so may be more bespoke.
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