A short time ago, the bake element in my oven decided it would prefer to experience life as a sparkler rather than as the key component in the “heating up Jeff’s food” process.
An interesting thing happens when good elements go bad. It’s not uncommon for the metal to start shooting fiery sparks in all directions travelling around the whole element or until it snaps apart due to the breakdown of the material. It’s fun to watch but a little scary at the same time especially if no one has warned you that it’s not unusual for old elements to self destruct in such a manner.
Ok, here come the boring (but important) life lessons:
- Always put something under your food — the oven is not a barbecue. I’ve caught room-mates doing this on several occasions. Luckily we’ve so far never had a house fire ensue (maybe that’s why the bottom of the oven looks so bad). There are some exceptions to this rule of course, like the pizza that is currently rising to delicious perfection as I write this—I always say, “they’ve come a long way in frozen pizza technology”.
- Replacing your old element is easy. Follow these straight-forward directions.
- Clean your oven before you take pictures and post them on the Internet or the world will think you’re lazy. I’ve chosen not to clean it just to prove a point. Think about how right I am by how apathetic you’re judging me to be.
I guess that’s it. Now I’m off to enjoy some gourmet frozen pizza. Oh and I did clean the oven after I got the old element out—Mr. Muscle you are my hero. I just hope that now my pizza won’t taste like heavy duty oven cleaner.