Why is My Oven Smoking?

Whether it’s a light haze or dark plumes of smoke emanating from the oven, a smoky oven can be a cause for alarm. But while you should not ignore smoke coming from your oven, not all oven smoke spells danger. For you to tell the difference, you need a walk-through on the various reasons why your oven might be smoking.

First, if you recently purchased the oven, a little smoke should be expected. It could be that some pieces of the packing materials such as tape, plastic, or form remained behind after unpacking. So as the oven interiors heat, the materials burn and cause smoke. The way to deal with this is to let the oven cool then remove any leftover scraps. The other cause of smoke in new ovens is bonding agents curing in the unit. To get rid of recurrent smell and smoke, oven manufacturers advice running the oven between 400 and 600 degrees to clear these coatings quickly. These are the two common reasons why a new oven may cause billows of smoke.

Cleaning agents may also cause oven smoke. Store-bought cleaners tend to leave residue on the oven which may cause smoke once the oven is on and running. Giving the oven a wipe using a damp cloth dipped in vinegar and water solution will wipe out any residue from the cleaner. Smoke born from chemicals is incredibly dangerous, can cause destruction to destroy materials on their way and are able to cause severe and fatal burns.

Another likely and an all too common cause of a smoking oven is debris and food spills in the oven. Food residue will heat up, burn and result in smoke and odors. If you neglect cleaning your oven regularly, you should be prepared for a smoky oven at some point. The food could be trapped in racks thus the need to thoroughly clean your oven regularly. Particularly if you’re fond of baking foods like pizza or broiling high-fat food such as steaks directly on the oven racks, you either need to regularly clean your oven or risk dealing will oven smoke and potential kitchen fires.

If your oven is an electric one, the top and bottom elements will eventually wear out.  When this happens, the bottom or top element, or in some cases both will not glow red during the bake and broil setting. You will also hear a buzzing sound and begin to see smoke. On noticing any of these signs, the safest thing to do is turn the power off at the circuit break then unplug the oven. Then, call our appliance repair Winnipeg technicians. We offer emergency repair services 24 hours a day, seven days a week and we are just a call away. Smoke caused by electric faults just like that caused by chemicals calls for immediate action.

Important to note, you may not necessarily see a visible haze in the air, sometimes it’ll be a thick unusual odor. Regardless, always address the problem before it magnifies. Smoke not only adds an unpleasant flavor to food but left unaddressed, it’s undoubtedly a harbinger of fire.