On Fri, 19 Jan 2007 20:26:35 -0000, Jon Elson wrote:
Peter Hucker wrote:
Is it really true that turning on a microwave with nothing in it will break it?
Even more worrying - will it catch fire or explode?
Don't they have a safety cutout? Can't it sense the Klystron overheating,
That would be a Magnetron tube, and yes, I thenk they all have a
thermostat on
the tube. This is also to prevent a fire if the cooling fan seizes up.
But, in the
case of no food to absorb the microwave energy, the reflected power can
build up
higher than normal voltages in the tube and cause permanent damage
before the
entire anode overheats.
So it'll just break? That's good to know. I don't want to lose a house or a parrot while out at work.
or a build up of microwaves over a certain level?
I have purchased a new microwave which has an easier to grab control. I'm concerned one of my pet parrots will switch it on! (Seriously, they do stuff like that)
Parrots? What about kids? I suspect quite a few microwaves get "toasted"
by kids turning them on empty.
That's a point, it must happen a lot. If they caught fire or exploded, we'd see it on the news.
I know they can survive a few seconds of
this abuse without noticeable damage.
I once went for an interview at a company that makes magnetrons. As far as I know there is a thing that absorbs all returning microwaves. Wouldn't this just have a temperature sensor in it that would shut off the oven?
You could unplug it
The plug is behind the fridge. I used to plug it in above the worktop, but the parrots ate the plug!
or leave the door open (I'm pretty sure a parrot couldn't close the door.)
I bet it could, if it wanted to. But they are more interested in opening or breaking things. Parrots do not tidy or assemble things.
If I leave the door open, one will climb inside and chew up the cover that's over the magnetron output (it looks to be card).
--
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