On Oct 8, 10:57*am, Donna Ohl wrote:
On Wed, 8 Oct 2008 09:05:16 -0400, jack wrote:
Turning the switch to off should have killed
the power just as effectively as shutting off power to the house. *

Hi Jack,
That's the wierd thing. Not only did turning the switch off not stop the
burning but you can see from these pictures that the oven element actually
has a half-inch gap in it.

Which could have occured at the end and then the current did stop
flowing.



I don't understand how this element works. If it's just a "resistor", then
why don't we get electrocuted when we touch it and how can it arc with a
half inch gap opening the 220v circuit?

Presumably, you don't touch it when it's on and hot to begin with.
But the actual resistive part is inside the element, so you can't
touch it.



And, why didn't a fuse blow? I know it's a three pronged grandfather plug
because that is what the firemen said when they yanked it out of the wall..

Probably because the current flow never exceed 40, 50 amps or whatever
the breaker is rated at. 10 or 12KW in a small area is a lot of
energy, but it doesn't exceed the breaker.




Does anyone know the answer to these questions?
Donna