My wife left a potato in the microwave for what would have probably been 45
minutes, if I let it. The potato clearly caught fire. By the time I heard
the smoke alarm go off and rushed in, the kitchen was full of smoke and the
microwave was still on.
After shutting off the oven and opening the door (no more flames at this
point) I surmised that there was probably a minimal flame/fire and more
smoke than anything else.

I cleaned the inside pretty well and you can't see any visible damage.
Trouble is the inside of the oven smells of smoke.

I can still use the oven as it appears not to be damaged and it cooks food
ok, still. Question: is there something I can do to get rid of the smell?
Like some sort of home-brewed concoction that I could leave in the oven
while it boiled and fumigated/deodorized the inside? Any commercial
products? Baking soda?

Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Walter

"Walter Cohen" wrote in message
... I can still use the oven as it appears
not to be damaged and it cooks food
ok, still. Question: is there something I can do to get rid of the smell?

I'd start with a bowl of plain white vinegar. Put it in there, close the
door and leave it for a while.

It will eventually air out. In the meantime, the smoke has covered the
internal fan, etc. so it's going to take a bit.

Not sure about any magic formulas, but I'd probably try putting a glass of
water in there, and putting the microwave on the lowest power setting for
about 60 minutes. This will run the fan, provide little, if any, heat, and
hopefully air it out.

Good Luck,
-Tim

Walter Cohen writes:

Any commercial products?

A new unit? What are they, about $50 nowadays?

Been there, done that. I tried vinegar
and water, boiling it. Nothing helped
but time.
Actually, on my oven, the "flame sensor"
popped .... actually after I shut if
off. This
is a fusable link on the top of the
oven. The heat finally caused it to
open. New sensor,
and it's good as new. The smell finally
went away after a few weeks. This oven has
very poor air circulation compared to
other units I have owned, so it took a
relatively
long time.

Walter Cohen wrote:
My wife left a potato in the microwave for what would have probably been 45
minutes, if I let it. The potato clearly caught fire. By the time I heard
the smoke alarm go off and rushed in, the kitchen was full of smoke and the
microwave was still on.
After shutting off the oven and opening the door (no more flames at this
point) I surmised that there was probably a minimal flame/fire and more
smoke than anything else.

I cleaned the inside pretty well and you can't see any visible damage.
Trouble is the inside of the oven smells of smoke.

I can still use the oven as it appears not to be damaged and it cooks food
ok, still. Question: is there something I can do to get rid of the smell?
Like some sort of home-brewed concoction that I could leave in the oven
while it boiled and fumigated/deodorized the inside? Any commercial
products? Baking soda?

Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Walter

"Richard J Kinch" wrote in message
. ..
A new unit? What are they, about $50 nowadays?

Seems wasteful, inefficient for such a minor issue.

And a decent microwave is far higher than $50.

-Tim

"Rescate" wrote in message
news:1127359441.6a3d83fc091edd79b6fe5806859bde04@b ubbanews...
vinegar

You must have some weird vinegar. Because vinegar absorbs
all kinds of smells.


Fugly picture--recycled douche or somesuch coming to mind here....

g

--

SVL

Richard J Kinch wrote:
Walter Cohen writes:

Any commercial products?

A new unit? What are they, about $50 nowadays?


The GE Spacesaver I installed over my stove last month ran about $450.



--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN

VE

How long should the original poster run the microwave with the bowl of
vinegar in there? Would 45 minutes be adequate?

--

Christopher A. Young
Do good work.
It's longer in the short run
but shorter in the long run.
..
..


"Tracey" wrote in message
. ..

"Walter Cohen" wrote in message
... I can still use the oven as it appears
not to be damaged and it cooks food
ok, still. Question: is there something I can do to get rid of the smell?

I'd start with a bowl of plain white vinegar. Put it in there, close the
door and leave it for a while.

On Fri, 14 Oct 2005 21:23:43 -0700, in misc.consumers.house
wrote:

On Wed, 21 Sep 2005 21:27:08 -0500, "Tim Fischer"
wrote:

It will eventually air out. In the meantime, the smoke has covered the
internal fan, etc. so it's going to take a bit.

Not sure about any magic formulas, but I'd probably try putting a glass of
water in there, and putting the microwave on the lowest power setting for
about 60 minutes. This will run the fan, provide little, if any, heat, and
hopefully air it out.

Good Luck,
-Tim



We had a microwave at work in which someone left a bag of popcorn for
almost half an hour...the smell never completely left it. The plastic
inside is porous and there's usually grease and such way up in the
vents that will absorb a lot of the odr-causing particles.

We finally just ditched the silly thing when it still stank miestly a
year later. Microwave ovens are cheap.

(I do miss my Samsung, bought in 1976 or so, it was still going strong
in 2003 when we finally gave it to Salvation Army....was all stainles
steel inside except for the fang rille and light fixture in the top.)

JIm P.


I still have my 1975 microwave it's only 500 wats but it's so simple that a 5
year old can use it. Yes the sides are metal, also the door latch is metal.

On Wed, 21 Sep 2005 21:27:08 -0500, "Tim Fischer"
wrote:

It will eventually air out. In the meantime, the smoke has covered the
internal fan, etc. so it's going to take a bit.

Not sure about any magic formulas, but I'd probably try putting a glass of
water in there, and putting the microwave on the lowest power setting for
about 60 minutes. This will run the fan, provide little, if any, heat, and
hopefully air it out.

Good Luck,
-Tim



We had a microwave at work in which someone left a bag of popcorn for
almost half an hour...the smell never completely left it. The plastic
inside is porous and there's usually grease and such way up in the
vents that will absorb a lot of the odr-causing particles.

We finally just ditched the silly thing when it still stank miestly a
year later. Microwave ovens are cheap.

(I do miss my Samsung, bought in 1976 or so, it was still going strong
in 2003 when we finally gave it to Salvation Army....was all stainles
steel inside except for the fang rille and light fixture in the top.)

JIm P.