Unsafe Stove Has Owner Seeing Red

I was on the way home from work recently, when my wife called. She said the oven had started sparking and arcing, so she turned it off, but part of the oven element continued to glow cherry red. I guided her through the process of locating the circuit breaker for the range and turning it off.

When I got home, I continued to wonder, "How can the oven element have power on it when the oven is turned off?" I started looking around the Web for replacement parts and for any explanation as to why the element would continue to have power applied after it was turned off. I finally came across a post from someone with the same stove, and exactly the same issue.

Apparently, in an effort to save money, the stove manufacturer put the controls for this oven in only one side of the element, and left the other side of the element connected permanently to line power. Normally, the element is grounded by its outside covering, but what if that joint fails? Worse yet, what if the ground for the stove fails or is never properly connected, and the element heating wires short to the element covering?

That, to me at least, is patently unsafe, and qualifies as a Made by Monkeys product.

Tell us your experiences with monkey-designed products. Send stories to Jennifer Campbell for Made by Monkeys.