The element is the most vital part of an electric oven. Without it, your food will remain uncooked and cold - so when your cooker element breaks, it's important to find the correct replacement quickly.

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Still, when you're replacing your oven's element, it's nice to have a rough idea of how long you can expect the new one to last. And what caused your old cooker element to break in the first place, anyway?

What's the average lifespan of an oven element?

As an estimate, most cooker elements should last for about 5 years. Of course, this is dependent on the health and overall quality of your oven; the better your oven, the longer its parts should last.

Why did my oven element break?

Sometimes a cooker element will fail because it has just suffered a lot of wear and tear. As the wires inside a cooker elements get hotter, they expand; when they cool, they shrink back down. This repeated expanding and shrinking can cause damage to the wire over time, meaning that your oven may eventually break for no apparent reason.

Elements can also break if they overheat. This may happen if your oven's thermostat is malfunctioning - the thermostat is supposed to switch off the element once the oven has reached the desired temperature, but if that doesn't happen, the element may continue to heat up until it breaks.

Read More: How Does a Thermostat Work?

Remember: oven elements aren't interchangeable. If yours breaks, you'll need to buy a new one that's compatible with your appliance. If you need to replace your cooker element, go to the Cooker Spare Parts homepage and enter your cooker's manufacturer and model number - then we'll show you a comprehensive list of compatible spares.

Alternatively you can search our browse our oven elements here. We also stock various grill elements.

If you have any questions, please feel free to get in touch with our knowledgeable customer service team!

When it comes to keeping your kitchen cooking in heated harmony, nothing throws a spanner in the works quite like a dodgy oven.

A faulty cooker can be surprisingly impactful when it comes to mealtimes and bring your even the most basic of culinary capabilities to a screeching halt.

80s Hair Metal icons, Cinderella, said it best – you don’t know what you got till it’s gone – and this can most certainly be applied to any oven-less kitchen.

But fear not, oven-reliant foodies of the world: this blog has a whole host of tips tailor-made to help get you pie making, pasta baking and cheesecaking again in no time.

“My Oven Keeps Cutting Out – What Shall I Do?”

Before you read your cooker its last rites and put your oven plans on ice for the foreseeable, there are a few things you can do to help get your oven fired up again.

Overheating

A lot of modern ovens come equipped with a protective safety measure to stop them from overheating. This typically comes in the form of a circuit breaker, cutting power to the oven in the event that it gets too hot.

If your oven is cutting out, even for normal heat functioning, there may well be a problem with the safety thermostat. As such, this is a great place to start – after all, replacing your thermostat is a lot cheaper than replacing your oven!

If your thermostat is faulty and needs replacing, you can do so by ordering a spare part right here at CSP. Click here to find your make and model now.

Ventilation

If your thermostat is in working order, there may be an issue with your oven’s ventilation. Poor ventilation can cause the heat to build up to the point that the oven overheats and causes the thermostat to trip, again cutting out your oven in the process.

This can be a common issue for new installations and can be a fundamental issue with the oven cavity itself. As a precaution, call your fitter and seek their advice. They should be able to help you sort out the ventilation and have you up and running again.

Faulty Element

Another potential cause of your heating dismay could be the oven elements themselves. As a fundamental part of the oven’s operation, a broken or faulty element could put your meal prep on ice pretty fast.

This can usually be visually diagnosed by taking a quick look at the element for any obvious signs of damage/wear and tear.

Alternatively, turn your oven on and take a look at the element as the oven warms up. If it no longer glows red during cooking, you have yourself a faulty element.

If this is the case, why not head over to our cooker elements section and pick up a replacement element part.

Electrical Faults

The host of complex wires, cables and circuits within the make-up of an electric oven can make it a whole different beast, with a variety of additional issues that are extremely hard to diagnose.

Electric ovens can easily cut out if there is a fault with one of the components inside. Even issues with the clock and the switch can cause the oven to shut off, so pay close attention to these electrical oven parts in particular – both are tell-tale signs that you need professional assistance.

That being said, some electrical ovens also have the ability to make things a little easier at times, particularly if they display an error/fault code. If the display shows an error code, simply refer back to the manual (or type the code in online) to accurately diagnose the issue.

If no such code is visible, your best bet is to call in a pro to get to the bottom of it once and for all.

For more information on oven maintenance and replacement oven parts, why not give us a call on? Drop us a line on 02920 452 510 or send us a message using the link below.

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Have you lost that oven feeling? You’re not alone.

A dodgy cooking appliance can quickly turn a simple meal into a vengeful voyage of four-letter words.

Don’t fall foul to a faulty thermostat. Turn up the heat and save your kitchen compadre from a premature pilgrimage to the scrapyard with these tips on how to fix an oven knob.

Oven knob problems

When it comes to oven knob issues, two of the most common problems are either that the knob won’t turn at all or that the oven knob turns but won’t register when it does.

If this is sounds like your dilemma, you’ve come to the right place!

So, don’t reach for the nearest hammer and slip into “Hulk Smash” mode just yet – there are still plenty of options available.

How to fix an oven knob

While it might seem like a minor issue, a stiff oven knob can cause a number of problems in the kitchen, particularly when it comes to food preparation. Nobody wants to rely on toast and microwave meals for the foreseeable future, so fixing the oven is paramount.

To get to the root of the problem before you begin, your first port of call should be removing the knob handle. The problem is likely to lie in either the peg shaft or the knob cap itself and this should settle the argument immediately.

However, while getting to the crux of the matter can be as easy as removing the cap, it can also lead to additional issues, if done incorrectly. Careless fiddling can result in a whole host of other knob-related problems, so be sure to take time and care.

How to remove an oven knob

Gently prise off the cap of your oven knob, placing your thumb on the front. If the cap is putting up a fight, try to ease it off with a butter knife on either side.

Once you’ve successfully removed the knob from your appliance, you can now inspect the shaft for damage. Without the casing, this should resemble a small peg protruding from the cooker front.

Using a pair of pliers, you can now attempt to turn the peg manually to change the temperature. If the peg now turns and works successfully, your problem lies in the knob itself (which can simply be replaced).

However, if it turns and still doesn’t register the temperature change, your problem likely lies within the thermostat or the oven wiring and will need professional attention.

How to fix a broken oven knob shaft

If you’ve followed the above steps and the peg still remains motionless, it could be a sign that the shaft has seized up. Should this be the case, WD40 is a handy weapon to have at your disposal.

Apply the WD40 to the peg and leave to soak in, ensuring the peg is well lubricated. Next, gently turn the peg, without applying too much force to avoid snapping. If the dial still won’t budge, it may be time to admit defeat and call in a pro.

What to do if your oven won’t turn off

If the oven knob is stuck in the “on” position, the number one priority on your mind before anything else will probably be turning the oven off safely.

A faulty oven knob can prove dangerous if it means you can no longer turn your oven off. As such, it’s important to know how to manually disconnect your oven, should the situation arise.

Disconnecting an electric oven

Some electric ovens will have a wall fitting that can allow you to simply shut off the power at the flick of a switch. However, this isn’t always the case, especially if you have a built-in wall oven.

If you don’t have a wall switch, you may need to check the cabinet under the oven and cut the power via the oven’s fuse box.

Disconnecting a gas oven

For gas ovens, you will have to manually turn off the gas. While this may seem like a precursor to an explosive scene from EastEnders, it’s actually a lot easier and less daunting than it sounds – luckily, with far less fireworks attached.

Gas supply valves are typically located behind or beneath the oven. All you need to do is gently pull the stove away from the wall enough to see the shut-off valve (usually painted red or yellow for easy identification). Simply turn the valve 90 degrees to the off position, stopping the flow of gas instantly.

If your oven knob needs replacing, head over to our dedicated cooker knobs page for our full range of replacement cooker knobs caps. If you’re still having issues with your oven knob that haven’t been rectified by the suggestions above, feel free to drop us a line on 02920 452 510 or send us an enquiry using the button below.

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If your oven has stopped working or you have noticed a fault, then carry on reading. This blog post targets common oven problems and how they can be fixed. The majority of problems that occur among most ovens can be fixed independently and it doesn’t take too long either. I bet you’re thinking – “what oven parts do I need?” Well, think no further! Cooker Spare Parts provide a range of oven parts that help make fixing your oven that little bit easier and, a lot quicker. This post will explain the different replacements you will need if certain parts of your oven have stopped working and require replacing. 

1. Not heating up

Firstly, if you have noticed your oven is not heating up how it should be, there’s no need to panic - this could be an easy fix.  

Gas oven:

If you have a gas oven, the issue could be down to a faulty igniter. In order to find this out, you can test one of the gas stovetops to see if it ignites. To check the temperature and turn on the gas of your oven, you more often than not press down on your dial, hear a few clicks and then the stovetops ignite. If this does not happen for you, you might want to consider replacing the igniter.

To replace the igniter, you can simply turn the oven off by disconnecting it from the main power socket. Remove your oven door so it’s easier for you to access your cooker’s igniter; remove the screws holding the igniter in place, and disconnect the wiring connection; connect your new igniter and then put everything back together – it’s as easy as that.  

If you’re still finding that your oven isn’t heating up as expected, you may have a problem with your thermostat. Your oven’s thermostat controls the amount of gas within the oven and allows the oven to reach a desired temperature (and of course, stopping it from under or over heating). If your thermostat is faulty, this can stop your gas oven from heating up correctly.

Electric oven:

If you have an electric oven, often, due to constant use, the heating elements can wear and stop working. You can often tell if an oven element is faulty if it doesn’t fully glow red/orange, or from its physical appearance. Visual indications are bulging; bright spots; or obvious cracks. If you notice any of these faults, then this is normally a sign that it’s time to replace your heating elements. Changing this only takes a short amount of time if you use the correct replacement part, and by following this step-by-step guide.

2. It’s not heating to the correct temperature

It can sometimes be frustrating when your oven suddenly stops heating to the correct temperature but these appliances don’t last forever, and it is important to keep checking regularly, to make sure your oven is doing its job.

Gas oven:

If your gas oven isn’t heating up to the correct temperature, it may be because you need to change your oven thermostat. However, it could be simpler than that, and the part that could be causing you trouble could be as simple as a door seal. Heat may escape from your oven door and therefore, resulting in your food not being cooked properly.

Electric oven:

If you notice your food is coming out of the oven partly cold; or it’s not heating up at all, this is normally a sign that the temperature sensor inside your oven is broken. Before replacing your temperature sensor, make sure to check that your sensor is not touching the inside wall as this affects your ovens capability of measuring the temperature. If you find your oven is still not heating to the correct temperature, you can use an ohmmeter to test your sensor. Replacing the temperature sensor is also an easy job!

Both ovens:

If you have changed your temperature sensor and thermostat, and your oven still doesn’t heat correctly, one common problem is that it needs to be calibrated. To check that your oven knows when and how to heat up, you must test it by using an oven thermometer. Preheat your oven to 176°C and take the temperature reading after twenty-minutes, and every twenty-minutes or so for the next two-hours - make sure you write your temperature readings down as you go along. After your final reading, add up the total temperature heating and divide this by the number of readings you took. If you’re findings are different to the average 176°C, this will indicate that you need to adjust your oven’s temperature dial. Hopefully this will fix the job!

3. It doesn’t cook food evenly

Another common oven problem is that it doesn’t cook your food evenly! If you have recently cooked some meals and noticed that they are cold in some parts and boiling in others, then this tends to sign that you have either a faulty heating element and thermostat, in your electric oven or thermostat and igniter, in your gas oven.

This problem can be easily fixed. All you have to do is preheat your oven and see if your heating elements light up (electric oven) or ignite (gas oven) and check that the temperature of the oven is the same as the temperature’s sensor. If after this diagnostic test your oven still isn’t working as desired, both heating elements and thermostats should be replaced, for electric ovens or thermostat and igniter, for gas ovens.

Additionally, if you are using baking trays or other trays whilst cooking, give them a clean or replace them. As trays are reflective, if they are not clean, the heat cannot bounce off them and therefore, cook your food as well. 

4. Door won’t close properly

Lastly, the easiest fix and an extremely common oven problem is that your door doesn’t close properly. If you find your oven doesn’t heat up as well as it used to it may be because your oven has a loose door. As we use our ovens daily, the hinges; catches and seals can become faulty, especially if we open and close with some force. This is probably the easiest fix and can be done in minutes. All you need to do is replace the hinges and/or door catch/pin; and your oven will be as good as new! For help replacing your oven door hinge, check out this easy to follow guide.

There are many common oven problems that you encounter, but most of them are a really easy fix! All of the products advised to change faulty parts of your cooker are from Cooker Spare Parts. If you encounter further oven problems and would like guidance or advise, don’t hesitate to contact the Cooker Spare Parts support team.

Note: before ordering any parts, make sure they are compatible with your specific oven model/type. Your model type and details can be found on your oven and we have a search bar that allows you to directly search what you are specifically looking for.

Simmerstats - also known as an energy regulator or infinite switch - are responsible for turning the heating elements on and off in hobs, grills, and various other cooking appliances. During the cooking period, the simmerstat tells the heating element to turn on and switch off at regular intervals. The length of those intervals is determined by you, the user - you simply turn the control knob that's hooked up to the simmerstat to determine how long you want each on period and each off period to last (and thus how much energy you want the heating element to use).

An example of a simmerstat in use

Let's imagine you're heating up some pasta sauce on your cooker's hob.

The instructions on the jar call for a low heat, so you turn the hob's control knob a quarter-turn. This is effectively telling the simmerstat that you want the hob's heating element on a quarter of the time.

Switching the hob on begins a cycle that is regulator by the simmerstat (energy regulator). For instance, the heating element might come on for 10 seconds, then turn off for 30 seconds, then come on for another 10 seconds, then go off for another 30 seconds...

You get the idea. This duty cycle means that, overall, the hob's heating element is operating at roughly a quarter of its full power, and since it is switched off for 75% of the time, your pasta sauce won't be allowed to get too hot.

If you're cooking something else that calls for a higher heat setting, you might turn the control knob three-quarters of the way around. Now you're telling the simmerstat to keep the hob ON for 75% of the time and OFF for 25% of the time. In this case, the element would theoretically stay on for 30 seconds before switching off for 10 seconds.

Need a new simmerstat?

If your simmerstat has stopped working then your cooker won't work properly either. Don't worry, though - we have a range of spare energy regulators available here at Cooker Spare Parts.

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