Do you spend far too much time waiting for your oven to finish preheating? So have I, and while it caused a bit of frustration, it was also a great exercise in patience (at least that’s what my better half kept telling me).
The average time it takes to preheat an oven is about 10-15 minutes, depending on how modern the oven is, and the target temperature you’re preheating it to. Having to wait for much longer than 10-15 minutes should raise suspicion, as it may indicate that there’s something wrong with the oven.
So, thanks to my inability to be patient we started doing research online before we decided to reach out for help. We got in contact with a technician who inspected the oven and talked to the manufacturers. We were right, there was something wrong with the oven.
Knowing kitchen appliances, I made a guess that the problem could stem from a variety of different things, and that turned out to be the case. Today, we’re going to look at what could be causing the problem and what you can do about it.
In a gas oven, it’s commonly a weak igniter that causes the oven to preheat for a long time. If the igniter fails to spark the gas into flames within a minute, then the igniter is far too weak to open the safety valve and must be replaced. In an electric oven, the heating element may be damaged and the thermostat may need calibration. Extended periods of preheating are also commonly caused by faulty relay boards, burned fuses, and malfunctioning spark electrodes.
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We’ll take a closer look at each and every single scenario. But first, why do you need to preheat an oven?
Why Do You Preheat an Oven?
It’s necessary to preheat an oven when preparing certain foods, especially when baking, to ensure that the food is being cooked at high temperatures from the minute you place it in the oven.
If you, for instance, place a pie or piece of bread in an oven that hasn’t reached temperature yet, the end result will be far from what it could have been. The texture of the bread will most likely be subpar. Preheating the oven guarantees consistent results.
Because the oven’s cavity is a rather large box of air, it takes quite some time to heat it up to the desired temperature. You would need to operate the oven at unsafe temperatures with powerful heating elements in order for the oven to come to temperature right off the bat.
So, because the oven doesn’t magically start at the temperature you set it to, and because most recipes have a set cooking time that doesn’t account for the preheat time – it’s important that you preheat the oven before you place your ingredients in it in order to produce the best possible results.
It should be noted that some dishes don’t require you to preheat your oven – like a stew for example. The stew can be placed in the oven while it’s coming to temperature without jeopardizing the end result.
Now, back to the problem at hand.
Why Is My Oven Preheating Slowly?
Gas and electric ovens are different from one another. Some of the components in an electric oven don’t exist in a gas oven and vice versa. Because they function differently, they also malfunction differently. Sometimes, the issue is somewhat similar – but it’s usually different things.
The information shared in this article is merely my experience, and what has worked for me. It is not a recommendation from a certified technician or customer support and shouldn’t be considered as such. Always contact someone with professional experience before you start working with your oven. You risk damaging yourself and the unit.
Failing or weak igniter: Over time, the oven’s igniter may lose resistance. This can make the igniter too weak to open the safety valve, which stops the gas from reaching the igniter.
If that’s the case, then you probably need to get your igniter replaced. You can identify this problem by turning on the igniter and waiting for it to spark the gas. If this takes more than a minute, then there’s most likely a malfunction.
Damaged bake or broil elements: The oven’s heating elements are responsible for distributing heat. They’re the oven’s primary heat source. So, when the oven is heating up, the elements should be glowing orange as an indication that they’re heating up.
If your heating elements seem damaged, or have dead spots (black areas where the element doesn’t heat up, then there’s a problem with your heating elements.
You can test your heating elements using a multimeter. Sidenote: In electric convection ovens, the heating elements aren’t visible – so it’s quite hard to identify this problem.
Faulty Gas Safety Valve: Another thing. that will force your oven into a longer preheat cycle is a damaged gas safety valve. If the safety valve is either damaged or unable to be opened properly, it can either make your oven heat up slowly or cause it to heat up more than intended.
If you think your gas oven has problems with the safety valve, I suggest getting in contact with a technician as soon as possible.
The thermostat is faulty: Thermostats are used to regulate the temperature in ovens. Both gas and electric ovens use thermostats to help them regulate temperature. If your thermostat is faulty, then the oven is most likely having a hard time making the proper adjustments needed to preheat to the right temperature.
Many electric ovens have thermostat bulbs or sensors that monitor the oven’s temperature. They’re basically thermostats – or at least used as such. The main difference is that these sensors require a fair bit of wiring and come with a digital display.
So, before you jump to the conclusion that the sensor or bulb is malfunctioning, you may want to check the wiring.
Faulty relays: If your oven has two elements, chances are it also has two relays. These relays can burn out over time. If you suspect that your oven’s relays have gone haywire, contact a technician to have them checked.
Spark electrodes: The spark electrode is located next to the burner and its primary job is to ignite the gas. The spark electrode can be damaged, which would render it quite difficult for the spark to ignite the gas. Inspect the housing and the electrode’s tip to see if it has been damaged.
Damaged outer seal: The oven is designed to keep heat circulating within the oven’s cavity. If the outer seal has gone bad over the years, chances are the oven is leaking heat, which increases the time it takes for the oven to come to temperature. This is a problem that’s more common with older ovens that have been used frequently for years on end.
How Long Should It Take For an Electric Oven Range To Preheat?
The time it takes an oven to preheat to the set temperature will differ from oven to oven. Both minor and major changes will impact the time.
Therefore, I can only speak about averages and it takes an oven about 10-15 minutes on average to preheat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. The same oven will preheat to 400 degrees Fahrenheit in about 17-18 minutes, and 425 in 19-21 minutes.
Some models will preheat much faster than this, and others will be slower. Regardless, this should give you an idea of what you can expect from an oven.
How Can I Make My Oven Preheat Faster?
While browsing through Cookinglight’s articles, I found an article promising to provide a simple hack that would cut the time it takes to preheat the oven substantially.
Well, it turned out to do just that and I’ve been doing it every time I don’t need those extra 10-15 minutes for other preparations.
You can make your oven preheat faster by putting your oven’s broiler on high for 3-5 minutes. This will get your oven to higher temperatures within a couple of minutes when you set the oven to the desired temperature afterward.
Can You Preheat an Oven For Too Long?
Preheating the oven for a longer time than the intended cycle doesn’t necessarily have a negative impact on the oven or the food. It will, however, waste a bit of energy.
The oven will cycle the heating elements on and off to regulate temperature while you’re preheating. This isn’t a very energy-consuming procedure but it’s still worth noting that it’s going to waste unless the heat is used to cook.
Of course, it’s recommended to only preheat the oven until it has reached the desired temperature, but preheating it for longer won’t ruin the texture or taste of the meal.
So, accidentally letting your oven preheat longer than needed isn’t more than a waste of energy. If the issue comes from within the oven, and not you letting it sit for too long, then there’s a bigger problem.
Can You Put Food In the Oven While It’s Preheating?
I touched on this topic earlier in the article. However, I believe there’s more to say about it.
You can put food in the oven while it’s preheating but it’s dependent on what you’re cooking. Now, you can put all types of food in the oven while it’s preheating but some of it won’t turn out very good.
There are certain things that shouldn’t be placed in the oven until the correct temperature has been reached, and others that don’t need to be cooked with such precision.
Preheating can almost be considered a must when baking. Baking is the act of carefully orchestrating chemical reactions in the right order and there are few things that will have such a strong impact on the end result as time and temperature.
Preheating will provide a surefire way for you to keep track of both temperature, and time spent at the correct temperature. So, when baking, preheating is possibly one of the most important things. The immediate blast of heat will help the ingredients set much faster.
Generally speaking, you should be able to put most foods that aren’t baked goods in the oven while it’s preheating as long as you take the time it takes for the oven to come to temperature into account when setting the cooking time.