Oven Rant

Stoves, Fridges, Radiograms and more
bankeny
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Oven Rant

Post by bankeny »

It's time to replace our old (60's?) Frigidaire double oven. One of the burners wasn't working, so I pulled it out and found a loose wire in the back. After repairing the wire and sliding the beast back against the wall, the oven lights and auxiliary outlet stopped working! I pulled it out again and cannot find the source of the new issue.

However, I cannot unsee the wiring mess I saw. Black tape holding some splices together. Signs of charing and hot spots on some of the insulation. My wife deserves a kitchen remodel, but an electric fire wouldn't be the best route to go!

So now the dilemma is replacing a 40" wide stove when new stoves are 30" wide. I know there are 40" models available, but taking out a second mortgage to pay for a stove does not work in our frugal, debt reduction (Dave Ramsey) lifestyle.

Any suggestions on filling a 10" gap between a new oven and existing coutertops?

phil
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Re: Oven Rant

Post by phil »

a 10" wide cupboard for the baking pans? maybe a pull out garbage and recycle bin?

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Don M
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Re: Oven Rant

Post by Don M »

I have a cabinet that size for large trays standing on end. My neighbors had a very nice range your size but they installed new cabinets that fit the new 30 inch range. How about rewiring the old stove or at least repair all the bad splices. Those stoves often had a fuse somewhere on the stove top near the controls does yours?

phil
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Re: Oven Rant

Post by phil »

re-wiring it is simple, Just do one wire at a time. You might need some wire with heat proof insulation and the wire must be equal or greater in size. As long as you don't get confused and drawn away it shouldn't be complicated, if you like it. The pots to adjust the temperature might see some wear. you could ohm them out and check an appliance place to see if you can replace those.
you might find a schematic inside somewhere. it might be pasted somewhere. If not you can make your own. You can get electrical number tape and just number each wire, or take lots of pictures. my "new one has electronics for the clock and one by one the LED's for the digits are burning out. I'm the only one that can read the time just because I got used to it. If your wife would really rather have a new stove your questions may be already answered. If you want it restored for you, you could check an appliance place that actually fixes stuff. some are reasonable. I do have a roll of appropriate wire, I think.

lovesickest
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Re: Oven Rant

Post by lovesickest »

What about replacing this vintage stove with another vintage stove with the same dimensions ? I don't know how active Craigslist, etc. is in your area - but this may be the least expensive option ? Obviously you would need to find one in good working condition.

The Old Appliance Club can assist with sourcing parts:

http://www.antiquestoves.com/toac/

Finding a competent repair person who is experienced with vintage stoves and is able/willing to locate the parts is the greatest challenge, in my experience.

heartwood
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Re: Oven Rant

Post by heartwood »

look what I found...just the right size too!
http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/dak/a ... 80263.html

good luck...
...jade

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Lily left the valley
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Re: Oven Rant

Post by Lily left the valley »

I second checking CL if you don't think it can be saved as per your own budget/skills/comfort level.

I did a quick search for CL Mankato (I lived there briefly, so I assumed it'd be close since you're in "Blue Earth" territory.) I searched for "double oven" in the appliance section. This one came up in the "nearby" listings, a 40" electric might fit your budget: https://rmn.craigslist.org/app/5885645180.html.

I found another with the same quick search in the antiques section, but no photo, and not as much detail, https://mankato.craigslist.org/atq/5863393824.html.

This one isn't a double, and not electric, but was still a neat MCM. https://mankato.craigslist.org/atq/5857902847.html

If you have to go 30" and need a fill, I'd pretty much suggest what already was so far.
--Proud member of the Industrious Cheapskate Club
--Currently pondering ways to encourage thoughtful restovation and discourage mindless renovation.

bankeny
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Re: Oven Rant

Post by bankeny »

I love you guys (and gals)! I come here just to complain about a broken down old oven and get tons of great advice!

Our days of having a "vintage" oven are over. As cool as some of those CL finds look, we are ready for a modern oven in the kitchen. If we were in a 50's ranch house, the MCM stoves might be more attractive. But it's not really the "style" for a 1912. And there's no way we would go to an antique oven that would be "age appropriate" for the house!

The wife and I have decided to replace the oven with a 30" model and also replace the cabinet that sits between the oven and refrigerator. The current cabinet is around 22", so add 10" to that and find a nice 32" cabinet to fill the space instead of trying to mess with a 10" filler cabinet.

We're leaning towards custom built cabinetry so the "style" can be matched 10 years down the road when the rest of the kitchen can get a facelift.

My next rant.... the built-in. Why were the counters built so shallow? There's hardly room to stir a bowl of cookie dough without the cabinets above interfering. I suppose that should be a new post some day......

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Lily left the valley
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Re: Oven Rant

Post by Lily left the valley »

I assumed MCM since the one you mentioned dying was 60-ish. :lol: I am pretty bad at keeping track of who has what house unless it's part of their username/avatar/signature.

Sounds like you a have a great plan you came up with both for short and long term. Don't forget we'll all want to see pictures when the latest change is done. ;-)
--Proud member of the Industrious Cheapskate Club
--Currently pondering ways to encourage thoughtful restovation and discourage mindless renovation.

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Re: Oven Rant

Post by Olson185 »

The only time I lived with cabinets abutting the stove was when I first moved in with my bride-to-be's modern remodeled Levitt house 13 yrs. ago (and for 4 yrs.). Other than that, all my kitchens were a bit more traditional. So, to me, continuous counter-tops and cupboards seems "modern". Just sayin', a gap between stove and cupboard is normal and proper from my point of view.
~James

Fourth generation in a family of artists, engineers, architects, woodworkers, and metalworkers. Mine is a family of Viking craftsmen. What we can't create, we pillage, and there's nothing we can't create. But, sometimes, we pillage anyway.

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