Can I use oven without its door gasket?

April 17, 2018 1:50 PM

The rubber gasket around the edge of the door on my oven has come off. It fell down and caught fire on the electric heating element, which we quickly caught and put out. We had to throw the gasket away, of course. The landlord can replace the gasket next week. In the meantime, can I bake a pie without burning the house down?
posted by HeroZero to Home & Garden (12 answers total)

Best answer: You're not necessarily going to burn the house down, but you'll have a difficult time maintaining a proper, even temperature in your oven. Any chance you can pick up a gasket yourself and have the landlord reimburse you? They're pretty easy to install and not very expensive.
posted by halation at 1:54 PM on April 17, 2018 [9 favorites]

Best answer: Yes, but you'll want a thermometer, you'll lose a lot of heat and need to adjust accordingly.

Source: have partner who insists on using cookie sheet too large to let oven door shut; have used broiler with door open because that's what you do.
posted by solotoro at 1:55 PM on April 17, 2018 [4 favorites]

Best answer: PS - oven losing a lot of heat = kitchen gaining a lot of heat. I wouldn't do this in any kitchen already prone to stuffiness.
posted by solotoro at 1:58 PM on April 17, 2018 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Watch the knobs, if they are on the top of the oven- it’s easy to melt them. Ask me how I know.
posted by jenkinsEar at 2:40 PM on April 17, 2018 [11 favorites]

Best answer: Watch the knobs, if they are on the top of the oven- it’s easy to melt them.

Even if you don't melt them, you can give yourself a very painful burn when you grab them. Please don't ask me how I know, the memories hurt.
posted by howfar at 3:51 PM on April 17, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Go ahead and do it, if you like to play fast and loose with fire safety, burn risk and pie quality.

But if you value those things, please wait.
posted by SaltySalticid at 4:30 PM on April 17, 2018 [1 favorite]

Is any pie worth that risk?
posted by Dashy at 5:09 PM on April 17, 2018 [3 favorites]

Response by poster: Alas, butterscotch pie will have to wait. I will make due with scotch.
posted by HeroZero at 5:13 PM on April 17, 2018 [10 favorites]

I like the way you think.
posted by kate4914 at 6:39 PM on April 17, 2018 [4 favorites]

A friend would probably let you use their oven for a piece of pie.
posted by a humble nudibranch at 8:53 PM on April 17, 2018 [1 favorite]

You probably won't notice any change in operation. Gaskets are usually there only on self cleaning units to assist in obtaining the high temperatures required for self clean cycles; you are totally fine to use the oven without a gasket. Though if you have a self cleaning unit I'd avoid that till the gasket is replaced.

There is not a risk of fire or damaging the oven. As solotoro indicated all ovens are designed to be used with the oven partially open; the first stop when you are opening the door (called the broil stop) is designed to hold the door open slightly while broiling.
posted by Mitheral at 6:34 AM on April 18, 2018

Not that I would encourage anyone to do this, but your typical oven puts about about 1.5 kW, which is about what your typical larger burner puts out on medium-high. I might, but might not vent if I had a pan going at that level. Obviously, the burner vents into an area designed for venting, while the gasketless oven is going to vent up the front/top of the oven, but most older ovens are also designed to broil with the door open. I'm not convinced this is actually as terrible an idea as it first appears. I've broiled in an oven for 20 minutes and not melted my dials off.
posted by wnissen at 10:24 AM on April 18, 2018