Baked purple potatoes explode! Do you know the "explosive temper" of these electrical appliances?

Audit expert: Luo Huiqian

Associate Researcher, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences

With winter approaching, who wouldn't be attracted by the sweet and delicious baked sweet potatoes? Many people choose to bake sweet potatoes in the oven, microwave or air fryer. However, if you are not careful when using them, they may cause an explosion.

Source: Weibo screenshot

The "exploding sweet potato" in the news was caused by the man's negligence in home appliance safety knowledge. The skin of sweet potatoes is hard and contains a lot of water. When heated, the water inside evaporates to form water vapor, which makes the sweet potatoes swell. After taking them out of the oven, the ambient temperature is low, and the alternation of hot and cold makes the swollen sweet potatoes very likely to explode!

As the weather is getting colder, electric blankets, hand warmers and other heating devices come in handy. We should pay more attention to the safety hazards of home appliances. Let us learn about the "explosion-proof guide" for home appliances!

Microwave, Oven, Air Fryer Explosion-Proof Guide

Microwave ovens, ovens, air fryers and other appliances used for heating food should be placed stably when in use, leaving enough heat dissipation space. It is best to leave more than 10cm of heat dissipation space on the left, right and back walls, otherwise it is easy to ignite or even explode due to overheating of the circuit. When cleaning, also pay attention to the fact that except for the inner tank, other places cannot be washed with water. It is best to just wipe with a rag. After cleaning, you need to wipe off any remaining water droplets and place it in a dry place.

Although they are very convenient for heating things, not everything can be put in them for heating. In order to "explosion-proof", the following points need to be noted:

One is to heat foods that are more closed, such as eggs, sweet potatoes, chestnuts, etc. During the heating process, the inside of the egg expands more violently than the outside, and it is easy to "explode", so you need to cut the egg before heating. Sweet potatoes and chestnuts are similar, so just cut them a little more before heating.

Just draw a line on the chestnut head like this Source｜A shopping website

The second is metal utensils. Metal utensils cannot be placed in microwave ovens, but they can be heated in ovens and air fryers. The principle of microwave heating is to allow microwaves to be absorbed by food, accelerate molecular vibrations inside the food, and generate heat. However, microwaves are difficult to penetrate metals, and are easily absorbed by metals, stimulating electronic oscillations and even generating large currents. If they come into contact with the metal inner wall of the furnace, electric sparks are likely to be generated, burning the microwave oven, and in severe cases, there is a risk of explosion! The metal grill exclusive to microwave ovens is actually used in oven mode, and reflects less microwaves and light waves, but it cannot come into contact with the furnace wall.

Source: pexels

It should also be noted that it is absolutely forbidden to put boxed milk into the microwave , not only because of its "closed nature", but also because the inner wall of the milk box is aluminum foil, which is also metal and will absorb microwaves. Pouring the milk into a ceramic bowl can be heated normally.

It is worth mentioning that microwave ovens cannot heat fruits such as grapes, cherry tomatoes, and blueberries . Scientists' experiments have shown that when they are heated in a microwave oven, elements such as sodium and potassium in the juice tend to form plasma and produce electric sparks.

Scientists use hydrogel beads to soak sodium chloride for simulation Source｜www.pnas.org

Standard usage of common household appliances

In addition to appliances for heating food, other appliances that are frequently used in daily life also need to be used safely. Some appliances have high power, so in order to prevent leakage due to burning of the internal insulator of the appliance, it is necessary to connect the ground wire. In addition, several special appliances are also worth mentioning.

1. Humidifier

In drier areas, humidifiers are generally installed in rooms to increase the humidity of the air, but you must pay attention to a few points during use: the humidifier should be kept at a certain distance from other electrical appliances to prevent water vapor from entering the circuit boards of other appliances and causing short circuits; you should not add essences, wind oils, fresheners, etc. to the humidifier's water tank, as they will not only cause damage to the body, but also irritate the human respiratory tract and affect your health; the humidity of the humidifier should not be too high, otherwise it will not only cause breathing difficulties, but will also make it easier for bacteria to grow.

Source: A shopping website

2. Kettle

There are also some things to note when using a kettle to boil water: the water level cannot be higher than the water level line, and it cannot be too little or even dry. If the water level is higher than the water level line, hot water may easily overflow during the boiling process, which may easily cause electric leakage, while too little water or dry boiling may easily overheat and burn the machine. A kettle is not a pot, and cannot be used to boil milk or cook noodles, etc. It may easily burn and the working time may be prolonged, causing the machine to burn.

Source: pexels

3. Electric blanket, hair dryer

It should be noted that electric blankets must not be used continuously for too long, as they can easily cause low-temperature burns (chronic burns caused by prolonged contact of the body with low-temperature objects above 45°C).

Low temperature burns source | Baidu Encyclopedia

When using a hair dryer, it should not be held too close to the body. Not only will it damage the skin, it may also easily cause overheating and burn the body due to poor heat dissipation. Also, avoid using a hair dryer in places with a lot of moisture, such as bathrooms.

Home appliances play an indispensable and important role in our lives. While making use of their convenience, we should also master their safe and standardized usage methods and not let them "explode".