Last week, I went over to a friend’s apartment for dinner. After the meal had finished cooking, he asked his wife if the oven was off. The innocent question was one I’d heard many times before and one I think makes a lot of sense to ask. After all, the oven is like the lights in a house – if it isn’t being used, keeping it on would be a waste of resources.
But if the oven were still on, would it have been a big deal? Based on some past experiences, the reactions I’ve witnessed others have to the oven ‘still being on’ would suggest that yes, leaving the oven on is a BIG DEAL. I’ve seen people descend into a semi-panic when they find out the oven’s been left on for even a few minutes. There is something productive about this reaction because each minute an oven is left on makes it more likely that it will be left on for too long and eventually result in some kind of unwanted domestic disaster. I guess this leads me to the question, though, of how long an oven must be left on before it is officially on for too long.
My hunch? It is probably a lot longer than most people would guess (and certainly a lot longer than most reactions to the discovery of a left-on oven would suggest). The key to thinking about this is to consider what’s in the oven. Usually, the hysterical reactions to the left-on oven occur solely because there is nothing inside the oven. But if something is in the oven – even just something small like a muffin or a potato – then it usually isn’t considered a big deal.
I think this distinction is a little odd. Does it really matter if something is in the oven? I think an oven is actually more dangerous if something is inside because anything can catch fire if it is left in the oven for too long. An empty oven, on the other hand, has nothing inside of it to set on fire. It’s basically the equivalent of a really bad heating system – you might be cold but you probably aren’t going to have to call the fire department.
Now, don’t get me wrong here, reader. A still-on oven is a risk in the same way having anything really hot to the touch sitting around in your living area is a risk. But in terms of its direct threat to a dwelling’s well being? I think I’d rather an empty oven than one with a highly flammable (inflammable?) dinner burning up inside.
