Electric Range & Wall Oven - Bake and Broil Element Operation

Preheat:

During Preheat, the Bake and Broil elements both come on to quickly heat the oven. Range & Wall Oven - Preheat

 

Bake:

During the bake cycle you can see that the bake element is working because of the bright orange glow it gives off. The broil element may cycle on to provide heat from the top for better cooking results. The broil element wattage is less (on most models) during baking, which means the broil element will not necessarily glow orange, even when it is on.

• Some very old Standard Clean oven models have a single element bake only. No broil element is used when baking.

 

Broil:

In the broil cycle the broil element may glow when on. However, if the broil element is on and heating, but not glowing, this is still normal operation. The bake element is not used during the broil cycle.

• 8-pass broil elements: On Broil, 8-pass broil elements will glow red on the inside 6 passes but not the outside pass. The outside pass glows red only during pre-heat.

 

If the oven door is shut, the broil element will cycle off if the oven temperature reaches the High Broil (550 degrees Fahrenheit) or Lo Broil (450 degrees Fahrenheit) temperature. This is normal. When the door is left open in the broil position, the broil element will stay on continuously.

 

For more information:

• Range & Wall Oven - Oven Door Position During Broil

• Wall Oven - Oven Door Position During Broil

 

Self-Cleaning:

When self-cleaning the oven, the bake and broil elements are used and either may glow. Some electronic control models engage the broil element for the first 1/2 hour of the self-clean cycle and then turn it off and engage the bake element the rest of the time.