Microwave oven for warming plates?

davethetaller

I had always believed that a microwave oven should never be used empty.

(I know that there would be no good reason to do that!), but,my daughter

uses hers on the microwave cycle,for just a minute, to heat up two dinner

plates. It does an excellent job, but is it causing harm?

BillScarab

I may be looking at this simplistically but if it has plates in then it's not empty.

We do that too sometimes and ours is still fine.

totalsolutions

You should not do that, I believe its still empty! Water molecules are vibrated that create heat, there are no water molecules in plates, so what is getting hot, its the metal inpurities in the cheap/import/Chinese pottery and as we all know you dont place metal in a microwave. These plates can/will get extremely hot and in a localised point and cause you a bad skin burn and as its so hot, you do not at first, feel it. The plates will have very fine hair line cracks in them.

I place mine in the upper oven (plate warming setting) at 35C.

Why not place the meal on the plates and then into the microwave, the plates will get warm...

BillScarab

Hmm, perhaps it's not a great idea. However this site recommends sprinkling a little water on the plates first.

tinkerbell84

totalsolutions wrote: »

Why not place the meal on the plates and then into the microwave, the plates will get warm...

Because it would ruin the food!


I use the microwave to warm plates, it's quicker than the oven, which is often full of food anyway! I do run them under the tap first.

Alternatively I time a hot wash in the dishwasher to end when I'll need the plates :beer:

Swan_2

BillScarab wrote: »

Hmm, perhaps it's not a great idea. However this site recommends sprinkling a little water on the plates first.

I'm sure that tip was in the instruction manual (long since vanished so I can't check) for one of my microwaves, so I would imagine it's ok to do it that way

never tried it out though

totalsolutions

>Because it would ruin the food!

Do explain, Tinkerbell84, Radiation Exposure?

tinkerbell84

totalsolutions wrote: »

>Because it would ruin the food!

Do explain, Tinkerbell84, Radiation Exposure?

Hardly. By overcooking it :rolleyes:

isofa

You should definitely not do this! And I can't believe people do.

You'll potentially damage the plates, but almost certainly you'll damage the magnetron in the microwave. Effectively the microwave is empty as there is are water molecules to "excite" in a solid dry plate. So all the warnings you'd heed for an empty oven running on the microwave setting are applicable.

Microwaves usually have a glass plate, but you wouldn't turn it on and use this without anything else in it would you? Again with this is, the microwave is still empty, no significant microwave energy will be absorbed by the glass platter.

The only safe way to warm plates is in a combi microwave oven, using the convention oven function, not the microwave.

tinkerbell84

isofa wrote: »

You should definitely not do this! And I can't believe people do.

You'll potentially damage the plates, but almost certainly you'll damage the magnetron in the microwave. Effectively the microwave is empty as there is are water molecules to "excite" in a solid dry plate. So all the warnings you'd heed for an empty oven running on the microwave setting are applicable.

Microwaves usually have a glass plate, but you wouldn't turn it on and use this without anything else in it would you? Again with this is, the microwave is still empty, no significant microwave energy will be absorbed by the glass platter.

The only safe way to warm plates is in a combi microwave oven, using the convention oven function, not the microwave.

unless you put water on the plates!

vernall

i use ours to warm plates,always have done,i just pop a small old cup half full of water on top of them