Cookers that won't work unless the clock is set

[Rollerball]

My mother has a cooker (I forget the make) that won't operate unless the clock is set - if there is a power cut, when the power comes back on the clock flashes '00:00' and the oven won't work until the clock is set.

Unfortunately my mother (who is a pensioner) finds this tricky to do and often needs to wait for a friend to come around to do it for her (it's hard for me to help as I live a few hours drive away).

Is there a way around this 'problem'?

Is there a way to enable the oven WITHOUT setting the clock? Perhaps there is a way to disable this annoying feature?

Thanks

 

[HERTS P&D]

Our oven is like that, can you teach your mother to just press the clock buttons so that the clock is set at any time. As the clock doesn't have to be correct to work.

Andy

 

[ban-all-sheds]

What does she find tricky? Setting the time correctly or being able to get to the time-setting stage at all?

As she doesn't use the timer feature then she doesn't need the clock to be right, just to think it has been set.

 

[Rollerball]

I've tried showing her how to set it (to any kind of random time) but she always hates doing it "in case I do something wrong" (even though I've told her that she won't do any harm).

It's such a useless 'feature' - I can't see the point in it.

 

[EFLImpudence]

Unfortunately my mother (who is a pensioner) finds this tricky to do and often needs to wait for a friend to come around to do it for her

60 or 101 ?

 

[JohnD]

you could try writing the step-by-step instructions on a piece of card with felt-tip pen.

 

[flameport]

Perhaps there is a way to disable this annoying feature?

The clock can be bypassed, however this involves modifications to the internal wiring of the oven.
Usually straightforward if you know exactly what you are doing. Potentially lethal if not.

 

[martinxxxxxx]

This should probably be in the appliance section, and I don't really see the relavence of her age, if she can't use it she can't use it and that is all there is to it.
The only option is to get a simpler cooker for her or one with a built in backup battery for the clock.
There is another way but it would only suffix if the cooker is a mains plug type and not wired directly into the wall.

 

[TicklyT]

......It's such a useless 'feature' - I can't see the point in it.

The purpose of the 'feature' is to stop the oven starting unexpectedly after a power cut, possibly when the kitchen is unattended, and setting fire to a half-cooked meal left in it when the power went off.

 

[Diyisfun]

what make is the cooker...never heard of this before...I did over 20 years on domestic appliance development,
this was never a featured discussed.

 

[ericmark]

My oven and my mothers oven is the same and I have same problem with my mother at 86 not being able to set the clock.

This was not helped when the council sent some one around to show her how to use the cooker and they advised her to switch it off on the wall. If I had got hold of the silly woman I would have given her a mouthful. It took some time to persuade my mother not to turn it off on the wall.

The oven was fitted because she is disabled and the height carefully set so she can use it in a wheel chair then the temperature and selector switch can only be read from above and in a wheel chair she looks up at the controls.

The selector switch also causes a problem. Clearly needed to switch from oven to grill but although not as many options as mine (11 options) it does have 6 options to select from and leaving it selected means oven light stays on.

Try explaining to an 84 year old Thermal Grilling - This function offers
an alternative method of cooking food items, normally associated with
conventional grilling. The grill element and the oven fan operate alternately, circulating hot air around the food. When using the thermal grill cooking function, select a maximum temperature of 200°C.

Oddly it is something I use. And at least hers has not got fan and conventional oven with options of top heat, bottom heat, with and without fan and rear fan heat plus combinations of them. Although I suppose only the same as with her old oven with the dampers to route the flue gases in different ways to control oven temperature.

My clock gets used once a year. To do the turkey. No way am I waiting around for 6 hours to turn it off.

But to be fair with my Belling touch any button and the clock will set even if wrong time so oven will work.

Her Zanussi was selected as side opening door and special rails like those in filing cabinets stop shelves tilting or falling out. So not that many options to select from. My Belling is silly as far as shelves go I have hair pins to stop them coming right out.

So will watch this post to see the options as I have same problem. Takes me two hours on buses to do just 6 miles to her house. In good weather I use push bike. So you are not alone.

 

[Rollerball]

Thanks for the words of advice folks, and ericmark - sorry to hear that you too have the same problems!

 

[conny]

We have a Stoves Newhome GL716 which has this feature.
All your mum needs to do is press the 2nd and 3rd buttons at the same time, (usually one finger in the middle will contact both at once), and then press the + button once or twice. This should be covered in the instruction manual if you still have it. She will then see there is no danger in what she is doing.
This will fool the oven into thinking the clock is set and allow her to use the oven/grill.
Hope you manage to show her how to do it.