Re: Running an empty microwave oven

Microwave ovens don't care what you put inside. They do not have
feedback loops. You can cook a raisin or a melon or nothing at all.

 

It dissipates. Where do you think the microwave transmitters on mountain
tops power ends up? It doesn't go round and round the earth forever.

 

Peter-

If there is nothing in the microwave, there is no load, or at least very
little. If there is no load, there is no power dissipated. It is
somewhat like having 120 VAC at the wall socket with nothing plugged-in.

The problem isn't heat as much as voltage. With no load, the magnetron
voltage will be higher than normal. The question is really whether or
not damage will occur from over-voltage.

Someone in another thread a few weeks ago, said that only very early
microwave ovens would be damaged by running them empty. I know that one
I bought in 1976 came with a warning about running it empty, as well as
not putting anything metallic in it. However, two that were bought
about ten years ago did NOT come with such warnings, and even came with
metal racks!

Fred

 

Same question, where do the light waves go from the light inside the
microwave? Same energy, just higher frequency and lower power. Same
place as the microwaves.

 

that's not happening not unless those sides are superconductive

 

WEll, almost right... (and your 'normally' does apply, so what you say
is true, but there's more! <bg>)

All you need is pressure, not a combustable substance.

In the case of the balls that 'exploded' were they to have a 'strong'
outter shell, and a high moisture content inside, the moisture could
easily convert to steam and build up pressure until the outer shell
failed--an explosion... It would not be difficult to build up a
hundred PSI of steam pressure, and that would result in a rather large
'bang'!