How To Know if Your Oven Fuse Is Blown (+ How to Fix It)

An oven uses an intricate combination of parts to generate heat and safely cook your food. If one of these parts fails, the oven may stop working to prevent further damage to the device or a potential accident. With this in mind, how do you know if your oven has blown a fuse?

Here’s how to know if your oven fuse is blown:

1. The fuse looks burnt.
2. There’s no continuity in the fuse.
3. The oven heating elements won’t turn on.
4. The oven control board display doesn’t work.

In this article, I’ll go over each of these points in detail to help you easily diagnose if your oven has blown a fuse.

Following that, I’ll also share a quick and straightforward guide on how to replace a blown fuse, reasons why your oven fuse blew, and what you can do to prevent further occurrences. Let’s get started!

1. The Fuse Looks Burnt

Your oven most likely uses a thermal fuse. It’s a single-use device designed to prevent heat overload from damaging the oven and its components. 

If and when the oven reaches a high enough temperature, the fuse will blow, thereby cutting the power supply and stopping the heating process.

Some ovens also include an electrical fuse. Its purpose is to protect the device from electrical damage and will blow in the event of an electrical overload.

Heat and current overload can potentially burn the fuse, giving it a charred appearance. Sometimes the heat can be high enough such that the fuse melts. 

As such, a visual examination is often all you need to diagnose whether the fuse is blown or working fine. 

The main problem you might face is figuring out where the fuse is located.

In most cases, you’ll find the thermal fuse located behind the back panel near the heating element terminals. Some models place the thermal fuse inside the oven chamber, right behind the back or top panel. Electrical fuses are usually placed near the power supply plug, but some units do have them inside the control board.

I suggest consulting the user manual that came with your oven to determine where the fuse is located. Alternatively, you can also call a technician if you don’t feel comfortable handling electronics.

2. There’s No Continuity in the Fuse

Sometimes a fuse can blow without any visual indications. As such, it’s always best to test the fuse for continuity to confirm whether it’s blown or working fine. In fact, a continuity test is the most sure-fire way of detecting a blown fuse.

A continuity test will check if there’s a “continuous” path inside the fuse for the current to flow through. If electricity does flow through, the fuse passes the test, and it’s working fine. But if there’s no continuity, the fuse is blown and needs to be replaced.

To perform the test, you’ll need a multimeter like the AstroAI Multimeter 2000 (available on Amazon.com) which is rated for safety and can accurately measure AC/DC voltage, resistance, etc., of everyday household items.

With the multimeter in hand, follow the below steps to test your oven fuse for continuity:

1. Unplug the oven from the power source.
2. Access the oven fuse you want to test.
3. Detach all wires connected to the fuse.
4. Take your multimeter and set it to the ohms or resistance setting.
5. Place the multimeter probes on each terminal of the fuse.
6. Check the reading on the multimeter.

A working fuse will have continuity, and the multimeter should show a reading between 0-1 ohm. However, if the multimeter doesn’t show a reading, this indicates that there’s no continuity, and the fuse is blown.

3.The Oven Heating Elements Won’t Turn On

On most ovens, the thermal fuse is typically connected to the heating elements and nothing else. 

This is because the heating elements are directly responsible for generating the heat. So, if there’s too much heat, cutting power to the heating elements should solve the problem.

If you notice that your heating elements won’t turn on or that it doesn’t get hot, it could be a sign that your oven’s thermal fuse is blown. This becomes even more likely if the heating elements stop working following an overheating incident.

Likewise, your oven can contain a dedicated electrical fuse for the heating elements, and if it breaks, the elements will stop working. 

That said, you can’t always blame a blown fuse if your heating elements stop working. It’s also possible that the fuse is ok, but the elements are faulty. Similarly, issues with the control board, thermostat, or heat sensor can cause the heating elements to cease working.

If your heating elements don’t heat up, you can take this as a clue that your fuse might be blown. But to know for sure, I strongly recommend doing the continuity test.

4. The Oven Control Board Display Doesn’t Work

Almost all oven control boards will have an electrical fuse to help protect them from power surges. The control board will stop working if the fuse blows, and the display will not show.

Ovens that use a thermal fuse sometimes position it between the power supply and the control board, among other components. If the thermal fuse blows, the user is directly alerted that something is wrong since the control board stops working.

However, as before, you can’t immediately jump to the conclusion that your fuse is blown merely because the oven control board display is not working. The issue might be with the control board itself or some other components.

Therefore, when you notice any problems with the control board display, remove it from your oven and examine its circuitry for signs of a blown fuse. Again, doing the continuity test will give you the most reliable answer.

How To Replace a Blown Oven Fuse

Once you know that your oven has a blown fuse and figured out where it is, all you need to do is replace it, and your oven should go back to its normal working condition.

That said, to replace your old oven fuse, you need to buy a new one that’s working. What’s more, different manufacturers and oven models use different styles of oven fuses. 

As such, to know which fuse will work with your specific oven type, I’d recommend checking the paperwork that came with your oven. Alternatively, visit the manufacturer’s website for further information. 

You can also check out this online tool, where you just need to enter your oven’s model number, and it’ll show you what fuse you’ll need.

Once you have the new replacement fuse in hand, just follow the steps given below to replace your blown oven fuse:

1. Unplug your oven from the power source.
2. Locate the blown oven fuse.
3. Disattach all connected wires to the fuse. However, remember which wire was connected to which fuse terminal. If there are too many wires, take a picture for reference.
4. Unthread the screw mounting the fuse to the oven.
5. Take out the old blown fuse.
6. Replace the new thermal fuse in the same position and orientation as the old one.
7. Mount it in place with the screw.
8. Attach the wires that were connected to it. Refer to your picture to know where the wires go.

And that’s it! You have successfully replaced the old blown fuse with a new working one. 

All you have to do now is reattach the back panel, connect the oven to a power supply, and test if everything is working correctly or not.

If you still encounter issues with your oven, some other component might be at fault, along with the thermal fuse. I’d suggest you check out the following articles for further information:

• Stove Top Getting Too Hot? Top 6 Reasons Why (+ Easy Fixes)
• Oven Not Heating Up but Stove Works? Here’s Why

Alternatively, you can also call a technician for help.

Why Did Your Oven’s Fuse Blew?

Your oven’s fuse blew either because of an overheating issue or an electrical power surge. The wire inside the fuse gets cut or melts when it experiences higher than normal temperatures or electricity to protect your oven and its components from damage.

The thermal fuse inside your oven is in charge of protecting the device from damage related to high heat. As such, when it detects high temperatures, it cuts the power source to the heating elements, which stops the heating and eventually brings down the oven temperature.

Likewise, an electrical fuse is put in place to protect your oven and its components from damage related to sudden power surges and electrical fluctuations. 

That said, if you find that your oven’s fuse(s) blows frequently, your oven might have a faulty component that’s leading to overheating problems. For example, there might be a problem with the temperature sensor, the heating elements, or the control board that might cause the oven to reach higher temperatures resulting in a blown thermal fuse.

For reference, here’s a 7-min YouTube video on how to troubleshoot overheating problems in an oven:

A short circuit or earth leakage can also blow your electrical fuse. You can check for a short or earthing issue by examining the heating elements, usually shaped like two-prong connectors.

If you notice that the elements aren’t seated properly and are touching the oven chassis, that can potentially cause your oven’s electrical fuse to blow up.

Here’s a 10-min YouTube video discussing the oven element’s shorting and other related problems:

Ways To Prevent Your Oven Fuse From Blowing

To prevent your oven fuse from blowing, you must deal with and remove the trigger that’s causing the problem. 

If you want to prevent your oven’s thermal fuse from blowing, you need to make sure the device doesn’t overheat. Now oven overheating can result from any of the following issues:

• The oven is miscalibrated
• The thermostat or thermistor is not working
• The heat sensor is not working
• The cooling fans are not working
• The heating elements are faulty
• The selector switch is malfunctioning
• The control board is malfunctioning

Once you diagnose what’s causing the overheating issue, fixing it should also stop the thermal fuse from blowing.

On the flipside, electrical issues will also cause your oven’s electrical fuse to blow. Here are some of the most common electrical problems that your oven might face:

• Shorting or earthing problems
• The oven is connected to a faulty power socket
• Problems with the electrical wiring

As before, diagnosing and fixing the main electrical problem will prevent your fuses from blowing.

That said, if you don’t feel confident troubleshooting your oven by yourself, I’d strongly urge you to call a technician.

Tips for Using Ovens With a Limit Switch Instead of a Fuse

Some modern ovens use a limit switch instead of a thermal fuse. To know whether your model uses a limit switch, consult the user manual or paperwork that came with your oven.

Like thermal fuses, limit switches are also overload protection devices that’ll disconnect the power to the heating elements if and when temperatures get too high. 

However, unlike a thermal fuse, a limit switch will reset itself automatically (or through manual intervention) after each overheating incident.

As such, a limit switch will not blow like a fuse. That said, over time, and with repeated overheating issues, the limit switch can become faulty and exhibit the same symptoms as a thermal fuse.

Even if your oven model uses a limit switch, you should still check whether it’s working properly. This is especially so if you notice the heating elements or control board have stopped working.

Like fuses, you can quickly check if the limit switch is working correctly by testing for continuity. 

Here’s a helpful 6-min YouTube video going over how to test and replace an oven limit switch:

Conclusion

A telltale sign that your oven fuse is blown is if the fuse looks burnt or if it tests false for continuity. 

However, if you don’t feel comfortable examining and testing the oven fuse, you can look for other signs. For example, a blown fuse can cause the heating elements and the control board display to stop working – especially if the problem started right after a power surge or overheating incident.