Good Question: My Electric Stove Burner is Tilted -- Help!

Dear Kitchen,

I have an electric range (pity me) and my one large burner is totally off-kilter. All the liquid in a saucepan runs to one side. Any ideas on how to fix this?

Thanks!
Margo

Good Morning, Margo. Thanks for your question and your picture of the problem.

First, I'm ready to come out. I too have an electric stove and I grew up in a house with an electric stove. We really don't need to hang our heads in shame around the gas stove people. It's really not the power source of your stove that matters, it's your passion for cooking that will make all the difference.

Still, you face a very annoying problem. A broken burner can make cooking frustrating and could be unsafe.

Over time, the most used burners of electric stoves with exposed elements can wear down and slant to one side. When I had this same problem with my last electric stove, my foolish solution was to juggle pans from burner to burner to take advantage of each burner's hot spot.

You might want to have a repair person to replace the burner's element or the receptacle. When you book the repair person, tell them what brand of stove you have and ask them if they carry those replacement parts. If the repair person has the parts on the truck, you may save yourself a follow up visit. If you can't get a repair person in right away (or have an uncooperative landlord) a stove top heat diffuser might give you some relief.

Readers, have more ideas for Margo?

There's also additional information on eHow.com. Gardenweb.com has some threads with detailed electric stove discussion by brand.

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Comments (9)

mine does that too! It makes it very hard to cook eggs.

Just so you know...this problem plagues gas burners, too! And my stove is relatively new. The North and South supports of one of the burner grills are higher then the others and it gives me a sort of teeter-totter effect! Fortunately, I can trade out that grill to a burner that gets less use.

my entire gas stove tilts, not just the burners. I think in my case I just need to raise up the front a little (shims?) but oh, it is annoying!

i have always had gas stoves in all my apartments - and they all tilted. prob because all my stoves have been from like the 50s.

I just fixed this by shimming it with a piece of scrap metal (between the burner leg and the range pan). Works perfectly.

My first instinct was to level the entire stove, but I realized that the rest of the burners sat perfectly level - just the large front one was slanted.

Unless I'm missing something, this isn't the sort of thing worth calling a repair person in for, but then, we installed our range ourselves so it's all a matter of perspective.

Make sure that it's just the burner that is tilting, not the whole stove. If it's the stove, use non-flammable shims to level it out.

If it's just the burner, it's usually very, very easy to replace the burner element. They're not that pricey and they're sold at hardware stores around here, or if your element is peculiar, look up an appliance parts store.

regards,
trillium

Good point that it's easy to replace the element yourself. I've done that.

I thought it might be the receptacle that needs to be replaced. I'd call in a repair person to do that part of the job, would you?

The elements just plug in and replacements are just as far away as your computer. Google the make of stove you have and find out who carrys replacement parts. But be ready to spend around $28 for a small burner or $40 for a large one. Alternately you may find genirec replacement elements at your local home improvement or hardware store.

You should always follow the range instruction manual when leveling a stove. If the manual is not available:
1. Level the front to back and left to right by placing a level on the oven rack. Adjust using the leveling feet on the stove. Some stoves have adjustment screws in the front for adjusting the back feet without pulling the stove from its location.
2. After leveling to the oven rack, place a level across each of the burners. Check for consistent level.
3. If the oven rack is level and all burners are not level to the same side; lift the range top (they are all hinged for cleaning, if you don't know this then be prepared for the mung growing under your range top). You will notice two rubber grommets ("feet") on the front of the range top. Remove the low side grommet and add some washers between the grommet and the stove top to raise that side.

The reason you level to the oven rack is because oven racks can't be adjusted for level. Range tops can be adjusted to level. If you level to the burners, then any baking in the oven will result in lopsided cakes.

Although bent elements can be a source of the problem, it is cheaper try leveling the range top first. Don't place your level on the range top itself as it is just sheet metal and probably warped from heat. You can put a heavy cast iron pan on a burner and put the level in the pan.