Why you can’t turn on an empty microwave and what will happen if you turn it on

The microwave oven is the indisputable assistant in any kitchen. It helps to easily defrost frozen foods, quickly heat up cooked foods during a snack, and even makes it possible to deliciously cook some elementary dishes in a short period of time.

A microwave is too useful a device in the kitchen to experiment with.

But not every consumer knows that any microwave oven, even the most expensive, can only be turned on if there is something inside its cabin. And manufacturers often write about this safety item in the operating instructions for the device.

Why so and what is fraught with the opposite? Let's get it right. And to begin with, you should understand how this kitchen appliance works when connecting it to the network.

How does a microwave work?

In any microwave oven, a special high-voltage vacuum device, a magnetron, is located behind the dashboard. It allows you to emit electromagnetic waves from 1mm to 1m long,

Microwave Oven Design

Due to the fact that the internal metal walls (in rare cases ceramic or enameled) of the microwave oven reflect the magnetic radiation generated by the magnetron and subsequently emitted through the waveguide, a certain effect occurs on additional water molecules and other elements with positive and negative charges. Thus, the process of heat generation is activated, which allows you to quickly heat the products in the microwave from the inside.

Why can not I turn on an empty microwave and what will happen if I turn it on?

When the microwave oven is on, it produces a certain electromagnetic radiation, which must be absorbed by some products inside the kitchen unit.

If nothing is placed inside the microwave oven before it is turned on, the following can happen: the microwaves generated by the magnetron will not meet any obstacles in the direction of their movement inside the closed field and continue to move on quietly. An internal metal wall of the device will appear on their way and they will necessarily reflect from it. Thus, microwaves will move from wall to wall of the microwave oven, inside its space, returning along the waveguide to the magnetron and vice versa, until a pre-set timer works and the microwave oven turns off itself.

The movement of microwaves inside an empty microwave

Outwardly, this process will look like the usual operation of a launched microwave oven: there will be no sharp sparks flashing up, noisy cracks or any hiss. But in fact, such a movement of a concentrated stream of microwaves inside an empty space will have a great influence on the operation of the main parts of a microwave oven. And this, in turn, will lead to a quick breakdown of the magnetron and the failure of the kitchen unit.

If the magnetron breaks, then repairing a broken microwave oven will no longer make any sense. The cost of such repairs will be very large and will cost slightly less in amount than buying a new device of this type in a store.

Often, people turn on the microwave without putting anything in to check if it works or not from electrical equipment. In no case should you do this if you do not want to spend money on a new microwave oven again.To check the operability of the microwave oven, it is better to use a glass cup filled with water from the inside: if it is heated in a microwave oven, then everything is in order with the kitchen unit.

Instead of a glass, you can use a regular mug

By the way, heating any products than the total weight of less than two hundred grams is also considered to be turning the microwave on idle. Especially this moment applies to small sandwiches or pies, which many people put to heat in the oven in the amount of one piece. Why is that? Everything is elementary: such food is too small in its weight and volume in order to completely absorb the electromagnetic waves produced by the magnetron. And some of them will still be reflected from the walls of the kitchen unit.

Some microwave ovens with advanced functionality have an option in the program menu such as "steam cleaning", which allows you to turn on the empty microwave for a while. But even when choosing this operating mode, a special container filled with ordinary water is necessarily placed inside the device.

Are the microwaves emitted by the microwave oven dangerous during operation?

Many may ask this question after reading about magnetic radiation above. But do not worry about how much in vain: it has been scientifically proven that all the waves emitted by the microwave oven during operation are absolutely not dangerous for users of this device. But this is only if the kitchen appliance is operated in accordance with the user instructions attached to it.

Electromagnetic radiation poses no environmental hazard due to the tightly closing door and the interlock system installed in most microwave oven models. But even if the waves somehow can penetrate outward, then they instantly dissolve in space, not having time to have any negative impact. If we talk about their effect on the food being warmed up, then the waves themselves are not dangerous, since they belong to non-ionizing radiation and cannot have a radioactive effect on objects.

Much more dangerous than microwaves and magnetic radiation, for users of microwave ovens is the probability of getting a burn by grabbing a heated plate or cup with bare hands. Therefore, when taking out products from the microwave, do not forget to use special tacks or silicone gloves.

An example of using oven gloves for extracting food from a microwave oven