I once accidentally microwaved a fork. I didn’t notice it because it was buried under the food and I just took out the container from the fridge and put it straight into the microwave. Nothing happened but I was horrified when I saw the fork afterwards. I wonder why it didn’t even cause sparks. Was it because it was underneath the food?
Having said that, it was a shitty microwave that couldn’t really heat food well, so maybe that’s why.
Cutlery doesn’t spark, only thin pieces of metal do. It does get very hot though. If you use a stainless steel fork you can submerge it in a cup of ramen and it’ll heat up noticeably faster in the microwave.
See my other comment, metal in a microwave is sometimes OK but there is a good reason we scare people from trying it.
TL;DR Thin layers spark and smoke immediately. Metal containers suck, closed metal containers or no food make the microwave overheat and kill itself over time. Utensils are fine unless very thin or preventing access to food.
Thin metal arcs in a microwave; I’ve seen a fork arc from the tines, never seen any other cutlery do it. The arcing is the air turning to plasma, so if it was buried in food with no access to air, it wouldn’t arc
It’s actually the recommended way to heat up liquids in a microwave, especially higher viscosity liquids that don’t mix quickly like a sauce. Since the spoon can transfer heat to the center faster than the liquid can by itself. The waves can’t penetrate far into the liquid and can’t heat up the core of a volume of liquid unless it’s spread out. Just make sure the spoon doesn’t touch the sides when it rotates.
My microwave has a sticker so you don’t heat liquids without a teaspoon. I’ve heated milk in it every day for years, every time with a teaspoon in it. It also heats up faster with it.
I once accidentally microwaved a fork. I didn’t notice it because it was buried under the food and I just took out the container from the fridge and put it straight into the microwave. Nothing happened but I was horrified when I saw the fork afterwards. I wonder why it didn’t even cause sparks. Was it because it was underneath the food?
Having said that, it was a shitty microwave that couldn’t really heat food well, so maybe that’s why.
Cutlery doesn’t spark, only thin pieces of metal do. It does get very hot though. If you use a stainless steel fork you can submerge it in a cup of ramen and it’ll heat up noticeably faster in the microwave.
Even thin metal is hard to get to arc. Electroboom did an episode on it and he really struggled to get an arc, even with aluminum foil.
CDs work great tho
See my other comment, metal in a microwave is sometimes OK but there is a good reason we scare people from trying it.
TL;DR Thin layers spark and smoke immediately. Metal containers suck, closed metal containers or no food make the microwave overheat and kill itself over time. Utensils are fine unless very thin or preventing access to food.
Thin metal arcs in a microwave; I’ve seen a fork arc from the tines, never seen any other cutlery do it. The arcing is the air turning to plasma, so if it was buried in food with no access to air, it wouldn’t arc
electrobooms microwafe safety
The answer to your curiosity. Or at least a laugh about it
I microwave my coffee every morning with a teaspoon in it at work and nothing happens.
It’s actually the recommended way to heat up liquids in a microwave, especially higher viscosity liquids that don’t mix quickly like a sauce. Since the spoon can transfer heat to the center faster than the liquid can by itself. The waves can’t penetrate far into the liquid and can’t heat up the core of a volume of liquid unless it’s spread out. Just make sure the spoon doesn’t touch the sides when it rotates.
My microwave has a sticker so you don’t heat liquids without a teaspoon. I’ve heated milk in it every day for years, every time with a teaspoon in it. It also heats up faster with it.