Common built-in oven problems and how to deal with them

From faulty touch screens to flat sponge cakes, there are a host of problems that can beset built-in electric ovens. Here’s how to diagnose and fix them.

A faulty electric oven can be both disruptive and expensive. But before you reach for the phone, take a look at our list of common oven faults. We’ll tell you how to do simple fixes yourself and when to call in a professional.

Trying to repair more complex faults yourself is a bad idea, unless you’re a qualified electrician. But sourcing parts yourself, either through your oven brand’s warranty scheme or independently, can make the repair cheaper and quicker. Search for a Which? Trusted Trader to help you get the job done.

See the best built-in ovens from our intensive lab tests.

Oven trips the electrics

Electrical faults account for 10% of all built-in oven failures, according to our latest appliance reliability survey, making them the most common cause of oven breakdowns.

You're potentially facing a repair bill, but at least tripping the electrics cuts the power before any serious damage is done to the oven. Here’s how to investigate.

• If your oven won’t turn on, first check the fuse box or consumer unit to see whether the kitchen circuit has tripped. Ovens draw a lot of power, so most are wired into their own circuit rather than the kitchen ring main.
• Pinpointing precisely when the oven trips the circuit can help you find out what’s gone wrong. If it goes the second you switch the oven on, it could be a wiring fault. If it happens later, when you switch to one of the cooking modes, for example, it’s probably an issue with the heating element.

Oven won’t turn on

If you’re sure your oven isn’t tripping the electrics (see previous point) but it’s still not turning on, the fault could be down to user error or something more serious.

Some modern ovens have complex, confusing controls, and accidentally selecting certain settings can stop them from heating. So, first do these simple checks:

• Make sure the time and date are set – some ovens won’t turn on without them. The delayed start function also relies on the clock being accurately set.
• Most ovens come with child locks designed to stop children from opening the door or turning on the power. Make sure the child lock is turned off by looking for a key or a hand symbol. You can permanently disable the child lock in the settings mode, but only if you’re sure little hands won’t come anywhere near the oven. If you’re still locked out, try a hard reset by turning the power off for five to 10 minutes.
• Smart ovens and those with pyrolytic cleaning have door locks. It’s a welcome safety feature to prevent you from getting a 450°C blast in the face, but it can also prevent the oven from heating (or even physically lock you out if the power is tripped). Check the oven door is fully closed and the door seal isn’t impinging on it – if that doesn’t work, it’s likely a faulty door sensor and it’s time to call in the pros.

Light turns on, fan spins, but the oven blows cold air

If the fan is spinning but the oven isn’t actually heating up, it probably means the element is broken. This isn’t as disastrous as it sounds, as replacement elements are usually cheap to buy, and could even be covered by the manufacturer’s warranty.

• Check whether the fan element is responsible for the fault: select fan mode and turn the heat up to high before leaving it for five minutes. If the oven is still cold inside but the fan is roaring away, it’s likely the heating element is kaput.
• Dig out your paperwork and see if the oven is still within its warranty period – even if the labour warranty has expired, some brands offer parts guarantees for five or up to 10 years. CDA even offers a ‘lifetime’ warranty on parts for some appliances (though it’s incongruously capped at 15 years).

Need a new oven? See our built-in oven reviews.

Glass oven door has shattered

This is rare, but it does happen. It can be hard to pin down an exact cause because a glass door doesn’t necessarily shatter when it’s knocked, scratched, or accidentally bashed. Instead, it may happen the next time your oven heats up, when you run the pyrolytic cleaning function, or even a year later.

• If your oven is still under warranty, the manufacturer should replace the glass free of charge.
• If your warranty has expired, you could be entitled to a refund, repair or replacement from the retailer, but the onus will probably be on you to prove a fault was present at the time of purchase.

For more detailed advice, see: Exploding ovens: why glass doors shatter and what to do if it happens to you.

Light has stopped working

Your built-in oven light might seem like it's lasting forever, but it will die eventually. Here’s how to fix the inevitable.

• Turn off the oven at the wall or consumer unit before you begin. Make sure it has fully cooled, and remove the side racks to give yourself more space.
• Check your oven brand’s website for video instructions on changing the bulb on your specific model. Some come with dedicated tools for the job.
• Many modern ovens use halogen pin bulbs, which are pushed into their socket rather than screwed in place, though some still use specialised heat-resistant screw bulbs.

The grill won’t work unless the oven door is closed

Gas ovens and older electric built-in ovens required you to leave the door open when grilling. Modern ovens demand the exact opposite, and won’t heat unless the door is closed.

• Leaving the door ajar or open will melt the plastic control panels, and could damage the LED display and the oven’s circuitry.
• Built-in ovens rely on a closed door for their airflow, for both heating and cooling down after cooking. So remember to close the door after use.

Dirt is trapped between the glass oven doors

Is there anything more frustrating than a mucky oven door that you just can’t get to? Probably, but it’s right up there with our pet hates.

• Removing the door glass is an option for some models, including Neff’s famous ‘slide and hide’ doors. Consult your oven manual to find out whether you can safely remove your oven’s glass for cleaning – and how to do it. If your manual doesn't include instructions for removing the glass, don't attempt it.
• Double-glazed oven doors have ventilation gaps between the panes. If you don’t want to or can't remove the glass for cleaning, you can buy dedicated tube brushes to return the panes to their original state.

Get more practical tips on how to clean your oven.

Cooking and baking are uneven

If your oven’s cooking has become uneven, it could be down to a faulty convection fan. Plenty of ovens fail to heat evenly even when new, but if yours was previously fine, it might be that the convection fan has slowed down or stopped circulating heat evenly.

We bake trays of shortbread to test for uneven heating because any browning deviation clearly shows patchy heating. Try it on your oven – you’re looking for a nice, even colour across each shortbread finger, with no singed edges.

• You can usually see the fan at the back spinning away when cooking in fan mode. If your oven’s glass is too obscured to easily see through, open the oven door, and you should see the fan winding down before eventually stopping.
• This could be an expensive fix if you have a multifunction oven because their fan elements heat as well as blow air around the cavity. Some high-end brands’ motors can cost more than £200. Find a Which? Trusted Trader or check with the oven brand for a recommended technician.

Food is undercooked

The most likely explanation for undercooked food is that it simply hasn’t been in the oven long enough. (Don’t follow viral social media trends – they rarely allow enough cooking time or include preheating instructions.)

If you’ve ruled cooking time out, then it could be a faulty or inaccurate oven thermostat.

• Before switching the oven on, take a close look at the door seals. Over time, these can become damaged or worn, leaking heat into your kitchen and cold air into your oven. This is a cheap fix, and one you can do at home yourself.
• If that’s not the issue, you could try buying an oven thermometer to check the accuracy of your oven. Most cost less than £20. If your oven is missing the mark by 5-10°C, you can adjust your cooking times and temperatures accordingly. If it’s more than that, we’d consider it a faulty thermostat, and you should replace it.

Food is overcooked

The best ovens hit their temperatures precisely, but many run too hot. We’ve tested ovens that overheat by as much as 30°C, which is enough to stop your sponge cake rising or singe your sausages.

• Reduce the cooking time or temperature to level things up, or use an oven thermometer to check your oven's accuracy (see Food is undercooked for more temperature tips).

Confused about °C, °F and gas marks? See our oven temperature conversion table.

Dial markings and symbols are too small

This is a design flaw rather than a fault, but it’s still a major problem if you can’t set your oven to the right temperature.

Ovens without digital displays have temperature dials, but our tests reveal that it can sometimes be difficult to accurately line them up to the desired temperature marking. We also regularly find thin lettering, tiny symbols and numbers, and reflective surfaces – even on some of the best built-in ovens. Poorly contrasting colours, such as black on silver, and engraved rather than printed lines and symbols don’t help either.

• Get eye-level with the controls. Respondents to our oven owners survey* said crouching down in front of your oven can help you find the right temperature.
• Stick bump-dots, or bump-ons where you need them, or mark up regularly used temperatures with a permanent marker – 180°C is probably the most useful for a fan oven.
• Buy an oven thermometer and use it to set the temperature to 180°C. You can then work backwards and mark the sweet spot on your oven. See our guide to the best oven thermometers for advice.

Oven symbols can be confusing, so see our guide to oven symbols and controls.

Automatic cleaning is ineffective

Even cheap built-in ovens now often have self-cleaning functions. Unfortunately, our testing shows that not all work well: some are simply ineffective, while others actually burn food on, making it even harder to remove. Our latest large appliance reliability survey shows that the ceiling, back wall and the heating elements themselves are the hardest oven parts to clean.

• The special catalytic and pyrolytic coatings inside modern ovens are designed to trap grease and food remains. Avoid damaging them with harsh oven cleaners, and clear out loose debris before running self-cleaning modes to prevent smoke and flames.
• For pyrolytic cleans, remove the metal side-runners and shelves before cleaning to prevent damage.
• You can steam clean any oven by putting a tray of water on an oven-proof dish, and heating the cavity at 90°C to 100°C for 30 minutes. Let it cool down for at least an hour before wiping away the loosened dirt. If that doesn't work, take a look at the best oven cleaners from our tests.

Find out more about how self-cleaning ovens work.