Electric Stove Safety

LizSay

I’m a care giving for my mother-in-law from a previous marriage. Lost the son kept the mom. It’s an unusual situation but I love her so much that I think I got the best part of my divorce.

This morning she woke me up by coming into my room and saying she could not find her lighter. She smokes obviously and now isn’t the time to get her to stop. When I went into the kitchen I found 2 burners on high. She said she was going to light her cigarette from the stove. We have an electric stove with a glass top so she would not have able to do what she was going to attempt, but the dangers of it are inescapable. I’ve been looking for stove knob safety devices all morning but most are designed for gas stoves.

If you have any ideas I’m open to suggestions.

mommyandme (m&m)

Hi and welcome. Your ex-MIL is so fortunate to have you. The only thing I can think of are knob covers. There are auto shut off devices that you plug your electric range into that might help. Others will likely chime in. Sorry for this very real danger.

zauberflote

mom only had the old style electric, and the "worst" she did was boil a couple of pots dry.

We have the smooth-top stove and a practical temporary work-around could be to turn it off at the circuit breaker until you need it, if the circuit box is easily accessible. My stove also has an electronic lock, I think. I know the microwave does.

Somebody ought to invent a stove knob that fits onto the little post, but spins freely around without engaging until you press the secret button, or squeeze it a certain way, or some other secret action!

Rocky2

Z,

You may be interested in purchasing childproof stove know covers as a solution. I found out that many childproof safety items are also good for making our homes safer for our loved ones.

These items are widely available locally in stores such as Walmart or Target or online merchants like Amazon and others.

Tom

dancsfo

This article lists some potential solutions. Look at the section titled: "Stove locks to prevent accidents"

https://www.ourparents.com/products-for-seniors/8-best-stove-locks-for-dementia-patients

This article compare the different solution types.

https://www.truecareny.com/blog/dementia-and-stove-safety

MN Chickadee

We had to put babyproofing all over the kitchen including the fridge and cabinets when my mother was living at home. Fortunately our electric stove knobs could be removed and we just hid them when not in use. On a small appliance (normal 110 volt outlet) I would recommend a smart outlet which are cheap and you can turn off and on with an app on your phone. But I'm not sure they exist for the 220v outlet most stoves require. And using an underpowered adaptor can cause electrical problems. If the stove has its own circuit on the circuit breaker box you might want to just switch it off there whenever you are not personally using it. Or you may have to find other creative work arounds. Unplug the stove for most of the time and use an electric kettle, electric skillet or single burner for day to day things that you can plug into a smart outlet that only you can activate.