My toaster went up in flames...

[UmmTahiya]

Hi, I'll get straight to the point...last night i cleaned my toaster as i always do and have been doing so for the last two years that i have had it.When i scrub it i have noticed sometimes a couple of drops of water fall into the toaster, but this has never given me any problems. A few hours after i cleaned it last night my mum used the toaster while i was out, she put in some toast and the toaster went up in flames. Literally there was fire coming out and smoke and the plastic sides melted! The plug is still completely intact. What happened?

[Ann]

do you think water got into the electrics?

[daffy654]

My daughter did this once, it turned out that she had turned the timer up too high and the bread/toast had gone up in flames causing the toaster to set alight as well.

[Andyvon]

What happened was that you have been very lucky for the last two years Umm. Electrical items and water DO NOT mix! Obviously, there was some water remaining inside the toaster and that caused a short circuit - although the fuse should have blown. Your Mum was lucky.

All you can do is buy a new toaster and only clean it with a damp or dry cloth. Kitchen cleaners are OK but you only need to use a small amount on a cloth.

[UmmTahiya]

?ow can i wipe clean the top bit where the crumbs collect. i scrub it with a scourer!..like i said i've been cleaning it the same way for 2 years. If it was the electrics, shouldn't the fuse have just blown instead of the whole thing melting?

[UmmTahiya]

btw i said mum, but it was actually my mother in law!

[ummmm]

Do you lick batteries?

[UmmTahiya]

ok! i get the point!

[buildersmate]

No, the fuse would be necessarily blow. Toasters draw a heavy current and contain 13A fuses in the plugs. This means that over 3kW of power can be passed through the plug/lead and into the toaster and the device works normally because the heat is spread evenly over the heating elements.
You probably created a short-circuit from water inside, but the short wasn't a dead short - it was something less than this. Nevertheless a considerable amount of heat was focused in one small part of the inside of the toaster and it couldn't take it.
A safer way to clean a toaster is to unplug it, turn the thing upside-down over the sink and brush any crumbs that don't come out off.
Many toaster have a crumb tray at the bottom, of course.