Electrical leak in Dualit 6-slice toaster-How to cure this?

[Old Sparky]

A local cafe proprietor asked me if I could fix a Dualit 6-slice toaster in which the principal problem was a faulty timer switch and poorinsulation on the mains lead.
These faults weren't a problem, but I've found thar, even with an ordinary analogue meter, there is a reading of ca. 200K to earth from both Live & Neutral pins, with the timer switch 'on'. This is due to a leak on one or more of the elements, of which there are 8. The appliance obviously would not pass a PAT test in this condition, so
I'm wondering, is there any way to cure this fault other than by replacing some, or all of the elements, because, at £6 each, plus the new switch at £28 or so, it doesn't seem like a cost-effective repair to do this?

[Refugee]

Are the elements stained with carbon on the outside?

[Skywave]

The leak is obviously caused by a failure of insulation - somewhere.

This being a toaster, it might just be due to something - perhaps a piece of food - that has become jammed between one element (or more than one) and the earthed metalwork or across a pair of L and N terminals inside the item. Apart from giving the toaster a really good shake when it is held upside down to try to remove that item, the next consideration is to dismantle the item and inspect its insides. And with toasters, that is usually a problem, on account of the security screws that are often used and the general 'method of assembly'. I would spend 30 minutes investigating along these lines and then stop if continued attempts at analysis are thwarted: any more time thus spent is not cost-effective. There is also a possibility of a defective capacitor in the timer circuit. But again the question arises: can I get to that item without an inordinate amount of time and trouble?

Items like toasters are a classic example of short-lived, throw-away items.

Al.

[ed731pdh]

Had this with a domestic toaster, caused by nothing more than a failure to regularly clean the crumb trap out at the bottom of the unit. The crumbs rose to a level that shorted to earth the grids.

[Old Sparky]

The elements are discoloured, which is no more than I'd expect from an appliance that gets lots of use. There are no seperate capacitors anywher in the toaster. Control is via a clockwork timer, which is wound to set the running time, at the end of which contacts open, breaking the mains supply. The leak is present if the timer is bypassed. As to shaking it to remove loose crumbs, etc., it's a case of 'been there, done that!'. This toaster is easily dismantlable, using standard pozidrive screws, and the elements are connected to each other via brass strips, 4BA screws & nuts. so i can seperate
them easily. This should not be a 'short-lived' throwaway item, as it's mainly sold to the catering trade AFAIK, and costs about £200 new.

[Old Sparky]

In the end the owner decided not to have the toaster repaired, because the parts alone would cost about £75 minimum!

[Refugee]

I was thinking that the ceramic parts had picked up some soot and smoke tar and perhaps once the metal parts were taken off they could be blasted with a gas paint stripper.

[AlanBeckett]

If it's easy to do I'd be inclined to take it to bits anyway to have a look.
It might be very easy to fix.

Alan

[Old Sparky]

The toaster is fairly easy to dismantle, but (a) I don't posess, or know anyone who does posess a gas paint stripper, and (b) the elements themselves show leakage resistance between their metal frames and the actual element windings. I proved that by disconnecting & removing a couple of them, so unless there's any way to cure those leaks then the only way to repair the toaster would be by fitting new elements, which is uneconomic.

[Refugee]

Have you tried powering an element up on a heat proof surface for a bit longer that the toaster normally runs?
This would do the same as the gas blow lamp and burn the carbon deposits off.
Megger it again after it has cooled.