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Tue 3 Feb, 2004 11:50 am
I'd really like to know if the following warning is for real.
I live with an 89-year-old grandma who insists on using the microwave, yet she consistently OVERHEATS her water for coffee ... not to mention a myriad of other safety concerns. We have pulled the microwave out of the house, and have unplugged the stove, and more.
Anyway ... is the following true? Or not?
Thanks!
Quote:I was very glad to get this email from a friend, because I have been guilty of heating water in a microwave many times. You'll be glad you read it. I also suggest passing it along to friends and family.
About five days ago, my 26-year-old son decided to have a cup of instant coffee. He took a cup of water and put it in the microwave to heat it up (something that he had done numerous times before). I am not sure how long he set the time for but he told me he wanted to bring the water to a boil.
When the timer shut the oven off, he removed the cup from the oven. As he looked into the cup he noted that the water was not boiling. Then instantly the water in the cup "blew up" into his face.
The cup remained intact until he threw it out of his hand but all the water had flown out into his face due to the build-up of energy. His whole face is blistered and he has 1st and 2nd degree burns to his face, which may leave scarring. He may also have lost partial sight in his left eye.
While at the hospital, the doctor who was attending to him stated that this is a fairly common occurrence and water (alone) should never be heated in a microwave oven. If water is heated in this manner, something such as a wooden stir stick or a tea bag should be placed in the cup to diffuse the energy.
Here is what our science teacher has to say on the matter: "Thanks for the microwave warning. I have seen this happen before. It is caused by a phenomenon known as super heating. It can occur any time water is heated and will particularly occur if the vessel that the water is heated in is new. What happens is that the water heats faster than the vapor bubbles can form. If the cup is very new then it is unlikely to have small surface scratches inside it that provide a place for the bubbles to form. As the bubbles cannot form and release some of the heat that has built up, the liquid does not boil, and the liquid continues to heat up well past its boiling point. What then usually happens is that the liquid is bumped or jarred, which is just enough of a shock to cause the bubbles to rapidly form and expel the hot liquid. The rapid formation of bubbles is also why a carbonated beverage spews when opened after having been shaken.
Please pass this on to everyone you know, it could save a lot of pain and suffering.
Yes, it's true. From lab experience--any pure solvent is subject to superheating if you rapidly heat it above its boiling point without providing a surface (a scratch in the glass, a solid impurity, a stir stick, etc.) on which bubbles can form.
When a superheated liquid suddenly comes in contact with such a surface, its entire bulk can essentially boil all at once, leading to the type of "explosion" cited in your post.
you guys ever watch the disovery channel they have these 2 guys out to prove or disprove this kind of thing on a weekly basis
Perhaps nearly-90 grandma should not be living alone? Exploding water aside, a microwave is much safer for an absent-minded elderly person than either a gas or an electric stove.
Can someone bring her a thermos of hot coffee every morning? What about Meals on Wheels.
Good luck. I sense that the exploding water possibility is only one bit of a major problem.
My Grandma Husker is 91 and still doing great!! I and mean all there physically and mentally. When I called her on her B-day - she explained that "in her life she never imagined that she would live this long"
Side note she worked full time as the head-cook at a highschool until 75 yrs old. They tried to make her retire at 66 but she refused and was going to sue. She has a constitution like Rudy on Survivor, tough gal she is!.
I have an electric kettle that I boil my water in. No stove or microwave is ever used to make coffee or tea.
That's an interesting article Dupre. Thanks for the warning.
I boil water in the microwave at work all the time, and I don't have problems with bubbles. Must be the styrofoam.
But yes, superheating can be a problem.
thanks for the warning, i heat water in the microwave alot.
husker wrote:you guys ever watch the disovery channel they have these 2 guys out to prove or disprove this kind of thing on a weekly basis
YES that show is so much fun!
Turner_727 wrote:I boil water in the microwave at work all the time, and I don't have problems with bubbles. Must be the styrofoam.
But yes, superheating can be a problem.
You might be more concerned about the styrofoam than the superheating possibility.
Quote:Plastics contain xenoestrogens which can have devastating effects on your body's estrogen receptors. Plastic containers, plastic food wrap, plastic soda bottles, and other plastics such as styrofoam and vinyl products, can release toxins into your food merely by the fact that the plastic has touched the food, or by microwaving in containers that have not been produced to withstand the extreme heat of a microwave oven. Never reuse butter or margarine containers, or containers that other foods such as nondairy whipped toppings come in to microwave foods--these containers were not manufactured to withstand the high heats of microwaving. Microwaving these containers causes a chemical breakdown and releases toxic chemicals into your food.
Above quote from this link.
The above two sites fishin' provided seem to answer the question adequately.
Wow! Thanks so very much for all the good information.
Yes, we are having trouble with Grandma. She's at home alone while we are at work, and she gets up at night while we sleep.
She boils over her coffee in the microwave; she causes mini fires in the microwave; she turns on the stove burners to warm the kitchen,and leaves them on--it's not cold here in Texas, but she was raised on a farm and I think she is regressing a bit (there was a kitchen fire some time ago before I moved in with her)--she took a bath by herself the other morning and could not get out of tub (if she does that while we are at work, she would be in water all day); she forgets to take her walker with her at all times....
The list is huge! But, no one wants to put her in a home, even though I do believe it's time to.
We unplug the stove when not in use, make her breakfast and leave her lunch in a mini fridge. I have taken out the microwave completely from the house. Otherwise, she would try to move it, like she did the TV--which fell on her!
Yeeikes! We have our hands full. She and I almost came to blows over my heating her water for coffee. She wants to do things herself and will accept no help from me. But, things between her and me have calmed down now.
We also have a bather coming in regularly, so she won't be tempted to take a bath by herself. She certainly cannot put her special bath chair in place alone, so I think we are good there.
We need to get the house hooked up with a "life alert" type of service to monitor her during the day, and I think she'll be about as safe as she would be in a nursing home.
I needed your backup to justify to the grandson that taking out the microwave IS necessary. Thanks for your support here!
A friend of mine warned me about this once, but he said don't put bottled water in the mic. (no not the little bottles, like water from those big jugs) He said he had never had a problem with water from the tap.
Dupre--
You have your hands full. Perhaps the grandson could visit for a weekend? I assume he is young and loving, optimistic, idealistic--and very much attached to his own freedom?
Good luck. Hold your dominion.
Kerver - yes, the water has to be distilled to be able to superheat.
Dupre - If you are the one taking care of her and you think that she belongs in a home - and they are not taking care of her and think she doesn't belong in a home - the answer is simple. They should take care of her (in shifts with you or by themselves) or support your decision.
Hi, thanks for the advice.
I should clarify: I am the girlfriend of the grandson. Grandma has lived with her now 40-year-old grandson for 8 years, since her daughter (his mother) died.
I am new to the household, but do have some influence.
Maybe I'm in denial, but caring for Grandma really is not that big of a deal. It's only her safety, coupled with her strong will, that's at issue.
I think at this time, she is about as safe as she would be in a facility. I mean, she could fall there, too, right?
With the alert system, help could be there within 10 minutes. They can monitor her and know if she is horizontal, if she leaves the home, if her heart stops beating, if she buzzes them, etc.
We can even call her and she can answer our call from anywhere in the house, if we want to check on her.
A bed alarm might be useful, too. But now that the stove is unplugged at night, I doubt we'll run into any more problems.
She did get up the other night, and--thank God!--I heard the glass break. It just fell out of her hands. Broken glass everywhere. She did not have her glasses on or shoes. I'm a very heavy sleeper.
We are removing all the glasses and going with plastic wear.
Home health care workers are coming in regularly for a few more weeks, and they have been extremely helpful: a personal doctor (who will remain her doctor), an occupational therapist, a physical therapist, a nurse, a bather.
I am keeping my eyes out for any new problems or any new ways she has to go around our safeguards. (We had her blocked from the kitchen, but she got through the gate.)
Thanks again. Any advice for keeping Grandma at home and safe would be appreciated!
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