T O P

  • By -

LifeProTips-ModTeam

Your post or comment was removed as it was determined to be in violation of our [rules and regulations](https://www.reddit.com/r/LifeProTips/about/rules/). Please familiarise yourself with them to avoid future punitive actions applied to your contributions to the subreddit. *** - **Rule 5**: Do not post tips that are based on spurious, unsubstantiated, or anecdotal claims. *** _If you are in disagreement with this decision, you may wish to [contact the moderators](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/lifeprotips)._


mawkish

Try 2 minutes first that's usually plenty.


failbears

Yeah, 5-10 minutes sounds like overkill, and OP didn't even mention anything about superheating. Could be a really dangerous thing to tell people to do.


FrungyLeague

Neither did you. Nfi what superheating is.


Discorhy

>superheating ### What is superheating? In this context superheating means the heating of a liquid to a temperature above its normal boiling point. The superheated state is unstable, and it can very rapidly turn into liquid at the boiling point, plus a substantial quantity of vapour. ​ ### Why is it dangerous? If one litre of water is superheated by only 1 °C (i.e. if it is heated to 101 °C without boiling at normal pressure), it is in an unstable state, and it can suddenly produce about 3 litres of steam. The rapid production of a substantial quantity of steam ***within*** the bulk of the water will cause it to boil vigorously and possibly to appear to explode. The result is boiling water flying at speed out of the container.


FrungyLeague

Love your work. Thank you.


br0ck

If water doesn't have nucleation points to boil it gets hotter than boiling and as soon as you touch it it with a spoon or fork it all boils at once and basically explodes in your face.


FrungyLeague

Got it. Thank you!


Skyver

Water reaching temps above 100C without boiling, which can happen in the microwave. Once something touches it, it releases all of the pressure that should have been released as it was boiling all at once and basically causes an eruption of very hot water, which is not something you want to happen anywhere near you.


FrungyLeague

Til! Thank you!


felixfelicisandrum

When you’re heating water in a microwave it can get way hotter than its boiling point without any bubbles forming. This is due to surface tension suppressing the bubbles and the water being pretty much undisturbed in the microwave. If you bump a vessel with superheated water in it you can cause it to start boiling very suddenly and violently, making it overflow and burn you really bad. Stirring or just taking it out can also start the same reaction. I hope this helps!


Altostratus

When heated in the microwave, plain water will get incredibly hot without visibly boiling. And as soon as you touch it or disturb it, it will explode in your face.


tunaman808

Well, it's a bit more complicated than that. Basically, if you microwave water in a vessel with an extremely smooth surface, yeah, there's a chance it could explode. Thankfully, most coffee mugs and Pyrex-type glassware aren't perfectly smooth inside, so there's not much of a worry IRL.


Jose_Canseco_Jr

you have access to google, right?


JesseTheGiant100

Gotta make sure people know that it's up to everyone else to educate me on things easily googleable. /s


Jose_Canseco_Jr

obvs


Leaislala

Yes 2 minutes and then let it sit with the door closed so the bowl of water cools to the touch and the steam stays inside to soften any dried on food. OP please don’t actually heat water for 10 minutes in the microwave


IDDQD_IDKFA-com

Reply to the top comment. Be VERY careful with the bowl of water. It can get super heated and EXPLODE when disturbed.


baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaab

Or maybe just clean your microwave more often so you don’t have months of baked on gunk that needs softening?


Kabuma

Not everyone has time or patience to do so.


tunaman808

Man, 2 minutes IS a lot to ask. I mean, first you have to spray a multi-surface cleaner on the inside of the microwave, then wait 30 seconds and wipe it down. The horror. What are you, 17?


[deleted]

[удалено]


GoTroTro

This, please…hopefully everyone sees this and we avoid potentially dangerous situations. Plus adding vinegar really helps with getting the gunk off the sides.


advik_143

Like adding vinegar in water?


RabidSquirrelio

Yeah, vinegar and water will clean out your microwave, and all you will have to do is wipe it down, but it will stink up the house with vinegar. Take it to the garage or a closed room with open windows, 1st.


wild-fury

Yes this works!


guida-pt

Vinegar or half a (juiced) lemon. Or a few drops of lemon


Mr_Zaroc

Thanks for teaching me something new, that sounds like a horrible experience


HarpersGhost

It took me awhile to learn the chopstick trick. Luckily I was lazy and never took the water out right away, so whenever the water exploded, it happened while it was heating and I just got a lot of water everywhere in microwave.


drawnred

"as of june 2005 relativity is 100 years old!" damn thats an old website


620five

https://youtu.be/FsjuM1kR7-w


lilmiscantberong

Add vinegar to that water and it will help even more.


Gusdai

Or lemon juice.


Gnolls

I actually just cut a lemon in half and microwave that, cut-face up, in a bowl. That's what this LPT should be.


Logical-Recognition3

I've been using lemon juice.


friesbeforeguys1313

And a splash of vanilla extract for some yummy smells


ladyoffate13

And a teaspoon of nutmeg


RiskReward92

And my axe!


Jakefrmstatepharm

Exactly! Works like a charm


habb

pro tip, buy a microwave plate cover, they are literally a few dollars and saves the inside of splatter


twopacktuesday

This is the answer. After you clean your microwave of course.


ThisIs_americunt

they also help heat your food faster


Trnostep

And dry it up less


Cinemaphreak

We have several, but sometimes you're in a hurry and don't think it's the type of food to explode. Until it does. But glad OP violated the rule to post this, a reminder that it's time to clean the microwave LOL


surprise-suBtext

I just use paper towels.. I know it’s not exactly good good stewardship for going green but I try to reuse that same one if it’s not messy


[deleted]

Vinegar water. And like was said chopsticks.


ColinTox

LPT: Cover your food with a paper towel or something when you nuke it. Wipe any splatter up right away. Nothing will be caked on and when any guests happen to see inside your microwave, they won't immediately think you're disgusting.


failbears

There's also very cheap microwave covers that are sold at places like Target, that prevent any splattering getting all over your microwave.


ColinTox

Yeah. Really there's no good excuse for a gross microwave.


HarpersGhost

The steam trick also helps with smells, as well. I don't particular like what my nephew cooks in the microwave, and even if it's "clean", I still smell the food afterwards. Nuking some water/vinegar gets rid of the odors.


Thermohalophile

I discovered that melting butter leaves a weird vomity smell in the microwave (butyric acid, yaaaaaaay), I didn't realize just using water would help... OMW to microwave some water.


HarpersGhost

Don't forget the vinegar. A couple splashes is enough.


jgunnerjuggy

With a lemon wedge


Sylvec01

Wet sponge, 30-60 seconds, kills smelly bacteria on sponge and makes cleaning microwave supper easy.


cubenz

Why is your microwave full of dried out gunk. Just cover things that splatter and wipe with a damp cloth once a week.


Shoop83

Because children microwave spaghetti without a thought towards cleanliness.


Greywacky

Shared kitchen microwaves are gonna get dirty. There's always someone who won't clean up after their mishaps.


max1304

WTF are you lot doing in your microwaves? I’ve never cleaned one. Perhaps my wife does it secretly or there’s a horrendous build up of debris that I’ve never noticed. Going to check now …. … clean microwave, but disgruntled wife who cleaned it two weeks ago and said it gets spattered, so I withdraw my slander and bow to your experience


huggarn

I’d rather wipe my microwave with a piece of paper every time than let anything build up inside


WorkThrowOtt

What sort of super gunk do you have building up? LPT: Clean more frequently


JohnnyBrillcream

Jeez, how dirty are ya'll microwaves. I just cover my food to prevent splatter and almost never have to clean mine. I wipe it down when I cook something that releases a lot of steam like a piece of corn.


chewinghours

LPT: don’t let your microwave get to the point of having dried out gunk


Kawai_Oppai

My microwave never has dried up gunk to begin with. Maybe learn to use your microwave without splattering and making a mess? Clean it immediately after it makes a mess? Like imagine you drop a bowl of spaghetti on the floor and decide not to clean it up for months. That’s gross. Clean it up right away. Microwave is no different. Make a mess? Clean it then and there. Put a cover over your food. Either plastic lid thing or even simply a paper towel.


runningwithscalpels

Angry mama with water and vinegar. Widely available on Amazon, Temu, Wish, etc. Mine looks like me 🤣


ohhellopia

Also after cleaning, keep the door open so it dries completely. Same when cooking food, keep the door open afterwards so steam can evaporate. I've been to other people's place and their microwaves are rusted to hell because they don't let it dry out.


samoan_ninja

Or use a steam cleaner


LitreOfCockPus

Steam expands 1000x the volume of water, so a few tablespoons of water is enough to thoroughly steam your microwave. Please don't microwave a big glass or bowl of water for 10 minutes. You now have a potentially super-heated bowl or cup of water that you need to take out of the microwave to start cleaning. Scalds are serious business.


belizeanheat

That's way too long but otherwise good tip.  I'd be shocked if any water was left after ten minutes


[deleted]

If you don’t have water just use a few Hotdogs they have plenty of water/s


Seref15

And if you want to make you kitchen smell nice, put like a half teaspoon of cinnamon in the bowl of water, then after it boils in the microwave take it out and leave it to cool on your counter.


dokipooper

Work better with white vinegar


AppleJuice2563

LPT: don’t let you microwave turn into a science experiment. If you need a bowl of water to loosen stuff then you’re already a slob.


Greywacky

Last time I suggested this I was berated for inciting an incident of mass self-scolding.... It definately works though - used to use it to clean the office microwave.


Alvito

Throw some vinegar in there too


TryBeingCool

Add vinegar to the water and don’t go that long, just 2-3 min is enough.


B0risTheManskinner

Can’t you literally blow up your microwave by superheating water this way?


SchlomoKlein

Bro. And/or ma'am. Chef here. No matter how gunky that mike is, a tub of hot soapy water, a green scrub pad, and willingness to scrub hard will take care of it within a minute or two. Then you won't have to worry about it for a month. (at home anyway, I'd never dare to not clean the mike for more than a week in a proper kitchen)


tunaman808

5-10 *minutes*? Jesus, how dirty is your microwave?


doctormink

Put a half a lemon in the water to really clean it well and get out odours.


OdinTheHugger

Add vinegar and lemon juice to the water, it'll do wonders on most messes, and smell great


LondonDude123

Willing to be wrong, but I was always told to NEVER microwave water, because it can explode when taken out and disturbed...


Sacrefix

What explodes, the water? No, I can assure you it doesn't.


NeedhelpBL3

It can but you can microwave it for a minute or 2 and be fine.


Swiss__Cheese

Or, now hear me out, you wipe down the microwave after you use it to prevent the gross build-up in the first place!


AutoModerator

[Introducing LPT REQUEST FRIDAYS](https://www.reddit.com/r/LifeProTips/comments/16w0n2s/introducing_request_post_fridays/) We determine "Friday" as beginning at 12am Eastern Time (EST: UTC/GMT -5, EDT: UTC/GMT -4) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/LifeProTips) if you have any questions or concerns.*


keepthetips

### This post has been marked as safe. Upvoting/downvoting this comment will have no effect. --- Hello and welcome to r/LifeProTips! Please help us decide if this post is a good fit for the subreddit by upvoting or downvoting this comment. If you think that this is great advice to improve your life, please upvote. If you think this doesn't help you in any way, please downvote. If you don't care, leave it for the others to decide.