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The worlds biggest unsolved mystery about microwaves has still not yet been answered; how exactly does one microwave on HIGH?

by n0us 11y ago

jdmichal 11y ago
While your comment doesn't add much to this discussion, I won't turn down a chance to educate. Conventional microwave ovens only have two states: on and off. (I won't rule out the possibility of some exotic build having multiple powers, but the ones you interact with on a normal basis don't.) So, power levels cannot change the output level of the magnetron. Instead, the power levels control what percentage of time the magnetron is on. A power level of 50% means the magnetron is on for roughly 50% of the indicated time. These off periods will typically result in more even heating at the cost of time. The off periods give the heat a chance to conduct through the food and balance, reducing the lava-and-ice problems seen when heating frozen things in microwaves. HIGH just means 100% power level.
- eropple 11y ago
  > I won't rule out the possibility of some exotic build having multiple powers, but the ones you interact with on a normal basis don't. Mine does, and it cost $120. http://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-Countertop-Microwave-Technology-NN-SD681S/dp/B005BFZ5N6 http://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-Countertop-Microwave-Technol... (I don't find that it actually makes a difference when using it, though.)
  - simcop2387 11y ago
    That's got to be the first one I've ever heard of that can do that. I don't imagine it'll make much difference in most cooking but for things like softening butter that you only do for 10-15 seconds I could see it making a big difference.
  - buster 11y ago
    I don't understand either. I think every microwave oven i've seen has settings like "high, low" or "600W, 750W".. Like: http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B0076ZQQ14?keywords=mikrowelle&qid=1437978187&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1 http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B0076ZQQ14?keywords=mikrowel... Or: http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B00T8138J2?keywords=mikrowelle&qid=1437978187&ref_=sr_1_14&sr=8-14 http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B00T8138J2?keywords=mikrowel...
    - PhantomGremlin 11y ago
      If you pay careful attention to a typical microwave, you can easily tell when the magnetron is on and when it's off. E.g. when on the light will dim slightly, and if you're heating some food it might visibly bubble. Set a typical microwave oven to 90% and you will see the magnetron 100% on for perhaps 15 seconds and 0% on for 2 seconds. The Panasonic claims to operate differently. It actually adjusts the power to the magnetron. So the magnetron itself is continuously operating at 90% power. A quick google turned up this article, which pretty much says the same thing. http://www.techlicious.com/review/microwave-ovens-with-inverter-technology-really-cook/ http://www.techlicious.com/review/microwave-ovens-with-inver... If you want to investigate further, the key is to include the keyword "inverter", which is how Panasonic advertises it.
  - PhantomGremlin 11y ago
    I have a Panasonic and it makes a difference. (or maybe it's just confirmation bias?) Where the Panasonic shines is at lower power settings. E.g. if you defrost at 30% power for 3 minutes you get much more pleasant results than using the typical microwave. In a typical microwave the thinner areas actually start cooking rather than simply defrosting when operating at 30% power.
    - jdmichal 11y ago
      I would expect it to make a bigger difference at low power settings, so I don't think it's confirmation bias at all. 10 seconds of almost-high output compared to 9 seconds of high output won't see much difference. However, 10 seconds of low output vs 2 seconds of high will see a big difference. Same amount of energy, but delivered over a 5x longer time period.
    - eropple 11y ago
      Fair enough! I don't do a lot of defrosting in mine. Usually that's in the 'fridge.
  - jdmichal 11y ago
    Cool. This is still unusual for a consumer microwave, at least for the current moment. But I'm glad to see some manufacturers including it. Hopefully my post will be antiquated in the near future! And, as mentioned by others, you really won't see a difference on the higher power settings, because there really isn't much of a difference. 10 seconds of almost-high output or 9 seconds of high output... On lower power, you should notice much bigger differences though.

The worlds biggest unsolved mystery about microwaves has still not yet been answered; how exactly does one microwave on HIGH?

by n0us 11y ago

The worlds biggest unsolved mystery about microwaves has still not yet been answered; how exactly does one microwave on HIGH?

jdmichal 11y ago

While your comment doesn't add much to this discussion, I won't turn down a chance to educate. Conventional microwave ovens only have two states: on and off. (I won't rule out the possibility of some exotic build having multiple powers, but the ones you interact with on a normal basis don't.) So, power levels cannot change the output level of the magnetron. Instead, the power levels control what percentage of time the magnetron is on. A power level of 50% means the magnetron is on for roughly 50% of the indicated time. These off periods will typically result in more even heating at the cost of time. The off periods give the heat a chance to conduct through the food and balance, reducing the lava-and-ice problems seen when heating frozen things in microwaves. HIGH just means 100% power level.

eropple 11y ago
> I won't rule out the possibility of some exotic build having multiple powers, but the ones you interact with on a normal basis don't. Mine does, and it cost $120. http://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-Countertop-Microwave-Technology-NN-SD681S/dp/B005BFZ5N6 http://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-Countertop-Microwave-Technol... (I don't find that it actually makes a difference when using it, though.)
- simcop2387 11y ago
  That's got to be the first one I've ever heard of that can do that. I don't imagine it'll make much difference in most cooking but for things like softening butter that you only do for 10-15 seconds I could see it making a big difference.
- buster 11y ago
  I don't understand either. I think every microwave oven i've seen has settings like "high, low" or "600W, 750W".. Like: http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B0076ZQQ14?keywords=mikrowelle&qid=1437978187&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1 http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B0076ZQQ14?keywords=mikrowel... Or: http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B00T8138J2?keywords=mikrowelle&qid=1437978187&ref_=sr_1_14&sr=8-14 http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B00T8138J2?keywords=mikrowel...
  - PhantomGremlin 11y ago
    If you pay careful attention to a typical microwave, you can easily tell when the magnetron is on and when it's off. E.g. when on the light will dim slightly, and if you're heating some food it might visibly bubble. Set a typical microwave oven to 90% and you will see the magnetron 100% on for perhaps 15 seconds and 0% on for 2 seconds. The Panasonic claims to operate differently. It actually adjusts the power to the magnetron. So the magnetron itself is continuously operating at 90% power. A quick google turned up this article, which pretty much says the same thing. http://www.techlicious.com/review/microwave-ovens-with-inverter-technology-really-cook/ http://www.techlicious.com/review/microwave-ovens-with-inver... If you want to investigate further, the key is to include the keyword "inverter", which is how Panasonic advertises it.
- PhantomGremlin 11y ago
  I have a Panasonic and it makes a difference. (or maybe it's just confirmation bias?) Where the Panasonic shines is at lower power settings. E.g. if you defrost at 30% power for 3 minutes you get much more pleasant results than using the typical microwave. In a typical microwave the thinner areas actually start cooking rather than simply defrosting when operating at 30% power.
  - jdmichal 11y ago
    I would expect it to make a bigger difference at low power settings, so I don't think it's confirmation bias at all. 10 seconds of almost-high output compared to 9 seconds of high output won't see much difference. However, 10 seconds of low output vs 2 seconds of high will see a big difference. Same amount of energy, but delivered over a 5x longer time period.
  - eropple 11y ago
    Fair enough! I don't do a lot of defrosting in mine. Usually that's in the 'fridge.
- jdmichal 11y ago
  Cool. This is still unusual for a consumer microwave, at least for the current moment. But I'm glad to see some manufacturers including it. Hopefully my post will be antiquated in the near future! And, as mentioned by others, you really won't see a difference on the higher power settings, because there really isn't much of a difference. 10 seconds of almost-high output or 9 seconds of high output... On lower power, you should notice much bigger differences though.