Another day, another broken gadget. Plastic-free rule #1 when something breaks is to try and fix it instead of replacing it. But that’s not always easy since so many appliances are built to be tossed instead of repaired. Well Easy Schmeasy. Fixing things is fun. Saves money. Makes you feel like a Super Hero instead of a victim. A few weeks ago, I got to don my cape again after Michael plugged in the rice cooker and nothing happened. The light didn’t come on. The element didn’t heat up. The rice did not get cooked. But the wheels in my brain started turning.
(And before any of you leave comments about how we don’t need a rice cooker and could easily cook rice on the stove and here are the instructions how to do it etc etc… yeah, I know. But we have a rice cooker. And we like it. And this one broke, so this is how we fixed it.)
See, back in 2008, the same thing happened to my hair dryer, and my dad helped me out with that situation. After testing the circuits with his multimeter, he determined that the machine’s “thermal cutoff” needed to be replaced, and we visited an electronics shop, bought the part, and replaced it. This time, though, I didn’t have access to my dad’s know-how or multimeter. So I searched Craigslist to find someone who could help. This ad caught my eye:
DID YOU D.I.Y. & GET INTO A JAM? CALL AL (berkeley)
Well, I hadn’t DIY’d yet. I was hoping to find someone to help me BEFORE I got into a jam. The ad described Al’s handyman skills… electrical jobs, carpentry, plumbing, even organic gardening. But this was the part that hooked me:
“A LIFELONG RECYCLER / REUSER OF SOUND USED MATERIALS WHEN AT ALL FEASIBLE. I PREFER TO REPAIR RATHER THAN REPLACE, WHEN AT ALL POSSIBLE.”
Me too! I contacted Al and related the story of my dead rice cooker. He came over with his multimeter to check it out. Al figured out that just as with my old hair dryer, the “thermal cutoff” (or fuse) needed to be replaced, and following his instructions, I was able to take over the job and purchase and install the part.
Of course, I took pictures every step of the way to share with you. So, here are the complete instructions, with illustrations. Keep them in case your rice cooker (or other electric appliance) suddenly stops working and you don’t know why. They could come in handy. And please, if any of you electronics geeks out there notice that I’m using the wrong terminology for some of this stuff, please let me know!
How to Fix Your Rice Cooker When the Thermal Fuse Breaks
1) Tools: Here are the tools I used for this job: Needle nose pliers, screwdriver, and metal cutter. (Note: If you have actual crimpers and want to replace the crimp connectors and know how to do it, you probably don’t need these instructions anyway. I used needle nose pliers and re-used the original crimp connectors.)
Al’s multimeter, which I forgot to take a picture of. But here’s a photo from the web:
And of course, Craigslist. Craigslist is a great tool whenever you want to avoid buying new plastic.
2) Unplug rice cooker from wall. (Do I really have to say that?)
3) Unscrew bottom screws and remove bottom.
4) Check to see if there is a thermal cutoff. A thermal cutoff is like a fuse. It breaks if the temperature in the machine goes over a certain threshold to prevent the machine from catching on fire. Al pulled back the loose insulation covering the wires to find the thermal cutoff lurking inside.
5) Use the multimeter to test for continuity from one side of the thermal cutoff to the other. Read these great instructions for how to use a multimeter and how to test for continuity. Basically, you turn the multimeter knob to the continuity setting, place the needles on either side of the thermal cutoff, and listen for the beep. If the multimeter doesn’t beep, there’s no continuity, which means that the thermal cutoff needs to be replaced. (There are other ways to test for continuity using a multimeter. Read the links above for more information. Or check out this article: How to Test a Thermal Fuse, which explains alternate ways to find the fuse and test it.)
(If the multimeter does beep, then you have a different problem which is beyond the scope of these instructions. Basically, I have no idea.)
6) Remove the thermal cutoff. In my rice cooker, one end of the cutoff was attached to one of the rice cooker wires with a metal crimp and the other end was crimped to a ring terminal and screwed onto the machine. Unscrew the ring terminal.
Uncrimp the other end and remove thermal cutoff. How you do that depends on the type of crimp, I guess. Mine is metal, and Al easily pried it apart and pulled the end of the thermal cutoff out of it.
7) Buy a new thermal cutoff. Call electronics stores and read them the numbers printed on the used cutoff to find out if they have the part you need. The most important number is the temperature. I bought mine from Al Lasher’s Electronics in Berkeley. Yes, it came in a plastic bag. But compare this plastic waste to disposing of a whole rice cooker. Big difference.
8) Disconnect the ring terminal from the old thermal cutoff. I just pried open the b-crimp with a screwdriver.
9) Bend both ends of the brand new thermal cutoff into a narrow U shape and trim off any excess with the metal cutters.
10) Fit it back inside the metal crimp connector and squeeze shut with the needle nose pliers.
11) Replace the other metal crimp connector around the other end of the thermal cutoff and the wire it was connected to inside the rice cooker.
12) Replace the wire insulation.
13) Screw the ring terminal back on.
14) Replace the bottom of the rice cooker.
15) Plug it in. Let there be light!
And of course, heat. The rice cooker works! Hurray and thanks to Allen Macri for all his help. If you live in the Bay Area and need the services of a handyman who is also an organic gardener and reuse advocate, contact Allen. ajpmac [at] comcast [dot] net or 510-815-7152.
hey bro you just made my day, guys like you are great, i love to do things myself rather then giving it to these service centres. who charge you a bomb for their service, small things which you can do it your self makes sense to do at home, complicated stuff then seek the pros.
Thank you so much! What a fantastic step by step tutorial. You really did a great job and I just fixed my rice cooker by following your steps exactly. My friends and even the hardware store clerks told me it was too much trouble to find the fuse replacement and just to buy a new rice cooker but it would be so silly to throw out the rice cooker when it just takes a 15 min fix!
Thanks again - luv your website.
Hil
Thank you for the superb tutorial! I have just managed fixing my rice cooker! I thought I could use my engineering skills and try ;) I just couldn't figure out what the problem was, thanks to your pictures I discovered the fuse! and I thought it must the fuse, everything else looked good. I didn't have a multimeter so I took a chance and replaced the fuse ;) and VOILA! it worked! I reused a fuse from another old rice cooker where the teflon in the pot started coming off and sticking to the rice.. so that's health hazard.. so I combined the two and got a perfectly functioning rice cooker!
Cheers from Sweden!
Many thanks! I live down the road in Union City and needed to fix my rice steamer. I found the part at Fry's for under $2 and it now works fine. Great article!
In my case my rice cookers thermal fuse was fine - the DIODES in the the wires that lead to the light bulbs were in need of replacement. How did i know? 1) I tested the thermal fuse as this web page suggested. The continuity test for all wires came back with a beep including the cord that plugs into the wall outlet. 2) i tested each wire length individually and the only 2 that did not beep were wires that lead to the light bulbs (that light up the "cooking" , "warm" or "done" indicator lights). 3) I noticed that the 2 sheathed wires that had not continuity had strange bumps along their lengths. I cut the sheaths off and the "bumps" turned out to be diodes (diodes cost pennies to replace) 4. I tested for continuity along the wire both before the diode (BEEP!) and after the diode (NO BEEP!).
I'll be replacing the diodes to make sure that this indeed is the problem but the internal mechanisms in a rice cooker are surprisingly simple (even for me who is an beginner when it comes to electronics at best). There are only so many things that can break or wear out. I'm confident that this is the cause. I ran a continuity test on other diodes i have (for another project) and they beeped so i'm 99% sure this is the problem .
Thank you for this page! I hope that my information helps others as your information helped me :)
how much it cost if we give to customer serviuce for repair?
My waffle maker had the same problem. Matter of fact 99% of these electric appliances have a thermal fuse which seems set to blow and make us buy a new one. Coffee makers, hair dryers, frypans. Ha Ha! Costs all of $1.98 to buy a fuse. I bought three just in case...two left over. Thanks for the excellent photo and explanations. Junior Mr. Fix It - Chicago
Thank you so much, truly a genius
wow this is cool....now i can fix my rice cooker. thanks a lot @Beth Terry.
I like the time and effort the author has made to do this and the humour. My quandary today was - I've been landed with next door's rice cooker to fix (Next door is none other than the village's awesome chinese take away) . A friend of a friend in heresay convinced them that i am a fixit superhero. (i am not!). After lots of fiddling I had already concluded to myself the fault was this thermal fuse thing that i'd never previously heard of. Thereafter: finding this tutorial pats me on the back in total reassurance that i was indeed correct, and am too also a superhero like the author. I've just saved the world of just a little bit less waste plastic. Thanks!
Freddy, glad to confirm your super-hero status. :-)
I was searching for exact the same info and this was the best instructions (with lots of pictures) I could ever find on web! Thank you for the great work. Much appreciated!
what is that inner pot made of? hate teflon, aluminum. anyone know if "green pans " are really safer?
This one is aluminum. I'm not crazy about that fact either but can't bear to get rid of it since I already have it. There IS a rice cooker with a stainless steel pot inside. Google it. (I gotta run or I'd find the link for you.)
One day, my stereo wouldn't turn on. Perhaps needing the same repair as the rice cooker? I hope! Thanks!
Inspiring story + practical how-to info--you don't get both in a single post very often these days, so thanks for sharing. I just went through a similar ordeal with my blender, but when I took it apart I found several small PLASTIC pieces inside hopelessly broken. So rather than go out and buy what would be about our third contemporary blender in as many years, I dug around in the basement until I found my wife's grandmother's all-steel-and-glass Osterizer, circa 1960. Works like a charm. No plastic, no problem!
...jumping up and down cheering... Go Beth, Go Beth, Good job, Beth! I"m definitely going to save these directions, in the event my rice cooker gives up the ghost. (or any other small electric w/similar heating elements, like my yoghurt maker, maybe?).
It's good to know about Allen -- I'm saving this post in case we ever need him to help us repair to re-use something. Unrelated to this topic, I wanted to thank you for publicizing Annie Leonard's The Story of Stuff and Susan Freinkel's Plastic, A Toxic Love Story. I was able to get both of them through my local library. They make a good combination of reading material and have taught me more about various forms of plastic. I highly recommend them to your readers and others.
Beth, that is so cool! I'm impressed, and inspired to try the same, as I'm normally completely flummoxed by broken electronic items but loathe to throw them away. Thanks for sharing such detailed instructions. I don't own a rice cooker, but some of the principles will be the same.
I love reading stuff like this. We've been trained that it's easier to throw something out or that it will be too difficult to fix it. I'm so pleased to read your adventure of meeting Al and then fixing your rice cooker for $5! Good going Beth!
You never cease to inspire! I like to fix things, but electrical fix it jobs are intimidating.
You (and Al) are awesome. So hard to get things repaired these days -- maybe we all need to get a bit handier.
Big applause to you! I'll remember to come back to this post when our old rice cooker goes out. :-)
Its like you were meant to meet Al, so your rice cooker was menat to break! It is so great to see that these things canbe fixed, my DVD player just stopped turnin on but it makes a noise when plugged in, maybe there is hope for it yet.
Congratulations! I'm definitely in the why-on-earth-would-anyone-want-an-appliance-like-a-rice-cooker-cluttering-up-their-kitchen crowd, but nevertheless, I'm very happy for you.
That's much cheaper than buying a new rice cooker! My hair dryer broke in the spring and I threw it out because I had another one (backup!). Now I wish I had kept it and fixed it :(
Wow Beth! I am so impressed that you were able to fix it! From business school, I learned that many products are made with short lifespans purposely so that consumers will replace them year after year. They are made to work long enough so that the consumer will learn to love the product, but not too long so as to stop sales. But sometimes the $7 toaster from WalMart can outlive the $40 one... it's just a matter of durability and fixing the weak parts. Most people don't bother because the time and money it takes to replace parts. By the way, how much did the thermal cutoff cost you?
Sabrina, I think it cost about $5. I know I could have found it a lot cheaper if I'd ordered online. Of course, there would be shipping added on, so it wouldn't have been that much cheaper. And ordering online means more packaging and fuel for transport, so I'm happy to have bought it locally.
Dad, who's your boy? Are you having gender confusion? Holly, please try it and let me know if you fix it. And seriously, take pix okay?
Beth you are such an inspiration!! I have a 1950s era waffle iron that stopped working, but I love it too much to throw it away. I'm going to take it apart and see if it has a fuse!
That's my boy! Way to go, BGT.
Way to go!!!
Love it! I'm secretly hoping that some electrical gadget of mine will break just so I can fix it :)