Comment on Do rotating plates in microwaves help when heating food?

• foggy@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago

  The center is the least optimal place for even heating.

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  • Schlemmy@lemmy.ml ⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago

    But nothing really lies in the center. If you put a pie dead center in the microwave, 99,99% of it wouldn’t be in the center. Even the center of the turntable isn’t in the center of the microwave.

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    • foggy@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago

      You’re missing the point.

      The issue isn’t just about the physical center of the plate or the microwave itself. The key point is how microwaves heat food unevenly. Microwaves create standing waves, which result in hot and cold spots. The center of the microwave tends to be one of the cold spots, regardless of where the turntable is.

      When the plate rotates, the food gets exposed to more areas where microwaves are stronger, leading to more even heating. However, if you place something directly in the center, it’s less likely to move through those stronger areas, which is why the center tends to be the least optimal spot for heating evenly.

      It’s not about whether 99% of the pie is centered—it’s about how the energy is distributed within the microwave.

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      • Schlemmy@lemmy.ml ⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago

        I know what you’re trying to say but it just isn’t that simple.

        With my mother’s 40 year old microwave the center is the worst spot but mine is just different. How the energy is distributed will differ from device to device.

        You can’t know where the standing waves occur so you’ll just have to experiment but I’ll agree that the safest guess is to put your food slightly off centered on the rotating disc.

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