Terms used in these entries

4.6.1 Built-in equipment

Built-in — an appliance designed to be installed into cabinetry or a counter rather than to stand on its own. It is fixed, connected and trimmed to the opening, so removing it is part of the repair rather than a preliminary to it.

Cut-out — the opening the appliance sits in: a hole in a counter for a cooktop or rangetop, a framed void in a column for a wall oven. Dimensions are particular to the model, which is why a replacement appliance rarely drops straight into an old opening.

Trim — the flange or frame that covers the joint between an appliance and its opening. It comes off before the appliance moves and goes back on square, or the door will not close evenly against it.

Rails — the runners a wall oven or a drawer unit slides on inside its cabinet. They carry the weight while the unit is drawn forward for service.

Dedicated circuit — a supply run for one appliance and nothing else. Large cooking equipment needs one, and sharing it is a common cause of nuisance tripping.

Descaling — the chemical cycle that clears mineral deposit out of a steam generator. Use the manufacturer’s own agent; vinegar attacks seals and aluminium components in these circuits.

4.6.2 Gas

Sealed burner — a surface burner whose base is sealed to the cooktop surface so spills cannot run into the appliance below.

Burner cap — the removable top of a sealed burner. It must sit square on its base with the ignition port aligned to the electrode, or the burner sparks without lighting.

Venturi — the tube through which a gas burner draws its primary combustion air. On outdoor equipment these are a favourite nesting site for wasps, and a blocked one produces a yellow, sooty, weak flame.

Orifice — the calibrated jet that meters gas into the burner. Sized for the fuel. Natural gas and liquid propane orifices are not interchangeable.

Regulator — the device that holds gas pressure at the appliance’s design figure. On a propane cylinder, the excess-flow device in the regulator drops into bypass if the valve is opened quickly, and the appliance will not reach temperature at any setting until it is reset.

Spark module — the electronics that fire the ignition electrodes. On many designs it sparks several electrodes at once, so clicking from a neighbouring burner is normal.

4.6.3 Electric and induction

Dual fuel — a range with gas surface burners and an electric oven.

Induction — surface heating by magnetic field. The coil heats the pan directly, which means the pan must be ferrous, flat and at least the minimum diameter for that element.

Inverter — the power electronics that drive an induction coil. It is temperature-limited, so a blocked cooling path makes it cut power rather than fail outright.

Thermal cutout — a protective device that opens when the appliance or its cabinet gets hotter than the design allows. An open cutout is a symptom. The question is always why it opened.

Leg — one of the two 240-volt hot conductors feeding a large appliance. Losing one leaves part of the appliance working, which reads as a partial board failure and is not one.

4.6.4 Ovens

Setpoint — the temperature you asked for. Drift is a cavity that settles a fixed amount away from it; swing is a cavity that overshoots and then falls well below it. They point at different parts.

Convection — a fan moving air across the cavity for a more even temperature. Convection steam adds humidity from a generator that boils water, so it has a fill path, a boiler and a drain that a dry oven does not.

Speed oven — a compact oven combining microwave energy with convection heat.

4.6.5 Ventilation

Baffle filter — the stainless grease filter in a professional-style hood. It works by making the air turn sharply so grease throws out of the stream, so a bent or distorted baffle both restricts airflow and stops draining.

Makeup air — replacement air supplied to a house to balance what a high-capacity hood removes. Required by code above a threshold set by the code in force, and usually provided by a powered damper in newer construction.

Capture — whether the hood actually collects what the cooking produces, which is measured at the canopy rather than judged by fan noise.

4.6.6 Service terms

Data plate — the label carrying the model and serial number. Everything we order is ordered against it.

Diagnostic — the flat-fee visit in which the fault is found and measured, credited toward the repair when you approve the work.

OEM part — the component the original manufacturer specifies for that appliance.

Independent — us. We service Wolf cooking equipment and we are not affiliated with, authorized by or endorsed by the manufacturer.