I have a Balay oven that's about 5 years old, and for the last month I've noticed the bottom isn't heating properly. My pizza or bread comes out raw on the bottom even though the top cooks fine. Could it be the lower heating element or something easier to fix?
Nine times out of ten it's the bottom heating element that burns out or loses power, especially in ovens that old. Before you call a technician, check that the selector is in the right position (some Balay models have modes that disable the bottom element if you don't set them properly) and that the thermostat works, but if that doesn't fix it, you'll need to replace that element.
What the guy mentioned above makes sense, but before you spend money on a technician try something simpler: make sure the thermostat is calibrated correctly. Sometimes those devices get old and the temperature sensor gets out of calibration, so the oven thinks it's already reached the temperature and stops heating the lower heating element. If you put an oven thermometer inside and see it reads way lower than what the dial says, that's the problem. A lot of times you can fix it by adjusting a screw on the thermostat or, worst case, replacing it, which is cheaper than the heating element.
I had exactly the same thing happen to me a couple of years ago, and it turned out to be the bottom heating element that had lost power! The oven would heat the top just fine but the bottom would come out practically raw, especially things like bread or pizza that need that base heat. Before calling a technician, I first checked that the selector was in the right position (some ovens have options like "bottom only," "top and bottom," etc.) and that there wasn't any food stuck on it blocking air circulation, but in my case none of that worked. In the end I had to replace that heating element and voilà, problem solved! It's a part that wears out over time, especially if you use the oven a lot.
The bottom heating element is most likely the culprit, but before you replace it check if your oven has a "bottom only" or "bottom + top" mode - sometimes people leave the selector in the wrong position without realizing it. If you've already checked that and the position is correct, then yeah, the heating element is probably worn out and needs replacing. Have you tried it at different temperatures or is it not heating from the bottom no matter what temperature you set?
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