Hazards in the Kitchen
Anti-tip brackets on freestanding ranges
During our home inspections, we often come across freestanding ranges that do not have an anti-tip bracket installed. What is an anti-tip bracket, you may ask? It’s an important safety feature that prevents the oven from tipping over when weight is applied to an open door. A tipping range can scald, crush or burn anyone caught beneath it. Anti-tip brackets became required by appliance manufacturers in 1991.
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, there were 32 reported fatalities involving falling appliances between 2000 and 2016. For these 32 deaths, 14 fatalities were children; 14 were seniors; and 4 were adults. For appliances, the stove category included the largest number of fatalities (22 deaths). This is why it is very important for home inspectors to check for, and report on missing anti-tip brackets.
If we come across a missing anti-tip bracket during one of our home inspections, we always recommend them to be installed. There are a few ways to determine if an anti-tip bracket is present:
Visual Inspection Method
We can sometimes look behind the range to see if the rear leg is attached to a fork-shaped device that should also be attached to the wall or floor. Furthermore, we can sometimes verify the presence of an anti-tip bracket by removing the bottom drawer from the range and checking the rear legs.
Tip Inspection Method
First we remove all items from the top and inside of the range. Next, we grab the back of the range and carefully pull it towards towards us. The range should not tip more than 4 inches if the bracket is installed. Do not tip the range more than 4 inches from the wall, as it could tip over and cause injury.
Don’t panic if your home inspection report reveals that no anti-tip bracket is installed! It’s an easy, inexpensive repair. Anti-tip brackets can be purchased from most hardware stores or ordered directly from the manufacturer. If you purchased a new home and your home inspection report revealed a missing anti-tip bracket, contact your builder to have one installed.
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