Buying or Selling a Bread Machine? Then read this!

I was contacted by a customer looking for an element for a bread machine. She'd just purchased one on eBay which tripped the Safety Switch on first use. Not a happy wannabe baker.

There's a very good chance that the previous owner may not have known it was a dud. When an appliance with a porous element like a bread machine gets put away in a dark cupboard, and is not used for a long period of time, the element can absorb moisture. This means that when the Bread Machine finally gets to the heating part of the programme, it could trip your circuit breaker. In old houses with no safety switch it'd probably work fine but it's a sign that the machine is possibly dangerous.

I imagine if the seller powered it up to see that it worked and because the lights came on they'd be happy that it worked, and sold it as such. They may not have found out that it was a dud unless they'd run a whole baking cycle (and as they may not have been using it I figure they wouldn't have known).

The moral of the story for sellers - before you sell a Bread Machine on eBay run it through a whole baking cycle. Not only do you give the machine a last hurrah and get a lovely fresh loaf of bread (which may make you reconsider!) you can confirm that the machine still works, thus leading to a happier transaction! Make sure you put that information your listing - even take a picture of the loaf it made - will give your buyer something tempting to consider!

The moral of the story for buyers - ask the seller when the bread machine was last used successfully. At least then when it arrives on your doorstep and you've had a reply that it works, but it doesn't, you've got something in writing saying it should have been ok.