That Wednesday my oven thermostat lied to me and 6 trays of croissants paid the price
I was baking for a cafe order last week and every batch came out pale even though I had it set to 400, turns out the thermostat was off by almost 75 degrees. A $12 oven thermometer from the hardware store showed me the real temp, and now I check it before every big bake day. Has anyone else had a thermostat drift like that, or is it usually the element going bad first?
Had the same thing happen with my old Frigidaire, thermostat was reading about 50 degrees high so everything came out underdone on the bottom. A cheap dial thermometer hanging on the middle rack told me the truth right away. What I learned is that drift usually comes first, the thermostat just wears out over time, and the element going bad is a whole different deal, you'd notice that as uneven heat or a coil that stops glowing. So yeah, check the thermometer every bake day like you're doing, and if the gap keeps growing you can sometimes adjust the calibration screw behind the knob. Also worth checking the door gasket while you're at it, a bad seal can fake a thermostat problem.