Here's one to stew over.
A Brooklyn man has discovered that his cell phone somehow turns on the broiler on his oven -- and repairmen have yet to figure out what's behind the dangerous glitch.
Andrew Melnikov said his Sony Erickson PDA will ignite the broiler when it's about two feet from the stove and receiving an incoming call.
The phone somehow turns on the digital control of the broiler, which fills the Maytag "Magic Chef" oven with 500 degree heat.
A Maytag repairman made a house call to the Brooklyn apartment and deduced that a "suppressor" is needed. That part will arrive in 7 to 10 days.
The repairman also said this is the first time he had encountered this particular issue. Maytag, which is owned by Whirlpool, said "We just learned about this situation this morning and are looking into it with our customer service team."
Melnikov and his wife Lina have had a hard time sleeping -- or relaxing -- since discovering the issue, which apparently turned up for the first time last Monday after three years in the apartment.
Melnikov received a phone call that day and recalls hearing a faint beep. He walked away briefly and came back to a kitchen filled with smoke and a piece of cookware inside the oven on fire, the report said.
After dousing out the flames, Melnikov called his landlord and began checking all his electronic equipment for the source of the problem. After a few test runs, he figured out that the culprit was his phone. "I just rememberd it was here. I never thought I could be in this danger."
Melnikov and his wife are keeping the oven unplugged in the meantime.
