Max is coming home in December!

[erin1990]

So, I'll be a first time parent in December. I've been taking care of my boyfriend's African Gray, Val, for a while but Max will be my baby!

I've been researching for months making sure I have everything I need, but I learned something new today... non-stick pans give an odorless vapor when overheated that kills birds.

I hadn't seen anything else with that information on it at all, and never heard anyone say anything about it. Trevor uses non-stick pans and Val is almost 15 years old... he had never heard of it either.

I read some pretty terrible stories of people losing all of their birds in a matter of minutes... including some 'tiels.

I'm in college and live with my family and they said almost all of their pans are non-stick, but they're all at least 5 years old. I read that some brands don't put off the vapors, but nothing said which ones. Does anyone know which non-stick, if any are safe, or if there's a way to use them safely?

I'm hoping to not clear out the kitchen if possible... but if it's necessary, glad I learned from an article and not from experience.

Thanks everyone!

[Monica]

In regards to the nonstick pans, contact the manufacturer and find out if the pans contain PTFE or PFOA. PFOA *should* be fine, so long as it's been baked out of the pans. PTFE is *NEVER* safe.

We've been using non-stick pans for over 14 years without any issues. Some relatives of mine were given non-stick pans of the same manufacturer as our pans. New pans, with a relatively new bird. No issues. We now have these pans, and again, no issues.

Point being, not all nonstick pans are dangerous. However, there are other household items that could potentially be dangerous, such as self-cleaning ovens, toasters, coffee pots, hair dryers, waffler makers, indoor grills, and anything else that may heat up. If in doubt, contact the manufacturer. Don't toss out items just because you have a suspicion that they are bad.

[Shadow190]

Originally Posted by Monica

self-cleaning ovens.

How does self-cleaning ovens work? Does it work like a dish washer or a wash machine?

[Monica]

Self cleaning ovens work by heating up extremely high to burn off any stuck on food and debris. These self-cleaning ovens have PTFE in them, and are generally safe, so long as the oven isn't heated up too high and the self-cleaning feature is not used.

[Shadow190]

Originally Posted by Monica

Self cleaning ovens work by heating up extremely high to burn off any stuck on food and debris. These self-cleaning ovens have PTFE in them, and are generally safe, so long as the oven isn't heated up too high and the self-cleaning feature is not used.

So, where will the burned off debris go? To the bottom of the oven?

Do you just press it to "self cleaning" or turn up the heat to have it do the self cleaning?

Thanks.

[Monica]

I don't have a self cleaning oven and never looked up how it self-cleans. I would assume that all the debris turns into dust particles, but I can't say that for a fact.

The self-cleaning is a feature designed specifically for the oven... that is, there will be a button to use the feature. If it's not there, then the oven doesn't have it.

[erin1990]

Thank you for the info! I'll look them up and call monday, thank you so much!

[erin1990]

The non-stick I have is Tramontina, chef mate and good housekeeping.

I found tramontina pretty easyily and it says it has no PTFE, but I'm having more trouble finding published articles about the other 2. Does anyone know if these brands are safe?