Three years ago, Consumerist told you about the possible shattering risk of so-called “oven-safe” Pyrex bakeware. And for the last year, our investigative siblings at Consumer Reports have been combing through complaints to the Consumer Product Safety Commission and testing Pyrex and other glass bakeware in the CR testing facility.
For its article in the current issue of Consumer Reports, the magazine investigated 163 incidents of glass bakeware that shattered suddenly:
In some cases it was in the oven, while cooling on a countertop or even while they were holding it, sometimes sending shards of hot glass flying and causing injuries. Only some of the cases seemed to involve clear violations of the bakeware’s instructions. While hundreds of millions of glass dishes are used safely each year, we saw enough incidents to raise concern.
In the CR labs, the magazine tested not only Pyrex and Anchor Hocking brand glass bakeware sold in the U.S., but also European-made Pyrex and Arcuisine Elegance glass bakeware. As we reported back in 2007, Pyrex sold in the U.S. is now made of soda lime glass instead of the borosilicate that had been used for decades and which is still used in Europe. They even managed to scrounge up some old borosilicate Pyrex made in the U.S. for comparison.
In the video below, you’ll see that when the soda lime bakeware is exposed to extreme heat and then placed on a wet granite counter, it shatters instantly. The borosilicate bakeware from Europe fared better, though it still shattered after being heated in ovens at 500 degrees. However, the older borosilicate Pyrex didn’t even shatter at that temperature.
As a result of its investigation, Consumer Reports has called on the CPSC to look into the problem of shattering bakeware. And when you buy glass bakeware, be careful to read over the manufacturer’s instructions for handling the product.
FOIA requests examine glass bakeware that shatters [Consumer Reports]
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I subscribe to CR and 100% trust their testing as unbiased and scientifically appropriate. This report took a year of testing and research for them to complete, so I don’t think they were doing anything untoward with the testing — and no, it’s completely, totally reasonable to expect that in normal, everyday use, home cooks WILL be placing hot Pyrex on cool granite countertops, damp counters, or cool smoothtop rangetops, and thus risking severe injury or burns. The whole point of the CR testing was that the OLD Pyrex made of costlier borosilicate (lab glass), and the European Pyrex still made of borosilicate glass, WAS able to withstand such thermal shocks without shattering. That’s what Pyrex’s whole reason for being was! That’s why it was introduced almost 100 years ago, as a better, safer solution to standard glass bakeware that shattered with temperature changes. This ‘new’ tempered soda-lime product from Pyrex (now sold by World Kitchens Inc. — owned and made in the US) and Anchor Hocking were the ones that shattered in the tests, even at lower than 500 degrees. What’s really unconscionable is that since it was created in the early 1900s, Pyrex was marketed to American housewives as safe and virtually unbreakable — able to withstand high heat and temperature shocks without breaking. Then, quietly, a few years ago the glass formula gets changed to this cheaper, tempered soda-lime bottle glass, and the product’s performance becomes inferior to the old. The CR testing proves that. Well if you make such a radical design change in a product to save money and boost profits, after decades of sales and marketing, then you should either change the brand name, or simply discontinue the product. “Pyrex” is no longer “Pyrex” and shouldn’t be sold as such. Should they now start selling toxic Elmers school glue, as long as they put a poison warning label on the bottle? How about Johnson & Johnson start selling caustic baby shampoo because its cheaper?
I subscribe to CR and 100% trust their testing as unbiased and scientifically appropriate. This report took a year of testing and research for them to complete, so I don’t think they were doing anything untoward with the testing — and no, it’s completely, totally reasonable to expect that in normal, everyday use, home cooks WILL be placing hot Pyrex on cool granite countertops, damp counters, or cool smoothtop rangetops, and thus risking severe injury or burns. The whole point of the CR testing was that the OLD Pyrex made of costlier borosilicate (lab glass), and the European Pyrex still made of borosilicate glass, WAS able to withstand such thermal shocks without shattering. That’s what Pyrex’s whole reason for being was! That’s why it was introduced almost 100 years ago, as a better, safer solution to standard glass bakeware that shattered with temperature changes. This ‘new’ tempered soda-lime product from Pyrex (now sold by World Kitchens Inc. — owned and made in the US) and Anchor Hocking were the ones that shattered in the tests, even at lower than 500 degrees. What’s really unconscionable is that since it was created in the early 1900s, Pyrex was marketed to American housewives as safe and virtually unbreakable — able to withstand high heat and temperature shocks without breaking. Then, quietly, a few years ago the glass formula gets changed to this cheaper, tempered soda-lime bottle glass, and the product’s performance becomes inferior to the old. The CR testing proves that. Well if you make such a radical design change in a product to save money and boost profits, after decades of sales and marketing, then you should either change the brand name, or simply discontinue the product. “Pyrex” is no longer “Pyrex” and shouldn’t be sold as such. Should they now start selling toxic Elmers school glue, as long as they put a poison warning label on the bottle? How about Johnson & Johnson start selling caustic baby shampoo because its cheaper?