Question about a cracked crock pot

[TxJasmine]

I've wanted a crock pot for a long time, and about 6 months ago I finally got one! It's a 5 QT Hamilton Beach. I used it only about 4 times and it worked great. I was really looking forward to using it this winter.

On Saturday we had a potluck to go to, and I made meatballs in barbecue sauce. I put frozen meatballs and a whole jar of barbecue sauce in the crockpot and turned it on low for 6-7 hours. After I took the meatballs out I saw that the ceramic insert had a large crack along the bottom, and that much of the sauce had leaked out into the crock pot. The ceramic was not broken before making the meatballs.

Does anyone have any idea what happened? I've been trying to search on the internet and I saw that you are not supposed to have temperatures extremes in a crockpot (such as add frozen food to a hot crockpot.) The crockpot was at room temperature when I added the meatballs.

I know that there is a lot of knowledge here on the DIS, and I'm hoping that some of you can shed some light on what may have gone wrong for me.

Thanks!

 

[wtpclc]

If the bmeatballs were still frozen and you started it on high, that could do it. Cold on top and hot on the bottom. Crock pots don't like extremem temp changes. Trust me, I knw from experience.

 

[goofymom/pop]

Have you contacted Hamliton Beach to see what they have to say. I would. they may replace your insert for you since it hasn't been a whole year yet.
Had one crack on me, but I didn't know when it happened and it never leaked. I just quit using it because I was afraid it would crack all the way and ruin the food.

 

[Imzadi]

I'd say the the pot went through thermal shock. While you were right to start off with the pot at room temperature, as soon as you tossed in the frozen meatballs, it super chilled the insert really quickly. Since it was getting direct heat from below, where the two temperature extremes met, it caused the crack.

However, Hamilton Beach should have accounted for this in the makeup of the materials they used. You aren't the first to have tossed in frozen meat. They would used a mix that is very sturdy to thermal shock. I KNOW other people who have tossed in frozen roasts, etc. then let it cook all day.

So I'd say there might have been a flaw in the insert. There might have been an air bubble or flaw created when they poured the material in the mold for the insert. The stress of the temperature extremes just made it crack earlier, but it would have eventually. I say it's a good thing it happened so soon, that hopefully you can get it replaced.