Yahoo Lifestyle 
Kmart shopper's air fryer 'warning' after 'nightmare' incident
A Kmart shopper has issued an urgent warning after claiming that the store’s 7L air fryer caused her stone benchtop to crack.
The woman, called Serene, took to a Facebook group to share a snap of the supposed damage to her dark grey kitchen counter which she says was done by the popular kitchen gadget.
Air fryer warning
“Just an FYI and warning!!” she wrote in the caption for her post, which has since sparked over 200 comments online.
“Bought the big air fryer and have been loving it... till I noticed a big crack in my benchtop.
“I didn’t realise the heat the air fryer made underneath and has now cracked my stone benchtop!!”
Serene, from WA, tells Yahoo Lifestyle that she was using the $119 fryer for about 20 minutes on the ‘chicken function’ — which uses temperatures up to 200 degrees — for the first time when the ‘nightmare’ occurred.
Even though Serene says she’s “spewing” after discovering the sizeable crack she admits that “accidents happen.”
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Her fellow Facebook users shared their sympathy for Serene’s predicament, with one admitting that they’d be in tears if they suffered the same fate.
“Oh my goodness, how disappointing and very upsetting for you in your new kitchen - I think I’d cry,” they wrote in the comments.
“Yes, husband is quietly rocking in the corner,” responded Serene.
Others were madly tagging their other air fryer owners in the post in hopes of preventing a similar outcome.
“How bad is this!” one user wrote to a friend. “We need to remember it for ours,” they said.
A Kmart spokesperson tells Yahoo Lifestyle that shoppers are encouraged to place air fryers on “dry, level, stable, and heat-resistant surfaces” and refer to the user manual.
“At Kmart, we’re committed to designing and creating great quality products for our customers and we’re proud to offer families a wide range of cooking appliances.
“Air Fryers are one of our most popular appliance categories; with a 5-star customer rating and dedicated fan page on Facebook with over 398,000 members.
“When it comes to electrical appliances, we recommend customers familiarise themselves with the safety precautions outlined in our User Manuals. This will ensure products are used correctly.
“Placing air fryers on dry, level, stable, and heat-resistant surfaces (away from overhead cabinets or presses, which may be damaged by steam) is recommended. For more information, please check out our Air Fryer User Manual.”
Handling the heat
Several users had a few ideas for avoiding overheated benchtops while using fryers, namely putting in on top of a cutting board and positioning it away from the wall when in use.
“We always out a thick cutting board under our air fryer and anything else that heats up before using on the stone bench. Priceless advice the stonemason gave us when he installed it,” one advised.
“Also keep it away from the wall tiles or splashbacks as it can crack those as well. The air fryer needs good ventilation all round. I have mine on a wooden chopping board and pull it away from the wall when in use,” added another.
One Facebook user pointed out that the manual for the Kmart air fryer does include warnings about heat damage and recommends users operate it on “an insulated heat pad.”
“The instructions warn that it gets very hot and to put something under it,” they wrote.
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