[ringshall]

I doubt you'd want what is essentially medical waste burning off inside a commercial food oven.

[smacktoward]

As opposed to peoples’ home ovens?

Heck, tell the restaurateurs that when we’re done using their ovens we’ll rip them out and install shiny new ones. Problems that can be solved by throwing money at them are good problems to have right now.

[catalogia]

Why is there presumed to be an oven shortage at all?

[Aeolun]

Much more need for an average oven every day than face masks, or ventilators.

[catalogia]

Hardware stores have plenty of electric ovens stocked, it's not like people have been or will be panic-buying them.

Hospitals have ovens anyway, the ones in their cafeteria kitchens if nothing else. But even if that weren't the case, they could just send somebody to a local store and buy one. They could have it purchased, installed and operational by the end of the day.

[Scoundreller]

Most of the food they cook in them is pathogenic and not sterile to begin with...

But I'd still agree with you.

A residential clothes dryer isn't that much cooler than the temperatures they target in this study. Just use a rack or turn off tumble (if you can).

[leetcrew]

I dunno about typical commercial ovens, but the ovens at a pizza place go up to about 800F. it's unappetizing to think about, but I don't think any pathogens can survive for long at that temperature. the real trick might be keeping the oven at a steady low temp to sterilize the masks. they're not really designed for that.