Old Toasters From This Era Might Be Hiding A Serious Health Risk

If you're a lover of old things, finding an original T-20 Sunbeam toaster from 1949 is a dream come true. With its shiny chrome sides and rounded top, it's kinda like having an Airstream camper sitting on your counter. Certainly, it's just as handsome as one of those old trailers. What you may not know, however, is that its signature cloth-covered cord might have something in it you don't want, aside from frayed wires: asbestos. 

If you grew up hearing about asbestos in the ceiling tiles of old buildings and the cancer it could cause, learning that it was also a component in your vintage toaster is probably a bit unsettling. In addition to the T-20, other vintage toasters this applies to, according to Asbestos123, include the Westinghouse "Turnover" toaster with etched doors and the Marion Giant Flip toaster. However, asbestos being a part of an old toaster isn't as illogical as it might seem. Or so the thinking went.

Its purpose was to provide insulation against heat, and toasters weren't the only vintage kitchen appliance that got the asbestos treatment. Many items like vintage Crock-Pots, coffee pots, and popcorn poppers had asbestos in them, too. In fact, if you're in the market for such a retro find, a good rule of thumb to keep in mind is that if your toaster was made before the 1980s, there's a good chance it contains asbestos.

Unlike some man-made substances, like phthalates and chemical pesticides, which are vilified as the health hazards they are, asbestos is actually a natural substance. It's a mineral that can be spun into threads, and being able to transform it so easily made it possible to incorporate asbestos into insulation, ironing board pads ... and cloth-covered toaster cords, a fact that likely makes collectors of the Sunbeam T-20 particularly mournful. The cord of these old kitchen appliances counts among the reasons why they're so popular. Between that, its Bakelite handles, and the logo made from the cool, scripty Atomic Age font, it's hard not to like the retro treasure — even if owning it might be bad for you.

But asbestos was ubiquitous during this time. According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, around 27 million people were exposed to asbestos from the years 1940 and 1979. However, reports of its potential health risks, including lung inflammation and cancers like mesothelioma, go all the way back to at least the 1890s.

All of that said, if your kitchen counter is begging for a retro Sunbeam of its own, you're not completely out of luck. There are toaster mechanics who can not only repair the retro kitchen gadgets to put them back into good working order, but who will also replace the cloth cord with a reproduction that'll pass for the original. That way you get to keep your toaster equivalent of an Airstream without being exposed to the potential health hazards that could go with it.