Air fryers sold at Walmart, Target, Kohls recalled
Recalled PowerXL Air Fryer
America loves air fryers (miniature convection ovens) so much that sales had jumped by 76% as of last year. While these devices can make whipping up dinner easier, they sometimes come with some risks.
In fact, as Americans scramble to pick-up last-minute holiday gifts this month, hundreds of thousands of air fryers sold at Target, Walmart and Kohl’s were recalled due to a flaw that put users at risk for burns, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
PowerXL DUAF-10 and DUAF-005 Vortex Dual-Basket Air Fryers were also sold online on these stores’ websites as well as other sites from August 2021 through this October, said the commission recall notice. Consumers paid between $160 and $190 for the appliances, depending on which model they bought.
“The recalled air fryers were sold in black or cinnamon colors,” said the commission. “The 10-quart DUAF-10 model is about 17 inches long by 16 inches wide by 12 1/2 inches tall, and weighs about 14 1/2 pounds.
The 9-quart DUAF-005 model is about 14 inches long by 13 inches wide by 15 inches tall, and weighs about 14 pounds. The product has a silver label on the front that says PowerXL. There is a white label on the bottom of each unit or on the unit’s power cord that lists the model number.”
A plastic U-Channel connector is the reason for the recall of both models. This connector was meant to “optionally combine two food baskets inside of the air fryers,” which were made in China. However, it might break during use and pose a burn hazard.
“The egg-shaped air fryers have two baskets that can be used separately or optionally combined into one large single basket,” said the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Around 319,000 of the air fryer units are affected by the flaw. Empower Brands, LLC of Middleton, Wisc., has received 41 reports of the product breaking during use, including three reports of burns.
According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, anyone who purchased the recalled air fryers should immediately stop using them and Empower Brands to receive a full refund.
Empower Brands can be contacted toll-free at 866-704-9370 from 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. CT Monday through Friday. It can also be reached online at www.prodprotect.com/recall/duaf or https://powerxlproducts.com. Click on “Important Safety Recall Notice” for more information.