I had a small fire in my oven when using the broiler. The food caught fire - not the oven. I had a repairman come and check it afterward to be safe, and he said there was no damage, but he cleaned the soot out of the broiler where it lights. Since then, the oven takes 3-4 times longer to preheat than it did before the fire. I know this because food wasn't cooking properly, so I bought an over thermometer and after the preheat cycle finishes, it still has approximately 50 more degrees to heat up to come to temp, and it takes 20-30 minutes longer to do. Once it gets to temp, it maintains it just fine. The repairman thought it could be the thermostat or electrical panel, but thinks it's safe to use. Is there anything else it could be that would NOT be safe to leave as is? We will most likely replace the stove rather than repair it, due to it's age/cost, but want to take our time. If it's not safe to use though, we need to speed up our time table. Please let me know. THANKS!

Thank you! Does it sound correct that it could be the thermostat or electrical panel? I looked at other posts and people keep referencing the ignitor as an issue for slow preheats. Is it worth investigating that? Or for a stove this old (13 years), is it just better to replace?