One of the many disclaimers in the beginning of each episode
Viewers of the Microwave show are strongly advised against emulating what Jory, Riley and Jon have been doing in the show. The team cannot emphasize enough on this for the viewers. And when they say, don't try this at home, they seriously mean it. They can afford to do all this because of all the safety features and measures in the lab. There are no instances where things actually went berserk in the show, although the airbag nearly killed Jory.
If you want to microwave things anyway, stick to common "kitchen science" experiments such as a bar of Ivory soap, a CD or a lit match for plasma, or stick to microwaveable foods such as microwaveable popcorn. Even then, have something on hand to extinguish a possible fire just in case something goes wrong. Remember that even "safe" experiments you do at your own risk.
Disclaimers for the Show[]
Since the season 7 debut (an airbag), a short disclaimer clip is added before the intros to the episode. And prior to season 8, they also re-literate that safety is one of the many main concerns. The first "do not try this at home" disclaimer appeared before the dynamite episode in season 2 and the lava lamp episode in season 3. When the disclaimer appeared before the airbag episode, viewers initially assumed it was a one time thing to emphasize the seriousness of the danger of the airbag experiment. But then it appeared in the glitter ball and all subsequent episodes of TMS.
Initially it was a single disclaimer filmed with the lab as the background, then they began to use a blue background and different disclaimers appeared, some of which poked fun at themselves. Usually Jon would be the only serious one of the three, but at least once it was Jory.
Fulton Microwave Fire Tragedy[]
In a recent Episode of Jon's World, Jon highlighted the utmost importance of avoid parodying of the show because of a recent accident involving a 12-year-old YouTube user Microwaverz in Fulton, Illinois. Basically what happened on the 23rd November 2010, he was microwaving some certain stuff, but things went wrong. The whole apartment unit and the neighboring units went up in smoke. Even the pharmacy directly below the flat wasn't spared. It took overnight for the fire department to control the blaze. The one casualty who perished in the fire happened to be the mother of Microwaverz. It also resulted in the loss of home, belongings, pets and the affected business of the pharmacy below. Watch the episode of Jon's World below to get a further understanding that microwaving the wrong stuff is dangerous and should not be tried at home. The fire was caused when Microwaverz microwaved some dynamite.
Boy's Microwaving Antics Start Fire That Kills His Mother
Similar incidents have also occurred involving microwaving various other items, with similar results.