When to get a microwave serviced

Nothing needs service if it works okay.

You can probably replace the bulb yourself if you are handy with a screwdriver.

In my experience, the main thing that goes wrong in those units has to do with the connectors on the control board, and the display gets flaky.

Bob

Your wallet mostly!!!

There can be an issue with clag in the waveguide, I understand from friends who do work on these items. That leads to increased cooking times due to a reduction in microwave power reaching the cooking cavity. I suppose cleaning out the microwave path, and checking that the fans are running smoothly and are not obstructed, and checking that the door switches are securely fixed, and that the door and cabinet seals are all intact and not leaking, is what would constitute " sevicing ". Otherwise, I agree that there's not a lot that can be serviced in the traditional sense.

Arfa

Good points but IME obstructions in the wave guide generally cause failure if not cleared immediately, and this only happens if the mica/plastic window has been removed because of arcing, whenever people have brought ovens to me in this condition I point out the temporary bodge of removing the mica should have been taken as notice to start thinking about buying a new one.

It should be easy to hear if the fan is running and doesn't require a genius level to clean the grating if that's what's needed, door switches OTOH are not trivial although faults usually manifest themselves in an obvious way - like blowing the fuse as the door is shut. Door seals are easy to check with commercially available microwave leakage meters which are not at all expensive, actually the most common cause of leakage is dirty seals - a service is only a temporary fix for this if the owner doesn't clean it (usually the engineer has earned his fee just cleaning it in this case!).

Getting back to what the OP really wanted, its worth being forewarned to check before ordering which of the 2 sizes of ES thread sizes in common use, also 220V microwave ovens sometimes have 2 110V lamps in series - they should be replaced as a pair.

On Thu, 08 Feb 2007 08:01:51 -0800, pipjon Has Frothed:

Usually by the time something major needs serviced, it's time to scrap it and buy new. You can replace the bulb your self in most cases. Unplug first.

--
Pierre Salinger Memorial Hook, Line & Sinker, June 2004

COOSN-266-06-25794

Never.

Not much.

These things are VERY dangerous and you should only try a repair if you have enough brains to avoid being killed by them.

To quote an earlier message

WARNING: Microwave ovens are the most dangerous consumer appliance to service due to the up to 5,000 V at high current inside. Even with the power off, there is a HV capacitor that can produce quite a kick. This capacitor must be discharged before touching anything in the microwave generator circuitry.

Don't even think about tackling it yourself unless you have the appropriate background and have thoroughly studied the Microwave Repair FAQ at the site below as well as the info at:

or a book on microwave oven repair. There is one by Homer L. Davidson that may be available at your public library.

Especially the SAFETY warnings and guidelines.

Thanks to everyone for their useful responses, from which I can assume that a service isn't required, and that it would be ok to unscrew the casing (having unplugged first) and replace the bulb (having ensured the correct size) myself - as long as I don't touch or fiddle with the circuitry. If I can clean the fan filter so much the better. Please let me know if I've misread the situation, but other than that thank you all again. What a useful group!

That's about it. There's a big 'can' with two terminals in there. It will kill you if you touch it and are unlucky. Otherwise you should be fine.

If it ain't broke (except for the lamp), don't fix it. :)

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Hi!

When the bulb burns out. :-)

In all sincerity, microwave ovens are very reliable pieces of equipment. It is not uncommon for one to go 20 or more years with no reduction in performance. Things that might require service include the moving parts, such as the fan or turntable (if equipped) motor/drive system. Since there is a fan inside most ovens, it stands to reason that dust will be pulled inside the oven. This should be periodically cleaned out. Grease from things such as bacon will eventually plug air passageways in the oven, but this too can be cleaned up.

Other things can go wrong--the relay or triac on the controller board could fail, units with mechanical timers could have the motor or gear train jam or fail, and the magnetron can go weak or bad. These are all relatively unlikely to happen.

Replacing the bulb is unlikely to be terribly difficult. Some ovens have an access door for the bulb. (I have a small GE microwave oven from 1986 that has a door on the side that can be unscrewed.) Others may make you take the top cover off to get at the bulb. (I have a 1985 model large Sears Kenmore (Sanyo) oven that is like this. It uses a strange type of bulb with a "permanently" fastened socket. I was able to get a new bulb, but haven't put it in yet.)

The Kenmore microwave recently had its internal fuse die of old age. Replacing it with a new fuse fixed it, so maybe I'll replace the bulb while I'm in there.

William

If you're *very* careful and don't touch *anything* you don't know what it is, it's only a few scres to remove the cover and replace the bulb yourself.

(I have a 1985 model large Sears Kenmore

Back in the days when I used to repair a lot of microwave ovens I encountered these "funny" lamps from time to time, they were somewhat more expensive than the normal ES types so holders were transplanted from a scrap oven so normal bulbs could be used.

Better IME is to put a standard SES socket in, as non-nuke bulbs are cheaper and work fine. The exception to this is with combis, where tablelamp bulbs arent really upto spec.

NT

fuses of the sort of current ratings used in nukes dont usually die of old age. Its possible it died due to an interlock fault that burnt the interlock switch or shorting resistor out, leaving you with a now dangerous nuke. When the main fuses pops you need to check the microswitches and shorting resistor. Hopefully you already did.

NT

There is a fuse inside that can blow. Easy and cheap to replace unless you 'have' it done. Just like a TV, usually cheaper to trash it and buy a new one.

Microwaves are the one appliance I've had blow fuses occasionally for no apparent reason. The one my parents had in the early 80s blew the fuse when it was about 10 years old, replaced the fuse with a new one of the same rating and it ran fine for another decade before it was replaced for cosmetic reasons.