One of the most relied on appliances in many kitchens is the all powerful microwave. The microwave is responsible for popping popcorn before you push play on your favorite movie, quickly warming up a bottle of milk for a hungry and unhappy baby and heating up last night’s leftover for a quick snack. Microwaves are also probably the least expensive appliance that are in your kitchen and very rarely run into any issues. However, microwaves are not excluded from experiencing some type of problem from time to time. There are a handful of microwave issues that may occur and have you wondering what is wrong.
Microwave Not Heating Up
Microwaves produce an intense amount of heat in a very short amount of time to give you the desired result for the food you put inside. When your microwave fails to produce heat, it becomes pretty much worthless. A magnetron is a piece of your microwave that uses high voltage to produce microwave frequency to cook the food that you place inside. Sometimes the magnetron in a microwave will burn out, resulting in no heat being produced. The magnetron can become burned out when the microwave is turned on with nothing inside of it. When the magnetron of your microwave is burned out, it cannot be repaired, but must be replaced.
How to Fix a Sparking Microwave Oven
If you turn your microwave on and it begins to spark inside, turn it off immediately. Sparking inside of a microwave does not necessarily mean that your microwave must be replaced but there are a few factors that could be contributing to the sparking. A damaged wave guide cover, a diode burn, damaged rack support or even worn out paint can result in sparking inside of your microwave. One common mistake that is often made is placing metal inside of the microwave, this will absolutely result in sparking and will probably end up causing a fire as well if not immediately turned off and removed. Avoid placing any china that is lined with metal, any foil or anything that contains metal inside of the microwave. Make sure all dishes placed inside are labeled “microwave safe” before turning on your microwave.
Microwave Touchpad Control Panel Not Working
Pushing the buttons on your microwave and having nothing happen can be frustrating, especially when you are craving a butter bowl of popped corn. If the microwave buttons fail to work properly, you may be dealing with a defective control panel or a defective main control board. This can be repaired by a professional appliance repair service without having to purchase a new microwave.