How I got my microwave working again!!!!

[Lhead]

Saturday night, I went to heat up some food in my Whirlpool microwave. I punched in the time and hit start. The interior light came on but nothing else happened. I removed the cover and noticed the document entitled "Tech sheet - Retain for service technician only" packed in a little envelope under on top of the oven. Looking at the schematic, I noticed the symptoms pointed to a failed primary interlock switch. I located the switch right behind the door latch. It's one of three safety switches on this unit. Sure enough, the switch clicked just like a good one but no continuity. A trip to my local electronics store and $4 later, I had the switch in and the oven was once again producing hot food! Of note: This is a SPDT miniature microswitch with a button actuator and a 15 amp at 250 Volt rating. Just posted this so that it might help someone else.

[Appliance Repair Aid]

Hi,

Good job! :)

Some "look" and "sound" ok but are not....

jeff. Appliance Repair Aid

[Gordon Reeder]

"Lhead" wrote in news:1119372876.765924.55780 @f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:

My brother got a copy machine that way. I'm talking about a office floor standing copy machine. Wouldn't work, tottaly dead. it took a bit of troubleshooting, but noticed that one of the doors was broken. Sure unough, the broken part of the door once held a finger to engage a lockout switch. He fashioned a finger out of a scrap of plastic and the thing ran fine.

[RicodJour]

I love happy endings. It's a great feeling when with a little effort and ingenuity you can save something from the landfill and save yourself a much bigger expense. Good job.

R