Hello. I have a less then 3 year old above the range microwave that all of a sudden wont heat up. No flashes or pops, it just stopped heating up. Everything else works, turns on, all the buttons, lights and fan. I noticed that although my warranty was only one year that the magnetron tube is under warranty for 8 years. Would the magnetron tube cause it not to heat up? Im not really sure where to start with this so I thought I would start here. Thanks for any help.
Thomas
If the magnetron fails, it will not heat.
Strongly advise that unless you are an 'experienced' electronics transmitter/microwave technician DO NOT attempt to fix it it yourself. Lethal voltages (5000 volts etc.) and possibility of microwave radiation if not reassembled correctly. Microwave ovens are essentially a 1000 watt radio transmitter in a metal box. Please be very careful. The meat you cook could be yourself! Yes it may be the magnetron, but unless the warranty covers ALL costs including bench labour etc! And the warrantor may not tell you correctly what was wrong? New m.waves can be bought relatively cheaply.
Could be the magnetron, but there can be a dozen other reasons too, even a faulty keypad.
The most common problem I have run into while using microwaves for the past
30 years has been a blown fuse inside the cabinet. Easy and cheap to replace. I keep a few spares taped to a corner inside the cabinet. Next is a defective microswitch on the door, often there are two in series as a safety to prevent operation while the door is not latched. Little bit more difficult to obtain and a little bit more difficult to diagnose and replace. But doable.
Yes, a bad magnetron is one possible reason why your oven isn't heating. However, there are numerous other reasons that could cause this as well. It could also be a bad high voltage capacitor, bad diode, faulty door switches, faulty control panel, burned wire, etc. Magnetrons "usually" hum when they go bad, but not always. Microwaves store dangerous voltages even when unplugged, so they're not really a fix-it-yourself item, even if you can find a source for the parts. It's probably cheaper and easier to recycle the old oven and buy a new one.
Anthony
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