Sharp microwave door won't latch

This is a tough one to diagnose without seeing the problem. Before you spend any money, I would just pull out all the stops and fiddle with it and hope for the best. If you can't use it, than the situation can get much worse. It terrible how one little plastic piece can make the whole machine really go kaput.

Keep us posted on your progress.

Reply to
Lola
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Hey; I have a couple-year-old Sharp Carousel R1480 microwave. Yesterday the door wouldn't latch (closed), so the interior light stays on, and of course, I can't use the oven. Anyone know if this is a simple repair? Anything I can try (like sticking something into the hinge receptacle openings to trigger something)? I didn't see any easy way of opening the thing up to look at the latching mechanism inside the main unit. By the way, it's an over-the-range type; not a standalone. Any help here? Thanks.

F
Reply to
fr

OK, I figured out how to open the thing up, and saw nothing broken/disconnected inside the main unit (not the door) where the door latches. So I noticed the two latches on the door swing up/down freely, with no spring action. So I conclude there should be spring tension inside the door, to force the latches back down and clamp onto the catches inside the main unit.

So I finally get the inside panel off the door, and yep, there's a small spring just sitting in the chamber at the bottom of the chamber where the latch rod is. Just as you said(!), one little broken plastic piece gave way (the one that held one end of the spring in place, attached to the body of the door), rendering the microwave unusable. I tried epoxying the piece back, but there was too little surface area to hold. So I pulled out my epoxy putty, created my own little "plastic piece" (trying to match the shape of the broken off piece as closely as possible), and stuck it in place. I'm waiting right now for the putty to set up; it should be like steel in a few minutes. If so, I should be able to reattach the spring. We'll see...

F
Reply to
fr

Can't see it from here so no miracle cures. See if anything is sticking, like the catch that holds the door closed. It may have pushed down and stayed. Could be a broken spring, could be some gunk go into it. Could be the lever you push to open the door did not return. Could be the part on the door that hold it is broken.

Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski

Two years old? Is it still under warrantee?

Sorry to hear it is an over the range type, I was going to suggest just dumping it and getting a new one. Those over the stove things are a little pricey, especially when you add in the instillation.

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

Fixed. That epoxy putty is really handy. I ended up using a small mound of it as a "base" for the broken-off piece of plastic to adhere to. Molded the putty in place, pressed the plastic hook piece into the putty, waited an hour, and it was hard as a rock. Reassembled the spring apparatus, and it's holding fine. Saved me from having to buy a new door ($150 online!) just for the stupid molded-into-the-door plastic spring hook. Thanks for all the kind thoughts and ideas.

F
Reply to
fr

Good Luck

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

I am SO grateful for your information about the spring in the door to a Sharp microwave! Armed with this info I pried my door open and, sure enough, I had a spring just hanging loose after a few pieces of broken plastic fell out. I don't know anything about epoxy and I didn't think I would be able to put it all together in working order anyway, so I came up with another solution: a zip tie from the hardware store. I looped it around one of the metal \"teeth\" in the door, then up to the spring (at an angle), and zipped the 2 ends together to form a closed loop with appropriate tension. So far, so good!

------------------------------------- Ge0rge

Reply to
Ge0rge

Good because you absolutely don't want an to trick the microwave into running when the door is not shut all the way. It will boil the water in your eyeballs. Even when the door is slightly damaged. Radio Shack used to sell cheap microwave detectors, but they worked (My first microwave, Amana Model 2) had no latch, maybe a spring iirc, so I could pull the door open a trifle and see the reading on the detector start to climb, from zero. With later models, it's harder to test forced leakage.

I had a problem like this once when I was visiting someone. But the broken part was not on the latch, but the other end of the spring. I found a piece of wire in their basement and used it to attach the spring about 3 inches further down the door, inside, where there was a good place to attach. This was an over the range oven, so even more trouble and money to replace if they had had to. I was a very welcome guest after that.

Reply to
mm

How did you get the inside panel off the door?

Reply to
Dot

I stumbled on this site for the same issue with older Sharp microwave. After reading about the door spring, it was a quick and easy fix. Just pry at the plastic around the sliding latch and it'll pop out. Like others described, the bottom piece of plastic broke that held the spring. I had an old spring lying around that I doubled up with the existing spring so it could attach at a lower fixed spot. It's fully functional again. Thanks for the info!

Reply to
bc

I had invited myself to stay with friends in Staten Island 10 or 15 years ago, and one is supposed to bring a hostess gitt, but I'm not very good at that. They both went to work in the morning. Laura or Mike had mentioned that the latch on the built in microwave didn't latch, so without asking them, I took the door apart and the little plastic peg one end of the spring was attached to had broken. I used a wire tie I found in their drawer, and tied the spring to something farther down, using the length of the wire to make up the difference. it was looped twice so it was four strands strong.

Boy were they surprised when they got home and the microwave worked. A lot better than most hostess gifts.

Reply to
micky

Much more useful than a bottle of wine.

- . Christopher A. Young learn more about Jesus .

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Reply to
Stormin Mormon

Sounds like you're a great house guest!

Reply to
Muggles

Bit low on replacement parts/required tools to do service work on them too. [g]

Reply to
Diesel

You didn't...That's bound to ruffle up some feathers.

I don't think that's going to be a good save, my man. rofl

Reply to
Diesel

Hah! K... i'mma stop now, before you get us both in some shit. rofl.

Reply to
Diesel

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