"terry" wrote in message
oups.com...


On Jan 28, 2:05 pm, "J.C." wrote:
I think it is the result of a power surge we had during a storm the other
night. My question is, would it be worth fixing or should we just buy a
new
one. It is about 7 years old, Panasonic from Sam's.

Advice; unless you are an electronics technician with proper skills do
not attempt to work on it yourself.
A microwave is essentially a 500 to 1000 watt (fairly powerful*) radio
transmitter in a metal box. It contains lethal voltage of several
thousand volts and if not reassembled correctly can leak microwave
radiation which may cause burns, or unknown health effects to humans.
Microwaves are so cheap these days and while one hates to subscribe to
the throwaway society it is probably not worth while to pay to get it
repaired.
The fault may be something very simple (maybe an internal fuse, or
overheat switch) or something serious such as a magnetron (about $50)
or power transformer ($50 or more); with at least an hours labour etc.
to check out its safety /lack of radiations leakage etc. And correct
replacement parts MUST be used.
Over the past 15 or more years I have repaired probably about 9 MWs
safely (my background is electronics) but I emphasize that while it
MIGHT be a simple repair don't let anyone not sufficiently skilled
work on it.
Microwave ovens were once described as "As one of the most dangerous
household appliances ever designed". I agree.


Thanks folks. That's pretty much what I figured. It's off to the appliance
store.

JC