Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark

On 09/24/2013 06:40 AM, wrote:
Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark



https://duckduckgo.com/?t=lm&q=magnetrons+GE+microwave

wrote:
Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark

it's probably quite fixable if you just want the satisfaction of fixing it
yourself.

Not that they're a replacement for what you need, but I recently saw $39
microwave ovens at Menards. I'm not sure how anybody makes money off
something like that.

On Tue, 24 Sep 2013, wrote:

Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out for, but other than that?

No picture, no sound? Check the faq,
http://www.repairfaq.org/sam/micfaq.htm

Michael

Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped microwaving.
The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be
done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out
for, but other than that?


** Hi Mark,

do you look like Alfred E. Neuman - by any chance ??



..... Phil

On 24/09/2013 15:40, wrote:
Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark


Check the high voltage fuse ? Mine got that problem, replaced it with
the same fuse from eBay, and now it's working.

(Be sure to discharge the capacitor is discharged ?)

cLx wrote:
On 24/09/2013 15:40, wrote:
Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark


Check the high voltage fuse ? Mine got that problem, replaced it with
the same fuse from eBay, and now it's working.

(Be sure to discharge the capacitor is discharged ?)

fuse?

do you mean high voltage rectifier- the black thing with two leads?

"Cydrome Leader" wrote in message
...
cLx wrote:
On 24/09/2013 15:40, wrote:
Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped
microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no
microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be
done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out
for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark


Check the high voltage fuse ? Mine got that problem, replaced it with
the same fuse from eBay, and now it's working.

(Be sure to discharge the capacitor is discharged ?)

fuse?

do you mean high voltage rectifier- the black thing with two leads?

Later microwave ovens often had another black thing with 2 leads, and a
symbol on it similar to that for a tranzorb - they frequently fail S/C for
no apparent reason, if you're lucky the fuse pops before you get shorted
turns on the transformer.

Another cause of blown fuse is the safety interlock switches on the door - 2
of the switches cut the mans, the third is a failsafe that shorts the
transformer primary if both the breaker switches weld shut.

Slamming the door shut can cause bounce on the shorting switch - another
potential fuse blower.

The most expensive part I've ever bought for a microwave is a bulb, one plus
side of living in a flat is the communal bin rooms, microwaves get dumped
every now and then, if the dish etc is missing I scrap it for spares.
There's a couple of spare microwaves stored in the garage, the most recent
find was a fully working (except the bulb) grill/microwave which I took
indoors to replace the existing one - but that's not showing any sign of
conking out just yet!

If the fuse is blown; pull the wire off the HT tag on the transformer and
try another fuse, if that's OK you then have to eliminate the diode &
capacitor.

The HT winding is 2kV at 1/2A - it could probably show Old Sparky how its
done!!!

Imagine a typical 500 watt oven pumping 2400MHZ CW into a directional antenna and aiming it at your food, or your neighbor for that matter. Lenny

On Wed, 25 Sep 2013, wrote:

Imagine a typical 500 watt oven pumping 2400MHZ CW into a directional
antenna and aiming it at your food, or your neighbor for that matter.
Lenny

Legend has it the concept of cooking with microwaves came when someone was
working on a microwave dish with power going to it, and the chocolate bar
iin his pocket melted, showing the value of microwave for heating things.

The legend never says how much power was going into that dish.

Remember though that power drops off significantly with distance. You
need high power to bounce a signal off the moon because by the time it
hits the moon, the power is miniscule, and made even tinier by the return
trip. Benig right next to a high power transmitter can be a bother,
ifnothing else it may overload your receivers and audio amplifiers may
start rectifying the signal so they act as "crystal" radios, but not that
far away, the signal has diminished by quite a bit. The fuss over
cellphones is because the power is really clsoe to your brain, even if it
was kept on the belt and operated remotely, the power would be
significantly less.

Michael

Michael Black forklarede:
The fuss over cellphones is because the power is
really clsoe to your brain, even if it was kept on the belt and operated
remotely, the power would be significantly less.


Instead of having a cellphone tower near the school, people want it far
away. Therefore the phones of 1000 kids have to "shout louder" to reach
the tower.

Is that the right choice?

Leif

--
Husk kørelys bagpå, hvis din bilfabrikant har taget den idiotiske
beslutning at undlade det.

On 25/09/2013 20:24, Cydrome Leader wrote:
cLx wrote:
On 24/09/2013 15:40, wrote:
Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark


Check the high voltage fuse ? Mine got that problem, replaced it with
the same fuse from eBay, and now it's working.

(Be sure to discharge the capacitor is discharged ?)

fuse?

do you mean high voltage rectifier- the black thing with two leads?

No. I mean fuse. Like this one:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/High-volt-fu...-/321215356808

(the current depending of the microwave oven's power)

- c.

On 09/25/2013 10:08 PM, Michael Black wrote:
On Wed, 25 Sep 2013, wrote:

Imagine a typical 500 watt oven pumping 2400MHZ CW into a directional
antenna and aiming it at your food, or your neighbor for that matter.
Lenny

Legend has it the concept of cooking with microwaves came when someone
was working on a microwave dish with power going to it, and the
chocolate bar iin his pocket melted, showing the value of microwave for
heating things.

The legend never says how much power was going into that dish.

Remember though that power drops off significantly with distance. You
need high power to bounce a signal off the moon because by the time it
hits the moon, the power is miniscule, and made even tinier by the
return trip. Benig right next to a high power transmitter can be a
bother, ifnothing else it may overload your receivers and audio
amplifiers may start rectifying the signal so they act as "crystal"
radios, but not that far away, the signal has diminished by quite a
bit. The fuss over cellphones is because the power is really clsoe to
your brain, even if it was kept on the belt and operated remotely, the
power would be significantly less.

Michael


All the microwave point to points I've worked on have had transmitter
outputs in the hundred milliWatts range. A single dish can have many
transmitters multiplexed, but there is nothing approaching enough Watts
to heat anything up significantly.

RADAR, on the other hand...

On 09/26/2013 01:58 AM, Leif Neland wrote:
Michael Black forklarede:
The fuss over cellphones is because the power is really clsoe to your
brain, even if it was kept on the belt and operated remotely, the
power would be significantly less.


Instead of having a cellphone tower near the school, people want it far
away. Therefore the phones of 1000 kids have to "shout louder" to reach
the tower.

Is that the right choice?

Leif


There is no RF increase near the base of a tower. The antennas transmit
sideways. Downward lobes were eliminated by spacing bays 1/2 wavelength
(180 degrees) apart, rather than a full wavelength (360 degrees). The
beam tilt determines where the energy meets the ground.

School towers are not dangerous to students, provided they are above them.

cLx wrote:
On 25/09/2013 20:24, Cydrome Leader wrote:
cLx wrote:
On 24/09/2013 15:40, wrote:
Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark


Check the high voltage fuse ? Mine got that problem, replaced it with
the same fuse from eBay, and now it's working.

(Be sure to discharge the capacitor is discharged ?)

fuse?

do you mean high voltage rectifier- the black thing with two leads?

No. I mean fuse. Like this one:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/High-volt-fu...-/321215356808

Never seen those before. Is this a new thing they add to make appliances
fail more often?

"Cydrome Leader" wrote in message
...
cLx wrote:
On 25/09/2013 20:24, Cydrome Leader wrote:
cLx wrote:
On 24/09/2013 15:40, wrote:
Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped
microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no
microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can
be done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch
out for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark


Check the high voltage fuse ? Mine got that problem, replaced it with
the same fuse from eBay, and now it's working.

(Be sure to discharge the capacitor is discharged ?)

fuse?

do you mean high voltage rectifier- the black thing with two leads?

No. I mean fuse. Like this one:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/High-volt-fu...-/321215356808

Never seen those before. Is this a new thing they add to make appliances
fail more often?

Nothing new at all - the spring pulls the gap open, and hopefully - quenches
the arc.

wrote in message
...
Imagine a typical 500 watt oven pumping 2400MHZ CW into a directional
antenna and aiming it at your food, or your neighbor for that matter.
Lenny

Someone actually had a design for a microwave oven magnetron transmitter
published on their website.

Last time I looked, it had been taken down.

On Thu, 26 Sep 2013, Ian Field wrote:



wrote in message
...
Imagine a typical 500 watt oven pumping 2400MHZ CW into a directional
antenna and aiming it at your food, or your neighbor for that matter. Lenny

Someone actually had a design for a microwave oven magnetron transmitter
published on their website.

Last time I looked, it had been taken down.

At least one of the ham magazines had an article like that, maybe as much
as 20 years ago. Of course, they locked it to a frequency standard
thtough some method.

Michael

Ian Field wrote:


"Cydrome Leader" wrote in message
...
cLx wrote:
On 25/09/2013 20:24, Cydrome Leader wrote:
cLx wrote:
On 24/09/2013 15:40, wrote:
Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped
microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no
microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can
be done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch
out for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark


Check the high voltage fuse ? Mine got that problem, replaced it with
the same fuse from eBay, and now it's working.

(Be sure to discharge the capacitor is discharged ?)

fuse?

do you mean high voltage rectifier- the black thing with two leads?

No. I mean fuse. Like this one:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/High-volt-fu...-/321215356808

Never seen those before. Is this a new thing they add to make appliances
fail more often?

Nothing new at all - the spring pulls the gap open, and hopefully - quenches
the arc.

but what for?

If anything goes horribly wrong in a microwave oven, those slow acting
fuses on the mains sure do seem to work ok.

Michael Black wrote:

On Wed, 25 Sep 2013, wrote:

Imagine a typical 500 watt oven pumping 2400MHZ CW into a directional
antenna and aiming it at your food, or your neighbor for that matter.
Lenny

Legend has it the concept of cooking with microwaves came when someone was
working on a microwave dish with power going to it, and the chocolate bar
iin his pocket melted, showing the value of microwave for heating things.


Wrapped in the standard aluminum foil packaging? How could he carry
a chocolate bar in a pocket, without it melting?


--
Anyone wanting to run for any political office in the US should have to
have a DD214, and a honorable discharge.

On Tue, 24 Sep 2013 06:40:07 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped microwaving. The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark

Check the safety interlock (door) switches.. You'll probably find one that's partially
melted.. (Which is typical time/use failure, since many uWave designs often run 10+ AC
amps thru these little micro switches).

When these safety switches fail it often produces symptoms exactly like what you are
describing.

"T. Keating" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 24 Sep 2013 06:40:07 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

Hi...

We have a 6 year-old GE Spacemaker microwave that has stopped microwaving.
The fan, lights, turntable, etc all still work - just no microwaves.

a) Is this worth repairing or is replacing the only good option?

b) What would the cost of the tube be, and is this a repair that can be
done DIY? I know there's a big capacitor in there I have to watch out
for, but other than that?

Thanks
Mark

Check the safety interlock (door) switches.. You'll probably find one
that's partially
melted.. (Which is typical time/use failure, since many uWave designs
often run 10+ AC
amps thru these little micro switches).

When these safety switches fail it often produces symptoms exactly like
what you are
describing.

Its important to remember that 2 of the interlock switches break the
circuit when the door opens - if one welds, there is still a disconnect.

The 3rd switch is the vital fail-safe, that shorts the incoming mains in
case *BOTH* break switches have welded.

If you're going to all the trouble of replacing and correctly adjusting the
interlock switches - you might as well replace all 3 with good quality *NEW*
ones.