Last night my wife accidently turned on the microwave with nothing inside. It probably ran for 15-20 minutes before I noticed a burning smell (burnt wiring) After opening the door I noticed the unit had no electrical power at all. Later that evening the power returned but when cooking it again had a burning smell and made a unusual noise. Should we replace the unit?

Hello -

It is probably safe to use the microwave oven after removing the burned smell.

I found some methods for removing a burned smell from a microwave.

From:
https://blog.bostonappliance.net/5-foolproof-ways-to-get-burnt-popcorn-smell-out-of-the-microwave/

(Quote)
1. Fill a bowl with 1/2 cup water and 1 tablespoon white vinegar.

• Microwave it for 4-5 minutes and leave it with the door shut for 10-15 minutes.
• Steam will loosen smell-causing detritus stuck to the walls. Vinegar absorbs odors, even stubborn ones like burnt popcorn smell.
• After the waiting period, remove the bowl and wipe the inside of the microwave down with a paper towel

2. Not good enough? Okay - soak a sponge with vinegar.Place some baking soda on top and microwave the sponge for 25 seconds.

• Wipe the inside of the microwave with the sponge.
• Don't forget the glass tray and the microwave door.

3. If steps 1-2 don't remove all the grime, soak cotton balls with acetone-free nail polish remover and wipe down the inside of the microwave.

• Even stubborn stains should come out.
• Wipe down the inside with soap, then vinegar water, to remove the polish remover.
• We recommend following through with step 4 to get rid of chemical smells.

4. Banish the remaining smells with the power of citrus.

• Peel two oranges or slice a lemon in half.
• Place the orange peels or lemon slices in a bowl of water (1-2 cups).
• Microwave it for 4 minutes. Watch closely to ensure that the water stays in the bowl and the citrus peels do not burn.
• If possible, leave the bowl in the microwave (with the door closed) for 12 hours.
• Too time-consuming, or just not doable for you? That's okay too. Let the bowl sit in the closed microwave for half an hour then, if the burnt smell persists, continue to step 5.

5. Still bad odors in your microwave? Leave an open box of baking soda on your microwave tray overnight.

• It will neurtalize the odor without adding to the smelly situation in any way.
• You can also place coffee grounds from your morning coffee in a bowl in the microwave all day while you are at work.
• If you don't mind coffee smell, you can microwave 2 tablespoons of coffee grounds in a half cup of water for 2-3 minutes to expedite the process.

(End quote)

Best wishes.

First check your electrical panel breaker before calling for service.

<a href="http://www.kansascitymajorappliancerepair.com/"> Appliance Repair Kansas City </a>

I would be in the market for a new oven right away.

Yes, as long as you don't smell any burning, but as always, no microwave should ever run unattended.

More common then you think, i have gone through a couple microwaves in the last ten years, they both failed very similar to what you describe. One popped the breaker one day, reset the breaker and it worked again but had an odd smell to it. I took it apart and couldn't find anything burnt or melted so i tossed it and got a new one, i didn't want a microwave burning the house down! I would suggest unless your really tied to that microwave that you just replace it for safety sake. Four years or forty years old don't matter anymore, i had one microwave, LG brand, that died two months after the warranty expired and it would cost more to repair it then replace the thing!

You would be better off to replace the filter. Purchase two and use the first one to capture the remaining smoke residue. Then install the other clean one to keep microwave free of smell. Check the web site www.partselect.com for the replacement filter. If you found any of these suggestions helpful, please rate my solution. D. Lange

don;t worry;
all you need to do is lubricate the fan bearings with light machine oil and make sure the fan is not hitting anything

If it is burning and arcing at the antenna, it is probably arcing in the wave guide area. Probably will have to replace unit. I have had some success by removing the antenna, sanding and repainting the burnt areas of the cavity and sanding off any burnt marks on the antenna. Need to look at top of mag to see if also arcing there too.

the control circuit shorted out from the cleaning session and kept the microwave on so long with nothing to cook that it has cooked itself I'm sorry to tell you. Probably not worth repairing