Our Spacesaver microwave oven shut down last night in the middle of a cycle. I opened it up and changed the fuse which had blown. It now turns on, and the display and lights work, but it runs at a low power, as if something is holding it back from running full power. It sounds as if it is trying to run but is straining to do so.
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If you or a friend decide to work on it, we have *critical* safety, disassembly, and troubleshooting info at our site, which is linked at our listing here on FixYa: http://tinyurl.com/yzjozk It's most likely a bad high-voltage transformer or magnetron, but it's hard to say without being able to check it. If it will run without blowing the fuse, you may be able to do a test. This should only be performed by someone observing safety warnings mentioned at the link above. Put about 2 cups in a microwave-safe container inside the cavity. Run the oven for about 3 minutes, or until it blows the fuse. Then unplug the oven from the wall, and carefully feel the top of the high-voltage transformer and inside or near the finned area of the magnetron to see if either gets really hot. If one does, it's the likeliest suspect. When the high-voltage transformer fails, it often gets discolored and smokes, but not always. You can look for that, too. It's very important that the internal cooling fan is running, and that the air vents are not blocked opr plugged.
Posted on Sep 28, 2007
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