Steam comes out from bottom of the door when OTR unit is on for more than 5 minutes on high. I can feel warm air underneath microwave especially near the handle. Help!

The control panel will cost more than a new microwave

The symptoms would seem to indicate a short caused by moisture on the circuit that supplies power to the fan.

I’m happy to help further over the phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/donald_f2ed37026a3ac881

Hi Kerry,
"PF" is power falure if you didn't aready know this. It sounds to me like the coolig fan might be running slow or there is blocked or restricted air flow through the unit. This cooling fan is only for the HV transformer and magnetron. Sometimes you may get air flow around the door but this is incidental. The PF tells me that the power is being interrupted either at the power source (wall outlet or circuit breaker) or the magnetron TCO is cutting out. It also could be a bad magnetron running too hot. As far as the steam goes, I usually just leave the door open on my microwave for 10 or 15 minutes to let the condensation evaporate.

Sounds like the magnetron is overheating. There is an automatically-resetable thermal circuit breaker attached to the magnetron. Most likely your problem is caused by either a cooling fan that is not running, or is running too slow (caused by gummed-up bearings). In some over-the-range (OTR) microwave ovens, the exhaust fan is run at a slow speed to cool the magnetron, and if it's bearings get gummed up, it won't run on the slow speed. But if it's a new OTR microwave, then the exhaust fan may be pointing the wrong way. (It is rotatable, depending on the installation). For example, if it is pointing up, but you don't have an exhaust vent over the microwave, then the air has nowhere to go, and the magnetron will overheat.

If you need further help, reach me via phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/ronald_e6b9572cebe3ad27

Most over-the-range (OTR) microwave ovens have the exhaust fan funning at low speed when the microwave oven is working. This is to keep the magnetron and electronics cool. And it sucks air in from the bottom, so if you just place this microwave flat on the countertop, it won't be able to suck air in, and it could overheat if you use it for more than just a few minutes. But if you can put it on some boards or some sort of grill so air can get to the bottom, then you should be okay to use it as a counter-top model.

If you need further help, reach me via phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/ronald_e6b9572cebe3ad27

I always recommend that you use the vent fan whenever you're cooking on the stove top to keep heat, steam, and grease out of the controls and door panels.

If it does not dry out over time, it may need to be manually dried or blown out.

The keypad may be damaged or worn out, or control unit may be damaged.

Keypad failure can cause it to come on by itself, which can lead to a fire.

Feel free to contact me directly (and please remind me of your full model number from the tag on the unit) for more information & help.

We're happy to help you with free advice and we'd appreciate your thoughtful rating of our answer.

William E. Miller, AS-EET
[email protected]
http://www.microwavedisplay.com
Microwave Oven Control Panel Repair Nationwide

Hi,

I would suspect that when the microwave oven was on the table the vent or air openings were restricted by the table. Without free flowing air the control and other components could build up heat. It is doubtful that you built up enough heat to damage anything as this unit has more than one over temperature safety devices built into it.

That being said, the excess heat could weaken something internally especially on the control that would cause it to fail sooner than later in life.

My advice would be to leave it unplugged until it is mounted back on the wall per the instructions and use it then as normal. If it fails in the next year or so replace it at that time.

Every over the range microwave has a vent on it that should be venting that steam. I don't know of anything you could put under there that would solve your problem as that is where then vents are and they would be blocked. It sounds to me as though your steam is not being vented properly, and this could also happen if the steam is being vented back into the room instead of outside as many OTR microwaves allow you to do. Its a little bit of work to vent it outside but I myself did that with my microwave and have never had a steam accumulation problem.

It could be a problem with your cooling fan or hood fan not venting the cavity enough.

To help you most effectively, it's better to post your full actual model number. But I'll give you the general info for now.

If this is a countertop model, you should feel strong air flow coming out from the back.

If it's an over the range model, you should hear the internal fan blowing when you hit Start and see the steam moving around while it's heating.

If the fan is not blowing and air is not blowing or if the next system is not working or blocked, you will get more steam than usual and the magnetron will likely end up being damaged.

Some steam buildup inside is normal, but not too much. It's kind of subjective, but it's dependent to a lagre degree on that air flow.

Most newer models don't have any gaskets to worry about, but older models may have deteriorated gaskets which limit the air flow.

Please write back with more details if you need further help.

We're happy to help and we appreciate your thoughtful rating of our answer once we pose a final solution.