Appliance repair
Microwave Repair in Portland, Oregon
A microwave that runs but leaves the food cold, sparks inside, or has gone dark: Mend My Appliance repairs built-in, over-the-range and drawer microwaves at home across the Portland metro area, and tells you the price before any repair begins.
A countertop microwave is rarely worth a repair visit: a new one usually costs less than the visit and the part. A microwave that is built in, hangs over the range or slides out of a drawer is a different case, because a new one has to be fitted into the cabinets too.
Microwave problems we fix
Runs but does not heat
The light comes on and the turntable turns, but nothing warms up. The usual causes are the magnetron, the high-voltage diode or capacitor, or a thermal cutout.
Completely dead, no display
Often a blown main fuse, and a fuse very often blows because a door switch has failed. Then a thermal cutout or the control board.
Sparks or arcing inside
Stop using it. Usually a waveguide cover burned through by grease, or chipped paint inside the cavity; sometimes a fault behind them.
Stops when the door is touched, or will not start
The door switches, the latch or the hinges. A microwave is built not to run unless all its door switches agree that the door is shut.
Turntable does not turn
The coupler under the glass tray, the roller ring, or the turntable motor.
Buttons do not respond
A worn touch pad, a control lock that is on, or the control board.
Drawer will not open or close
The drawer motor, its gears, the slides, or the control that drives them.
Vent fan or light of an over-the-range model does not work
The fan motor, its switch, the bulb or LED, or the control board.
Repairs we do
- Magnetrons, high-voltage diodes and capacitors
- Main fuses, thermal cutouts and door switches
- Door latches, hinges and handles
- Touch pads and control boards
- Turntable motors and couplers
- Drawer motors, gears and slides
- Vent fan motors and lights of over-the-range models
Types of microwaves we work on
- Over-the-range microwaves with a vent fan and a cooktop light
- Built-in microwaves with a trim kit
- Microwave drawers under the counter or in an island
- Speed ovens and convection microwaves in a wall-oven stack
Never open a microwave
A microwave stores a high-voltage charge in its capacitor that stays after the plug is pulled, enough to kill. Everything on this page that is not about the door, the tray or the touch pad is work for a repair visit, not for a home check.
If a microwave runs with its door open, sparks, or smells of burning plastic, unplug it or switch off its breaker and do not use it again until it is repaired.
Over-the-range microwaves
An over-the-range microwave is also the hood of the cooktop below it: it has a vent fan, a light and grease filters. The fan and the light have their own faults, and a fan that runs on its own is often the heat sensor doing its job: it starts the fan when the cooktop below gets hot.
Its plug is usually in the cabinet above it. If the whole microwave is dead, check that cabinet and the breaker first.
Built-in microwaves and speed ovens
A built-in microwave sits in the cabinets, often above a wall oven, with a trim kit around it. A speed oven adds a convection element and works as a second oven. Both are repaired in place where the fault allows, and taken out of the cabinet only when it does not.
Microwave drawers
A microwave drawer opens with a motor. When it stops, sticks halfway or opens on its own, the cause is in the drive: the motor, the gear rack, the slides, or the control that runs them. Heating faults are the same as in any microwave.
A countertop microwave
We are glad to tell you what is wrong with one, but the honest answer is usually that a new microwave costs less than a repair visit and the part. A large countertop model that is part of a built-in trim kit is the exception, and is repaired like a built-in one.
How a microwave repair visit works
- Book online: choose the appliance, describe the problem and pick up to three times that suit you.
- We confirm one of your times by phone or text. You are not booked until we do.
- We come to your home, test the microwave and find the cause.
- You get the price before any repair begins. We repair it with your approval; if a part has to be ordered, we come back to fit it.
The diagnostic visit costs $89. If you go ahead with the repair, the $89 is applied toward it; if you decide not to repair, the $89 covers the diagnosis.
Our work and the parts we install carry a 90-day warranty. The terms are printed on your invoice.
Microwave brands we repair
Samsung, LG, Whirlpool, GE, Frigidaire, Maytag, KitchenAid, Bosch, Electrolux, Wolf, Viking, Miele, Monogram, Thermador, JennAir, Kenmore, Amana, GE Profile, Café, Fisher & Paykel, Dacor, Sharp and Gaggenau. If your brand is not in the list, ask: most microwaves share their parts and their faults.
Before the visit
- Do not run the microwave empty to test it: with nothing to absorb the energy, it can damage itself.
- Check the breaker, and on an over-the-range model the plug in the cabinet above.
- Make sure the control lock is off: the manual says how, usually by holding one button.
- Have the model number ready: it is on a label inside the door frame or behind the door.
Where we work
We come to homes across the Portland metro area in Oregon, among them Portland, Beaverton, Hillsboro, Tigard, Tualatin and Lake Oswego. Enter your ZIP code when you book and the form checks it right away.
Repair the microwave or replace it?
It depends on the age of the microwave, the cost of the part and what a comparable new one costs. After the diagnosis you have the numbers for your machine, and the decision is yours.
Book a microwave repair
Tell us what is wrong and pick the times that suit you. We confirm your visit by phone or text.