--- title: "KitchenAid LOC or a padlock: the microwave keypad is locked on purpose" description: "What LOC means on KitchenAid LOC or a padlock: the microwave keypad is locked on purposes, what to check before booking, and when it is not a failure at all." url: "https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-loc/" --- # KitchenAid LOC or a padlock: the microwave keypad is locked on purpose Control Lock is a setting, not a breakdown. ## What LOC actually means. Control Lock is a setting, not a breakdown. While it is on, a KitchenAid microwave hood combination refuses every start command so a child or a wiping cloth cannot switch on the magnetron. The same symbol stays until someone turns the lock off again. KitchenAid microwave display What to do when LOC shows on the microwave ### Kind of code Mode, not a failure Something was switched on rather than something wearing out: a child or control lock set by a long press on the wrong pad, after which no key answers, a demo or showroom setting that lights the display and turns the plate while nothing warms, a Sabbath setting that dims the panel and mutes the beeps, or a clock left blinking after an outage that holds the keypad until it is set. No part is needed; a key sequence from the manual switches it off again. ### Usually leads to No repair Press and hold Cancel for about 3 seconds and wait for two tones; the padlock should go out. ### Shows up as What a Microwave Error Code Is Telling You A microwave error code may be a letter and a number on the display, a lock or demo word, a row of dashes, or a beep with a blinking clock, and it can show while the microwave still heats or block every key until it is cleared. ### Make KitchenAid KitchenAid microwave problems sorted out on site, from a turntable that stands still to a panel that ignores every press. ### Source KitchenAid Product Help, over-the-range microwave: LOC or "L" or Padlock Icon Current KitchenAid hood combinations with a Setup/Clock key (User Guide W11603629, 2022) use a 3-second hold on Cancel and show a padlock. KitchenAid's help page adds a 5-second Start hold for other control generations. ## Before you book, in this order. Each step comes from KitchenAid's own guidance for LOC on its microwaves. Follow it to the end: the last card says whether this is a visit. 01 Press and hold Cancel for about 3 seconds and wait for two tones; the padlock should go out. 02 If Cancel does nothing, try holding Start for 5 seconds, which is the unlock method on some KitchenAid controls. 03 Check the use and care guide for your model number if neither hold clears it. 04 If the padlock clears but the keys still do not answer, book a visit so the touchpad can be tested. ### Cleared? The code has gone and a mug of water heats again without a new part. If it comes back this week, or the food starts coming out cold in the middle, mention in the booking that it came back. ### What not to do LOC does not mean the door switches or the magnetron have a problem, and it does not heat anything by itself. If the display shows a letter followed by a number instead of LOC, you are looking at an error code, not the lock. ## What you may notice with it. The microwave problems LOC tends to arrive with. Answer these at the microwave before anyone is booked. [All problems](https://microwaverepair.center/problems/) Before you call ### [What a Microwave Error Code Is Telling You](https://microwaverepair.center/problems/microwave-error-code/) [All 7 causes, cheapest first](https://microwaverepair.center/problems/microwave-error-code/) It also comes with - [**Microwave Touchpad Ignores Key Presses**](https://microwaverepair.center/problems/microwave-touchpad-not-responding/) - [**Microwave Won't Turn On at All**](https://microwaverepair.center/problems/microwave-not-turning-on/) Problem ### What a Microwave Error Code Is Telling You 7 causes, cheapest first No repair indicated ## Nothing to repair. Something was switched on rather than something wearing out: a child or control lock set by a long press on the wrong pad, after which no key answers, a demo or showroom setting that lights the display and turns the plate while nothing warms, a Sabbath setting that dims the panel and mutes the beeps, or a clock left blinking after an outage that holds the keypad until it is set. No part is needed; a key sequence from the manual switches it off again. [How to read what your microwave is telling you](https://microwaverepair.center/problems/microwave-error-code/) ## KitchenAid microwaves. KitchenAid microwave problems sorted out on site, from a turntable that stands still to a panel that ignores every press. [KitchenAid microwave repair](https://microwaverepair.center/brands/kitchenaid/) More KitchenAid codes [DOOR](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-door/) [PF](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-pf/) [Demo](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-demo/) [Change the Charcoal Filter](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-change-charcoal-filter/) [F2](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-f2/) [SE](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-se/) [F2H1](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-f2h1/) [F3T4](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-f3t4/) [F3H1](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-f3h1/) [F7E9](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-f7e9/) [E23](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-e23/) [E24](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-e24/) [All 22 KitchenAid codes](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/#codes-kitchenaid) Mode, not a failure on other makes [Bertazzoni LOCK](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/bertazzoni-lock/) [Bosch LOCK ON](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/bosch-lock-on/) [Café CONTROL LOCKED](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/cafe-control-locked/) [Dacor LOCK ON](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/dacor-lock-on/) [Fisher & Paykel LOCK](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/fisher-and-paykel-lock/) [Fulgor Milano LOCK ON](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/fulgor-milano-lock-on/) [Gaggenau Demo mode](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/gaggenau-demo-mode/) [GE Profile LOC](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/ge-profile-loc/) [All 46 codes of this kind](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/#family-mode) KitchenAid builds this ### Microwave hood combination The microwave that hangs from the wall cabinets above the burners, heating food in its cavity while its own fan, light and filters handle the steam and grease rising from the pans beneath it. KitchenAid builds this ### Built-in microwave A microwave set into a tall cabinet or a wall of cabinetry at eye level, either a countertop body wrapped in a trim kit or a true built-in model, including speed and convection microwaves that brown as well as heat. KitchenAid builds this ### Countertop microwave A microwave that stands on the counter or a shelf and plugs into an outlet beside it, from a compact model for a dorm to a large inverter or convection unit in a busy family kitchen. ## In KitchenAid's own words > The Control Lock feature is ENABLED [KitchenAid Product Help, over-the-range microwave: LOC or "L" or Padlock Icon](https://producthelp.kitchenaid.com/Cooking/Microwaves/Over-the-Range_Microwave/Error_Code/Other_Error_Codes/LOC_or_%22L%22_or_Padlock_Icon_-_Over-the-Range_Microwave) [KitchenAid Product Help, over-the-range microwave: LOC or "L" or Padlock Icon](https://producthelp.kitchenaid.com/Cooking/Microwaves/Over-the-Range_Microwave/Error_Code/Other_Error_Codes/LOC_or_%22L%22_or_Padlock_Icon_-_Over-the-Range_Microwave) [KitchenAid Microwave Hood Combination User Guide W11603629B (2022)](https://web.archive.org/web/2026id_/https://www.kitchenaid.com/content/dam/global/documents/202211/owners-manual-w11603629-revB.pdf) Every code on this site is taken from the manufacturer's documentation, never from a forum or a parts listing. Current KitchenAid hood combinations with a Setup/Clock key (User Guide W11603629, 2022) use a 3-second hold on Cancel and show a padlock. KitchenAid's help page adds a 5-second Start hold for other control generations. ## KitchenAid LOC microwave repair, where we come out. The same visit in every metro below: the code, the model number, and a diagnosis before any part is ordered. 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Press and hold Cancel for about 3 seconds and wait for two tones; the padlock should go out. ### Why did my KitchenAid microwave lock itself? Most often the Cancel key was held down for a few seconds while wiping the panel, which is the same gesture that sets the lock. Hold it again for about 3 seconds to release it. ### Does Control Lock on a KitchenAid stop the vent fan too? The lock is there to prevent an unintended start of cooking. If the fan or light keys also seem dead, unlock first and test them again before assuming a second problem. ### The padlock will not go away on my KitchenAid. What next? Try both the Cancel hold and the Start hold, then switch the breaker off for a minute and back on. A padlock that survives all of that points to the touchpad or the control, and that needs a visit. --- **[Read on the site: KitchenAid LOC or a padlock: the microwave keypad is locked on purpose](https://microwaverepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-loc/)** **[Book a visit with MicrowaveRepair.center](https://microwaverepair.center/schedule/)**