Microwave
Won't Turn On at All
A microwave won't turn on in two ways that look alike: the display is dark and nothing answers a key, or the clock glows but start does nothing, and a dead unit whose breaker never tripped often has a blown fuse inside.
Mon–Sat, 8am–8pm
- 5 checks before you book
- 5 questions that narrow it
- 6 causes, cheapest first
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What it
usually means.
Power reaches a microwave along a short, predictable path: the breaker, an outlet (on a hood combination, inside the wall cabinet above it; on a built-in, often in the cabinet beside or behind it), the cord, a line fuse inside the case, one or two thermal cutouts, and then the board. A dark display means the power stopped somewhere on that path: a tripped breaker or GFCI, a plug that worked loose, a blown internal fuse, a cutout that opened after overheating, or a board whose own supply failed. A lit display with no response is a different case: a control or child lock is the most common reason, then a door the switches believe is open, then a touchpad or board problem. The internal fuse needs its own note: it usually blows because a door switch failed, and replacing it without the switches only postpones the next one. That fuse and everything after it sit behind the outer case beside the high-voltage capacitor, so the owner's side ends at the breaker and the plug.
The 6 causes, cheapest first
Answer these first
Is the display completely dark, or is the clock lit while start does nothing?
Does a lamp plugged into the same outlet work, and did the kitchen breaker or a GFCI trip?
Does a lock icon or a lock word appear when you press a key?
Did it go dead as the door opened or closed, during a storm, or after a spark?
On a hood combination or built-in, can the plug be reached safely in the cabinet above or beside it?
Check these
before you book.
Microwave won't turn on: 5 checks, and none of them costs anything.
Look for a lock icon and try the unlock the manual gives, often a three-second press on stop or cancel.
Check the breaker and any GFCI outlet on the kitchen circuit, and reset one that tripped, once.
Plug a lamp into the same outlet, or, on a hood combination, check that the plug in the cabinet above is seated.
Also worth checking
- Open and close the door firmly, then try start with a cup of water inside.
- Leave the outer case closed: the fuse and board sit behind it next to the capacitor, and a visit covers them.
How soon does it need a visit?
A dark microwave is not urgent on its own. If it went dead with a bang, a spark or a burning smell, or trips the breaker again after one reset, leave the breaker off and read the pages for those problems first.
The causes,
cheapest first.
6 things microwave won't turn on at all turns out to be, from a child lock set by accident to board or its power supply failed.
The cost guide-
01 no repair
A child lock set by accident
A child or control lock leaves the clock showing and ignores every other key. It is set and released with a long press, and it is easy to set by accident while wiping the panel.
-
02 no repair
A tripped breaker, a GFCI or a loose plug
A GFCI outlet elsewhere on the circuit, a breaker tripped by another appliance, or a plug nudged half out of a cabinet outlet leaves the microwave dark with nothing wrong inside it.
-
03 low
Blown internal fuse
The fuse on the incoming line can blow while the kitchen breaker stays on. It is replaced on a visit together with a test of the door switches, which are the usual reason it went.
-
04 low to moderate
Door switches reporting the door open
If the board believes the door is open, start does nothing. A door that no longer presses its switches far enough, a worn latch hook, or a switch that stopped closing all end here.
-
05 low to moderate
A thermal cutout left open
Some cutouts reset once they cool; others stay open after one bad overheat and leave the whole unit dark. Finding which one, and why it overheated, is part of the visit.
-
06 moderate to highest
Board or its power supply failed
A surge or plain age can take out the board's small power supply, leaving the unit dark with power at the outlet.
What else
it could be.
Most often confused with microwave trips the breaker or blows a fuse, then microwave touchpad ignores key presses.
All problems
The makes
it happens on.
18 makes on this site; microwave won't turn on at all can show up on any of them. Each mark opens that make's own page.
All 18 brandsMicrowave Won't Turn On at All,
where we come out.
9 metros, each with its own page.
All service areasTampa BayFL · 31 areas
Miami / South FloridaFL · 47 areas
New York MetroNY · 75 areas
HoustonTX · 36 areas
ChicagoIL · 50 areas
Los AngelesCA · 95 areas
San DiegoCA · 31 areas
Questions about
microwave won't turn on at all.
Why did my microwave go dead after a power outage?
Is the fuse inside the microwave the same as the breaker in my panel?
The display works but start does nothing. Is the board bad?
Where is the plug on a microwave mounted above the cooking surface?
Back to your everyday
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