6 Reasons Your Samsung Microwave Is Not Heating Food

Sometimes, I take the appliances I use on a near-daily basis for granted. I’m guessing you do too. That’s why it’s always a shock to me when I suddenly can’t use one of my favorite appliances. I use a microwave oven for everything from making coffee to reheating food. Although it doesn’t happen often, I hate it when it stops working.

Since I know just how frustrating it can be, I decided to write this article on what you can do if your Samsung microwave is not heating food. Today, I’m going to share a lot of helpful info on what you can do if your microwave starts malfunctioning.

Samsung Microwave Not Heating Up?

I’m going to talk about six common reasons why your microwave might not be working properly. I’ll also let you know how you can test the components to check whether they’re actually working or not. I will also share a few tips on how to replace faulty components.

6 Reasons Samsung Microwave Is Not Heating

1. Worn Magnetron 

The magnetron is the main component of a microwave oven. Its main purpose is to generate microwave energy. In other words, this component is directly responsible for heating up food. Although it’s designed to operate for a long time, the magnetron does have an expiration date. You’ll usually get up to 2,000 hours of use from this component.

I won’t get into details about how the magnetron works, but it’s quite a complex system. In case your microwave stops heating food, you should check whether the magnetron is working and replace it in case it’s faulty.

How to Replace a Magnetron

If you want to check whether the magnetron in your microwave oven is working, you’ll need a multimeter. 

1. Before you do anything, unplug the microwave and let it sit for at least 15 minutes to allow the components to discharge. 
2. Now grab your multimeter and connect its leads to the terminal of the magnetron. Doing this will enable you to test the magnetron for electrical continuity.
3. If the magnetron is working properly, it should show between two and three ohms of resistance. 
4. If you don’t see this type of resistance, it means that you need to replace the component.

2. Burned Out Diode

Now that you’ve learned what a magnetron is, I’d like to talk about a component that’s closely linked to it. The diode is responsible for providing the magnetron with the necessary voltage it needs to heat your food. You can find this component next to the high-voltage capacitor, which I’ll also talk about in more detail later on in the article.

Replacing a Microwave Diode

In case your microwave is not working properly due to a faulty diode, you can easily replace this component. In most cases, you’ll be able to see whether the diode is damaged just by looking at it. This means you’ll be able to diagnose the problem without having to check it for continuity.

There are some cases in which the diode may seem visibly fine despite it being burned out. In case it looks good to you but other components seem to be working fine, check the diode for continuity with a multimeter. If you’d like to see a video in which a professional repair technician replaces a microwave diode I suggest you watch the video below.

Microwave Isn't Heating? Diode Replacement #W10492278

3. Faulty High-Voltage Transformer

This is a component that powers the magnetron. When it starts failing, there’s a chance you’ll notice a burning smell coming from your microwave oven. There’s also the possibility that the transformer may produce sparks of electricity after it begins to malfunction. 

This can be quite dangerous, which is why the first thing you’ll need to do in this scenario is unplug the microwave oven. Only then can you begin the process of replacing the transformer.

How to Replace an HV Transformer in a Microwave

1. After you’ve unplugged the microwave, you should wait at least 15 minutes for the components to discharge. 
2. The next step is to grab a pair of rubber gloves and put them on. 
3. Now connect the leads of your multimeter to the transformer terminals and choose the ohm setting.
4. If the high-voltage transformer is working, it should show a resistance between 50 and 70 ohms. 
5. If it doesn’t, you need a replacement.

Warning: It takes expertise to replace the transformer, so make sure you do this only if you have a lot of experience with fixing appliances. If not, I recommend you get in touch with a professional repair technician.

4. Faulty High-Voltage Capacitor

The magnetron needs a big amount of voltage to operate. The amount of power it can receive from your wall socket simply isn’t enough. And that’s exactly where the capacitor comes into play. This component takes the power from the wall socket and turns it into the voltage the magnetron requires. So, if your microwave is not heating food, it could be due to a faulty capacitor.

Testing a High-Voltage Capacitor

1. Unplug your microwave oven and let it sit for a while to allow each component to discharge.
2. Now put on a pair of rubber gloves and grab your multimeter and set it to a thousand ohms. 
3. The next thing you should do is connect the multimeter leads to the terminals of the high-voltage capacitor. 
4. If the readings show a value of 0 ohms, the capacitor needs to be replaced.

5. Faulty Door Switches

There are usually three or four door switches in a microwave oven, depending on the model. Even if one of them becomes faulty, you won’t be able to heat food in your microwave. That’s because the door won’t close, and the microwave oven is designed to stop working whenever the door is not fully closed.

How to Replace a Door Switch in a Microwave Oven

You can easily test whether door switches are causing problems with your microwave. To do this, simply close the door of the microwave oven and check whether you hear a clicking sound. If you don’t it means that you need to replace this component.

This is both an easy and cheap fix. Door switches are quite affordable. To replace this component, all you need to do is remove it from the door panel by first removing the screws attached to the frame of the appliance and then placing the new door switch and putting the screws back.

6. Blown Thermal Fuse

Problems with the high-voltage capacitor can often lead to a blown thermal fuse. In case both of these components malfunction, it might be best for you to start thinking about buying a new microwave oven. However, if it’s still under warranty then you should just get it fixed or replaced free of charge.

How to Test a Thermal Fuse

You can check whether the thermal fuse is functioning properly by checking it for electrical continuity with a multimeter. Before you do this, make sure to unplug the microwave oven and wait for at least 15 minutes to allow all components to discharge.

Microwave Squealing and Not Heating

What do you do when your Samsung microwave is not heating food and on top of that it’s making a squealing noise? The answer is simple – you’ll have to either replace the magnetron or the microwave diode.

Worn Magnetron or Diode

I already talked about how you can test and replace these two components. If you skipped through that part of the article, just scroll back a bit and you’ll find all of the necessary info. Sometimes, you might not hear a squealing sound but rather a loud clicking noise coming from the microwave oven. This is also the sign of a worn magnetron or diode.

Microwave Won’t Turn and Food is Not Heating

Sometimes, it can be hard to determine which component of the microwave oven is not working properly. In case it simply won’t heat up, it could be due to one of several reasons. But if in addition to not heating it also won’t turn, you’ll be able to diagnose the problem easily.

Turntable Motor Faulty

If the turntable motor in your microwave oven starts malfunctioning, the appliance won’t heat food or have its spinning force. To be absolutely positive that this component is faulty, you can check the motor for continuity. 

Use the same process as I described for the other components. Unplug your microwave, wait for 15 minutes to allow components to discharge, put on a pair of rubber gloves, and use a multimeter to check for continuity.

Fixing A Microwave That Is Not Heating

I recommend that only people with enough experience in fixing appliances replace faulty components by themselves. In case you never attempted to fix an appliance before, it’s a much better and safer option to leave it to the professionals. 

If you’ve fixed appliances before, you already know the drill – order the part you need online or buy it at a local store, grab a screwdriver, discharge the components in your microwave, get some rubber gloves, and replace the faulty part.

Is Your Microwave Still Under Warranty?

The first thing you should do before deciding how to fix your microwave oven is checked whether it’s still under warranty. This is something you should do even if you know your way around appliances. 

Why spend your money on new parts when you can get a repair or replacement free of charge? If your microwave is under warranty simply take it to the shop and let their technicians fix it for you.

Cost to Fix Vs Buying A New Microwave?

If your microwave is under warranty, it means you bought it recently. If it’s not, you’ve probably been using it at least for a few years. Let’s say that it’s been quite reliable for more than five or six years. But all of a sudden, it started breaking down. 

Even if only one component started to malfunction, there’s a big chance others will begin to break down soon as well. That’s why you might want to buy a new one instead of fixing an old microwave.

Samsung Microwave Not Heating: Solved

In this article, I talked about some of the top reasons why you might not be able to reheat food in your microwave. It’s on you to decide whether you want to fix the appliance yourself or call up a repair technician in your area.

Even if you don’t feel comfortable fixing appliances yourself, you can at least easily check which component is faulty in case your Samsung microwave is not heating food. Once you test the components, you’ll have a good idea about how much a repair would cost.