Why won't my microwave heat up food

Hi Linda,

Unfortunately there's no one cause that fits everything; rather, there are several possible reasons why your microwave won't heat the food.

If you're somewhat experienced with using a multimeter and disassembling appliances, it is entirely possible to diagnose and repair it yourself, but you have be very careful with the high voltage capacitor to make sure you don't receive a powerful electric shock; it can hold enough power to severely injure or even kill.

That being said, there are instructions available online that can tell you how to safely discharge the capacitor and work on the microwave if you decide to tackle the problem. I've had several of them apart myself and had no issue as long as I was following safety procedures.

Here is a set of instructions for checking the top three causes; the first thing you want to do is go through these troubleshooting steps then see where you are. Here's the website you'll want to take a look at.

How to Fix a Microwave That's Not Heating – Microwave Repair

If that's out of your comfort zone then you would need to take it to a shop; otherwise check out the steps and let us know what you find. If you find the issue great; if not we can figure out what to do next to fix your microwave.