66560622000 Kenmore Microwave - Instructions

No repair- just replaced glass turntable.
Right part I needed with first try

The nightmare was that this microwave is installed under the cabinet....in order to get to the light bulb I had to pull out my stove then squeeze into the space between the stove and counter....my old microwave light bult was much easier to change.....Shame on Whirlpool for making this so difficult.....must be a better way to cover the light bulb so that we do not need a screwdriver to remove the door to get to the light bulb

Removed 1 screw, removed "burnt out" bulb and replaced it with new bulb.

My microwave began suddenly making a loud harsh humming noise while cooking food. I did not let it go on long enough to know if it cooked the food or not. I did some Internet research and learned that it was likely the Magnetron. The test for this was to run the microwave for at least a minute on the lowest power setting and see if the noise cycled on and off. It did, so I (actually, my wife) ordered the part from partselect.com using the model number. I was successful in replacing the part, and we are back to microwave popcorn and quick defrost for a price that was less than a service call, however, it was time consuming, required a large work area, and access to 5 out of 6 sides of the unit. So proceed at your own discretion

Caution:

The first thing in every set of repair instructions was to discharge (short-circuit) the capacitor, as it may store large (as in lethal) amounts of electricity even when it is not connected to a power source. I had never done this, but found these instructions:

“Discharging your microwave's capacitor is absolutely essential in preventing injury to your microwave, your tools, and yourself. A capacitor stores a large amount of electricity even when your microwave is unplugged, and it must be discharged before beginning any repair.
A capacitor is discharged by creating a short circuit between each of the two capacitor terminals, and between each terminal and the chassis. The chassis is the metal mounting (bare metal surface) of the capacitor. Read these directions thoroughly before you proceed.
With your microwave unit unplugged, touch the blade of a well insulated screwdriver to one terminal. Gently slide the screwdriver forward until it reaches the other terminal, holding it there for a few seconds. Be aware that this often results in a loud and startling 'POP'.
Repeat this procedure in order to create a short circuit between each capacitor terminal and the chassis (bare metal mounting plate surface). This same method can be applied to a capacitor having three, and not two, terminals.”
I had not run my microwave in over a week, and then while my part was shipping, left my microwave 'unplugged' for more than two days, and my capacitor apparently discharged itself, although I did go through the above procedure carefully and completely - just in case.
Step-By-Step:
1. You must remove your microwave from the cabinets - it is impossible to repair otherwise. This is best accomplished with 2 strong people - my wife and I made it work, but wished for another guy.
a. While supporting the microwave, remove the two screws coming down through the cabinet above.
b. Lift the rear of the microwave as much as possible, then tilt the front down - there is a clip high on the left side, as well as the hinge/clips on the bottom.
c. If you do not lift it off the wall all at once, you may have to lift the rear even farther to remove it from the hinge/clips on the bottom.
Important Note: Always beware of the microwave door, if it is bent or broken and cannot retain a seal, the microwave not function as a safety feature to keep from releasing microwaves.
2. Remove the vent cover on the top/front of the microwave - be careful, it's plastic.
3. Remove the vent cover and light panel on the bottom of the microwave - this is several screws and some simple wire clips.
4. Remove the "shell" (top and sides) of the microwave - this is several more screws on the back. Make sure to remove the plate that is holding the cord in place on the top.
5. Remove the interface panel by the screws on the top (which had been hidden by the vent cover) - the wires can remain attached, just slide it aside.
6. Remove the metal cover on the right side at the rear; this will expose the Magnetron and the Capacitor. Remember to immediately test and discharge the capacitor!

7. After you discharge the capacitor, remove the other cover plate and the support bracket - in case you haven't noticed, this is a time and space consuming operation.

8. You

PartSelect had the turntable I needed at the best price. Ordering was easy, but best of all, the part was delivered next day. I was able to insert the new turntable plate into the microwave and it was good as new.

Have you ever tried getting the inner seal off a microwave door in order to replace a door latch or the handle? It is not an easy job. I was advised by a service technician that they usually just order a complete new door for a broken latch or handle as it is so difficult to get the seal off without damaging the door. I priced a new door, and it would have been more than the microwave, so I searched the internet for ideas. I found several sites that gave various suggestions. What worked for me was to slide a putty knife inbetween the top of the inner seal and the door - starting at the top right corner and working along the top first. I actually used several knives so that the six clips that are along the top did not pop back into their sockets. The first clip is 55 mm from the top right corner. There is then more every 95mm along the top of the frame. If you can push these in with a knife, keeping the knives in place, you will be able to carefully pull the seal out. From the top left corner going down, there is a clip 25mm from the top, and another 85mm from that point - again push a knife in to release the clip. Carefully work your way along the bottom, The clips are in the same place as on the top. Then work along the edge closest to the microwave. With a bit of patience, the seal will come out in one piece. Even if you break it getting it out, it is better than the alternative, and you can always get another one at partselect.com
Once I had got the seal off, I thought I was home dry and the rest would be easy. Wrong! To get at the broken latch for the door (same if I was replacing the handle) I still had to get the stainless steel outer shell away from the main frame of the door (without bending it) and there was clips all along that had to somehow all be pushed out of their sockets at the same time so that the stainless steel outer shell would come away from the rest of the door, and I could get at the screw that held the latch in place that needed to be replaced. I came up with the idea of pushing 2 quarters in the gap between the door shell and the main frame next to every single clip. I then went back along where all of he quarters were pushed in, and pushed a penny inbetween the two quarters and this opened up the clips just enough to disengage them from their sockets, but without bending the stainless steel. As I gradually went around the door pushing the pennies in, the outer shell poped off, and I could get at the screw to get the broken latch off. Once I knew I could get at the part that I need to replace, I went on line and searched for a place to get Kitchenaid parts. That is when I found this site. I ordered the 2 parts that I needed from partselect.com at around 2.30 PM. At 3.15 PM the next day they were delivered to me in South Florida, and within 10 minutes they were out of the packing, and I had the microwave fixed. Getting to the part that needed replacing wasn't easy, but I hope that the above makes it easier for somebody else in a similar situation. The service from partselect.com was excellent. I had never heard of them before, but would certainly recommend them to anybody.
Regards

Opened the box and popped it in. No problem with that.

The part was sent to me the next day! And it was the right part. Awesome!

set the table on the support ring

This is the second replacement tray we have in installed. The first one ( Not From Here ) we had for less than 5 months, we made a bag of popcorn, and about 5 minutes later we heard a crash, not knowing where the noise came from we dismissed it. The next day we opened the microwave a saw the plate had shattered. So we hope that this will not do the same thing.

Unless you have a very comfortable background with electronics and electricity, I don't necessarily recommend taking apart a microwave. If you are very handy and are going to be VERY cautious to follow the rules of discharging caps and testing voltages before moving forward, then go for it. That said, I took the microwave off and apart. Not knowing where to find the parts, I was fortunate that the installer put the instruction book for the microwave inside the front vent slot above the touchpad for reference. it details the location of every part and it tells you very clearly what each part you test should show specific to this microwave on your multimeter. Find this guide online if you don't have it. Turn on the microwave for 20 seconds with a glass of water to make sure it's not heating - that with the noise means it's eeither the magnetron, cap, or diode. Read the notes on this site for all of the basic things to look for with the magnetron, diode, and capacitor. Once comfortable with the guide, locations of those devices, and how to test, then take it down and apart. Unfortunately, I didn't do all those things in that order, and it only wasted a lot of time trying to find the parts. Once I found the parts and put all the screws and covers back for all the areas that didn't need to be accessed for the repair, testing went quickly. The diode was bad. Ordered a new one and had it in 3 days or so. That means your microwave will be apart and sitting somewhere for a little while until you get the part and have time to repair it. Putting the diode back isn't too bad. Reassemble the microwave and put it back up again. If i had to do it again, it would take me 20 to 30 minutes once the microwave was down and on a table. Also, I used some bricks with towels over them or you could use some sawhorses to keep the microwave elevated so you can plug it in and run it after installing the new component. Again, make sure you discharge the cap before touching anything again even if you didn't run it, but just plugged it in.

I turn off the income electricity by shutting down the corresponding circuit breaker. Then, I removed the control panel from the microwave which gave me access to the capacitor and adjacent diode. After that i unscrewed the defective diode and replaced it with the new one and BINGO!

My unit is a wall mount/cabinet/built-in model. The repair is actually fairly simple once you determine that the actual microwave is just a component of the entire unit, and that it (the microwave) can be easily removed from the unit. I did not figure this out until after I removed the entire unit (disconnect the power supply, lift the entire bulky, heavy unit out of the cramped space in the cabinet, etc). Once I got it out I figured out how easy it is to remove the actual oven - a couple of screws, literally. The unit is a bit bulky, but not particularly heavy and is quite manageable. I did this entire process alone.

I got the oven out, rolled it on it's side and found the plate to access the motor. The plate is located on the bottom/underside of the unit. The plate is nothing more than a section of the underside of the metal housing that has been cut-out as an access point. This "cut-out" is not complete - that is, not completely cut out so as to all the plate to stay in place without the need for screws, etc, until you actually have to use it. I used a pair of dykes to cut the couple of points still connecting this plate, removed the two phillips screws to remove the motor, disconnected the two wires connected, then reversed to complete the repair. You then flip the cut-out plate over/rotate it, and some screw holes line up. Find a couple of small screws, and re-attach the plate to cover the motor.

The actual fix is really easy, again, once you figure out the simple way to remove the oven. I am an idiot, so you will probably find this much easier. I could probably do this repair now, after my experience, in less than 30 minutes (probably less than 15 minutes). I probably save a couple hundred $ by doing it myself so was well worth the time to do it. Good luck.

removed two screws,lowered the glass shield,removed the burned out bulb and replaced it with the new one. I ordered the bulb from parts select and recieved it two days later. It was a pleasure to deal with them, and certainly use them again.

I had some difficulty removing the glass plate because of the awkward (upside down) position of the screw that retained it. After replacing the burned out bulbs and replacig the glass plate the problem of replacing the screw involved my dropping the thing several times before I got the screw threads to catch. I got a screw thread to catch enough to hold the glass plate in position and left it at that.