72165229401 Kenmore Microwave - Instructions

After watching a few youtube videos, I used a phillips SD to take controll pannel off to access the switches that sense when microwave door is closed. Swapped out all 3 switched and mocrowave works like new. $20 fix (shipping included)

My 8 year old daughter cleaned the inside of the microwave with enough water to rival a tsunami. Resulted in a clean microwave with a fried out motor that no longer revolved. Part came quickly. Took cover and bottom off to get to the part. One screw held it on and a plug. Removed those, put on new part and she was good to go. No trip to home depot today.

Fun and easy fix for my kids.

The countdown timer was working but no "cooking" happening. Did not hear the familiar sound of the heating part working.

Determined it might be some simple switches for under $15 dollars. Bought one of each. They allow the microwave to turn on/activate by signaling that the door is properly latched. My wife noticed that it was failing and then failed over the course of about a day. Several times where it worked, then did not work. The timer was counting down one time and then when she opened the door the microwave heating component turned on. Guess it had activated the switch as she was opening the door.

Procedure to repair
- Unplug
- Remove two screws on front top - allows you to remove the vent. Realized there was a charcoal filter there that I had never replaced so ordered that after the fix.
- Remove two screws to pull off the front right panel (area where your microwave buttons are) One at the top under the before mentioned vent and one under the microwave on the far right corner.
- Have someone hold the panel because wiring is to short to place it on a ledge while connected or take a picture and remove connections. I simply held it while my daughter undid the micro switches.
- Carefully remove micro switches. There were two "orange" button ones so I chose the top one to replace along with the green button one that I had ordered, so I simply pulled an orange from the bottom and a green from the top latch area. You may have remove the part that holds the switches since it was a little tough with the wires in the way and not knowing how the switches stay put.
- plug in new switches and place in the brackets that hold them in place
- reverse everything you did.
Viola - a working microwave vs purchasing a brand new for several hundred dollars or having to call in a technician.I love that my young kids did this project with me and we actually got it running. Don't like to have to throw away more items at the landfill.

Semi-Handy Man

I decided the door switch was the problem because 2 problems happened at the same time. I removed the 4 screws for the top outside cover and the 1 screw that held the control board. After removing the control board screw, I lifted it up and removed it. This gave me access to the 3 door switches. I then removed the 2 screws that held the plastic piece that holds the switches. This made it easier then to replace the switches.

tested all 3 of the door switche for continuity, the top switch was faulty, replaced it,for approx $4.00 and saved a $350 dollar microwave.

Over the stove microwave installed in top cabinet row.
1. Unplug device.
2. Two people to remove from wall/cabinet (remove two, large, top mounting screws and rotate entire microwave down and off the wall mount). Should be some wood spacers between top of device and bottom of cabinet.
3. Remove screws from sheet metal cover.
4. Remove one screw holding blowers in place and rotate out of the way, in order to gain access to 2 of 5 screws that hold the magnetron in place.
5. Unplug magnetron and remove the 5 screws.
6. Drop in new magnetron and re-assemble microwave in reverse order (steps 5-3).
7. Two people restore micro to wall/cabinet. Replace wood spacers, re-install two, large mounting screws (finger-tight). Test device. Secure the two large screws.

Note: also had to replace turntable. Removed top cover using secure driver set. Placed microwave on it's front, using a soft towel. Removed edge screws from bottom plate (leaving 4 screws in center attached to heavy transformer). Separated bottom plate from body of microwave (leaving transformer wires still attached) exposing Synchronous motor. Removed two screws holding motor and electrical plug. Swapped new motor in its place. Re-attached bottom plate with its screws. Placed microwave onto it normal position. Re-attached top cover with its secure screws. Installed new turntable inside.

Removed the MW from the wall. Took the top screws off the air vent. Then removed the two screws holding on the display. I then moved the display to its side and it revealed the micro switches. I removed the plug in leads from the micro switch one at a time. I did this with all three micro switches only one at a time. I reinstalled everything and plugged it in. No more fans starting when the door is opened.

Removed outer cover

removed lower door switch

installed new switch

Wa La!

Unplug the microwave. Remove the Philips head and safety Torx head screws along the bottom of the sides and rear of the microwave which hold the black cover on. Lift the cover up at the rear and slide it backwards to disengage the tabs on the front top. Remove the cover. Discharge the capacitor by shorting the terminals to each other and then ground. Do this with a well insulated object and be aware there may be a pop when you do this. Keep hands, etc. on the insulated part of the object (screwdriver handle, etc). There's a lot of stored energy in that capacitor. I'd advise first checking the diode to make sure its not bad. Replace it if it is. The Magnatron is held in with a couple of screws on the top and sides. Unplug the connector and remove the screws. Remove the Magnatron. Installation is the reverse of removal.

Remove 2 Philips Head screws on left side of microwave. Remove 3 Philips Head screws from bottom rear of microwave. Remove 4 security screws from back of microwave (holding the cover to frame). These are the security type tips that are like a Torx bit, but need to be hollow in middle to accommodate pin in center of screw. Then back plate of microwave with heavy transformer still attached slides up and away. The wires aren't long enough to allow it to rest flat on the bench, but weight is low so it's easy to hold it upright while removing the motor unit. Separate connector from motor (simple) Remove motor by unscrewing 1 phillips head screw and rotating counter-clockwise a tiny bit. Remove Motor. Reverse steps to re-assemble. Note that there are a series of tabs at the bottom of the back cover that fit into holes in the baseplate of microwave. It can be a little tricky to line them up with the weight of the transformer, but it's not too bad. Once lined up, it drops in nicely and all the various screw holes line up. The microwave is a bad cooker when the plate doesn't spin. This simple and inexpensive fix saved me from having to buy a whole new oven.

Turned the microwave on its side. (Recommend turning it on its top. i had to fish the wire connection back to the center after it dropped away from the motor.) There is a spot under the rotation motor where an access port was stamped in the tin but not cut out. Used the small side cutter to complete the cut where tin had been left between holes. I unplugged the wires, removed the old motor by removing one screw, and installed the new one by reusing the same screw. The motor must have a reduction gear inside the case. The motor coil tested good, about 128 ohms, but it acted like there was a stripped gear inside. I wasn't interested enough to try to open the motor and confirm.

Had to go to the garage and get a small sheet metal screw to close the new trap door.

The "new" motor had scratches on it, made me wonder if it was really new, but it works fine and will probably outlast me.

Removed micro bottom - 5 screws. One screw on the motor and a clip. Reversed the sequence, turned it on and watched it turn.

your part and YouTube video (which just happened to be my microwave)
changed bottom microswitch...done and dusted in 20 minutes...your $14 part 3B73362F saved $350!!!

I looked up my problem on the internet and found a very helpful video. Microwave on video was different brand but the internals and methods were very much the same. The video made it simple and easy to fix. Found the replacement switch on the LG parts site and ordered. Two different switch types. One with red switch, the other green. Part was $7.28. Saved a bundle in service costs. Here is the repair video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=_AglBJoHgDs