 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
The Microwave
Recently however, I noticed it
was just cooking and cooking
without the pause, and thought
"this isn't good". This
behaviour was intermittent and I
could sometimes cause it to get
stuck in the not cooking phase.
I guessed (I also found a
schematic diagram floating
around inside the cover) the
problem was one of two things;
either the timer
circuit/component, or the
I have so far successfully made myself a cup of coffee in the appliance and it behaved impeccably; I did get quite excited observing it clicking on/off for the first time and again after I'd counted along the seconds for it to successfully click again. The microwave has a bit of a back-story... Ten-or-so years ago, just as I was in the process of moving into my own home, a local person had passed away and his daughter was trying to sell off various things. I had been called upon to wipe the data off his computer (I wish now I'd taken the whole thing as it was an old AT thing), and his daughter asked me if there was anything I wanted to buy, the microwave was one thing but there was also some furniture. I was actually reluctant to start buying things off her because she didn't seem to be someone that needed the cash and it was just the kind of stuff you "find homes for". Anyway, at the last moment she had a change-of-heart and said I could have the microwave in lieu of doing the data wipe thing. Since I hadn't yet got the keys to my place the microwave just stayed in the boot/trunk of my car for some weeks, getting slid about, and colliding with stuff - the handle of the door actually suffered a blemish to its chrome layer and to this day it still bears the insulation tape I wrapped round it to cover it up. For free, the microwave has served me well; cooking many a rhubarb crumble and bowls of jam/jelly, but also heating up cups of water since my electric kettle pulls over 2KW and is a little too much for my Power Oak to handle. Tips for longevity. Keep your microwave clean and leave the door ajar after use. The latter annoys my OCD brother but doing this will aid the former because it prevents condensation from being stuck inside from cooking/heating stuff, which will rust the innards eventually. I've seen many a not-as-old-as-mine microwave that is already a grotty state inside. It probably also helps that I don't actually use my microwave often for lengthy cooking which would surely shorten the lifespan of various components; jam and crumble are the most demanding things and it's not like I'm making that stuff everyday. Is my microwave perfect? No. It has always had an issue whereby the platter stalls and I have to give the door a brief open-and-close to get it going again; but ten years on and I quite like this quirk. But it's a basic model with simple dials - fancy ones with all their buttons and programs and digital display are a headache to operate (and surely have more things to go wrong*). The downside to the timer dial is that you can't be too precise, but since using it with the Power Oak I've gotten in the habit of stopping it at the end of a heating cycle or just heating something up (like a cup of tea that isn't quite as hot as I'd like) for the duration of one - there's no need to press any buttons for this; the timer is still in the position where I'd left it since I just opened the door to stop it and closing it again will just continue it. And by-the-way, the door doesn't have a push button to open it, just that handle, and I think I like that about it too. *Another client of my recently asked me if I could fix their microwave; it was a flashy one with digital display but that display had seemingly developed a mind of its own. It was a built-in version and I took one look at it and told him he'd be best off getting a new one**; personally I'd ditch the built-in aspect as this could have lead to its fault since there didn't appear to be anywhere for the appliance to vent to and components within would surely have suffered because of this. **I'd have wanted to charge him for my time dragging it down out of the cabinet and taking the cover off only to find it was a part that I either couldn't get or would cost too much to be justified. Thankfully the relay I replaced in mine only cost £5... [Update: The microwave still occasionally gets "stuck" and I have to twiddle the mode dial]
|
|
|
I
may have just repaired my
magnetron containment vessel
(microwave) and prevented it
from self-destructing... Ever
since I started using it hooked
up to my Power Oak that I charge
up with solar panels, I learned
that it cooks for a number of
seconds (18), and then pauses
for a few (all the while
rotating the platter back and
forth) - I know this because I
can watch the power draw on the
Power Oak beside it and its fans
spin up under the 1500W load
(it's an 800W microwave).