Our Kenmore Elite Microwave from our kitchen quit heating this morning. Would you suggest to go buy another and have it installed, or try and find repairman to possibly fix it? It's prolly 17 years old. I don't do electric or installs. Kinda helpless as my wife would put it....

Whaddaya say, OT?

I had ours fixed but it was nowhere near 17 years old. If it were me I would just go to Lowe’s and get another one and match as close as possible. I have put ours in before but it is kind of a hassle. Most of the time the mounting kit changes so not super easy. I will gladly pay the install fee next time.

I've never seen one that simply didn't plug into a standard receptacle behind the unit. They come with a 110V plug. My rather expensive built-in microwave was exactly that way, as have been others I've dealt with. Removal/installation isn't really an electrical-centric project - it's mechanical.

Regardless, you aren't going to be able to get any repair parts for a non-functioning microwave - especially one that old. I agree with the get a new one plan, and if you aren't a handyman type guy...well, you've already been paying for things to be done by others, so same solution on this.

Buy a new one from Lowes and have them install it for $100. Done.

buy a new one.

Replace it. It's not that hard.

Yep, it is easy. Find one with same dimensions. Width is pretty standard, depth may or may not matter, then there is height. I tiled my kitchen walls up to the cabinets and bottom of microwave so height would be important to me.

Call Mcneil's in Denton and have them do the install.

I’d get a new one. I’m pretty sure they just plug in, so no electrical work beyond...plugging it in a socket. But if you’re concerned about being able to plug an appliance in the wall, you should definitely have someone install it if it needs to be hung over your stove.

I replaced mine about 5 years ago. I had an issue with the trim kit being too big, ended up having to move two cabinet doors up about one inch.
I was able to do it , but quite a hassle, Measure the trim kit , make sure it works.

MO

I'm a DIY'er plus we have rentals so I do my own repairs when possible. I just repaired one last week and it cost less than $30 for parts for the same non-heating problem you're likely having. That said, since you don't do electric, the cost to hire it out vs repairing the old one will likely be a wash.

Also, Microwaves can be very dangerous because the part you most likely need to replace can hold a high voltage charge even after they are unplugged so if you're not comfortable with electric, it could be a dangerous DIY project to learn on. Normally if you have power but it's not heating, it's one of three things, the parts range from $2-$200. Most likely, 90 percent of the time the parts to repair a non-heating microwave will cost less than $40 to replace the capacitor, diode and fuse if you DIY. If it's the magnetron, those range between $100-200. As a DIY'er, if the magnetron is bad, I usually just replace with a new microwave.

At that age, I'd likely just get a new one either way because it should be safer, with more features and perhaps more energy efficient. If it's above range, the holes in your upper cabinets and wall usually don't line up. So be prepared the repairman will likely be drilling additional holes in the bottom of your upper cabinet and wall. The only challenge for an unskilled repairman or DIY'er to just remove and replace occurs if you have tile or a backsplash that goes up to the bottom of the current microwave. While all above range microwaves are the same basic size, they most often can't use the same mounting bracket so trimming the tile in rare cases can become an issue but again, only if tile goes up too high and the mounting system is much lower than your current unit.

Also, the removal and install of an above range microwave is much easier with two people - especially if it's the first one you've tackled. Lots of videos on YouTube that can walk you through it but like others said, cheap to hire it out.

When we bought this house 6 years ago, the seller paid for one year of that junk appliance warranty thing. Microwave crapped out about 6 months after we moved in. After 2 trips to the house trying to repair it, they finally bought a new one. The Service Techs were confused. The parts they were replacing, both times, cost more than a new unit.

Oh, and the new one failed within 30 days of them installing it.

That said, when I was working as an operations manager a few years ago, we had a commercial microwave stop working. My Regional Manager freaked out when he saw I had it taken apart on my desk, It was only a blown fuse, but had to take the case off to get to it. He thought I should have sent it out to a repair guy. LOL

what type is it? over the range, over the oven, sit on the counter?

Our over the range microwave went out 4 months ago. We found a replacement at Costco which included free install and haul the old one away. If you have/use
the Costco Visa card, you'll get an additional 2 years warranty for free. We chose a KitchenAide and works great. The installer was here all of 30 mins. Just ensure you measure prior to the purchase.