Whirlpool Microwave Fire

[burti]

Whirlpool microwave electrical fire in Pine Hills new home.
Model WMH73521cs5. Caught fire from inside of top microswitch. Top interlock and cam all melted. Prongs on door assembly melted. This was not a food fire, but an internal electrical problem. Resident noticed a slight plastic smell while using over several days. Thought it was due to being brand new. A few minutes after removing food, flames were seen shooting from right electrical compartment. Unplugged microwave from upper kitchen cabinet.

[tagjr1]

Ahh, Whirlpool, the appliance of choice here in TV. When you investigate the microwave issue it becomes apparent that along with the exploding refrigerators the developer surely must know there are quality issues with these low end, south of the border made time bombs. What will it take for them to wake up?

[Rango]

"they noticed a plastic smell over a few days" Duh! keep using it till it catches fire.

[rivaridger1]

Called " Whirlpool " HQs Planet Earth not a half hour ago to try and determine what lightbulb to use to replace the one that lights up over the stove. Our Microwave Hood Combination is four years old. The existing bulb was burnt black and had blown up and shattered on top of the lightbulb cover. They list the replacement part as " Lightbulb Hood " in the manual without a part number or wattage indicated. Was on hold off and on for ten minutes when finally being told to just buy an appliance bulb and see what wattage works best. They did not know what bulb belonged in the Microwave they manufactured. You just can not make this stuff up !

[Mrs. Robinson]

Whirlpool microwave electrical fire in Pine Hills new home.
Model WMH73521cs5. Caught fire from inside of top microswitch. Top interlock and cam all melted. Prongs on door assembly melted. This was not a food fire, but an internal electrical problem. Resident noticed a slight plastic smell while using over several days. Thought it was due to being brand new. A few minutes after removing food, flames were seen shooting from right electrical compartment. Unplugged microwave from upper kitchen cabinet.

I'm sure the owners have notified Villages Warranty of this, but they should also advise the Whirlpool Corp. in the event the problem was not the fault of improper wiring or something else electrical.

If the fire dept. was called, they probably have a good idea as to what caused the fire. This is part of what they do.

[Rango]

Called " Whirlpool " HQs Planet Earth not a half hour ago to try and determine what lightbulb to use to replace the one that lights up over the stove. Our Microwave Hood Combination is four years old. The existing bulb was burnt black and had blown up and shattered on top of the lightbulb cover. They list the replacement part as " Lightbulb Hood " in the manual without a part number or wattage indicated. Was on hold off and on for ten minutes when finally being told to just buy an appliance bulb and see what wattage works best. They did not know what bulb belonged in the Microwave they manufactured. You just can not make this stuff up !

Got a bulb at ACE in wildwood. They knew what bulb it uses,

[Mrs. Robinson]

Whirlpool microwave electrical fire in Pine Hills new home.
Model WMH73521cs5. Caught fire from inside of top microswitch. Top interlock and cam all melted. Prongs on door assembly melted. This was not a food fire, but an internal electrical problem. Resident noticed a slight plastic smell while using over several days. Thought it was due to being brand new. A few minutes after removing food, flames were seen shooting from right electrical compartment. Unplugged microwave from upper kitchen cabinet.

Please let us know the cause of this fire.
It's important to know, especially, to those who have this same model microwave.

[tagjr1]

Please let us know the cause of this fire.
It's important to know, especially, to those who have this same model microwave.

How difficult is it to do a search using keywords like the model number and "fire" ?

[Mrs. Robinson]

How difficult is it to do a search using keywords like the model number and "fire" ? :grumpy:

It's not difficult to search, at all.

However, most people other than you, would like to know exactly why this happened with this particular microwave, i.e., what was the cause.

The problem may have been peculiar to this specific microwave and no others.

[Chatbrat]

On the original Dish Washer there is a part that continually fails--its the top spinner-all you have to do is buy a stainless screw and shape it with dremel- we dumped the DW & got a Bosch-what a difference

[Kazmi]

Whirlpool microwave electrical fire in Pine Hills new home.
Model WMH73521cs5. Caught fire from inside of top microswitch. Top interlock and cam all melted. Prongs on door assembly melted. This was not a food fire, but an internal electrical problem. Resident noticed a slight plastic smell while using over several days. Thought it was due to being brand new. A few minutes after removing food, flames were seen shooting from right electrical compartment. Unplugged microwave from upper kitchen cabinet.

WP recalled several series last year due to potential fire hazards. Don't know when this home was built but I hope that TV is coordinating the replacement of any already installed appliance on the recall list in homes that haven't sold yet.....

[tagjr1]

The keywords "model number" and "fire" would most likely zero in on what You are looking for. No other data is required!

[Mrs. Robinson]

The keywords "model number" and "fire" would most likely zero in on what You are looking for. No other data is required!

You've already mentioned this.

Yes -- other data is required, such as eexactly what happened with this particular microwave.

[Nucky]

We had the exact same thing happen in our LG microwave. It was caused by heating up Sweet Potatoes in the Microwave. I am not kidding you. Google and look around I'm sure you will find your exact experience described. Open the front door and look in the center of the inside and look for a burn mark. If it is there you have the same problem we did.

[graciegirl]

On the original Dish Washer there is a part that continually fails--its the top spinner-all you have to do is buy a stainless screw and shape it with dremel- we dumped the DW & got a Bosch-what a difference

I knew that if you got a Bosch that you would tell us.

Here is an article that talks about microwave fires;

Microwaves can be a fire hazard (https://www.consumeraffairs.com/news/microwaves-can-be-a-fire-hazard-040413.html)

[tagjr1]

If You read the articles on the internet You will get the info You seek. This has been an ongoing issue with this model microwave oven for at least 2-3 years. If You have this model do yourself a favor, just for peace of mind, have it replaced.

[Tom53]

The links below detail the model and serial numbers of the recall;

Whirlpool Brand Microwave Hoods in the US | Whirlpool Corp Repair (http://repair.whirlpoolcorp.com/whirlpool-brand-microwave-hoods/)

Whirlpool Recalls Microwaves Due to Fire Hazard | CPSC.gov (https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2016/whirlpool-recalls-microwaves)

You should be eligible for a free replacement.

[jpvillager]

Was at a house where nice kitchen cabinets were installed in the garage BECAUSE the microwave (don't know the brand) caught fire and started a kitchen fire resulting in moving the replaced cabinets to the garage. I now unplug our microwave when we go north.