Need microwave repair help...

So here is my dilemma...I'm renting a house with three other guys. The house came furnished and with appliances. Well, as things moved along throughout our year-long lease, the appliances received a fair amount of use/abuse.

The hinge that holds the microwave door onto the actual microwave box has started to break loose and give. It has two push-like tabs that hold the door in place, with guide holes but no mounting solutions. I don't know if its tacked together from the inside or what, but there doesn't seem to be any access to it, not from the front (looking straight onto it with the door open) or from the bottom (taking off the access panel for the fans and the light).

I was thinking maybe using some pop-rivets to hold the hinge to the door frame, but was looking for some board handyman help....thanks in advance! (also, I cant seem to find a part number or whatnot to replace it )

Similar to this one, see how the hinge is not really accessible to repair or brace?

I'm pretty pissed someone broke it too btw...

that's the cleanest microwave I ever seen

In reply to fasted58: Haha, yeah, they're stock photo's from the internet...but to be honest, I try to keep it pretty clean...a semi-soapy-wet dish rag, nuked for 15 seconds, and the thing cleans up nicely...its just broke :(

leave the door off and jam something in the hole that tells it the door is shut.. what could possibly go wrong?

It was probably spot welded to the frame. To get to it you will have to pull the entire cover off the machine. Just make sure you put everything back where it belongs. The shielding is kind of important. Nuking yourself probably isn't fun.

it's a great way to warm up first thing in the morning though!

I agree.. pull it out of the cabinent, take the cover off, and see where the hinges are. I bet you can drill and poprivit them with no issues

In reply to novaderrik: It works, but the hinge is loose and wobbly, kinda wanting to come off...not a sensor issue.

In reply to Toyman01 and mad_machine: Any way you think to fix it without taking it all out and apart? Don't want a huge fixerup project...

In reply to Datsun1500: The issue with that is that it isn't my microwave to replace. The people we are renting from own the furniture and appliance that we are using, and I just want to fix it back to original working order...

Thanks for the suggestions guys, I was afraid that there was no easy(er) fix

Mix up some JB weld and pack it in the cabinet thru the hole the hinge comes out of. Just don't get any on the hinge pin or your hootus.

If it's normal wear and tear, ask the landlord for a new one.

If y'all broke it, replace it.

$60 is sure a lot better than radiation exposure from a crappy door repair. You're not going to have much success with poprivets if you can't access it.

20 bucks from each roomie should get y'all a decent unit, that's not much to ask

I would not open it. The devil is inside. When microwave ovens came out, Dad ran out and bought a jumbo Panasonic oven. It lasted until the warranty was up and quit working. I remember him riding it around in the back of his Dodge Aspen station wagon for a while before he had a chance to get it to Rudy Woods Appliance repair in Rome GA. He got upset when they did not have it timely repaired....until he learned that a capacitor (with stored electricity) inside the oven nearly killed the repair man. Put him in the hospital for 2 weeks. Dad sent flowers and a "Get Well Soon Card".