About Donovan Fandre Expertise I had the only
nationally televised cooking series on microwave cooking that aired on
PBS and The Learning Channel for 8 years and I`ve also written 5 best
selling microwave cookbooks. I have been cooking by microwave for over 30 years and have accumulated expertise in cooking, defrosting, reheating, craft activities with microwave, dehydrating, and generally everything and anything pertaining to microwave use.
Experience
Past/Present clients Rubbermaid, Del Monte, Alaska Fish & Seafood, Sugar Council, LG Electronics
Question Hi Donovan,
We have a Panasonic 1300W microwave whose magnetron failed. Fortunately I had a spare unit of the same model and simply replaced it. I believe this oven operates continuously albeit at lower power inputs when you adjust the power level, rather than cycling the full power on and off to achieve a lower average power setting. If this is the case, would the magnetron last longer if it were operated at 70-80% power or less (of course for proportionately longer times) rather than at 100% power for less time. It seems to me that 1300W is probably pushing the limit particularly for longer time periods.
Also, do you know where to find vendors of replacement magnetrons other than the manufacturer service center, where the price for a replacement might be lower?
Thanks for your advice.
Roland
PS I am an 'expert' in the Chrysler auto repair category. Thanks for volunteering you time and knowledge.
Answer Hey Roland, I'm a microwave cook and my knowledge of the technical aspects of microwave ovens is limited however I seem to remember that one of the claims by Panasonic was that their inverter technology was supposed to prolong the life of the magnetron. I googled Panasonic inverter magnetron and got a lot of info on replacement parts and some on the magnetron function. Most all of microwave cooking is done on full power so I don't think the few times you use reduced power will affect tube longevity but I can't state that as fact. Enjoy!
