Microwave will not turn on -- light does not come

There is a huge capacitor inside microwaves, and that description sounds like it is starting to fail. There are smaller capacitors as well. It won't be a door switch, they work or they don't.

I had two Panasonic Commercial microwaves in a pub kitchen, one plain and one was a combination machine and both had drop down doors.

The magnetron in your microwave has probably gone out. The magnetron is the part of the microwave oven that produces microwaves. If you unit is a built in model, it will likely cost more to fix than a new one. Same thing goes for a countertop unit.

Working inside a microwave is not something Average Joe should attempt. There are potentially LETHAL amounts of stored energy that needs to be properly discharged before repairs can begin.

The repairs in this case are more than 60% of a NEW one - so it is advisable to put the $$ toward a new unit with warranty. 2001 makes it 9 years old. Typically manufacturers don't support after 10 years.

Thanks!!

Hello. The problem you will run into is that parts are typically not available after a microwave is ten years old. Also, if you haven't priced new microwaves lately, they have come WAY down in price. You can buy a decent new one for $50.00 at Walmart. I can assure you that the cost of a new one will be less than any attempt at fixing your 14 year old oven. Plus you will find that the new one will cost significantly less to operate and it will have features that you will enjoy.
That said, If you still want to persue a repair you can call ASAP Appliance Repair located at 2021 W. Carson St in Torrance. Phone 310-548-1984
Regards, Joe PS please rate my answer. thank you and happy holidays.

check fuse

Disconnect the connector to the primary winding of the high voltage transformer. Put a new fuse . If the fuse is not blowing the problem may be in the secondary side of the high voltage transformer. Chek the highvoltage diode, capacitor, magnetron respectively. you can also check the primary winding of the low voltage transformer.

> We have been checking our electricity units
Not sure how you are checking but your microwave would blow fuses or trip a breaker if it was drawing more than it did since they are only ~ 50% efficient (any of them) which means a 1000 watt unit is pushing the limits of normal household circuits anyhow.
I bought two Kill-A-Watt power monitors for our two households and we are all happy with their convenience and the ability to quickly check anything that plugs into a standard US outlet and they are plenty accurate enough for us heathens.
Take a look:
Kill-A-Watt power monitor 
I didn't price-shop too much but ours came to only $14 each plus shipping of $10 US.

could be high voltage diode or magnetron

check the control unit and high voltage circuit, and megnetron, high voltage diodes, wiring and high voltage fuse etc.,