SaferProducts incident

Failure type

Fire / ignition

Incident narrative

SaferProducts.gov consumer incident report 20170118-D9E94-2147407929. Severity: Incident, No Injury. Matched catalog product: GE JVM6175SF1SS. Source model text: JVM6175SF1SS over the range microwave. Incident: I wanted to make you aware of the fire hazard danger that exists with this OTR microwave. This was a brand new unit in our new built home 2 1/2 years ago. Recently my wife called me while I was away from the house because it was making strange noises. No one was using the unit, there was no time on the display, the inside light was off, she could smell something burning and the inside of the oven was extremely hot. she could not even touch the inside walls or the turntable. I had her unplug the unit and investigated later upon returning home. I put a small pat of butter on a paper plate inside the oven, closed the door and plugged it into the power outlet. The unit appeared to be off, but I could hear the magnetron running and the butter was melted. While the door was open, the magnetron was still engaged and running. I opened and closed the door several times in rapid succession, and the control panel went dark (off). The unit is now unplugged permanently, but this is a MAJOR FIRE HAZARD. Had my wife and kids been sleeping when this happened, my family could have suffered major injuries or have been killed.