How hard can it be to change a light bulb? That's the question my wife asked about fixing the burnt out light in the microwave. Sounds like a quick, easy fix, but in a motorhome (as you all know) nothing is quick or easy.
Here's the microwave, a GE JVM1490BH01 in our 2005 Sea Breeze 8321LX.
The interior light bulb burnt out. Online sources say you just need to remove the front upper grill, take out a few screws, remove the light cover, replace light bulb. Notice how the microwave is installed right against the cabinet.
There are 2 small screws holding the grill on, but National installed the microwave so there is no access to the screws. Here's what the screw looks like under the cabinet. You can barely see the screw head.
Bottom line is: in order to change the light bulb you must remove the microwave.
The cabinet above the microwave:
Fascia removed:
There are 2 bolts that secure the microwave to the cabinet:
Right one is near right side on cabinet.:
Left is under the false cabinet floor:
The microwave is secured to the wall with 2 tabs that fit into a frame. Once you remove the 2 screws, the microwave swings down away from the top cabinet. Probably best if you have a second person prepared to help you catch the microwave. It's heavy and lets go with little warning. I braced the bottom of the microwave with 2x4s on each side before removing the 2 screws completely. Gives you some time to get positioned to catch it. This is a basic home style installation of a microwave.
Here's the frame:
Now you can remove the screws and replace the bulb.
Picture of the screws that secure the grill.
The bulb is behind this grill:
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And under these covers:
There's the light cover, pinch it to remove:
And finally the bulb:
Took a few hours to get this done, but now we can see what's cookin'