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If your microwave has an auto sensor mode, it automatically senses when food is cooked and ready to remove from the oven. This is a convenient feature that relies on a humidity sensor to monitor your food. Here's how a humidity sensor works, how to tell if it's bad, and how an appliance repair professional can replace a bad sensor.

How Auto Sensor Cooking Works

As food cooks in your microwave, the food releases steam. The humidity sensor detects the amount of steam released and monitors humidity as the steam dwindles during the cooking process. The sensor is precise enough that it can trigger the microwave to begin a countdown as the food is finishing so you can stir the food if necessary for the last few minutes of cooking.

The humidity sensor connects to the control board of your microwave so it can control the timing of the cooking process once it is activated.

How To Tell If The Humidity Sensor Is Bad

If the humidity sensor is bad, the auto sensor cook mode won't work. Your microwave should still work on other manual settings, but when you try to use the auto sensor mode, the microwave will display an error code rather than turn on.

How The Humidity Sensor Is Replaced

If the microwave displays an error code indicating that the sensor is bad, then the sensor needs to be replaced. Microwaves have capacitors in them that hold a high voltage charge even when the oven is unplugged, so DIY repairs can be dangerous if you aren't experienced in working with electrical parts. Instead, you can take your microwave to an appliance repair shop or have an appliance repair technician come to your home to replace the bad sensor.

The sensor is a small part that has a wire attached. It's not too expensive, so it's worth replacing the sensor rather than buying a new microwave. The appliance repair technician has to remove the cover from the microwave to reach the sensor and the control board. Then the technician discharges the electricity from the capacitors so it's safe to work inside the oven.

Next, the sensor can be unscrewed and pulled out once the end of the wire is disconnected from the control board. A new sensor is then put in by attaching the wiring and screwing the sensor in place and reattaching the microwave case panels. It doesn't take too long to replace a bad humidity sensor, and once the new sensor is in place, the microwave is plugged in and tested to make sure the auto sensor cooking mode functions as it should.