My GE spacemaker microwave displays SENSOR ERROR everytime i press Reheat everytime i want to warm up leftover

Question

it also makes a high pitched error sound at the same time saying sensor error

all the other microwave functions work fine

its about 5 years old

whats going on ? any ideas to fix? should i not cover the food im trying to warm up? because i cover it with clear plastic

Answer 1

No you should not cover the food tightly because the sensor detects the moisture from the food so the control board can calculate cook times.  When you first start sensor cook, the the fan will come on for a number of seconds to clean the sensor.  This is basically letting air flow over it to remove any steam that might be in the oven.  If it is making the beep as soon as you press sensor cook, the sensor or even possibly the control board is defective.  If the error message comes on later, it is not sensing any moisture given off by the food. Either because there is no steam or the sensor is defective.   You might try boiling some water in the oven for about 5 minutes to clean the sensor but doubt that it would help.