Microwaves are the lightest of the big kitchen appliances, so most of them are easy. The exception is the over-the-range kind, which isn’t sitting on anything at all: it hangs on the wall above the stove.
Countertop microwaves
Unplug it, take out the glass turntable plate and its roller ring, and it’s ready. Pack the glass plate separately; it’s the one part that breaks.
Over-the-range microwaves
An over-the-range microwave hangs on a metal mounting plate screwed to the wall, and it’s held up by two or three long bolts that come down through the bottom of the cabinet above it.
- Unplug it. The plug is usually inside the cabinet above.
- Have a second person hold the microwave from below. This step matters; once the bolts are out, nothing else is holding it.
- Remove the bolts from inside the upper cabinet.
- Tilt the microwave forward and lift it off the hooks on the mounting plate.
- Set it down on the counter or the floor.
Before the pickup, it needs to be down from the wall and sitting on the counter or the floor.
A stack of books or a box on the stovetop under the microwave takes some of the weight while the bolts come out, and keeps it from dropping onto the cooktop if a hand slips.
Is it worth a pickup on its own?
A microwave on its own starts at $70, the lowest starting price in the catalog. Added to a pickup that’s already collecting something larger, it costs only its $15 add-on price. That’s why most microwave pickups ride along with the stove, the refrigerator or the rest of a kitchen.
Microwave checklist
- Unplugged
- Glass turntable plate packed separately
- Over-the-range unit down from the wall, with two people
- Mounting bolts and plate set aside
- Booked with anything else from the kitchen
