Trigger warning: Extreme stupidity detailed below.

I was replacing the waveguide cover / mica plate in my microwave, and needed some light to see what I was doing, so used my phone torch with the phone propped against the inside of the microwave.

Finished putting the waveguide cover in place, popped a packet of rice in and turned on the microwave.

The music playing out my bluetooth speaker next to the microwave starting cracking up, “oh weird, guess microwave leakage is messing with the bluetooth waves” I thought.

Then I realised “FUCK my phone’s still in there”, opened the microwave and took it out. Judging by the display on the microwave it was in there for 19 seconds at 800W.

The phone was hot, but not crazy hot, less hot than it gets playing Hearthstone Battlegrounds on low graphics lmao. And it seems to still work (wifi, 4g, bluetooth, camera, everything). And the microwave is still intact.

So I’m kinda surprised at how okay everything seems right now, given that googling about it shows that other people have irreversibly broken their phones after like 2 seconds of accidental microwaving, and that you can set a microwave on fire by putting metal in it.

The phone was on the edge of the microwave in an opaque silicone case, which I guess means it didn’t receive as many microwaves as if it was in the middle, and also didn’t reflect microwaves like crazy because there wasn’t much exposed reflective surface?

My question is: how likely is it that I’ve done unseen damage to my phone or microwave such that they are no longer safe to use?

I’m worried about the integrity of the phone battery, the microwave magnetron, microwave shielding, etc. Although everything seems to work right now, if there’s an increased chance of my phone or microwave randomly exploding / setting fire in the future then I’d like to replace them.

Any help or speculation appreciated! If this is the wrong place to post please direct me somewhere else. Thank you :)

  • Superseaslug@alien.top
    BEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    The thing is, I can see myself doing this. Don’t feel too bad, just try and do better next time lol.

  • European_Fox@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Microwave heats food from the outside and the waves only hit specific spots - this is why it spins so it can heat up evenly on all sides so your phone must have been in a safe spot.

    If the screen was facing down, it’s likely the case of the phone absorbed most of the heat. If the case is not melted, I wouldn’t worry.

    If the screen was facing upwards, it may have only slightly warmed the glue keeping it in place.

    The danger is mostly phones that have metal frames and/or backs, I am guessing that even if your phone has any exterior parts made of aluminium, the plastic case protected it.

    Worst case scenario for you would have been the plastic cover melting away exposing the metal frame/back, that would have made some fireworks.

  • unoriginal_namejpg@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    I would advise you to change the battery asap, as that can go boom (even if it hasnt yet the microwave definitely didnt decrease the risk). Other than that just keep an eye out for any oddness. Eg overly hot when charging/general use.

    If you notice anything out of the ordinary take it to a shop to get it checked out

  • Complex_Solutions_20@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    I would at MINIMUM have the phone battery replaced. You don’t want a random-later Lithium-Ion battery fire in your pocket (or even house anywhere for that matter). Most mainstream phones there are lots of mall kiosks and small stores that can swap a battery for you.

    Kinda surprised if the bluetooth/wifi radios especially survived that, and I would assume there is yet undiscovered damage to the phone.

    Microwaves with metal in them for short runtime isn’t going to blow anything up, especially if the metal isn’t arcing to the case of the microwave.

    Microwave shielding is just sheetmetal with small holes to see thru, if its not visibly burned thru by arcs or something its fine…you would have noticed arcing - its loud and bright. Magnetron maybe had a little life taken off it but if it works no point in worrying.

  • leolego2@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Changing the battery at Samsung should be very cheap for you, like 50 bucks and that’s it. No need to worry about the rest if it’s working already

  • DeusExRobotics@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    You haven’t said what kind of phone you have and I’m too sick to go digging for info.
    Anyway, try running the manufacture diagnostics area and see if your cellular connectivity passes, then Bluetooth, then battery. Finally check your of GPS which I bet is kinda wonky and needs to be re-calibrated.

    Microwaves are kinda magic so… you might have pulled a hat trick.
    Meanwhile I know a guy who microwaved one for less then a minuet and it turned into a useless smoking brick.