Microwaves aren't the most expensive appliances in the modern kitchen, but it's still well worth making the effort to keep yours in good running order for as long as possible. Following these tips will help extend the life of your microwave with very little effort.

1. Make Sure You Hit Stop

Microwave failures are commonly caused by overheated fuses, switches, and capacitors. It's not that these components are particularly expensive, but they are quite tricky to repair, and many people will simply choose to throw their microwave away instead of going to the bother.

Luckily enough, there's an easy way to prevent those components from burning out: simply remember to press the stop button before you open the door. Most people don't understand that opening a microwave's door before pressing the stop button is actually quite bad for the machine. If you need to open the door before the timer has run down, press the manual stop button, wait for at least five seconds, and only then open the door.

2. Keep it Clean

When was the last time you had a good hard look inside your microwave? It's pretty easy to let grime build up inside; this might not even be that noticeable. However, even a thin coating of grease can impact the microwave's ability to operate.

This is because caked on food can clog up the filters that are used to cycle air through your microwave, and can even cause lasting damage due to radiation burns. Cleaning a microwave isn't too hard. Just wipe down the interior with a wet cloth once every week or so. Doing so will make it run more efficiently and last far longer.

3. Shut the Door

Finally, you'll want to make sure that the microwave's bulb lasts as long as possible. A burnt out lightbulb clearly won't affect the actual performance of the appliance, but it can be extremely annoying if you can't see whether food is boiling over or cooking through.

Most microwaves will leave the lightbulb on for as long as the door is open, so making sure yours lasts longer is as simple as keeping the door closed. Be particularly careful to close it firmly when you're going out for the day.

Ideally, a microwave should be ready to reheat your leftovers and prepare your ready-meals for years to come. All it takes to make sure that happens is a little extra care.