Microwave, stop me being paranoid..or my DP blowing himself up

[SupremeDreamz]

We have an old microwave, more than ten years. I have shied away from replacing it for the sake of it since if it's not actually broken that seems wasteful.

Just decided to pacify my hangover with a slice of re-heated pizza (classy) and put it on for 30 seconds. After 10 seconds there was a very, very strong and toxic smell, even with a door open in the kitchen it didn't seem to clear very quickly. I pinged it off. The smell eventually cleared and I thought I saw a trace of whiteish smoke when I originally pinged it off and opened the door.

I have experienced being in a house fire before and the smell really reminded me of that, certainly not burnt food, a much more chemical and immediate smell.

The first thing my DP will want to do is turn it on to check it, but I am worried about what could happen!

Should this microwave be disposed of right away with no checking or could I be mistaken/is it worth checking?

Do you have a safety switch in your house?
I probably wouldn't turn it on again tbh. Bin it and buy a new one.

Was there anything metallic in there? Wrapping on the pizza? Is the turntable working - if not maybe one spot inside got much too hot. Could it have been cleaned recently with a chemical cleaning product of some kind? Has it been moved - could its vents be blocked?

If you can't see an obvious problem I would try wiping it down with water all over, then very carefully microwaving a microwave -safe test object which you watch like a hawk. But I am purely an amateur who is stubborn and has a death wish.

I am an engineer and have electrical qualifications. Get rid of your microwave! Any plasticky or acrid smells or hint of fumes/smoke mean that there's an electrical failure inside.

@cantsleepwithnofan I will check about the switch. I am inclined to agree with you really, sleep well sweet microwave prince!

@CountessVonBoobs The turntable has stopped working actually, I noticed that yesterday but today I only had it on for literally 10 seconds before I noticed the smell. It's currently unplugged so I'll have a good check later when I'm feeling brave enough to put my face in it XD

@BobbinThreadbare123 Ok, will do! The smell was certainly as you describe.